Jonah Patel
The Third Amendment to the United States Constitution is one of the least controversial and least cited sections of the Constitution. It prevents the government from housing soldiers in private homes without the owner's consent, even during wartime. The amendment states: No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law. This amendment has been used to support arguments for an implicit right to privacy and as evidence of the Framers' intent to constrain executive power.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Freedom from housing soldiers | No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house without the owner's consent |
| Housing soldiers in private homes during war is permitted but must be authorized by Congress | |
| Protection of property rights | Citizens have the right to ownership and use of their property without government intrusion |
| Right to privacy | Establishes an implicit right to privacy |
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What You'll Learn
- The Third Amendment prevents the government from forcing homeowners to quarter soldiers in their homes without consent
- The Amendment establishes a right to privacy in the Constitution
- The Amendment constrains executive power, even during wartime
- The Amendment protects citizens' rights to ownership and use of their property without government intrusion
- The Third Amendment does not prevent the government from using airspace over private homeowners' property without permission
The Third Amendment prevents the government from forcing homeowners to quarter soldiers in their homes without consent
The Third Amendment of the United States Constitution is intended to protect citizens' rights to ownership and use of their property without government intrusion. It specifically prevents the government from forcing homeowners to quarter soldiers in their homes without consent. The amendment states: "No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law."
The Third Amendment was proposed by James Madison, then a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, along with twelve other amendments to the Constitution. These amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, were designed to limit government power and protect individual liberties. The Third Amendment was ratified as part of the Bill of Rights on December 15, 1791.
The inclusion of the Third Amendment in the Constitution was a response to the Quartering Acts enacted by the Parliament of Great Britain in 1765. These acts required the Thirteen Colonies to provide food and lodging to British Army troops serving in the colonies, with troops being quartered in public buildings if barracks provided insufficient space. The Third Amendment ensures that soldiers cannot be quartered in private homes without the owner's consent, even during wartime.
While the Third Amendment has rarely been the primary basis of a Supreme Court decision, it has been invoked in a few cases to establish an implicit right to privacy in the Constitution. For example, in Engblom v. Carey (1982), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in favor of prison guards who had been evicted from their residences on prison grounds to make way for National Guardsmen, citing the Third Amendment's protection of privacy rights in private residences.
The Third Amendment also serves as a constraint on executive power, as noted by Justice Robert H. Jackson in Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952). He argued that the amendment demonstrates the Framers' intent to limit the military powers of the Commander in Chief, even during wartime, by requiring congressional authorization for the seizure of private housing for troops.
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The Amendment establishes a right to privacy in the Constitution
The Third Amendment to the United States Constitution is one of the least controversial and least cited sections of the Constitution. It states:
> No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.
The Amendment has been interpreted as establishing an implicit right to privacy in the Constitution. This is because it constrains executive power, even during wartime, by requiring congressional authorisation for the seizure of housing for military use.
In Engblom v. Carey (1982), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled that prison guards enjoyed a right to privacy in their residences, even though the residences were owned by the prison. The Court found that the Third Amendment applied because the National Guardsmen brought in to keep the peace were equivalent to "soldiers".
In Padilla v. Rumsfeld, the same Court cited the Third Amendment in support of its opinion that President George W. Bush lacked the authority to keep accused terrorist Jose Padilla in confinement indefinitely. The Court reasoned that the Constitution grants Congress—not the President—the authority to override individual rights in certain circumstances, and the Third Amendment's provision for housing soldiers in private homes during war is one such example.
Legal historian Tom W. Bell also argued in 1993 that the quartering of American soldiers during the War of 1812 and American Civil War violated the Third Amendment, though this argument was never presented in court.
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The Amendment constrains executive power, even during wartime
The Third Amendment to the United States Constitution is one of the least controversial and least cited sections of the Constitution. It states that "no soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law." This amendment constrains executive power, even during wartime, by preventing the government from forcing homeowners to allow soldiers to use their homes without their consent.
The amendment was proposed by James Madison, then a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, as one of twenty amendments based on state bills of rights and English sources such as the Bill of Rights of 1689. The amendment ultimately passed Congress almost unchanged and by unanimous vote. It was ratified as part of the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments to the Constitution, which were meant to secure individual liberties and maintain the balance of power between the federal government and the states.
The Third Amendment has been invoked in a few instances to constrain executive power and protect citizens' rights to ownership and use of their property without government intrusion. For example, in Engblom v. Carey (1982), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in favor of prison guards who had been evicted from their residences on prison grounds to make way for National Guardsmen, citing the Third Amendment's protection of the right to privacy in their residences. In Padilla v. Rumsfeld, the same court cited the Third Amendment in support of its opinion that President George W. Bush lacked the authority to keep accused terrorist Jose Padilla in confinement indefinitely.
The Third Amendment has also been used as partial support for the existence of an implicit right to privacy in the Constitution. For example, in Griswold v. Connecticut, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution gives individuals a "zone of privacy" that includes the right of married couples to use birth control. This decision cited the Third Amendment, along with others in the Bill of Rights, as evidence of the Framers' intent to create such a zone of privacy.
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The Amendment protects citizens' rights to ownership and use of their property without government intrusion
The Third Amendment to the United States Constitution is one of the least controversial and least cited sections of the Constitution. It states:
> No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.
This amendment was proposed in response to the Quartering Acts enacted by the British Parliament in 1765, which required the Thirteen Colonies to provide food and lodging to British Army troops. The Third Amendment is intended to protect citizens' rights to ownership and use of their property without government intrusion.
The amendment has rarely been the primary basis for a court decision, but it has been invoked in a few instances to establish an implicit right to privacy in the Constitution. For example, in Engblom v. Carey (1982), the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in favor of prison guards who had been evicted from their residences on prison grounds to make way for National Guardsmen, citing the Third Amendment's protection of their right to privacy in their residences. In another case, Padilla v. Rumsfeld, the same court cited the Third Amendment in support of its opinion that President George W. Bush lacked the authority to keep accused terrorist Jose Padilla in confinement indefinitely.
The Third Amendment also constrains executive power, even during wartime. In Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952), Justice Robert H. Jackson cited the amendment as evidence that the Framers intended to limit the military powers of the Commander in Chief, even during times of conflict.
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The Third Amendment does not prevent the government from using airspace over private homeowners' property without permission
The Third Amendment to the United States Constitution is one of the least controversial and least cited sections of the Constitution. It states that "no soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law". The Amendment was proposed by James Madison, then a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, and ratified in 1791 as part of the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution to limit government power and protect individual liberties.
The Third Amendment is intended to protect citizens' rights to ownership and use of their property without government intrusion. It prevents the government from forcing homeowners to allow soldiers to use their homes. However, it has been invoked very rarely and has never been the primary basis of a Supreme Court decision.
While the Third Amendment does protect homeowners' rights over the use of their property, this protection does not extend to the airspace above their homes. In two unrelated decisions, federal courts ruled that the Third Amendment does not prevent the government from using the airspace over private homeowners' property without permission.
The Third Amendment has been cited in a few instances to support the existence of an implicit right to privacy in the Constitution. For example, in the case of Engblom v. Carey in 1982, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in favor of prison guards who had been evicted from their residences on prison grounds to make way for National Guardsmen. The court found that the Guardsmen were equivalent to "soldiers" and that the prison guards enjoyed a right to privacy in their residences, even though the residences were owned by the prison.
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Frequently asked questions
The Third Amendment of the US Constitution grants citizens the freedom from being forced to house military personnel in their homes during peacetime. It also requires that in times of war, the process of housing military personnel in private residences be "prescribed by law".
The Third Amendment is often described as "a preference for the Civilian over the Military".
No, the Third Amendment has never been the primary basis for a US Supreme Court decision. However, it was used as a partial basis for the majority decision in Griswold v. and was invoked in a few instances to establish an implicit right to privacy in the Constitution.
