Influences on the Constitution
Influences on the Constitution
The Constitution was adopted on September 17, 1787, by the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and ratified by conventions in eleven States. It went into effect on March 4, 1789. The historical influences behind the constitution included Aristotle, the Magna Carta, the writings of John Locke, and the English Bill of Rights from 1689.
The Magna Carta was written in 1215. It was the first document to challenge the authority of the king, subjecting him to the rule of the law and protecting nobles from feudal abuse. When Englishmen went to the colonies they were given charters that guaranteed them and their heirs would “have and enjoy all liberties and immunities of free and natural subjects.” The document clearly stated that no free man could be prosecuted by any means other than the law of the land. The Magna Carta’s fundamental rights and principles included due process of law and trial by jury. Taking a cue from the document more than five centuries later, American revolutionaries incorporated many of the Magna Carta's basic ideas into another important piece of parchment – the U.S. Constitution. Another important document was the Mayflower Compact. Drawn up by the 41 adult males from the Mayflower, the new settlers from Plymouth created a contract with fair and equal laws, for the “general good”. They had traveled across the ocean on the ship Mayflower which was anchored in what is now Provincetown Harbor near Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The Mayflower settlers knew from previous attempts without some type of government they would fail. It allowed them to practice Protestant instead of the Church of England and other liberties without command. The Mayflower Compact was drawn up with fair and equal laws, for the general good of the settlement and with the will of the majority. The Constitution was based on the same principles of the Mayflower Compact. All men are created equal and endowed with unalienable
The Constitution was adopted on September 17, 1787, by the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and ratified by conventions in eleven States. It went into effect on March 4, 1789. The historical influences behind the constitution included Aristotle, the Magna Carta, the writings of John Locke, and the English Bill of Rights from 1689.
The Magna Carta was written in 1215. It was the first document to challenge the authority of the king, subjecting him to the rule of the law and protecting nobles from feudal abuse. When Englishmen went to the colonies they were given charters that guaranteed them and their heirs would “have and enjoy all liberties and immunities of free and natural subjects.” The document clearly stated that no free man could be prosecuted by any means other than the law of the land. The Magna Carta’s fundamental rights and principles included due process of law and trial by jury. Taking a cue from the document more than five centuries later, American revolutionaries incorporated many of the Magna Carta's basic ideas into another important piece of parchment – the U.S. Constitution. Another important document was the Mayflower Compact. Drawn up by the 41 adult males from the Mayflower, the new settlers from Plymouth created a contract with fair and equal laws, for the “general good”. They had traveled across the ocean on the ship Mayflower which was anchored in what is now Provincetown Harbor near Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The Mayflower settlers knew from previous attempts without some type of government they would fail. It allowed them to practice Protestant instead of the Church of England and other liberties without command. The Mayflower Compact was drawn up with fair and equal laws, for the general good of the settlement and with the will of the majority. The Constitution was based on the same principles of the Mayflower Compact. All men are created equal and endowed with unalienable