Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence, formally adopted by the
Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, announced the intention of
the 13 American colonies to seek independence from British rule.
The document was drafted by Thomas Jefferson between June 11
and June 28, 1776. Jefferson expressed the convictions in the
minds and hearts of the American colonist. The political philosophy
of the Declaration was not entirely new. The ideals of individual
liberty had already been expressed by John Locke.
Jefferson summarized this philosophy in "self-evident truths" and
set forth a list of grievances against the King in order to justify
before the world the breaking of ties between the colonies and the
mother country.
Declaration of Independence – Impact
The Declaration of Independence was the first formal statement by
a nation's people asserting their right to choose their own
government; making it a significant landmark document in the
history of democracy.
It has come to be considered a major statement on human rights,
particularly its second sentence:
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.
The Declaration of Independence has inspired work for the rights of
marginalized people throughout the world.
The Declaration of Independence, adopted by the Continental
Congress on July 4, 1776, announced that the thirteen American
colonies, then at war with Great Britain, regarded themselves as
independent states.
Declaration of the Rights of Man & the Citizen – 1789
On August 26, 1789, the French National Assembly passed
"Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen." The
declaration captured and presented to the world a summary of the
ideals and principles of the Revolution. It also justified the
destruction of a government based upon absolutism and privilege,
and the establishment of a new regime based upon the inalienable
rights of individuals, liberty, and political equality.
The Declaration became the preamble to the Constitution of 1791. It
has been referred to in almost every single revolutionary movement
since 1789, and has been translated into most major languages. It is
the basis of the constitutional foundations of many countries
seeking to establish a more democratic government.
Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen - Impact
The Declaration proclaimed that government rests on the popular
sovereignty of the people and not on the divine right of rulers. It
declared that men are born and remain free and equal in rights.
Many ideas for the Declaration were from the Enlightenment, with
the most important influence being John Locke's Second Treatise
of Government (first published in England in 1690 at the time of the
'Glorious Revolution').
Thomas Paine, whose Rights of Man became one of the bestselling books in English history, and the “textbook” for workingclass radicals, reproduced the document, word for word, treating it
as a sacred text that ushered in a new era of world history.
Since then, it has been adopted by all kinds of political groups, and
has been used both to justify revolution and also to supress it.
The ideals fought for in the French Revolution were
captured in the Declaration of Rights of Man and
Citizen issued by the National Assembly in August
of 1789.
English Bill of Rights - Impact
The English Bill of Rights was passed by Parliament after the
Glorious Revolution to ensure that no monarch would ever be able
to do what James II had done. It severely limited the power of the
monarch by establishing Parliament’s supremacy over the king.
The English Bill of Rights restates many of the freedoms and
protections the people already enjoyed. William and Mary, the new
monarchs, agreed that they would not collect new taxes or raise an
army without the consent of Parliament.
This marked a final shift of power from the monarch (king or queen)
to Parliament. Parliament was never again successfully
challenged.
The English Bill or Rights – 1689
The English Bill of Rights was enacted by the English Parliament
and singed into law by King William III in 1689. The establishment
of the English Bill of Rights was precipitated by repeated abuses of
power by King James II during his reign from 1685 to 1689. He
suspended acts of Parliament and collected taxes not authorized by
law. He interfered in the outcome of elections and trials and refused
to be bound by duly enacted laws. Furthermore, he attempted to
impose Catholicism on a staunchly Protestant nation through the
persecution of Protestant dissenters and the replacement of
Anglican officials who refused to acquiesce in his illegal acts.
In November of 1688 William of Orange and his wife Mary, daughter
of James II, invaded England with the popular support of the
English people and much of the English nobility. After the
accession of William and Mary and the formation of a legal
Parliament, the English Bill of Rights was signed into law, forever
altering the balance of power between the sovereign and his
subjects.
William and Mary agreed to the follow the constitutional monarchy
established by English Bill of Rights. This established a shift of
power from the monarchy to Parliament.
Hammurabi’s Code
The Code of Hammurabi is the longest surviving set of laws from
the Old Babylonian period. Partial copies exist on a human-sized
stone stele and various clay tablets. It is the earliest known
recorded code of laws. The Code consists of 282 laws, with scaled
punishments, adjusting "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth"
depending on social status, of slave versus free man. The code was
enacted by the sixth Babylonian king, Hammurabi.
Rather than being a modern legal code or constitution, it may have
as its purpose the self-glorification of Hammurabi by memorializing
his wisdom and justice.
Hammurabi’s Code was a model of legal and judicial reasoning for
future civilizations. The code is an early example of a fundamental
law regulating a government, a sort of primitive constitution.
Hammurabi’s Code - Impact
The Code of Hammurabi established a system of laws to
ensure justice and protect the weak. The code treated nobles
and commoners differently. Most of the laws addressed the
occurrences in everyday life. Some of the provisions called
for harsh punishments.
Hammurabi’s Code also includes the earliest examples of the
idea of innocent until proved guilty. It suggests that both the
accused and accuser have the opportunity to present
evidence.
Hammurabi’s Code was a model of legal and judicial
reasoning for future civilizations.
Hammurabi held court and handed down punishment according
to his legal codes.
Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments are a set of biblical laws relating to ethics
and worship. They play a fundamental role in Judaism and
Christianity.
The commandments include instructions for the Hebrews to
worship only God and to keep the sabbath holy. They also forbid
idolatry, blasphemy, murder, theft, and adultery. Different groups
follow slightly different traditions for interpreting and numbering
them.
The Ten Commandments appear twice in the Hebrew Bible, in the
books of Exodus and Deuteronomy. According to the story in
Exodus, God inscribed them on two stone tablets, which he gave to
Moses on Mount Sinai.
Ten Commandments – Impact
The Ten Commandments are the core of the moral teachings of
Judaism and Israel. The commandments concern only matters that
are of critical importance. They are a set of guiding principles that
apply across all circumstances. They are not a legal code, but a
code of conduct.
For both Jew and Christian alike, they provide God’s unchanging
standards of right and wrong. They give moral direction and outline
a well-lived life.
The Ten Commandments form the basis for Jewish law. There
influence is also seen in other legal codes.
According to Jewish tradition, Moses
received the Ten Commandments from God
at Mt. Sinai.
Justinian’s Code – 529
The Code of Justinian was on of the greatest achievements of the
Byzantine Empire. Emperor Justinian ordered a council to collect all
of the existing Roman laws and organize them into a single code.
This code listed all of the laws and opinions from the time of
Hadrian to the current laws of the time.
Justinian’s Code was a turning point in Roman Law. Cases that
previously might have contradictory edicts were now sorted out
into an orderly legal code.
The text was composed and distributed almost entirely in Latin,
which was still the official language of the government of the
Empire in 529–534. However, the language of merchants, farmers,
seamen, and other citizens was Greek. Later, Justinian issued a
number of other laws, mostly in Greek.
Justinian’s Code – impact
Justinian’s Code addressed all aspects of life. These codes were
the sole source of law to be referenced in any situation.
Additionally, numerous laws serve to secure Christianity as the
religion of the empire. All citizens were to be Christian and pagan
belief and practice was forbidden.
Justinian’s Code was the dominant source of information for the
study of law in the Middle Ages The thinking behind the Codes
served as the backbone of the single largest law reform of the
modern age, the Napoleonic Code, which abolished feudalism in
much of Europe.
These codes continue to have a major influence on public
international law. Its four parts thus constitute the foundation
documents of the Western legal tradition.
The Emperor Justinian, 483 – 565 AD
Magna Carta – 1215
The Magna Carta, or Great Charter, is a document created for the
purpose of limiting the powers of the monarch and preserving the
basic legal rights of all free men in England. It was crafted after a
rebellion in 1215 against King John of England, a corrupt, absolute
monarch who angered all those under the influence of his power.
The Barons would no longer tolerate the King John’s abuses of
power, and demanded a change in government. John was forced to
sign the Magna Carta at Runnymede on June 15, 1215.
The Magna Carta marked a turning point in world history. Until the
13th century in England, European rulers were absolute monarchs.
With absolute rule came absolute power; these rulers had the
power to do and order anything they chose. The end of absolute
power in Britain came with the revolutionary Magna Carta, which
established a set of laws that not even the king could violate. These
laws applied to everyone, from the lowest class of society to the
royal family. The Magna Carta was a major first step toward the
democracies of today, governments in which there are no
monarchs but self-governing citizens.
Magna Carta – Impact
The Magna Carta was sent throughout England so that all free men
could see their basic legal rights. Among the rights granted by the
document are a trial by jury, a punishment fitting and not excessive
to the crime, and no taxation unless approved by a council.
The barons who created the Magna Carta originally intended it to
protect only the rich, upper class of the feudal system. It was
reinterpreted by many leaders and politicians for years after it was
created, and with each it was applied to more and more groups of
people. With the interpretation of Sir Edward Coke, a 17th century
British Secretary of State, the rights in the Magna Carta could even
be applied to American colonists. The colonists felt that the
government was violating a basic right granted them in the charter,
they were being taxed without representation in Parliament. This
belief led to the creation of the Declaration of Independence.
No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or
stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or
exiled. Nor will we proceed with force against him
except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by
the law of the land. To no one will we sell, to no one
deny or delay right or justice.
Magna Carta
United States Constitution - 1789
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the
United States of America. The Constitution was adopted on
September 17, 1787, by the Constitutional Convention in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and ratified by conventions in eleven
states. It went into effect on March 4, 1789.
The first three Articles of the Constitution establish the rules and
separate powers of the three branches of the federal government: a
legislature, the bicameral Congress; an executive branch led by the
President; and a federal judiciary headed by the Supreme Court.
The last four Articles frame the principle of federalism.
The first ten amendments added to the Constitution in 1791,
established the Bill of Rights as supporters of the Constitution had
promised critics during the debates of 1788.
United States Constitution - Impact
The Constitution guides American law and political culture. Its
writers composed the first constitution of its kind. Several ideas in
the Constitution were new. The combination of consolidated
government along with federal relationships with the states.
The document reflects John Locke’s ideas about consent to govern
given by the people. Government's duty under a social contract
among the sovereign people was to serve them by protecting their
rights. These basic rights were life, liberty and property.
The Constitution is supplemented and interpreted by a large body
of United States constitutional law.
The United States Constitution has had a considerable influence
worldwide on later constitutions. International leaders have
followed it as a model within their own traditions. These leaders
include Benito Juarez of Mexico, José Rizal of the Philippines and
Sun Yat-sen of China.
Delegates signing the U. S. Constitution