Well, let me start off by saying that there were only three important people that have contributed to the United States Constitution, those three are Montesquieu, Voltaire and Diderot. Each one of these people have played a huge role in today's Constitution. In my opinion out of all of these people,I think Montesquieu is the one that influence the Constitution the most. It made the Founding Fathers, write the Constitution more easily and efficiently.
Next, Montesquieu influenced the US Constitution because he created a new way for the government to function, with the Separation of Powers. The Separation of powers is not located in just one spot, but in all three articles, of the Constitution. This is used to keep the government away from having all of the power in the land. Another way he influenced the Constitution is from the use of checks and balances, which is where each of the three branches of government can limit the powers of the others. This can be found
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in many ways, such as stated in the Constitution, “The executive branch can check the power of the legislature through the veto while the legislative branch can check the executive through impeachment.” This is how Montesquieu influenced the US Constitution. Secondly, Voltaire had a strong belief in religious toleration and wanted freedom in the world.
This is tied into the US Constitution because the first Amendment of the Bill of Rights was all about having religious freedom.This is how the first Amendments goes, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” The first Amendment is saying that the government can’t form a religion and it can’t prevent citizens from initiating a religion, this became known as the establishment clause. As a matter a fact this has been happening for a couple of weeks now, Donald Trump is going to try to ban Muslims if he becomes President. This is going against the US Constitution, that our founding fathers had established. All in all Voltaire had influenced the Constitution by wanting freedom of
religion. Lastly, Diderot had influenced the Constitution by producing a 28 volume encyclopedias. He wrote them to change the general way of thinking by explaining the new thinking on government, philosophy, and religion.These encyclopedias might of spread Enlightenment ideas to the rest of the world and American colonies. The encyclopedia articles attacked religious superstition and supported religious toleration, this idea can be found in the first Amendment. Diderot’s ideas might have helped form the ideas for our government today. In conclusion, all of these enlightenment thinkers have helped create the US constitution. Montesquieu helped by establishing the separation of powers and the use of checks and balances, which can be found in the articles of the US Constitution. Ultimately Voltaire and Diderot helped mostly with the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights, because they wanted freedom of religion. This is how the US Constitution was formed.
Some people, such as Patrick Henry during his Speech to the Virginia State Constitutional Ratification Convention (Doc.
Thomas Paine is undoubtedly one of the most prolific founding fathers of the United States, albeit not in the manner most would expect from a founding father. Paine was not a drafter of the constitution, nor was he an early member of Congress or President of the United States. However, Paine did have a profound impact on society, not only in America, but also abroad. Often remembered for helping spur the American Revolution, yet not as often remembered for the other revolution in France. Two of the more famous writings from Paine are, of course, Common Sense and The Rights of Man, both of which were written during revolutionary times in separate countries. It goes without saying that when a revolution is taking place there will be many on both sides of the war; in both of these instances, Paine was the voice of the people and stood up for what was right regardless of the consequences. I posit Thomas Paine was the most influential man for revolution in America and France despite fear of backlash or imprisonment. In fact, near the end of his life Paine was not only imprisoned, but somehow evaded being beheaded as well. Thomas Paine was even more influential as a result of his extreme lack of self-interest and ability to stay true to the cause of his writings rather than wither away in fear.
Thomas Jefferson wrote his Draft of the Declaration and was influenced by many of the ideas and concepts of John Locke. He did modify some of Locke’s ideas but most of them were the product of Locke’s belief in the Law’s of Nature and the fundamental unalienable rights of all human beings. As a result, their writings influence and demonstrate basic rights of people and make up our government. The world in which we live in is a product of the ideals of these men, who lived over 200 years ago; we are a representation of a republic
Influences on the Constitution mark back to ancient times. James Madison and other framers studied the works of Aristotle and Plato intently. Both Aristotle and Plato were Greek philosophers who theorized about how to make government better, called political philosophers.
All of the framer of the U.S. Constitution had one thing in common, they all felt that the government didn't have enough power. At the same time they didn't want to give the government to much power. They all knew if there was power to be held someone was going to hold it and over use it The framers didn't want to create a system like Britain or England.
It was established for the United States to have a document based foundation for the country to be run on. These Enlightenment thinkers got our founding fathers John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and George Washington all questioning God, Nature and Society. John Locke inspired our founding fathers to state in the document that all power should lie within out people. John Locke believed all people should have right to choose their leader. Montesquieu’s idea was also used in the United States Constitution. Montesquieu believed in the power of checks and balances, which means that not one branch of government gets too much power. Rousseau’s ideas were also presented in the United States Constitution. Rousseau’s idea was that all people get to vote for the president and congressmen. Other Enlightenment thinkers also have an influence on the United Sates Constitution. Voltaire’s ideas were also used he believed in religious freedom. The final thinker that is present in the structured law today is Cesare Beccaria. Beccaria believed that the accused have rights and that torture is unjust
.... Others might be influenced by the way he showed he cared about the future leaders of America and built them a school so they could strive for excellence. Most people are influenced by the several inventions Thomas Jefferson had every day. These are the reasons why Thomas Jefferson is the most influential person of the 1800’s. Without him, our country would be in an everyday struggle with supplying food to the world. Thanks to him, food is much easier to produce and distribute, and everyday struggles have become easier.
Although the Articles had problems of their own, they had constructive ideas that lead to the Constitution, which ended up being one of the most important documents written in US history.
The first Amendment of the United States Constitution says; “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”[1] Our fore fathers felt that this statement was plain enough for all to understand, however quite often the United States government deems it necessary to make laws to better define those rights that are stated in the Constitution. Today the framers would be both encouraged and discouraged by our modern interpretation the First Amendment the United States Constitution.
There were a plethora of decisions during the Continental Convention of 1787 which helped construct the United States of America that we have today. The participant who had the greatest impact on the convention other than James Madison, is a delegate called Roger Sherman. He was a very influential person who had many accomplishments, among these were: being a well-respected politician, a lawyer who earned his degree from Yale University, a Connecticut senator, a Newton County surveyor, an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court, and a member of the Continental Congress. All of these things, would help shape the man who would forever change the United States of America.
There were many men involved in the establishment of the government, the laws regulating states and people, and individual rights in the construction of the United States of America. Two men stand out as instrumental to our founding principles: Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton.
The Independent Journal published the first Federalist essay in 1787, closely following the Constitutional Convention. This was one of 85 essays that were all soon published in support of the Constitution. The essays were all published under the alias name “Publius.” All essays were compiled into a single volume titled The Federalist Papers. The Federalist Papers is considered a significant illustration of American political philosophy under the Articles of Confederation, which were adopted by the Continental Congress. The Articles set up the first legislative system that unified the thirteen states that battled in the American Revolution. A major theme that was discussed in the essays centers around the idea that the United States could not continue to endure under the Articles of Confederation and the weaknesses that accompany it. The Articles gave states the authority to create their own laws, however they were unsuccessful in creating a strong government. The essay suggested that immediate action be taken to prevent the impending anarchy that would ensue under these Articles.
Two of the most important authors of early America are Thomas Paine and St. John de Crevecoeur. De Crevecoeur in his work “Letters from an American Farmer” set forth in simplest terms just exactly what it was that people who were immigrating to the American colonies could expect. His words and thoughts still define how many think of America today even if they don’t know that the words are his. Thomas Paine was a firebrand that wrote perhaps the most important of the pre-Revolution tracts in “Common Sense”. His analytical style in addressing the problems that were obviously there between the thirteen colonies and
The U.S. Constitution has a unique history. Facing drafts and ratifications it was finally created under the founding fathers in 1787. The constitution is the foundation for the government we have today and influences almost every decision that government officials make. However, before the constitution was influencing, it was influenced. The political, economic, and diplomatic crises of the 1780s not only helped shape America, but also the provisions found the constitution.
Congress decided in Employment Division v. Smith. "the Supreme Court virtually eliminated the requirement that the government justify burdens on religious exercise imposed by laws neutral toward religion and the compelling interest test as set forth in prior Federal court rulings is a workable test for striking sensible balances between religious liberty and competing prior governmental interests."(Religious Freedom, Map of the RFRA). In other words, the government did not have to have a reason to impose laws against religious acts. Thus the purpose of this act was “to restore the compelling interest test as set forth in Sherbert v. Verner, 374 U.S. 398 (1963) and Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205 (1972) and to guarantee its application in all cases where free exercise of religion is substantially burdened. ”(Religious Freedom, Map of the RFRA)