How Did English Law Influence The Declaration Of Independence

In comparing Thomas Jefferson’s Letter to the Danbury Baptists, The Declaration of Independence, and U.S. Constitution, it is evident that the basis of all three documents is the idea that all human beings possess God-given fundamental rights and that government is created to protect those rights. The Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson in 1776, is the first of the three documents penned. This is important because it defined the rights of liberty and equality of all American citizens as outlined in John Locke’s natural law thesis (Martin, page 113). In addition to providing an itemized account of the grievances colonist’s held against King George III of England, it served to justify the colonist’s quest for independence and separation from British rule. The Declaration of Independence conveyed to the crown that "all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, which among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." The Founders’ of the New World understood that their pursuit of liberties and autonomy specified in the Declaration of Independence could not come to fruition without instituting decrees. In 1787, the U.S. Constitution, was written to replace the Articles of Confederation with a better defined series of stringent laws that would legally uphold the freedoms and privileges established in the Declaration of Independence. The First Amendment of the Bill of Rights in

The years of 1763-1765 were truly defining moments for colonist of the colonies, soon to become the United States of America. ‘’War! War! This is the only way!” American Colonist shouted,as they took to the streets proclaiming defiance of British rule. “We as a people shall fight for our freedom and have victory.No more shall we continue to let others control our countries and give our money to a monarch who has no concern for our right’s, dedication that was put forth to help fight and respect us as loyal subjects.We must fight for our freedom!” When American colonist waged war it proved to be the only way for the colonies to become free from Britian. In turn, the colonist were justified in breaking away from England because of: The

In the making of the United States, there were many events that are important. This paper intends to highlight a few of those events including; Magna Carta, Mayflower Compact, Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation and the Federalist Papers. Many events in America’s history helped to establish the United States as a free and independent country. The Declaration of Independence in particular explains the rights and freedoms that Americans. Each document is like a stepping stones that leads to the next and building upon the pervious document.

Individual rights and forming a lasting union is what keeps the laws and the lives of people balanced and safe in America. The Declaration of Independence, by Thomas Jefferson, firmly states 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 by Jefferson states that all men and women have equal rights and if the government were to go against these rules, the people can alter or abolish it, balancing between preserving individual rights and forming a strong, lasting union. Furthermore, The Declaration of Independence outlines a series of violations of people’s rights that the King of Great Britain, George III, caused by a repeated history of “injuries and usurpations”, as stated in The Declaration of Independence, to the states and overall the people. With the

The United States Constitution and The Declaration of Independence are two of America 's most famous documents that laid the foundation for it 's independence as a nation and separation from British rule. The following paper will compare these two documents and decipher the difference of the two.

The Magna Carta has been a standout amongst the most productive and important documents in history. English Nobles created this paper. They made it to limited the power of the king, protect peoples rights, due process, to show the king has to follow all the same laws the people on his land follow too and many others. The Magna Carta influenced the executive historical process that led to the Rule of Constitutional law, the development of the Common Law, Charters of Freedom and Gettysburg Address. Notably, the U.S Constitution. The following quote from the U.S Constitution supports that is was influenced by the Magna Carta "no person shall ... be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of the law." The Magna Carta's has become

When the founding fathers wrote the Constitution and Declaration of Independence, they wrote them with the future in mind. In the newspaper and TV headlines today, many of the topics in the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence are even more relevant and hotly debated today than back then. But they each have a different purpose and handle many topics differently. This essay will compare the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution in three areas: style, structure, and tone, the topic of religion and government, and the issue of African slavery.

The Proclamation of 1763 portrays an example of a British action that brought forth change to the majority colonial viewpoint leading to the Revolutionary War (121). Understandably, the London Government was not keen on participating in another warlike situation with the Indians; nonetheless, the colonists were not having it (121). They knew this country had land, and they wanted it. The greedy American colonists wanted to be able to go where they pleased – why should they be restricted by some British law?

During the late 1700’s the American colonists waged a war for independance on the British arguing their fundamental liberties had been deprived. As the founding fathers declared themselves independent from Great Britain, and built their new nation, they quickly addressed their ambitions in the Constitution. However as the former colonists built their new nation, they decided their revolution ambitions needed pragmatic alterations. These objectives that the former colonists addressed in the Declaration of Independence were in one way or another modified, expanded upon, or subverted. The dispute of civil rights for the Colonists was expanded upon and subverted, in order to appeal to white property owning males. Furthermore the former Colonists wanted to create a form government in which the citizens had the power, this intention was expanded upon

During the 1700s the American settlers suffered the abuses from their Mother England, and constantly fought through the rebellious spirit that lived within them. As their last hopes for independence dissolved by the greediness of the king, a man raised his voice, encouraging his subalterns to defend their freedoms. Richard Henry Lee proclaimed, “that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, and that all connections between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, dissolved”(29). The incentive had been brought to life again. Lee’s call for independence triggered debate among the delegates of the colonies

The Declaration of Independence was to be legal approval in 1776, to be followed by the Constitution of the United States of America. And the idea for a national framework of structural importance to American history, democracy set out in these documents were to have a great impact on legislator and political thinkers

The year 1776 ignited the colonial rebellion from Great Britain, with colonists from the newly formed United States demanding their individual and colony’s rights. They advocated for representation, their individual rights, and the issue of sovereignty. With the ratification of the Bill of Rights in 1791, individual rights overall were thought to be “protected” in the newly liberated Unites States. Yet the continued limiting of women’s rights, treatment of the mentally handicapped and emancipated slaves, the individual liberties colonists believed they would gain from Britain was only for certain individuals, not all. The colonists believed that they would advance their individual rights and freedoms with their independence from Britain; though the reality was that the struggles of individual liberties continued throughout the next 100 years in different classes of citizens despite their gaining of independence from Britain.

The original Magna Carta signed by King John under the pressure of the English barons on June 15, 1215, marked an immeasurable change in the law in regards to the power of the sovereign in England. While that first draft was only in use for a short time, the subsequent drafts and additions by medieval and early modern kings and queens influenced law in continental Europe and the Americas. The ideas outlined in the original charter contain not only medieval material but ideas, perhaps not explicitly named, that are still prevalent and fundamental rights that Americans and citizens of the United Kingdom continue to relish today. Ideas such as due process, trial by a jury of peers, and even the origins of habeas corpus are found within the 61 clauses of this 800-year-old document. Clauses 39 and 40 represent those three fundamental, essential rights that cannot and should not be deprived. The Magna Carta and its articulation of due process before the law, trial by a jury of peers, and habeas corpus were meant as a means of infringing on the power of the tyrannical sovereign and it sparked the fight for personal liberties in England and the American Colonies and in doing so has become a staple of Common Law.

During the Middle Ages, it was very successful in creating rules to live by which the whole kingdom followed. Things were fair, and the King still had to obey the laws which everyone else did. The Magna Carta consists of a preamble and 63 short clauses. The document also guaranteed the rights of the people, the right to justice and the right to a fair trial. The U.S. Constitution & Bill of Rights, still used now, have some obvious influences from the Magna Carta.

Why is this relevant? Centuries later, an angry group of British Colonists cited the Magna Carta when they crafted a document in which they declared their independence from Great Britain. They felt that the King and Parliament exceeded their authority, as it was set down in the British Constitution, of which the Magna Carta is a significant part. The Magna Carta set out a number of principles that have come to form the cornerstone of common law. For instance, Article 39 of the Magna Carta, is one that will strike a familiar note to anyone familiar with the U.S. Constitution: "No free man shall be arrested or imprisoned or disseised [dispossessed] or outlawed or exiled or in any way victimized, neither will we attack him or send anyone to attack him, except by the lawful judgment of his peers [equals] or by the law of the land" (Drew, 46). It sounds a lot like an early effort to codify what we today refer to as due process. The principles ensconced here can be seen in both the 5th and 14th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. The more one looks, the more common threads there are. I feel this quote sums things up rather well: “Whatever its importance at the time, over the centuries Magna Carta evolved to have a monumental impact on the world’s English-speaking nations”