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Jun 15, 1215
The Magna Carta
Protected the rights of the American people from British monarchy. The American soldiers were inspired by this document during the American Revolution and believed that they deserved the same rights as Englishmen, which were promised in this document. -
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Thomas Hobbes
An English philosopher who is known as a founders of modern political philosophy. He is also widely known for his views on how people could live peacefully together without societal conflict. If he never lived, the key elements of Western politics, the right of the individual, the importance of republican government, and the idea that acts are allowed if they are not expressly forbidden would not exist today. “The condition of man...is a condition of war of everyone against everyone.” -
The Mayflower Compact
Signed by forty-one English colonists on the Mayflower. The compact was drafted to prevent disagreement among the Puritans and non-separatist pilgrims. The male heads of Puritan and pilgrim families created this compact so that whoever signed was to accept the government that was currently in power and enacted “just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions, and offices." The compact’s set of just and equal laws created a framework for the US Constitution’s amendments. -
The Petition of Rights
A demand for civil liberties from English Parliament to King Charles I. Created by Sir Edward Coke, it reinforced four basic principles from earlier charters: no taxes levied without Parliament’s consent, no subject is to be imprisoned without evidence, no soldiers were to be quartered into the homes of citizens, and martial law was not initiated in times of peace. These rights were later implemented into the US Constitution as amendments. -
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John Locke
An English philosopher and political theorist who set the path for Enlightenment and development of liberalism. The United States’ founding documents were influenced by his political theory of government by the consent of the governed in order to protect “life, liberty, and estate.” If he weren’t alive, the United States’ Constitution wouldn't exist. “All mankind...being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty or possessions.” -
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Enlightenment
Francis Bacon, Thomas Hobbes, Galileo, Kepler, Leibniz, Isaac Newton, John Locke, Thomas Jefferson, and Renee Descartes. The reorientation of European politics, philosophy, science, and communications. France, Scotland, England, Germany, Switzerland, and America. European countries questioned authority and embraced the idea that humanity could improve through rational change. -
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Montesquieu
A French philosopher during the Age of Enlightenment. Through his book, The Spirit of Laws, he influenced how governments should function and established the idea of separate powers - Legislative, Executive, and Judicial - in order to emphasize liberty. If he weren’t alive, the Legislative Branch, Executive Branch, and Judicial Branch would not exist within the US government. “To become truly great, one has to stand with the people, not above them.” -
The English Bill of Rights
Created separation of powers, limited the power of the king and queen, strengthens the democratic election, and encourages freedom of speech. It guaranteed to English citizens from the power of the Crown and was later implemented into the Act of Settlement (1701). Both of these documents created parliamentary sovereignty, which made the legislative Parliament superior to all other forms of government. The US Bill of Rights was modeled after the English Bill of Rights. -
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Rousseau
A French philosopher. His essay “Discourse on the Arts and Sciences,” he proposed that the growth of knowledge made government stronger and crushed individual liberty. Also, he believed that science fails to contribute to positive morality and that the arts led to the decline of military virtue.If he never lived, the emphasis on the importance of morality and societal virtues would be overlooked by greed and lack of virtues. “What wisdom can you find that is greater than kindness?” -
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The Great Awakening
Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield. A religious movement that took place in Britain and Colonial America in the 1730s and 1740s that rejected the idea that predestination was wrong and that good deeds would send people to Heaven. -
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The First Continental Congress
Delegates from the colonies (except Georgia), such as George Washington, John Adams, and John Jay, met in Philadelphia to organize resistance to Parliament’s Coercive Acts. -
Second Continental Congress
Sam Adams, John Adams, George Washington, John Hancock, Benjamin Franklin, and Patrick Henry, along with other delegates, met again in Philadelphia and debated on how they should respond to Britain’s continuous hostility. They formed the Continental Army and made George Washington its commander. Also, they formed relationships with foreign countries in case they needed help fighting the Redcoats -
The Virginia Declaration of Rights
Written by George Mason at the Virginia Convention. States that all men are created free and equal, the power is vested in the people and emphasizes the role of the government for the people, state, and nation. The Declaration of Independence and the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen were thought to be inspired by this declaration. -
The Articles of Confederation
The first constitution of the United States. It was drafted on November 15, 1777, but was ratified by all thirteen states on March 1, 1781. It created a loose confederation of sovereign states and a weak central government, which gave the state government the most power. The Constitutional Convention in 1787 was formed to discuss the strong demand for a strong Federal government and led to the creation of the US Constitution and replacement of the Articles of Confederation. -
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Shay's Rebellion
Daniel Shays, General Benjamin Lincoln, the state militia (Massachusetts), and rebellious farmers. Angry farmers armed themselves from the states of New Hampshire to South Carolina to fight against tax collections and judgements for debt. In Massachusetts, high taxes, bad harvests, and economic depression threatened farmers with the loss of their lands.
