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Period: 2200 BCE to 130 BCE
Ancient Greece
A very important civilization towards the development of the American democracy, that influenced our Founding Fathers. -
Period: 500 BCE to 476
Ancient Roman Empire
The beginnings of a representative government, originally ruled by kings, but later changed to a form of democracy. Citizens were allowed to vote for some of their representatives and if the representatives did not please the people, they could be voted out and replaced. -
1100
Iroquois
A group of Native American tribes, formed an alliance to work together toward a common goal. -
1215
Magna Carta
The English wrote this and included a very important section, saying that the King was no longer allowed to do whatever he wanted. The King had to follow the "law of the land" when dealing with his subjects. -
Petition of Right
The Petition of Right of 1628 is one of England's most famous Constitutional documents. Written by Parliament as a disapproval to an outreach of authority by King Charles I. During his rule, English citizens saw overreach of authority as a big invasion on their civil rights. https://study.com/academy/lesson/petition-of-right-of-1628-definition-summary.html -
Period: to
John Locke
He was an English philosopher, he published a book about natural rights held by every human being. His ideas about natural rights helped form the way we think about individual rights today. -
English Bill of Rights
To protect all individuals, our Founding Fathers created the Bill of Rights and attached it to the end of the constitution. Which lays out the rights of all citizens in the U.S. -
Montesquieu
A French thinker in 1748, wrote that power must be divided in government to prevent one part from becoming too powerful. -
Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine's Common Sense, written in 1776, helped push the colonies toward independence. Questioned the authority of the British monarchy to govern the colonies. Published after colonial militias actually fought British troops in Massachusetts and this work openly called for colonial independence from Great Britain. Pushed the colonies toward declaring their independence from Great Britain. Encouraged on by Thomas Paine's Common Sense, the second continental congress met in 1775.
