Randolph, Edmund, 1753-1813

Edmund Jennings Randolph (August 10, 1753 – September 12, 1813) was an American attorney and politician. He was the 7th Governor of Virginia, and, as a delegate from Virginia, he attended the Constitutional Convention and helped to create the national constitution while serving on its Committee of Detail. He was the first United States Attorney General (1789-1794) and the second Secretary of State (1794-1795) during George Washington's presidency.

Born in Williamsburg in the Colony of Virginia, Randolph graduated from the College of William and Mary before reading law under his father and uncle. During the American Revolutionary War, he served in the Revolutionary Army and was an aide-de-camp to George Washington. In 1776, Randolph served as attorney general of Virginia. He was selected as one of 11 delegates to represent Virginia at the Continental Congress in 1779 and served as a delegate that year, in 1781 and in 1782. Randolph also remained in private law practice, handling numerous legal issues for Washington and others. In 1786, he was elected as Governor of Virginia and served as a Delegate to the Annapolis Convention. As a delegate from Virginia to the Constitutional Convention, Randolph introduced the Virginia Plan as an outline for a new national government. Though refusing to sign the Constitution, Randolph nevertheless reversed his position at the Virginia Ratifying Convention in 1788 and guided the state to adopt the document.

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