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594 BCE
Ancient Greece
In Athens the archon Solon lays the foundations for democracy. Not much else is known because of its ancient time. -
508 BCE
Solon's Ideas Reformed
Cleisthenes is credited to reforming Solon’s ideas and established democracy in Athens. Democracy was not used until Cleisthenes spoke up about Solon's ideas. This is also the first place which democracy was used thoroughly (excluding women and slaves). -
139 BCE
Roman Government
When the Etruscan civilization ended, the idea for the citizen to have a say in their ruler sprung up, but every citizen is expected to play an active role in governing the state. A secret ballot is instituted for Roman citizens, who would mark their vote on a tablet and place it in an urn. -
Jun 15, 1215
Magna Carta
The Magna Carta was created that limited the constitutional power of the King and gave powerful barons a say in legislation and taxation, and was very significant for ending the rule of absolute monarchs. It had the seeds of parliamentary government. -
Jan 1, 1500
Rise of Demoracy
After the medieval times, democracy started to become more popular again. With kings and queen defeated and citizens realizing they could fight for their rights, their version of a democratic government started springing up. -
The Glorious Revolution
The Glorious revolution was based on John Locke’s theory that citizens had some common and equal rights such as right to life, freedom, and protection of property. If the government didn't cooperate with these rights, then the citizens could overthrow them. -
The English Bill of Rights
The year after the Glorious revolution started and the king was overthrown, the citizens created a bill that the new monarch had to sign. The English bill of rights lessens the powers of the monarchs, greatly values the democratic election and supports freedom of speech. -
Age of Enlightenment
Many advocates for the idea of democracy sprung up around this time. this included Voltaire, Rousseau, Montesquieu, Buffon and Diderot, who all wished for their governments to ask the people what they wanted. -
The French Revolution
The French revolution overthrew the monarch of France. It had hoped to regain power and wealth for the whole society and not just for the government. This ended the inequality that the previous ruler had brought and also made other countries in Europe think about asking the people what they wanted, a fancy way of saying democracy. -
The US bill of rights
With the USA defeating Britain in the American Revolution, they wanted to make new laws that they liked and could live by. The Founding Fathers of America wanted to create a more democratic society for the US and allowed every man to vote for who they want to represent them. However, this excluded women and slaves. -
Swiss Democracy
Switzerland is one of the only countries to have a direct democracy, which they established during the time that other countries saw democracy as a good way to govern. This means that the people can have a direct say about the decisions that the country makes. -
Women's right to vote
New Zealand became the first country to let women have full voting rights. This is important because now half the citizens in the country can represent themselves, instead of the man of the house taking control to their vote towards a political party. -
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal declaration of human rights was written by countries in the UN. This involves democracy because it includes majority of countries coming together to lay out a set of laws that benefits most people. The rights removed some styles of government such as absolute dictatorship. -
The US civil rights movement
Figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X stood up and fought for the rights of coloured people. This included their right to vote. It was because of their actions that allowed much more people to have a say in what they wanted. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vDWWy4CMhE -
Chinese Protests
There are protests going on in the past 50 years that the citizens want to have a democratic government. The Chinese protests wanting a new system of government caused many of these protesters to die to the Chinese army. You might think that these protests are of the past, but these things are still going on. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeFzeNAHEhU
