Mayflower Compact
Magna Carta
Common Sense
"No person shall...be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law. U.S. Constitution, 5th Amendment
"This Constitution and the laws of the United States...shall be the supreme law of the land." All government officials "shall be bound by an oath to support this constitution." -U.S. Constitution, Article VI
English Bill of Rights
"WE THE PEOPLE of the United States...do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America." Preamble to the Constitution, 1787
Cato's Letters
The U.S. Constitution created three branches of government. Each branch is given the power to check, or limit the power of the other two. The system of checks and balances keeps any one branch from getting too powerful.
The first ten amendments in the Bill of Rights guarantee certain rights and freedoms that include: -Freedom of speech, the press, and religion. -Right to petition the government and to bear arms -Prohibition of excessive bail or fines, or cruel and unusual punishments for crimes.
Due Process: People have the right to fair and reasonable laws. Officials have to follow rules when enforcing the laws and treat all people in the same way.
These people landed in an unknown land and quickly need to create a government. They agreed to create a new government to follow its rules. In exchange, they would all protect each other. This document helped create what is known as self-government.
Limited Government: the power of government is limited by the Constitution, and each branch is limited in what it can do.
Rights: A set of things that people believe they should be free to do without restrictions.
Rule of Law: the idea that all people must follow the laws, and that the laws are enforced fairly.
Introduced concepts of limited government, rule of law, and due process. It helped create the British Parliament (kind of like Congress in the U.S.)
These "letter" or articles where published in colonial American newspapers that discussed many different ideas, such as freedom of expression, which became very influential in the colonies.
Self-Government: popular or representative system where the people create and run their own government.
A pamphlet written by Thomas Paine that did not introduce new idea - but explained arguments for independence so common people could understand it. He encouraged them to support the fight for independence from Britain.
This document expanded the rights of Parliament and the people, while limiting the powers of the king even more. This document was well-known because it affected people living in Britain and the new British colonies in America.
