Article VII details the requirements for the original establishment of the Constitution. Rather than demanding unanimous consent from all thirteen states — which had paralyzed the Articles of Confederation — this article dictated that the ratification by the conventions of nine states would be sufficient to establish the Constitution among the states choosing to ratify it.

Deliberations took place in specialized state conventions elected by the people, bypassing state legislatures to ground the new government in popular sovereignty. The document became operational in June 1788 when New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify. It was fully completed with signatures on September 17, 1787, by George Washington and thirty-eight other delegates representing twelve states, with Rhode Island refusing to send a delegation.