The Massachusetts Compromise was a solution reached in a controversy between Federalists and Anti-Federalists over the ratification of the United States Constitution.
The compromise helped gather enough support for the Constitution to ensure its ratification and led to the adoption of the first ten amendments, the Bill of Rights.
Anti-Federalists feared the Constitution would lead to an over-centralized government and diminish individual rights and liberties.
When efforts to ratify the Constitution encountered serious opposition in Massachusetts, two noted anti-Federalists, John Hancock and Samuel Adams, helped negotiate a compromise.
The anti-Federalists agreed to support ratification, with the understanding that they would put forth recommendations for amendments should the document go into effect.