So what is the Constitution, and what is the history of how it became what it is today? First I will discuss what the Constitution is exactly. The Constitution requires the government to protect our rights. It is viewed as a contract, and we the people have our part of the contract, and the government has their part of the contract. We need to hold the government accountable on what they have agreed to do, in securing our rights. The foundation of what led up to the Constitution is the following. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are actually designed to work together. They are separate documents by years. The principles of the Constitution are actually laid out in the Declaration of Independence.
So how and why were
…show more content…
That the government would pay and own up to the powers they used. So, because of all of this, they had an idea to have a limited government. This would mean that the government would have limited power on what they can and cannot do. Between the years of 1760-1805 there was a study of American Political Writings. This study was called the Lutz/Hyneman study. From the results of this study they seen who had the most influence to the people. A guy named Baron de Montesquieu had the most influence. He wrote “The Spirit of Laws”, which had an influence on the people. Montesquieu distinguished four forms of government. Monarch, Aristocracy, Republic, and Despotism. He believed that each one of these descriptions of government, showed how they each worked. For example Monarchy meant honor. Aristocracy meant moderation. Republic meant virtue. Despotism meant fear. Montesquieu also discovered the separation of powers. These three branches are still known today. Legislative which makes the laws. Executive which enforces the laws. Judicial which applies the law in a specific case. Another man named Sir William Blackstone wrote “Commentaries on the Laws of England”. This became very popular to America because we didn’t have these kind of laws or structure. The British didn’t have an actual written Constitution, but everyone knew by tradition. If you wanted to be a lawyer back in those years, you wouldn’t go to law school. Instead you would have
During the early years of our nation, there was struggle to finding a government that worked for the people. In the late 18th century philosophers began to strongly criticize the governments that were being dominated by monarchy and imperialism. The new beliefs in democracy, freedom for individuals of society, and the importance of human interactions led to the makings of the Constitution. Even though the ideas coming from everyone was far from an agreement, they were certain on their admiration of direct democracy and the restraints on that democracy. Their challenge in creating a government, was to strike a balance between liberty and order. Many documents built the Declaration of Independence and the Virginia Declaration of Rights. For example, Second Treatise of Civil Government, The Spirit of Laws, Social Contract, The Virginia Declaration of Rights, and Common Sense.
The U.S Constitution and the Declaration of Independence are very different in their objectives and personal appeal. Since it was established the U.S. Constitution has been the foundation for the U.S. Government. The U.S. Constitution has been designated the supreme law of the country. The Declaration
The U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence are two very important documents in the founding of our nation. This essay compares how these two documents are linked together, but also how they are clearly different. Though both documents were created near the same time, the Declaration of Independence was actually written first. It was written by Thomas Jefferson and was adopted by congress on July 4, 1776, what we know today as Independence Day. The U.S constitution though, was not adopted until eleven years later in 1787. After these two documents were written, Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to the Danbury Baptists in 1801.
In comparing Thomas Jefferson’s Letter to the Danbury Baptists, The Declaration of Independence, and U.S. Constitution, it is evident that the basis of all three documents is the idea that all human beings possess God-given fundamental rights and that government is created to protect those rights. The Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson in 1776, is the first of the three documents penned. This is important because it defined the rights of liberty and equality of all American citizens as outlined in John Locke’s natural law thesis (Martin, page 113). In addition to providing an itemized account of the grievances colonist’s held against King George III of England, it served to justify the colonist’s quest for independence and separation from British rule. The Declaration of Independence conveyed to the crown that "all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, which among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." The Founders’ of the New World understood that their pursuit of liberties and autonomy specified in the Declaration of Independence could not come to fruition without instituting decrees. In 1787, the U.S. Constitution, was written to replace the Articles of Confederation with a better defined series of stringent laws that would legally uphold the freedoms and privileges established in the Declaration of Independence. The First Amendment of the Bill of Rights in
A constitution is the fundamental principles of government in a nation, either implied in its laws, institutions, and customs, or embodied in one fundamental document. The U.S. Constitution was completed on September 17, 1789 and has served as a model for the constitutions of many other nations. The constitution of the United States of America is the oldest written national constitution in use and consists of twenty-seven amendments.
The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are two significant documents that transformed the history of the United States. The people of the “New World” went from being ruled by British law and living in the thirteen colonies, to becoming an independent nation with a democratic government. The Declaration was written to ensure that all official ties with its mother country, Great Britain, were suspended indefinitely. It then went on to describe the concepts and ideologies behind a just and fair government. The Constitution, however, outlined how the newly democratic government would operate. In 1776, after the Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia, a verdict was made that the only constructive way to ensure independence as a nation would be to declare independence from King George III, Parliament, and Great Britain. The colonists sought to fashion a clear, detailed document, known as the Declaration of Independence, which stated why the people chose to move in this direction as well as providing several arguments to support their case. This world-renown document is a symbol of the unity between the 13 colonies during their fight for independence during the American Revolutionary War.
The Constitution is one of the most important document of the United States of America along with the Declaration of Independence. In the Constitution, the founding fathers and the government also included a set of "rights" entitled, The Bill of Rights. In The Bill of Rights, citizens of the U.S. are given rights, amendments, that make the U.S a "free" country today. This system has provided many citizens with rights such as, allowing them to express their religion and free speech and protect their privacy with no officials is allowed to search someone 's belongings unless there is a warrant that states reason. There are many more amendments besides the two listed and each of them are of equal importance to balance the power between the
For many years now, Americans have intended to resolve the conflict regarding to attempt to strike a balance between preserving individual rights and forming a strong lasting union. In reality, the balance between these two topics may always remain intact and finding a solution for both may be difficult to achieve. Though it may be crucial which of the two topics benefits the country more, authors, characters, and founders, have made solid statements that give their own opinion that demonstrate why both of these topics are fundamental to our everyday life as Americans.
While both Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution contain important information regarding America 's independence they are also different in many respects. Drafted by Thomas Jefferson, the Declaration of is Independence one of the nation 's most cherished symbols of liberty and Thomas Jefferson 's most enduring monument. "Each colony sent delegates to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1774 to form the First
When the founding fathers wrote the Constitution and Declaration of Independence, they wrote them with the future in mind. In the newspaper and TV headlines today, many of the topics in the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence are even more relevant and hotly debated today than back then. But they each have a different purpose and handle many topics differently. This essay will compare the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution in three areas: style, structure, and tone, the topic of religion and government, and the issue of African slavery.
Actually, the Declaration of Independence contains elementary principles behind the revolutionary action. The document forces the importance of independence of individuals and their liberty to decide on their method of life. During this regard, it's attainable to trace parts of law and accord principles, that were vital for Thomas Jefferson and that he tried to implement within the U.S.A.. At identical
Lots of gentlemen with suits gathered in a large meeting room ,bench of peoples standing as well, some peoples were sitting, but all of them was up to the same important idea . Visually, dedicated honor in supporting of independence. It was the biggest moment for the US in which will be known as the period of time where the county was found.
The Declaration of Independence brought America its independence, and it self, as well as our constitution. The declaration of independence had many positive effects on America. The Declaration of Independence is the usual name of a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. This stated that the thirteen American colonies, called themselves the thirteen newly independent sovereign states, and that they were no longer a part of the British Empire. Instead of staying in the British Empire, they formed a new nation; the United States of America. Many people wanted independence, but John Adams really believe in and pushed for independence. America’s independence was approved on July 2, 1776. A committee of five had already wrote a draft of the declaration, so it was ready when Congress voted on independence. The term "Declaration of Independence" is not used in the document itself, but is explained and perceived.
The Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution are two major documents that changed the history of America. These documents changed the United States of America from a colonized nation to an independent nation that has its own government. The Declaration of Independence was written towards Great Britain on July 4, 1776, to show America is now a free state and no longer a colony of Britain (Ferling 222). On the other hand, the United States Constitution was signed in 1878 led to the formation of federal governments, which provided the right for each state to practice its own rule under the US Constitution (Ritchie 11). Without either of these documents, the United States government wouldn’t be as strong as it is today and probably
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.