Vi rg i ni a D e c l arat i o n o f R i g h t s
C ard i nal B e ll arm i ne
d
an
By
G A ILLA R D H 'NT
R t p ri n t
fro m T h e
C a t h ol i c H is t ori ca l R e v i e w
,
I II
pp
.
2 7 6 - 28 9
T HE VI R G I NIA DE CLARA T I O N O F R I G H T S
AND C AR D I NAL B ELLAR M I NE
The object of this essay is to discover what was the immediate
source of that part of the D eclaration of R ights of Virginia and
of th e D eclaration of Independence which proclaimed the natural
equality of man and that the right of governing is derived from
the people These two pronouncements have had tremendous
consequences for the theory of the A merican State rests upon
them and they have come to be the foundation stone of go vern
ment in nearly all the nations of t h e modern world
In framing the Virginia D eclaration the English B ill of
R ights was the natural model because of the resemblance of
the events immediately preceding the birth of the one document
to those which preceded t h e birth of th e other The English
parliament which in 1 6 8 9 declared that James II had forfe i ted
the crown and which prescribed the conditions upon which
William of Orange was accepted as 'ing was the prototype of the
Virginia C onvention which put G eorge III o ff the A merican
throne and proclaimed the principles upon which a new govern
ment must be founded to be acceptable In its contents however
the Virginia document followed the English model only in its
less important fe atures and even in these the resemblance is
but partial The first three Virginia paragraphs saying that all
men are by nature equally free and independent 'that all power
belongs to the people ' that government is instituted for the
common benefit and that when it fails to confer common benefit
a maj ority of the people have a right to change i t these funda
mental principles are not in the English B ill at all Thus the
Virginians used the English model in no spirit of agreement or
imitation for they ignored its most important provisions and
went far bey o nd i t s most radical intentions
The study of government has always been a favorite occ u
f
of
higher
minds
and
the
discussion
of
the
problem
o
i
n
t
o
a
p
how far men may enjoy their freedom and subm i t to government
what are their rights and duties and what are the rights and
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GA I LLARD
2
H 'NT
duties of those who govern them are as old as manki nd i tself
In 1 7 7 6 men were discussing these things and also the theory o f
government itself Some of them had dec i ded that it was a
contract between the governed and the governors 'others bel i eved
all power belonged to the people 'others were content to trace i ts
origin to the fam i ly relat i on and others thought that rulers
derived their right to rule from the Supreme R uler of the 'niverse
In the beginning of the settlement of A merica these questions
were not of practical importance for pio neers in a wilderness had
only problems of personal govern ment to deal with 'uest i ons
of liberty did not o btrude themselves upon men who could go
at w i ll through a b o undless country and make their homes
wherever they pleased The Jamestown co u rt book which
begins in 1 62 2 and is the earliest government record of the
English occupation shows this for the chief function of the
government was to punish small offences against law and order
and W r ongs committed by one man against another A hundred
years later however governmental conditions had become more
complex the country having passed the earliest pioneer stage
having increased greatly i n population and having become
valuable to the nation which o wned it When that nation began
to restrain i ts A merican subj ects to exercise authority over
them and to tax them neglected theor i es of government were
revi ved and they began to study them with a practical obj ect
i n view They felt that they were ill used and read and discussed
so as to give form to their grievances
R eady at hand was the classic literature of A thens and R ome
which all educated men knew fairly well The civili 'ation of
those states was understood and entered into the daily thought
of the time W hen the A mericans came to create governments
o f their own they adapted to their use some of t h e institutions
and nomenclature of the classical period It would be beyond
the scope of this article however to try to find the classical spring
of the thoughts which were in the mind of G eorge Mason when
he wrote the D eclaration of R ights and of Thomas Jefferson
when he wrote the D eclaration of Independence nor is it n e ce s
sary to do so for their immediate inspiration came from more
modern sources
Several authors must be clear e d from the field b e for e we
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V
I RG I NIA D E C LARA TI O N
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examine those who really participated in forming the doctrines
under consideration Montesquieu R ousseau and James B erg
whose names are often connected with them really did not
influence them
Th e Sp i ri t of th e L a ws was studied in A merica
but it did not present the theory of government in the way the
R evolutionists were seeking to present it It was an analysis
of the various forms of government 'they were seeking for a
statement of the basis of the form they were determined to
have
R ousseau s writings were less widely known than Montes
It is probable that Jefferson knew them because his
qu i e u s
mental appetite was omnivorous 'but G eorge Mason did not
know French and there is no reason to suppose that he ever
read the Contra t Soci a l or the Di scou rs su r l ori gi ne d e l i n ega l i t '
R ousseau s writings had not obtained currency
p a rmi l e s h ommes
in Virginia in 1 7 7 6
James B erg wrote seventy fi ve years after Montesquieu
His book Pol i ti ca l Di squ i si ti ons or A n Enqu i ry i nto p u b l i c
Errors Defects a nd A b u ses of th e B ri ti sh Governme nt a p
p e a re d only in part in 1 7 7 5 rather too late to have rendered
service in May 1 7 7 6 even if i t had discussed general principles
which it did not do B erg denounced the evils which had arisen
in England in the hope of restoring the constitution and saving
”
the state
He defended the colonies in their controversy with
the parent country The A merican edition of his book was
published in Philadelphia under the encouragement of a number
of prominent A mericans many of them members of the C onti
ne nt a l C ongress among them G eorge W ashington and Thomas
Jefferson Je fferson praised the book but i t did not help him
when he drew up the D eclaration of Independence
To go on to those who had a somewhat closer relationship to
the D eclaration who were in fact the natural precursors of
those who had a real in fluence in forming it we come upon
Th o mas Hobbes and R ichard Hooker who paved the way which
A lgernon Sidney and John L ocke walked with so much confidence
many years later A hundred years before R ousseau Hobbes
expounded R ousseau s doctrine of government Hobbes chief
book Levi a th a n or th e M a tter F orme a nd Power of a Common
wea l th Eccl esi a sti ca l a nd Ci vi l was published in L ondon in 1 6 5 1
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GA I LLARD
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It was a scientific discussion of the nat ural man and the artifi c i al
aggregation of men '
the Leviathan ) called the C ommonwealth
He defined a commonwealth thus
.
omm onwe a l th is s aid t o b e i nst i tu te d w h en a mu l t itu d e of men
do a gree a nd c ove na nt e ve ry o ne th a t t o wh a tsoe ve r man or a sse mb l y
of m e n sh a ll b e gi ve n b y th e ma jor p a rt t h e righ t t o pre se n t th e p e rson
of th e m a ll '
t h a t is t o say t o b e t h e ir r e pre s e n ta t iv e ) ' Eve ry o ne a s
w e ll h e t h a t v o te d f or i t as h e th a t v o t e d a g a in s t i t sh a l l a uth ori 'e a ll
t h e ac t io n s a nd j u dg m e n t s of t h a t ma n or a ss e m b l y o f me n i n t h e s a me
ma nne r a s if th e y w e re h i s o wn t o t h e e nd t o l iv e p ea c e a b l y a m o ngs t
t h e m s e l ve s a n d b e pro tec te d a g a i n s t o t h e r m e n
F rom t h is in s t i t u t io n of a c omm onwe a l th a re d e ri ve d a l l t h e rig h t s
a n d fa c u l t i e s of hi m or t h e m o n W h o m so ve r e ig n powe r is c o nf e rre d b y
t h e c ons e nt of t h e p e op l e a ss e m b l e d l
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He argued against the right of rebelli o n because it broke t h e
covenant made by the subject with the sovereign
The Trea ti se on Eccl esi asti ca l Pol i ty of R ichard Hooker was
published in 1 59 4 4 5 9 7 He said
Th e l a w fu l P owe r of m a kin g l aw s t o c o mm a nd wh ol e P ol i ti c al
So c i e t ie s of me n b e l o ng e t h so prop e rl y u nt o th e sa m e e n t ire soci e t ie s
t h a t for a n y P ri nce or P o te n ta t e of wh a t kin d so e v e r u pon Ea r th t o
a n d n o t e i th e r b y e x pre ss C om mission
e x e rc is e t h e s a m e of h i m s e l f
i mm e dia te l y a nd Pe rsonal l y r ec e ive d f rom G o d or el se b y au th ority
d e rive d th e firs t fro m th e ir C o ns e nt u pon wh os e Pe rsons th e y i mpose
La ws 'i t is no b e tt e r t h a n m e e r Tyra nny
La w s th e y a re n o t t h e re f ore
wh i ch P u b l ic a pprob a t ion h a t h n o t ma d e so
B u t a pprob a t io n n o t
onl y give w h o p e rson a ll y d e cl a re th e ir a sse nt b y vo yce sig ne or ac t
b u t a l so wh e n o th e rs do i t i n th e ir na m e s b y righ t origi nal l y a t l ea s t
d e rive d from th e m
'nder the hands of A lgernon Sidney and John Locke this
doctrine was advanced to a system of popular government 'and
those two writers m u st now be brought to the reader s particular
attention for they received a great deal of attention from the
fathers of the republic It cannot be said that they are now
W holly forgotten
They are alluded to however oftener than
they are read and no apology is needed for quoting from them to
a modern reader
A lgernon Sidney was a her o to the A mericans of 1 77 6 His
romantic l i fe and tragic death held the public attention and his
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Levi a th a n , E
Th e La ws
di t ion of
165 1,
p
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88
f Eccl esi a s ti ca l Pol i ti c
o
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oo k
1 , Se c 9 .
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p
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28 , E
di t ion of
1 6 22
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D E C LARA TI O N
V I RG I NIA
or
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5
writings were eagerly read It was nearly a hundred years s i nce
he had been beheaded for asserting the right of the people to
govern but the interest in him was still fresh A new editi on
of the account of his trial and of his disquisition on governme nt
had appeared in 1 7 6 3 only thirteen years before the A merican
revolt Sidney had been charged among other things with
having written seditious libels the worst being as the arraign
ment recited the following
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powe r origin al l y i n t h e p e op l e of En gl and is d e l e ga te d u nt o t h e
p a r l i a m e nt H e '
t h e m os t s e r e n e l ord C h a r l e s II n o w 'i ng o f Eng l a nd
m ea n in g ) is s u b j e c t u nt o t h e l a w of G o d a s h e is a m a n 't o th e p e op l e
t h a t m a ke s hi m a ki ng i na s m u ch a s h e is a ki n g 'th e l a w s e t s a m e a s u re
u n t o t h a t s u b j e c t io n a nd t h e p a rli a m e n t j u d ge s of t h e p a r ti cu l a r c a s e s
H e m u s t b e c o n t e n t t o s u b m i t h i s i nt e r e s t u n t o t h e l r s
th e r eu pon a risin g
s i n ce h e is no m ore th a n a ny one of th e m i n a ny o th e r re sp e ct th a n th a t
I f h e do th n o t l ike
h e is b y t h e c ons e n t of a l l ra ise d a b o ve a ny o th e r
t hi s c o n di tion h e m a y re n ou n c e t h e c row n 'b u t if h e r e c e iv e s i t upo n
t h a t c o n di t ion '
a s a l l m a j e st ra t e s do t h e po w e r t h e y r ec e i v e ) a nd s w ea r
t o p e r f or m i t h e m u s t e x p e c t th a t t h e p e r f or m a nc e w i l l b e e x a c t e d or
re ve n ge t a ken b y th os e th a t h e h a th b e tra ye d
The
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A t the trial the G overnment showed that when Sidney was
arrested a treatise alleged to be in his handwriting was found in
hi s study which was designed to persuade the people of England
'
that it is lawful nay that they have a right to set aside their
prince in case it appear to them that he hath broken the trust laid
”
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upon him by the people
Then he falls to reasoning said the
'
attorney general and uses great reasoning in the case that
all the power of the prince is originally in the people 'and applies
that discourse that the power of the king was derived from t h e
people upon trust 'and they had already declared the ki ng had
invaded thei r rights and therefore he comes to argue that they
”4
might resume that original power they had conferred
Sidney insisted that the G overnment had not proved that the
'
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B ut
he added my lord it is a
writings produced were hi s
polemical disco urse 'it seems to be an answer to Filmer which
is not calculated for any particular government i n the world 'it
Filmer s b o ok) go e s only up o n these general pr i ncipl e s that
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ge 1 08 of t h e s u pp l e m ent
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pp 1 1 6 1 1 6
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t o th e E
di t ion of
176 3
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GA I LLARD
6
H 'NT
according to the universal law of G o d and nature there is but one
”5
government in the world and that is entire and absolute
The trial was dramatic and the L ord C hi ef Justice Jeffries
The j ury was packed Sidney
wh o presided was at his worst
was refused a copy of his indictment and overt acts were accepted
as proved by the testimony of one perjur ed W itness The C hi ef
Justi ce interrupted Sidney when he attempted t o speak in his
own behalf and showed a savage determi nation to kill hi m
When he sentenced him Sidney uttered a short prayer that his
country might not suffer in atonement for hi s blood but if he
must be avenged that the weight of punishment might fall upon
those who had maliciously prosecuted hi m for righteousness
sake To this the C hief Justice replied
I pra y G o d w ork i n yo u a t e mp e r fit t o go i nt o th e o th e r worl d
for I see yo u a re n o t fi t for thi s
A nd Sidney s a id
h ol ding o u t hi s h a n d ) a nd se e i f I a m dis
My l ord f eel m y p u l se '
orde re d I b l e ss Go d I n e v e r wa s i n b e tte r t e mp e r th a n I a m n ow ‘
He was executed on D ecember 7 1 6 8 3 That day he gave to
the Sheriffs a paper in which he recounted the unfairness of hi s
trial and said of the writings used against him
Th e y pl ai nl y a pp e a r t o r e l a te t o a l a rge t rea t ise w ri tten l ong since
i n a nswe r t o F i l m e r s b ook wh i c h b y a ll i nt e l l ig e nt m e n is t h o u g h t t o b e
grou nde d i n wi cke d princ ipl e s e q u a l l y p e rni c iou s t o ma gis t ra te s and
p e opl e
He gave the scope of the treatise
An d I a m p e rs u a d e d t o b e l i e v e t h a t G o d h a d l e ft na tion s
t o t h e l i b e r t y o f s e t t i n g u p s u c h gov e rn m e n t s a s b e s t p l ea s e s t h e m s e l ve s
Th a t ma gis tra t e s we re se t u p for th e good of na tion s no t na t ion s for
th e h o n o u r a nd g l ory of m a gis t r a t e s
Th at th ose l aw s we re to b e ob se r ve d a nd th e oa th s ta ke n b y th em'
h a v in g th e f orce of a c o n t rac t b e twe e n ma gis t ra t e s a n d p e opl e c o ul d no t
b e v io l a t e d wi th o u t d a ng e r of dissol vi ng t h e wh ol e fa b ric
Th a t u su rpa tion c o u l d give no righ t 'a nd t h e m ost d a nge rou s of a ll
e ne m i e s t o 'i ngs w e r e t h e y wh o r a isi n g t h e ir po we r t o a n e x or b i ta n t
h e ig h t a ll owe d to u s u rp e rs a ll t h e righ t s b e l on gin g t o i t 7
'
B ishop B u rnet said of Sidney ' He had studi ed th e h i sto ry
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1 3 4, 1 3 5
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of t h e Me moi rs
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V
I RGI NIA D E C LARA TI O N
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or
7
of government in all its branches beyond any man I ever kn ew
The author of the memoir which preceded his D iscourses on
'
G overnment said ' In short it is one of the noblest books that
ever the mind of man produced 'and we cannot wish a greater or
more extensive blessing to the world than than it may be every
where read and its principles universally received and p rop a
”
gated
The copy o f this noble book which Thomas Jefferson used
lies before me a handsome folio 49 7 pages of the D iscourses
1 9 8 pages of Sidney s letters and the account of this trial the
whole prefaced by 4 6 pages of the Memoir This was the
edition of 1 7 6 3 edited by Thomas Hollis known in England as
the R epublican
the great nephew of Thomas Hollis the
benefactor of Harvard college The first edition of the book had
appeared in 1 6 9 8 A mericans l i ked to connect Sidney with
themselves They believed '
probably erroneously ) that he had
assisted W illiam Penn in d rawing up the enlightened form of
government which Penn had given to Pennsylvania in 1 6 8 2
C hildren were called A lgernon Sidney newspaper writers used
the name as a pen name gentlemen called their country places
Sidney For many years after the R evolution there still sur
v i v e d evidence of the deep impression he had made upon the
A merican mind There was an A merican edition o f his D iscourses
published in Philadelphia as late as 1 8 04 A c opy of the b o ok
was in every large library in 1 77 6 every reading man had re ad
i t in part or in whole The opening sentence of the D iscourses
ran 2
Ha ving l a te l y s e e n a b ook e ntitl e d Pa tri arch a wri tte n b y Si r
R o b e r t F i l m e r c once rn in g th e u n i ve rs a l a nd u n dis t i ng u ish e d righ t
o f a l l kin gs I th ou gh t a t i me of l e isu re m igh t we l l b e e m pl oyed i n e xa mi n
i n g hi s do c t rine a nd t h e q u e s tio ns a rising f ro m i t 'wh ic h s e e m so fa r to
c o nce rn a l l m a nki n d t h a t b e sid e s t h e i n flu e nc e u po n o u r f u t u re l if e t h e y
ma y b e s a id to c o m pre h e n d a l l t h a t i n t h is wor l d d e s e rve s t o b e c a re d for
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In Pa tri arch a there was a quotati on from the C ardinal
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B ellarmine to the e fle c t that men were created equal upon whi ch
Sidn ey remarked of Filmer '
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He absur d ly imputes to the school divines that which was
taken up by them as a common notion written in the heart of
e very man de nied by none but such as were degen e rated into
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GA I LLARD
H 'NT
beasts
And again ' Though the schoolmen were corrupt
they were neither stupid nor unl earned 'they could not but see
that which all men said nor lay more approved foundations
than that man is naturally free 'that he cannot j ustly be deprived
of that liberty without cause ' e t c Of governments ' Those
only can be called j ust which are established by the consent of
'
”8
nations
Of democracy ' And of all governments democracy
in which every man s liberty is least restrained because every
man hath an equal part would certainl y prove to be the most
”9
just rational and natural
A t the same time he insisted that
a democracy never had existed and was not possible except for a
small town He advocated a popular mixed government Of
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popular right over government he said ' W e say in general He
that institutes may also abrogate ' most especially when the
i nstitution is not only by but for himself If the multitude
therefore do institute the multitude may abrogate ' and they
themselves or those who succeed in the same right can only
” 10
be fit j udges of the performance of the ends of the institution
There is much discussion of the Old Testament and the support
whi ch Filmer sought to derive from it for his theory that govern
ment comes from the power of the fathers over the children
Following after Sidney and as widely read although not s o
popular nor so interesting was John Locke His essays were in
all libraries but they derived no contributing interest from
When hi s Two Trea ti ses on Government
hi s personal career
appeared in 1 6 9 0 he incurred n o danger from their publication
for the R evolution of 1 6 8 8 had put a king on the throne wh o
derived his right to rule from the consent of the multitude
Lo cke s doctrines were as acceptable to W illiam of Orange as
Filmer s would have been to James I or as they were to C harles I
Like Sidney Locke wrote in reply to Filmer
He described his
two treatises thus '
In the former the false principles and foundation of S ir
R obert Filmer and his foll owers are detected and overthrown '
the latter is an essay concerning the true o rigin extent and end
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of civi l government
He says of Filmer ' His syste m lies
i n a little co mpass it is no more but this
That all government is absolute monarchy
And the ground he builds on is this That no man is born
free
A few extracts will show Locke s philosophy
To u nde rs ta nd pol i t ica l pow e r righ t a nd d e rive i t from i ts origin
we m u s t c o nsid e r wh a t s t a t e a ll m e n a re n a t u r a l l y i n a nd th a t is a s t a t e
of p e rfect fre e dom t o orde r th e ir ac tion s a nd dispos e o f th e ir poss e ssions
a nd p e rso n s a s th e y t h i nk fi t w i t h i n th e b o u n ds of t h e l a w of na t u re
wi th o u t a skin g l e a v e or d e p e ndi ng u pon t h e w ill of a ny o th e r m a n
A s t a t e a l so of e q u a l i t y w h e re i n a l l t h e pow e r a n d j u risdic t ion i s
rec iproc al no o ne h a vi ng more th a n a n oth e r 'th e re b e ing noth in g m ore
e vid e n t t h a n th a t c r e a t u re s of t h e s a m e sp e c i e s a n d r a n k pro m is cu o u s l y
b orn t o a l l t h e s a m e a dv a nta ge s o f na t ur e a nd th e u s e of t h e s a m e
fa c ul tie s s h ou l d b e e q u al o ne a mongs t a no th e r w i th ou t su b ordin ation
or s u b j e c tion ' unl e ss th e l ord a nd ma ste r of th e m a l l sh o u l d b y a ny
m anif e s t d e c l a ra t io n of h i s wil l se t o ne a b o v e a n o t h e r a nd c o n fe r o n h i m
b y a n e vid e nt a nd c l e a r a ppointme nt a n u ndo u b te d righ t t o do m inio n
.
’
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‘
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,
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,
,
a n d so ve re i gni ty
Me n
b e i ng,
’
” 12
.
r
free e q ual and i nd el
p end e nt no one c a n b e p u t o u t of th is e s ta te and su b j ect e d t o th e
13
l
w
n
h
h
u
h
i
s
o
w
n
n
e
n
po i tic al po e r of a o t e r wi t o t
co s
t
as
s a id
h a s b ee n
,
n a t u e a ll
by
’
,
,
,
,
,
,
These aphorisms he repeated often and made the basis of his
e ssay
Now let us see who was this Filmer of whom S i dney and
Locke had so much to say Sidney s reply to him having brought
hi s head to the block
In his day he was popular and had many
readers and followers He preached a simple creed that 'i ngs
rule by divine right and that the unthin king devotion and obedi
ence of their subjects belongs to them by G od s ordinance Any
man could understand that doctrine and many men had cheer
fully laid down their l i ves i n support of i t It was age old as
o l d as the opposing doctrine that all govern in g power c o mes from
the m u ltitude Macaul ay says that Filmer formed into a system
t h e theories whi ch becam e pr o minent under James I
Filmer s
writings did in fact follow those o f James The 'i ng 3 Defense
.
’
,
.
—
.
’
.
—
.
.
’
.
,
11
13
1’
W o rk s
Id
.
,
Id
.
,
p
p
,
e
dit ion of
.
34 0
.
.
39 4
.
,
1 8 24 . V o l
.
.
iv p
,
.
2 13
.
GA I LLARD H 'NT
10
M
o
n
r
hi
e
P
r
a
might
well
be
a
preface
to
c
a
t
i archa
So
f
may the 'i n g s treatise on witches D aemonol ogy be read i n
connection with Filmer s A dverti sement of th e Ju rgmen of
Engl a nd touch i ng Wi tch es
There was still another point of
o
Tru e
.
’
,
,
'
’
.
resemblance between the two authors both of them essayed to
reply to the C ardinal B ellarmine James in defense of the test
oath which C atholics would not take and Filmer in defens e o f
the di vi ne right of kings a doctrine which B ellarmine deni ed
Sir R obert Filmer B art l ike A lgernon Sidney but i n a l e ss
tragic degree su ffered persecution because of his opinions o n
government D uring the civil wars in England he adhered t o
C harles I and it was s a id had been i mpris o ned in 1 6 4 4 while his
house was plundered ten times
A few of his writings appeared anonymously during h i s life
time but the most important of the m was not published till
1 6 8 0 twenty seven years after his death
The full title was
Pa tri arch a or the Na tu ra l Power of 'i ngs by the L earned Si r
Ro bert F i l mer B aro net
The argument was that the doctr i ne
of the natural liberty of man was new plausible and dangero u s
that the royal authority began before the flood with the patriarchs
fr o m whom all ki ngs were descended 'that there was no example
i n Scripture of a people choosing its 'ing 'that popular govern
ment was more blo ody than tyranny 'that t h e ki ng being a p
p o inted by G o d his subjects could not j udge nor correct h i m as
'
he was above h u man laws He sai d ' It appears little less than
a paradox whi ch B ellarmine and others affirm of the freedom of
”
t h e mu l ti tud e to choose what rulers they please
Filmer s contemporaries generally agreed with him Joh n
L ocke and Sidney sought t o d i sprove his theories by examples
an d utterances taken from the source whence Filmer drew most
of his support the B ible Filmer found t h e origin of govern
ment i n the family and fatherhood 'Hobbes and t h e rest found
i t in a contract between the governed and the governors and here
—
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’
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—
.
,
One of those whom Filmer answered was Philip Hunton He
had written a Treatise on Monarchy in 1 6 4 3 in wh i ch he sai d '
G o d does not bin d any people to this or that form of government
”
ti ll they by the ir own act bind themselves
Filmer declared
that t hey ne ver b o und thems e lve s He said that th e earl i es t gov
.
.
.
V
I RG I NIA D E C LA R A TI O N
OF
e rnm e n t s
RI GHTS
11
had been absolute monarchies and he was right again
R obert Francis R omulus B ellarmine to whom Filmer replied
was one of the most famous churchmen and statesmen of his
day He is still well kn own to C atholic clergymen and to the
Protestant clergy in a less degree but to laymen his is not a
familiar name He was born at Montepulciano in 1 542 and died
i n 1 6 2 1 He was a Jesuit priest teacher of the humanities at
Florence and Mondovi a professor and preacher at Louvain
where Protestants as well as C atholics went to hear him He was
consecrated a cardinal in 1 5 9 9
In 1 5 7 6 he began to is sue his
controversial writings They made a sensation in England and
as he was the champion of papacy V indications of Protestantism
often took the form of answers to him His works crossed the
There was a copy in th e library at Princeton where
ber of the C ommittee which framed the
Virginia D eclaration of Rights had gra duated Probably he
had read it for at this period of his life he read everything he
could lay his han d s on and was deeply versed in religious
controversy
There were copies of some of his books in Virginia Old
Protestant ministers remember that when they studied divinity
at the Episcopal High School near A lexandria they heard B ellar
mine quoted Several members o f the committee which drew
up the D eclaration of Rights h a d been educated in England
Thomas Ludwell Le e probably and John B lair certainly It
would have been difficult for them to escape some acquaintance
with B ellarmine while they were studying in England Eleven
of the twenty three members of the committee had gone to
W illiam and Mary C ollege where religious controversy raged
They too must have heard of the Italian controversialist from
the answers which had been made to him In 1 722 there had
been published in London a free translation by Thomas Foxton
of B ellarmine s Joys of th e B l essed ' B ei ng a Practi ca l Di scou rse
C oncerni ng th e E terna l H a p p i nes s of th e Sa i nts i n H ea ven
B ellarmine was not unpopular in England even among those
who were most inimical to hi s faith
It is B ellarmine s remarks on earthly government however
not his writings on thi ngs celesti al that concern us here and
Filmer stated them fairly Taking a number of the C ar di nal s
,
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'
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’
.
GA I LLARD H 'NT
12
aphorisms to be found here and there in hi s writings but ch i efly
i n De Potestate Pontifici s '
see for instance Li l 1 C ap V i p 2 57 )
he gives them thus on the fourth page of Pa tri arch a and I repr o
duce his italics and cap i tals
,
,
,
.
,
.
,
.
rou nds of th is 'ue s t io n a b ou t t h e Na tura l
Li berty of Ma nki nd I wi l l l a y do wn so me p a ss a g e s of C a rdin a l B ell armi ne
Secu l a r or Ci vi l
t h a t m a y b e s t u n f ol d t h e Sta t e of t h is c ont ro v e rsi e
Power '
s a i th h e ) i s i nsti tu ted b y me n'I t i s i n the p eop l e u nl ess they b estow
Thi s P owe r i i mmedi a tel y i n the whol e Mu l ti tu de a s i n
i t on a P ri nce
the su bj ect of i t'for thi s P owe r i s i n the Di vi ne La w b u t the Di vi ne La w
h a th gi ven th i s p ower to no p a rti cu l a r ma n
If the P osi ti ve La w b e ta ken
who a re Equa l ) one
a wa y th ere i s l eft no Reason wh y a mo ngs t a Mu l ti tud e '
P ower i s gi ven by the
ra th er th a n a nothe r shou ld b e a r Ru l e ove r the Rest
mu l ti tu de to one ma n or to more b y the s a me Law of Na tu re 'for the Commo n
wea l th ca nnot exe r ci se th i s Power therefore i t i s b ou nd to b estow i t u p on
To
ide nt
m a ke
ev
th e G
,
,
,
.
,
s
.
,
,
.
,
.
,
,
,
some
One ma n
or s o
me Few
to
ord a i n over themsel ves
be
a
or
l a wfu l
ca u se
D e m oc ra c y
th e
s t re ngt h
u ra l
Li b e rty
f
.
f
a
u p on
e
Th u s
f the mu l ti tu de
Magi s trates'a nd if th ere
the Cons ent
or other
the mu l ti tu d ma y cha nge the
o f al l
o
It depends
'i ng Cou ns el
.
o
'i ngd om i nto a n A ri stocra cy
fa r B ell armi ne 'i n wh i ch
t h a t I h a ve
p a ss a g e s a re c ompris e d
re a d or h ea rd produ ce d for t h e Na i
th e S u bj e ct
.
s doctrine was ep i tomi 'ed by Filmer on t h e
The first sentence of the book reads '
o pening page of Pa t ri a rc h a
B u t B ellarmine
’
.
Sin c e t h e t i m e th a t Sch ool D i vini ty b e g a n t o flo u ris h t h e re h a th b ee n
-
omm on opin ion ma inta in e d a s we l l b y D ivin e s as b y di ve rs o th e r
Le a r ne d Me n wh i ch a ffir m s
Ma nki nd i s natu ra l l y end owed a nd b orn wi th Freedom from a l l Su bj ee
a c
,
,
,
.
’
f Governme nt i t p l ea se ' A nd that
the P ower whi ch a ny one Ma n h ath over others was atfi rst b estowed a ccordi ng
to th e d escreti on of th e Mu l ti tu de
ti on ,
a nd a t
l i b erty to choose wh a t Form
o
,
.
Thi s Te net wa s fir st h a t ch e d i n th e Sch ool s a nd h a th b ee n fo ste re d
b y a l l s u c ce e di ng Pa pis t s f or good D i vi ni ty
Th e D ivi ne s a l so of t h e
R e for me d C h u rc h e s h a v e e nt e r ta i ne d i t a nd t h e C o mm on Pe op l e
e ve ryw h e r e t e n d e rl y e mb ra c e i t
a s b e in g m os t p l au sib l e t o F l e s h a nd
B l ood for t h a t i t prodiga ll y dis t ri b u t e s a P or tion of L ib e r t y t o t h e
m e a ne s t o f t h e M u l t i t u d e wh o ma gni fie Lib e r ty a s if t h e h e ig h t of
Hu m an Fe l ici ty w e re onl y t o b e fou n d i n i t ne ve r re m e mb e ring th a t th e
”
d e sire of Lib e r ty wa s th e firs t cau se of th e Fa ll of Ada m
,
.
,
,
,
,
,
.
Filmer was better kn own to laymen i n A merica than B ellar
m i ne was Students o f go vernment lik e G e orge Ma s o n and
Thomas Jefferson could not have misse d him There was hi s
name staring at them i n th e o peni n g sentences o f Sidney and
Maso n and
Locke and scatter e d thr o ugh t h e later pages
.
.
'
.
V
I RGI NIA D E C LARA TI O N
OF
RI GHTS
13
Jefferson must have had the curiosity to look into the author
whom their favorites abused so lustily and so contin uously
'nhappily the catalogue of Mason s library has not survived
but Je fle rso n s books are still kept together in the L ibrary of
I find it also in i nv e n
C ongress and among them is P a tri a rch a
tories of other libraries in Virginia of the revolutionary period
'e t nothing which Filmer wrote himself had any influence upon
Mason and Jefferson He was a dead author and his doctrine
had no interest for men who were convinced of the equal rights
of men ' but the quotation he gave from B ellarmine and his
epitome of B ellarmine s doctrine seems to have lodged in t h e i r t/
memory to reappear in a new form in the D eclarations whi ch
they wrote Neither in Sidney nor in L ocke nor in the writings
of any other author with whom they were fami l iar is there as
complete an epitome of the doctrine they announced
Soon after the committee met to frame the Virginia D eclara
tion of R igh t G eorge Mason wrote out ten paragraphs of the
D eclaration and presented it to his colleagues
They added
three more and the whole was handed in to the C onvention where
it underwent unimportant minor alterations except as to t h e
clause relating to religious liberty whi ch the C onvention changed
by making it a declaration for religious liberty instead of religious
toleration The first four paragraphs of Mason s committee
draft are as follows
A D ec l a ra t io n of R igh t s m a d e b y t h e R e pre s e nta t i ve s o f th e good
pe opl e of Virgini a a sse mb l e d i n full C onve ntion a nd rec omm e nd e d to
pos te ri ty a s th e B a sis a nd F ou nd a t ion o f t h e ir G ove rnm ent
Th a t a l l me n a re b orn e q ua ll y fre e a n d in de p e nd e nt a nd h a ve ce r ta in
inh e re nt na t u ra l R igh t s o f w i ch th e y c anno t b y a ny C omp act d e pri ve
h
or dive s t t h e i r pos te ri ty 'a mong whi c h a re th e Enjoym e nt of Life a nd
Li b e r t y wi th t h e m ea n s o f ac q u iring a nd poss e ssin g prop e rty a nd
pu rsu in g a nd ob ta i ni ng Happin e ss an d Sa fe t y
Th a t P owe r is b y Go d a nd na tu re V e st e d i n a nd c ons e qu ent l y
d e rive d from th e Pe opl e 'th a t M a gist ra te s a re th e ir Tr u s te e s and Se rvants
a n d a t a l l t i m e s a m e na b l e t o t h e m
Th a t G ove rnme nt is or ou gh t t o b e in st i tu t e d for th e c o mm on
B e ne fi t a nd Sec u ri ty o f t h e Pe op l e n a t io n or C o m m u ni t y
Of a ll t h e
va rio u s m od e s a n d F or m s of G o v e rnm e nt t h a t is b e s t w h ic h is C a p a b l e
of prod uc in g th e gre a te s t D e gr ee of Ha ppin e ss a nd sa fe t y a nd is m os t
And
e flec t u a ll y s e c u r e d a ga in s t t h e D a n g e r o f Ma l a d m i nis t r a t io n
th a t wh e ne v e r a ny G ov e rn m e n t sh a l l b e f o un d ina d e q u a t e or c ont r a ry
t o th e s e p u rpos e s a Ma jori t y of t h e C o mmu ni ty ha t h a n in d u b i ta b l e
.
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GA I LLARD
H 'NT
inal i e na b l e a nd in d e fea si b l e R ig h t t o re form a l te r or a b ol ish i t i n s uch
ma nne r a s sh a ll b e j u dg e d m os t c o nd uc i ve t o th e p u b l i c we a l u
T h e s e c l a s e s c a m e f r o m t h e C on v e n t ion in t h e fo ll o w ing fo r m '
i t a l i c s m rking
t h e v a r i a t ions )
A d e c l a r a t ion of r igh t s m a d e b y t h e r e p re s e n t a t i ve s of t h e good p e op l e of Vi r gini a
n d fre e c on v e n t ion 'whi c h ri gh ts d o p e ta i n to th e m a n d t h e i r pos
a ss e m bl e d in f ll
t eri t y a s t h e b a sis a n d fo u nd a t ion of go ve r n m e n t
T h a t a l l m e n a re b y n a t e e q u a ll y f re e a nd ind e p e nd e n t a n d h a v e
Se c 1
ce rt a in in h e re n t r igh t s of w h i c h
wh en th ey en te i n to a s ta te of Soci ety t h e y c a nno t
b y a ny c o m p a c t d e p r i ve o r di ve s t t h e i r pos t e r i t y 'n a mel y t h e e n j o y m e n t of l if e a n d
l i b e rt y wi th t h e m e a ns of a c qu i ring p r op e rt y a n d p ur s u ing a nd o b ta ining h a ppin e ss
a n d s a f e ty
T h a t a l l po w e r is v e s t e d in a n d c ons e q u e n t l y d e r i ve d f r o m t h e p e op l e '
Se c 2
t h a t m a gis t r a t e s a re t h e i r t r u s t e e s a nd s e rv a n t s a n d a t a l l t i m e s a m e n a bl e t o t h e m
Se e 3
T h a t go ve r n m e n t is o r o u gh t t o b e ins t i t u t e d fo r t h e c o mm on b e n e fi t
p ro t cti o n a n d s e c u r i t y of t h e p e op l e n a t ion o r c o m m u ni t y 'of a l l t h e v a r io u s m od e s
a n d fo r m s of go v e r n m e n t
t h a t is b e s t w h i h is c a p a bl e of p r od u c ing t h e g re a t e s t
d e gre e of h a ppin e ss a n d s fe t y a n d is m os t e fle c t u a l l y s e c u re d a g ins t t h e D a nge r
of ma l a d m inist ra t ion 'a n d t h a t w h e n a ny go ve r n m e n t sh a ll b e fo u nd in d e qu t e o r
c on t ra ry to t h e s e p u r pos e s
c o m m u ni t y h a th a n ind u b i t a bl e
a m a j o ri ty of t h e
in a l ie n a bl e a n d ind e f e a si bl e righ t t o r e fo r m a l t e r a nd a b o l is h i t in s u ch m a nne r
t o t h e p u bl i c we a l
a s s h a l l b e j u dg e d m os t c ond u c i v
,
,
.
u
a
,
u
a
r
.
,
.
ur
.
r
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
.
.
,
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,
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,
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e
,
,
,
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,
,
c
,
'
a
a
,
-
a
,
a
,
,
,
,
,
e
.
A nd the D eclaration of Independence says
We
h o l d t h e s e t ru t h s t o b e
s el f e vid e nt th a t a ll men a re c r ea te d
e qu al
t h a t t h e y a re e n dow e d b y t h e ir c rea t or w i th c e r t a i n i n al i e nab l e
R igh t s t h a t a mon g t h e s e a re L ife Li b e r ty a nd t h e p u rs u i t o f H a ppi ne ss
Th at t o se cu r e t h e se righ ts G ove rnme nt s are i ns ti tu te d a m ong me n
d e riving t h e ir j u s t powe rs from t h e c ons e nt of th e go ve rne d Th a t
w h e ne ve r a ny F or m of G ove r nm e n t b ec o m e s d e s tr uc t i ve of th e s e e n ds
i t is t h e R ig h t o f t h e Pe op l e t o a l te r or t o a b ol ish i t a nd to i ns t i tu t e ne w
G ove rnme nt l a yin g i ts f o u nd a t ion o n su ch prin c ipl e s a nd org a n i 'i n g i ts
pow e rs i n su ch form a s to th e m sh a ll s ee m m os t l ike l y to a ffec t th e ir
Sa fe t y a nd Ha ppin e ss
-
,
,
.
,
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,
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,
.
W ere Mason and Jefferson conscious of the ir debt t o B ellar
mine o r did they use Filmer s presentat i on of his doctrine
without know ing that they were doing so ' D i d the A mericans
reali'e that t hey were staki ng their lives their fortunes and their
sacred honor in support of a theory of government which had
come do wn to them as announced by a C atholic priest ' W e
cannot answer these questions but it should be a satisfaction t o
C atholics to know that the fundamental pronouncements u po n
which was built the greatest of modern revolutions f o und their
best support in the writings of a Pr i nce of the C hurch
G A I LLARD H 'NT
Washi ngton D C
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