David Brearley: A Passionate Patriot

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David Brearley was a passionate patriot. He denounced British policies and was well known in New Jersey because of it. Brearley was born in 1745 at Spring Grove and later attended the nearby College of New Jersey (Princeton). However, he never graduated from Princeton. Before and after he was a delegate, Brearley practiced law. This would serve him well because he would later be appointed chief-justice of New Jersey by George Washington, the president himself. Brearley was also a dedicated Episcopalian and served as a delegate at the Episcopal General Convention. He is also known for his work on the Episcopal prayer book. He served as a colonel in the New Jersey militia and engaged in battle in the New Jersey lines during the fight for independence from Britain. He fought at the battle of Germantown, Monmouth, and the Battle of Brandywine. In addition, Brearley was at Valley Forge …show more content…
He was very passionate when it came to the issue of state representation. He believed that each state should get one vote in congress instead of having the votes proportional to the state’s population. He didn’t want the vote to be based on population because Brearley believed that his state with such a small population would seem trivial compared to the other states and that they would swallow the small state of New Jersey up when it came to voting. Determining matters such as the term length and powers of the president were the responsibility of the committee of Postponed matters (the Brearley committee). David Brearley was the chairman of this committee. Nicholas Gilman, Rufus King, Roger Sherman, Gouverneur Morris, John Dickinson, Charles Carol, James Madison, Hugh Williamson, Pierce Butler, and Abraham Baldwin were also part of the committee. They proposed the idea of the Electoral College. This is considered the committee’s most important