Events leading up to the Constitution

By 374bakerd
  • Nov 11, 1000

    Ancient Greece 5th Century BC

    This time period was often called the cradle of democracy. Ancient Greece had a government that allowed citizens to be part of the decision making process. They called it a democracy, a direct democracy. Our founders realized that since we were larger we needed to devlop a representative democracy.
  • Nov 12, 1100

    Ancient Rome 509BC-49BC

    The constitution was written to be like the Roman Republic with self-rule (independence) being guided by a Senate and a commander in chief. This was like the Romans. The founding fathers knew the Constitution had to be based on rightous morals that everyone would believe in and agree to.
  • Jun 15, 1215

    Magna Carta

    The Magna Carta was a document that the barons in England used to try to keep the king from abusing his power.The American colonists used the example of the Magna Carta to demand rights from the British king. These were rights like a limit on taxes, jury trials, and religious freedom. These became part of the Bill of Rights.

  • The Mayflower Compact

    This is a contract that was signed by the pilgrims while they were still on the Mayflower. They agreed on a set of laws that would be used in their colony in Massachusettes. Most of the colonists were christians. They had a religious fredom idea and this carried into the Constitution.

  • Thomas Hobbes-Leviathan

    Hobbes was a philosopher and he published his ideas that without government there would be chaos. He believed that people also believed that and thatis why people agree to be governed. This idea was taken into consideration when writing the preable of the Constitution .Hobbes also wrote about natural liberties like self-defense and the ability to overthrow a government if they don't supportthe citizens. This was used in the Declaration of Independence.

  • John Locke- Two Treatises on Government

    Locke was a philosopher and he published a treatises that stated that we are all born with certain rights, the right to life, liberty, and property. He believed that the government cannot take away those rights. Also, if the government didn't protect thoe rights then we would have the right to replace the government. The writers of The Declaration of Independence used the ideas of John Locke.

  • English Bill of Rights

    This was a bill written that prevented abuse from the Monarchy in England. This bill started with a list of complaints against the king.The American colonists used this as an example and began The Declaration of Independence by listing their complaints against King George. The Constitution was developed using some of those complaints and turning them into rights.

  • Jean-Jacques Rousseau-The Social Contract

    Rousseau was a philosopher.His social contract theory was an idea that our government plays a role in society but society is basically in agreement with all of it's members. Society consists of all the members of society and the government that serves the needs of the people. These ideas were used to help create the Constitution and supported our freedom.

  • Baron de Monte Squieu-On the Spirit of Laws

    Squieu was a philosopher who wrote aout and believed that without balance of powers, government would become corrupt. He wrote about the idea of splitting the powers of government into three branches. this idea was important in developing the Constitution.

  • Voltaire-Treatises on Tolerance

    Voltaire was a philosopher who wrote about social injustice, religion, and ignorance. He wrote and believed that people have to accept and tolerate each other's beliefs and faiths. Thomas Jefferson was really influenced by and believed in these ideas.He used them in The Declaration of Independence.

  • Cesare Beccaria-On Crime and Punishment

    Thomas Jefferson and John Adams praised this writing. This writing greatly influenced the development of the penal system, talking about crime and human rights. It was used in the development of The Bill of Rights and our criminal justice system.

  • First Continental Congress

    Twelveof the colonies met to show a united authority to Great Britian. However, they werent really united in their wants. They did come to an agreement which was "The Declaration and Resolves." This was a set of principles that all the colonies agreed on.these would be presented to the king and if he didn't agree to their terms then the colonies would boycott English goods. If the king didn't agree, then the colonies agreed tomeet again a year later and talk again about independence.

  • Second Continental Congress

    Twelve of the thirteen colonies called a meeting because of the increasing tensions between American colonists and Britian. This is when most of the delegates decided that Amercian colonies needed to be independent from England. This is where the idea of The Declaration of Independence was created and formally announced American independence from England.

  • Declaration of Independence

    The formal legal document that stated the freedom of the American colonies from English rule.This announced the reason the colonies wanted to be free from England. The Declaration led to freedom for all.

  • The Articles of Confederation

    This was the American colonies first attempt to become a nation. This was a pact between the thirteen colonies for a wartime government. It had a weak central government with most of the powers with the state.

  • Treaty of Paris

    This treaty officially ended the Revolutionary war. The fear of France was over and the colonies no longer felt like the needed the Brittish military to keep them safe. The colonies now felt they could be free. Under the terms of the treaty, Britian officially recognized that the United states were in ndependent nation. This set the borders for the U.S and removed all Brittish troops.

  • Shay's Rebellion

    1786-1787. this was a revolt by angry farmers Massachusettes because of the chaos in the new country. Because of this rebellion, a meeting in Philadelphia was held and the Articles of Confederation were thrown out and a draft of the constitution was created.

  • Philadelphia Convention-Constitutional Convention

    5/25/1787-9/17/1787. This was a convention held because the Central government was unable to maintain law and order.Here the Articles of Confederation were thown out and a draft of the Constitution was begun.