Road to the Constitution

  • Jun 15, 1215

    Magna Carta

    Magna Carta
    Magna Carta is a charter, which was first drafted by the Archbishop of Canterbury to make peace between the unpopular King and a group of rebel barons. King John II. of England was forced to sign it by the English barons on June 15 in 1215. It promised the protection of church rights, limitations on feudal payments to the Crown, to be implemented through a council of 25 barons, access to swift justice, and protection for the barons from illegal imprisonment.
  • Mayflower Conpact

    Mayflower Conpact
    The Mayflower Compact is a document, which bound the Pilgrims together when they arrived in New England. It promised religious freedom and was the first written framework of government established in what is now the United States. 41 English colonists signed it on the 11st of November in 1620 on the ship called Mayflower. The compact was drafted to prevent dissent amongst Puritans and non-separatist Pilgrims.
  • Fundamental Orders of Connecticut

    Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
    The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut was the first written constitution of the colonies. It set up governmental rules in early Connecticut, which provided free elections, the guaranty of individual rights, secret balloting and defined, but limited governmental powers. The document was made out of 11 orders and mandated an elected governor and magistrates with legislative, executive and judicial powers.
  • English Bill of Rights

    English Bill of Rights
    The old Style of the English Bill of Rights is February 13 in 1688 and the newer one is somewhere in March 1689.It was a British law, passed by the British parliament declares the rights and liberties of the people. It also enhances the democratic elections, so it gives the right to trial by jury and the freedom to speeches.
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    First Continental Congress

    The First Continental Congress was a meeting between the delegates from twelve of the thirteen colonies. They met from September 5th to October 26th in 1774 at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania early in the American Revolution. The purpose on this was, to response to their resistance to new taxes.
  • Second Continental Congres

    Second Continental Congres
    This was the second congress meeting between the delegates of the thirteen colonies. It was opened on May 5th 1775, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.They named George Washington as commandor-in-Chief and passed a "Declaration of Causes of Taking up Arms", which named England as an aggressor and gave the Colonists the right to take up arms against the British. They also issued paper money and set up a system where the government would borrow money from their citizens and pay it back with interest.
  • Declaration of Independence

    Declaration of Independence
    The Declaration of Independence was drafted by Thomas Jefferson and is at once the nation's most cherished symbol of liberty and Jefferson's most enduring monument. It gave right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. It started the Revolutionary War and debated England for the Native American Independence.
  • Articles of Confederation

    Articles of Confederation
    The Article of Confederation was the first constitution of the United States and adopted by the Continental Congress. It established the functions of Government, after established independence from England. It also gave the power to the state and was an agreement between all the 13 original states of the US. In 1789, it was replaced by the US Constitution.
  • The Virginia Plan

    The Virginia Plan
    The Virginia Plan was drafted by James Madison and a proposal by Virginia delegates for a bicameral legislative branch. It gave the U.S. a law system with two Representatives. It created different branches of the Government and the H.o.R. The Virginia Plan made kind of a "Large State Plan". This means, large states would have more representatives than smaller states. Large states supported this plan, while smaller states generally opposed it.
  • The Jersey Plan

    The Jersey Plan
    The New Jersey Plan is also known as the Small State Plan and was a proposal for the structure of the United States Government presented by William Paterson at the Constitutional Convention on June 15 in 1787. It proposed a single chamber legislature in which each state, regardless of size, would have one vote, as under the Articles of Confederation. Smaller states didn't supported the Virginia Plan because they feared losing substantial power in the national government.
  • 3/5th Compromise

    3/5th Compromise
    The Three-Fifths-Compromise was proposed by James Wilson and Roger Sherman, who were both delegates for the Constitutional Convention of 1787. It struck a balance between smaller northern states that had abolished slavery and large slave states in the South.