At the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, the framers laid out a plan for a federal government composed of three branches, including an independent judiciary that would be separate from the legislative and executive branches. Article III of the proposed constitution contained a broad framework for the judicial branch, leaving room for Congress to fill in the details. The article provided for a supreme court and such inferior courts as "the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish." The Constitution was silent on the subject of judicial administration, leaving that to the discretion of Congress as well. On June 21, 1788, New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify the Constitution, thereby putting Article III into effect and authorizing Congress to create the federal judicial system and provide for its administration.