Bill of Rights

Document 4: The Virginia Declaration of Rights – Precursor to the US Constitution’s Bill of Rights

This is the fourth installment of historical antecedents to the Constitution of the United States. Prior documents were: the Magna Carta, the Mayflower Compact, the English Bill of Rights, and a foray into an important legal case (Bushell’s Case). Just nine to go, with Thomas Paine’s Common Sense next!! Introduction…

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Document 0: From Magna Carta to US Constitution – A Journey from the Divine Right of Kings to a Democratic Republic

The Signing of the United States Constitution occurred on September 17, 1787, at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, when 39 delegates to the Constitutional Convention, representing 12 states (all but Rhode Island, which declined to send delegates), endorsed the Constitution created during the four-month-long convention. Our Constitution did not spring…

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