July 4th, 1776 marked the beginning on a new nation. It was on this day that the Declaration of Independence was signed as the colonies split ties with their mother country, Great Britain. After many years of being under the leadership of the English, who ruled them from many miles away, problems began to arise in the colonies. Although not all agreed, many believed that the ways the English were doing things were wrong. The Declaration of Independence was written not only to declare independence from Great Britain, but also the reasons for why the colonies were doing so. The Declaration clarified some of the views that this new country held, and discusses the scenario in which the country will have to abolish a form of government once more. …show more content…
It stated the reason for why the colonies were issuing it, which was to end the tie between the British and the colonies. The colonies, now known as the United States, declared that they were to be separate from the British and also to be their equals. There are three major topics within this document; self-evident truths, the purpose of government, and reasons for altering or abolishing a form of government. It states that all men are created equal, and without question should be granted rights such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It is the government’s purpose to secure these rights, but it only with the consensus of the people. Although it is a right of the people, only when there is a “long train of abuses” should altering or abolishing a form of government be considered. Even if there is a scenario for which it is acceptable to abolish a form of government, it must only be done when all of the people are united in wishing to institute a new form of …show more content…
In 1791, The Bill of Rights was written and issued. Containing ten articles, this document talks about many different issues. Acting as a continuation of the Declaration, it states the rights that the people of the United States are guaranteed to have. It is also a list of the limits of the government’s power. An example is Article Four, in which police officers do not have the right to arrest people or search through their property without first receiving a warrant issued by a court due to a likely cause. This document was restating points from the Declaration, declaring that the purpose of the government was to secure and protect these rights and they are only given the right to do so by the
The Bill of Rights was crafted in 1791 by James Madison. It was put in place to protect the rights of all people within the borders of the United States when it is applied by the government. It is a very important document that means a lot in the hearts of Americans.
BACKGROUND OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS The United States Bill of Rights came into being as a result of a promise made by the Fathers of Confederation to the states during the struggle for ratification of the Constitution in 1787-88. A great number of the states made as a condition for their ratification, the addition of amendments, which would guarantee citizens protection of their rights against the central government. Thus, we have a rather interesting situation in which the entrenchment of a bill of rights in the American Constitution was done by the virtual demand of the states, themselves fearing a central government which was not legally constrained and restricted as far as its powers were concerned. The resulting Bill of Rights is appended to the American Constitution as the first of ten amendments.
The Declaration was for the colonists to seek for independence. The quote most widely known is “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.”(Jefferson) The Declaration of Independence was written mostly by Thomas Jefferson who stated the above quote. Like the Declaration of Sentiments, all men are created equal. The Declaration of Independence allows the people to have the right to abolish an proposition that they do not agree with. They also have the right to institute a new government if they do not feel it is not ensuring safety and happiness to everyone; they can vote in a government who will ensure this. It is also the peoples right to throw out a government when laws are abused. Every year on July 4, people in the United States celebrate Independence day, also known as the Fourth of
After the American Revolution, America had earned it’s freedom from Britain. In order to govern this new country the Articles of Confederation was created. This document was flawed by the colonists fear of putting too much power into a central government. Knowing the document needed to be fixed a constitutional convention was called. The document created at this convention has been our constitution ever since. But even the Constitution was meet with criticism. One major concern when writing the constitution was how to protect the citizens rights. The Constitution did this through the preamble, the legislative process, the limit of presidential terms, the judicial branch, and the bill of rights.
July 4th of 1776 is arguably the most significant day in American history. On this day, the thirteen British colonies won their independence from Great Britain, their mother country at the time. The war that allowed the colonies to gain their independence was, of course, the American Revolution. One reason the colonists’ declaration of independence was understandable was because after an extended period of salutary neglect, the British started imposing laws on the colonies. Another reason was that the British violated colonists’ rights by implementing the Proclamation of 1763. A third and final reason the colonies were correct in breaking away from Great Britain was that although the colonists were not represented in British Parliament, Great Britain still taxed them. The thirteen British colonies were absolutely justified in seceding from Great Britain because the British started to enforce laws after a long period of salutary neglect, they violated the colonists’ rights by passing the Proclamation of 1763, and the colonies were required to pay taxes even though they were not represented in Parliament.
The Declaration of Independence cut the political connections between the thirteen original colonies and Great Britain. By declaring independence, the American colonists were able to forge an official alliance with France and obtained French assistance in the war against Britain. The Purpose of the declaration was to explain why congress had voted, July 2nd 1776, to declare their independence from Great Britain, over a year after the American Revolutionary war began.
The Bill of Rights was created as a listing of the rights granted to citizens, the Bill of Rights serves to protect the people from a powerful government. These civil rights granted to U.S. Citizens are included in the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Additionally, Locke’s ideas about checks and balances and the division of church and state were later embodied in the U.S. Constitution as well. The Constitution replaced a more weakly organized system of government as outlined under the Articles of Confederation. John Locke was an English philosopher who lived during 1632-1704.
The Declaration of Independence was created by the British colonies of North America who sought independence, July 4th 1776. They have overthrown their tyrannical unjust ruler. Since then America has been on their own, with the democracy they choice, everything how they would like no more getting ruled by Britain.
The purpose was to justify the revolution of the “new” colonies. Many of the people were excited for the plan. The American people had thrived for the freedom, and to establish the government for themselves. The Declaration has three parts to the document. The first part was the Declaration of Natural Rights. This explained the basic human rights for each American citizen. The entire document is centered around how each person is equal, and it has been given by God. The second part of the document is composed of lists of grievances. This section listed complaints about the ruler of Great Britain at the time, George III. This, of course, spoken against the ideas of the king, and the ideas of a overpowering monarchy. The third part of the document was the resolution, or conclusion. The resolution concluded that the colonists have officially broken away from Great Britain. With the closing part, the colonists had officially separated from Great Britain. The Declaration of Independence first step was to separate the colonies into states and establish the authorities that will be in control over the
... clear that government is subject to the people that it governs. The British realized that they could not write a document that would meet the demands of the colonists (Thomas 334). It was time for the colonists to write their own document. This document, the Declaration of Independence, was not only a stand against Britain; it was a stand for freedom.
There are many important factors in the Declaration of Independence, which enable the foundation of a new government. These range from describing grievances with England, to how government should be run differently, to the first statement of separation. The first step to the foundation of a new government is the uniting of a people in a common goal. Since all people were feeling violated by English soldiers, it was necessary to state these grievances in order to make people aware that they are not alone. When people learned that others felt the same as them emotion was stirred. The Declaration of Independence listed the grievances such as, “He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.” The next important step to the foundation of a new government was to gain peoples ambition by showing how the government would be run if a new party took over. This goal was achieved by stating the rights of man. “We hold these truths to be self evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” This statement made people hopeful and feel kindly toward this new government. The final step in the preparation for a new government was separation from the old government. This was declared twice in the Declaration of Independence. In the beginning, “That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, driving their just powers from the consent of the governed,” and in the end, “that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved. In conclusion, the Declaration of Independence was able to motivate people, give them ambition, and made it simple for Americans to take action.
The Bill of Rights are the first ten Amendments to the Constitution. The Bill of Rights works to provide constitutional protection for the individual and to limit government power. The First Amendment and the Sixth Amendment protects the individual by allowing religious and political freedom, and by promising a public and speedy trial. The Fourth Amendment protects the individual’s privacy and limits the reach of the government into people’s homes and personal belongings. The three essential Amendments from the Bill of Rights are: the First Amendment- Religious and Political freedom: the Fourth Amendment- Search and Seizure: and the Sixth Amendment-Criminal Court Procedures.
The Declaration of Independence was written on July 4, 1776. On that day the 13 Colonies became free and Independent states. The Declaration of Independence states this “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to...
After it was written, 56 delegates coming from all of the 13 colonies signed the Declaration of Independence in order to make it official. This document served great justice during the Atlantic Revolution; it sought to make a difference as to how the colonies were in terms of their alliance with Britain. The Atlantic Revolution was able to make this happen, for it opened up the space for change. Through the document, we can see how the colonies determined to separate themselves from the British Empire. Some things to pay attention to in the writing is that they mentioned things like “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”. The goal of this statement is to make sure that even though the men make up the government and the people must be okay with them, at the end of the day the people have the right to make sure that their government is not being destructive and is aiming towards their rights. The Atlantic Revolution brought forth new ideas of government and the liberation of the colonies from the
The Declaration of Independence, drafted by Thomas Jefferson, is an official statement of how the British monarchy was limiting the colonies in terms of the Lockean theory of natural rights and the people can rebel when it is felt that government is overstepping their power and is no longer following the wants of the people that it protects (153). The colonists felt that the separation from British rule was inevitable and justified due natural rights, specifically the pursuit of happiness, and the belief in God. Colonists were brilliant in their mentioning of religion because British was heavily Catholic and they opposed going against God’s plan (152). Also, the colonies have given Britain multiple opportunities to correct its wrongdoings. For example, King George III prevented the colonies from having representation in Parliament when they were under his rule (153). The colonies saw this action and other actions, as an abuse of power. The Declaration of Independence is a written expression of the colonies beliefs in government and people. The belief in government determined that it cannot restrict the natural rights that God has given to the people while the belief in people argued that it is a social unit that contains multiple individuals. Although society contains a grouping of people, each person is an individual and must be treated as