Representative Democracy Dbq

Think of the word tyrant. Now just imagine that there was a simple and easy way to stop him or her. That’s what the constitution has done for the U.S.A. Our Constitution has protected us against tyranny since the day it was drafted. The constitution is an official document that was written in May 1787 in the city of Philadelphia Pennsylvania. The purpose of the constitution is to form a central federal government, to form a separation between federal and state rights, and to give personal liberties to its citizens.

Escaping from a corrupt government that England had oppressing them for many years, both Winthrop and Penn wanted a government which was self-governing and a government that was just for people. These early types of government would later help the creation of the government that would being the United States.

The United States would lose its name and stand divided if the Constitution did not bring the thirteen colonies into one body. Within this governing body, fears arise from the difficulty of controlling power in a central government, while still trying to keep unity between the states. Understanding that the United States was formed based on the people’s irritation with the corruption of the control of power in England, the Constitution reassured the people that their freedoms were going to be kept, but it required their trust. The founders of the United States Constitution established a just government through encompassing equal representation, with the people as the foundation, and protecting the injustices that could arise with the misuse of power.

A1: Though the three English colonial regions—the Chesapeake area, New England, and Pennsylvania—were all relatively close to each other, there were stark differences between them. To begin with, they all had very different government structures. In the Chesapeake area, the government closely resembled that of England where power resided in one individual. In England there was a king while in Maryland, there was a royal governor. In both cases, the ruling individual had control over all branches of the government; however, the successor of the first governor in Maryland soon realized that colonists would not enjoy fewer liberties in the colonies than at home. Hence, Cecilius Calvert gave up their rights to initiate all colonial laws and shifted power to the people by governing by their advice and with consent. On the other hand, in New England, government was theocratic in nature where church and state were synonymous and where power resided in the leaders of the church. In addition, the Pennsylvanians had a much more democratic government structure where there was a proprietor and a legislative assembly that gave the people the right to appoint government officials—one of many rights that

During the time of the Revolutionary War, the American Colonies were upset about the England’s tyrannical rule and exploitation through harsh taxes. Eventually, the colonists revolted and split from England. They wrote the Declaration of Independence and created a new government whose outlines were written in the Articles of Confederation. Unfortunately, the Articles of Confederation had an overall negative impact, as it created a weak central government, a poor financial system, and inadequate militias. There are more disadvantages than advantages to this document.

The Constitution guarded against tyranny by giving the states individual freedom. To become a new nation the colonists needed some form of government, so they formed the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation was the first plan of government for the United States beginning during the Revolutionary War, but it had many weaknesses and just wasn't working for the people. One weakness the Articles of Confederation had was that there was no court system.   Another weakness was that the central government could not force a state to pay taxes.

By doing this they set up a system of checks and balances to make sure no branch of government had more power than another. “The constant aim is to divide and arrange the several offices in such a manner as that they may be a check on the other” (2009 DBQ Project Page 105). This quote by James Madison explains what a check and balance system does. It is the responsibility of each branch of government to check on the other two branches to make sure all the branches are equal. For example, if the legislative branch passes a bill that the President thinks is not feasible the President has the right to veto that bill and send it back to the legislative branch.

The Constitution was established under the disquietude of the colonies in an endeavor to escape the idea of the English monarchy. The Founding fathers no longer wanted an excessive amount of control in the hands of the government. In order to limit the power of the federal government the Founding Fathers created the three branches, checks and balances, and the Bill of Rights.

During the Revolutionary War, Congress formed our first written Constitution as a way to help strengthen our nation and provide a way for our country to be run. The Articles of Confederation had a few basic strengths in place. However, there were also some weaknesses in it as well. The Articles of Confederation had a few basic strengths. It was instrumental in uniting the original thirteen colonies under one cause.

Jonathan Winthrop had a dream and belief in forming a pious and holy colony in Massachusetts. As a Puritan Winthrop felt that most of the world was corrupt as they did not share his Puritan beliefs. This is why he wanted these colonies

The pilgrims said “ we should combine together in one civil body politic, for better ordering and preservation and by virtue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame such just and equal laws , ordinances , acts, constitutions,offices from time to time as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the colony.” , which basically means that uniting under one government and having equality will better off the colonies. The Inhabitants of connecticut beliefs about unification were similar with the pilgrims beliefs, they said that “to maintain the peace and union of such a people there should be and orderly and decent government established”, which basically means that having a good central government would keep the colonies at peace. On the issue of security The William Penn, plan of union ,1697 that applies to the english colonies in the north( Boston, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and the Carolinas)says that “two representatives appointed by each province meet at least once in two year in times of peace to hear and adjust all matters of complaint or difference between province and province...to consider the ways and means to support the union and safety of these provinces against the public enemies.” which means that the congress formed by the representatives will protect each

The constitution is a distinguished american document because the men of the eighteenth century put so much effort into fabricating it. After declaring their freedom from England with the Declaration of Independance the colonies needed to form their own government. It would not be a king. The congressmen worked strenuously to create the fairest government for everyone—deliberately excluding a king from their plan. They debated and compromised until the constitution was just right. Proudly the gentlemen called the new government a federal republic. In this type of government the people, who are citizens of America, voted for lawmakers and representatives. The people could choose representatives they thought would

This fresh, new foundation came in the form a document that outlined the way the government would work. Unlike the way Europe was governed before the Enlightenment period, Americans, since they had recently liberated themselves from the British throne, wanted to establish a government in such a way that would prevent tyrannical monarchy. By this time, they still were faced with the challenge of a republican self government. But again, we see the influence of Locke’s ideas from his Treatise, where he proposed that people had the right to establish their own government for their own protection of their natural rights. As a result of this idea, the preamble to the Constitution was created. This section provided analysis as to what the whole Constitution was about; improvement on the current government (to ensure that they are just) and protection for its citizens.

The Constitution created a powerful National government by dividing the three branches of government and limiting the government from

Under this new document, power is distributed between the states and the federal government with the federal government having more power. The central government was granted eighteen enumerated powers, which are listed in Article 1, section 8 in the constitution, and all powers not listed there a granted to the state, according to the tenth amendment. Since the federal government was given the vast majority of power, the founders split the government into three different branches, Executive Branch, which enforces the laws, the Legislative Branch, which makes our laws, and the Judicial Branch which interprets laws according to the Constitution. At that time people were outraged and it split the nation in half, and people were either federalists, who supported the Constitution or the anti-federalists, which were not in favor of the constitution. The main reason that the country was divided due to the constitution was not having a bill of rights. After the founders edited the constitution and added a bill of rights, the constitution was accepted and it became the supreme law of the