Benjamin Franklin, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, had a complex relationship with the Three-Fifths Compromise. This compromise, reached during the Constitutional Convention of 1787, counted three-fifths of the enslaved population for both representation and taxation purposes. While Franklin was a delegate at the convention, his personal views on the compromise are not entirely clear.
Franklin was known for his opposition to slavery in his later years. He became an abolitionist and served as the president of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society. Given his stance against slavery, it is likely that Franklin had reservations about the Three-Fifths Compromise, which implicitly acknowledged and perpetuated the institution of slavery.
However, Franklin was also a pragmatist who understood the need for compromise to ensure the unity and stability of the new nation. The Three-Fifths Compromise was a contentious issue, and without it, the Southern states might not have agreed to the new Constitution. Franklin, along with other delegates, may have seen it as a necessary evil to achieve a stronger federal government.
In summary, while Benjamin Franklin likely had personal reservations about the Three-Fifths Compromise due to his opposition to slavery, he probably supported it as a practical solution to ensure the ratification of the Constitution and the formation of the United States.