Apr 29

Apr 29 Robert Goldsborough Recommends a Government to Washington

Robert Goldsborough was too ill to attend the Constitutional Convention, but sent along his plan for a Federal Government anyway.

Robert Goldsborough

Robert Goldsborough was a leading Maryland attorney who should have been present to sign three of American’s Founding Documents but, by chance, was absent for all three events.

The third of these, the Constitutional Convention, was the one he most likely would have left the greatest impact on.

Goldsborough was too ill to attend the Convention and would in fact die the following year.

However, Robert knew how significant the moment was and felt compelled to chime in with his opinion.

To His Excellency

Goldsborough wrote to ‘His Excellency George Washington President of the Convention in Philadelphia’ anonymously, only addressing himself as ‘The Author’. (A big shout out to Harrisburg Mayor Eric Papenfuse for determining who was ‘The Author’.)

Robert’s correspondence is extremely interesting to dissect for several reasons.

Most notably, perhaps, is his acknowledgement of how great the work of the Convention was.

It is an important reminder that the eyes of the United States were on this body who were meeting in secret to plan out the future of the nation.

Keeping Congress

Goldsborough goes on to lay out a full plan of government for Washington.

He promotes the idea of a federal government. Though he believes most of the powers should remain with the States, he was under the impression that it should be treated like a real government with three separate branches.

Furthermore, Robert insisted that the Continental Congress as it then stood should be elected and operated essentially the same to serve as the Legislative Branch.

The major difference, however, comes with the Executive and Judicial Branches.

Branching Out

For the Executive, Goldsborough thought Congress should choose a President with a Cabinet of thirteen people...one from each State.

Interestingly, he used the term Governor (which could easily have been the title given instead of President, but the Framers believed it implied too much power).

Robert suggested that the members of the Executive Branch should only receive one year terms and the essence of their responsibility be to carry out the desires of Congress on the back of a professional army.

For the Judicial Department, Goldsborough’s suggestion mimics the Supreme Court that we eventually received, with Justices being appointed by the Executive Branch and remaining in their position for life.

There are, however, significant limitations, with the Judges having an extremely limited jurisdiction.

An Interesting Perspective

In the end, Goldsborough’s desires are somewhere between the two parties that would soon emerge during the ratification debates.

Robert promoted a Central Government with three separate branches and the ability to raise taxes and assemble an army.

On the other hand, he was very clear that the limits on the Federal Government should be specifically defined, something many Anti-Federalists heartily criticized during the ratification process.

Either way, reviewing Goldsborough’s ideas just as the Constitutional Convention was called into session gives a poignant overview of the hard thought being put into how a government should operate throughout the United States.

If you would like to read Goldsborough’s brief outline of a government, you can do so for free here.

Robert Goldsborough is just one of dozens of obscure Founders I’ve covered on this website.

Here are a few other examples:

“If They Fired Thro’ His Arse” - Luther Baldwin Insults President Adams

Capturing Correspondence - Turbutt Wright Responds to a Mail Robbery

It is very hard to find information on today’s Founder because there in an author of mystery books also named Robert Goldsborough.

I came across the ‘Nero Wolfe’ series so many times during my research I decided to do something totally random and recommend his books instead.

If you’d like a copy you can pick one up through the Amazon affiliate link below (you’ll support this site, but don’t worry, Amazon pays me while your price stays the same).