American Revolution ~The Enlightenment theories lead to the American Revolution resulting in the colonists generating their own government and separating from the British.
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John Locke
John Locke believed that the government should protect their three natural rights: life, liberty, and property. He is an English philosopher and physician, who was one of the widely influential Enlightenment thinker (Black & Beck 551). -
Thomas Hobbes
Hobbes believed that the only true and correct form of government was the absolute monarchy. He argued this most forcefully in his landmark work, Leviathan (best known by this book he wrote). Hobbes' natural philosophy that human beings are, at their core, selfish creatures (Black & Beck 551). -
Baron deLa Brede et de Montesquieu
Montesquieu was a French judge, man of letters, and a political philosopher. He is famous for his articulation of the theory of separation of powers, which is implemented in many constitutions throughout the world (Black & Beck 553). -
Voltaire
Voltaire was a French Enlightenment writer, historian and philosopher. He established Catholic Church and Christianity as a whole, and his advocacy of freedom of religion, freedom of speech and separation of church and state (Black & Beck 552). -
Separation of Power
The separation of powers refers to the function of the three branches: Executive, Judicial, and Legislative; that prevents them from abusing too much power. This idea was first introduced in the 18th century by Montesquieu. Montesquieu's book, Spirit of Laws, influenced them while writing the Constitution (stgapgov.pbworks). -
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Rousseau wrote the social contract and said that there should be a contract between the government and the people.The people could break the contract or rebel if the government did not protect their natural rights or did something that did not benefit or include the citizens. His observation was, "man is born free, but everywhere he is chains" (Black & Beck 553). -
Quartering Act
(continuation)Voltaire spoke out against the government and Locke fought because they took away their right to owning property (history). -
Quartering Act
This act stated that British soldiers had the right to go into an Americans home and stay their. The Americans had to keep a British in their home and allow them to not only stay, but take their food. Forced the colonists to accommodate and house the British soldiers. This resulted in the police having to require a warrant to search someones home because of the lack of violation in the 1760's (history). -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act, (new tax) was imposed on all American colonists and required them to pay a tax on every piece of printed paper they used. "The money collected by the Stamp Act was to be used to help pay the costs of defending and protecting the American frontier near the Appalachian Mountains" (history). The overall cost for it was small, but this law made the people mad because that meant since it was passed so easily that meant higher taxes in the future. -
Stamp Act
(continuation)Voltaire was a factor in acting out towards the government because he spoke out against them as well (history). -
Intolerable Act
The Intolerable Acts were a series of laws passed by the British Parliament in the 1770s. "The British instated the acts to make an example of the colonies after the Boston Tea Party, and the outrage they caused became the major push that led to the outbreak American Revolution in 1775" (ushistory). The Americans disliked this act because it was a punishment towards them for rebelling. This connects to Locke because the gov. is supposed to protect their natural rights, instead of punishing them. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a protest against high tea prices. They did this by boarding the ship as pirates and dumping all the boxed tea into the Boston Harbor. The colonists were unhappy because they were excluded from the taxation debate. This gave them the right to act out against their government since they were not involved in the discussion. Rousseau believed that the gov. does not keep their word, so the people have the right to rebel. He created the social contract (ouramericanrevolution) -
Foundation for Democratic Government
In the Declaration of Independence,Roseau's idea of the social contract was incorporated into it. The Declaration summarized the colonists' motivations for seeking independence. Roseau argued that the government and the people should form a social contract stating that if the government did not protect the peoples natural rights, then the citizens themselves had the right to branch off to create their own government. -
British Taking Away Rights
The British imposed and restricted the people's natural rights, instead of supporting and protecting them. John Locke, a philosopher thinker, argued that a "man is born with ‘natural rights’ that no government could take away: these rights are life, liberty (freedom) and property (the right to acquire it and keep it safe from theft or seizure)" (alphahistory). John Locke was named the Founding of Fathers because he played a role in the Declaration of Independence. -
Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine aimed to encourage the American citizens to fight for their independence from Britain. He influenced the common people more than he did to the Founding Fathers. Paine wrote Common Sense and American Crisis which gave the citizens a more of a reason to fight for their independence after reading his work (alphahistory). -
Declaration of Independence
Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence which was based heavily on the enlightenment ideas. Jefferson would use these words and others from Locke (life, liberty and property) to advocate the American promise of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. He drafted the Declaration of Independence.This was a list of abuses the colonists felt against King George. He was not only a member of the Congress, but also became the third president (history). -
Constitution
Within the contract, the people have the rights and everyone must follow these rules. The creation of the Constitution allowed the United States to become a Republic, ruled by the citizens. Rousseau believes in the social contract, indicating a set of laws to protect the people and the government(ushistory). -
Checks and Balances
The Checks and Balance system was made to make sure the government or any branch did not receive too much power. Each branch has a certain amount of checks it can use to ensure other branches do not become too powerful. John Locke, presented ideas for the government, which then became the foundation of the U.S. Constitution (ushistory). Although Montesquieu believed in the separation of power being important to the people and the government. -
Work Cited
~“A Summary of the 1765 Stamp Act.” Home Page of History.org :
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation's Official History and
Citizenship Site, www.history.org/history/teaching/tchcrsta.cfm.
~“Parliament Passes the Quartering Act.” History.com, A&E
Television Networks, www.history.com/this-day-in-
history/parliament-passes-the-quartering-act. -
Work Cited pt. 2
~“Checks and Balances and Separtation of Powers.” Stgapgov /
Problem Section: Gun Control, stgapgov.pbworks.com/w/
page/7198971/Checks%20and%20Balances%20and%20
Separtation%20of%20Powers.
~Shmoop Editorial Team. “John Locke in Ideological Origins of the
American Revolution.” Shmoop, Shmoop University, 11 Nov.
2008, www.shmoop.com/ideological-origins-of-american-
revolution/john-locke.html. -
Work Cited pt. 3
~“Foundations of American Government.” Ushistory.org,
Independence Hall Association,www.ushistory.org/gov/2.asp.
~“American Revolution Ideas.” Weimar Republic, 25 Oct. 2015,
alphahistory.com/americanrevolution/american-revolution-ideas/.
~Beck, Roger B. World History: Patterns of Interaction. McDougal Littell, 2005.
