Eleanor Finch
The idea of a constitution was first conceived by the ancient Greeks, with Aristotle using the Greek word 'politeia' in several different senses in his works. The United States Constitution is often considered the oldest constitution in the world, although the Constitution of San Marino is nearly 200 years older. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Constitution, passed on 3 May 1791, is considered the first constitution of its kind in Europe and the world's second oldest. The Canadian Constitution was written in 1867, and the 1811 Constitution of Venezuela was the first of its kind in Latin America.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| First complete written national constitution | The American Constitution |
| First constitution of its kind in Europe | The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Constitution |
| Second oldest constitution | The American Constitution |
| First constitution of Venezuela and Latin America | The 1811 Constitution of Venezuela |
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What You'll Learn
- The American Constitution was the first complete written national constitution
- The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Constitution was the first constitution in Europe
- The French Constitution of 1791 was another landmark document
- The 1811 Constitution of Venezuela was the first in Latin America
- The Greek city-states had customary or partially written constitutions
The American Constitution was the first complete written national constitution
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Constitution was passed on 3 May 1791 and is considered the world's second-oldest constitution. Poland was the first country in Europe to adopt a written constitution. France followed with its first written constitution later that year and went through four constitutions in the 1790s alone. The 1811 Constitution of Venezuela was the first constitution of Venezuela and Latin America.
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The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Constitution was the first constitution in Europe
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Constitution was passed on 3 May 1791 and is considered the first constitution of its kind in Europe and the world's second oldest after the American Constitution.
Poland adopted its first written constitution in the spring of 1791, with France following later that year. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Constitution was drafted by the leading minds of the Enlightenment in Poland, including King Stanislaw August Poniatowski, Stanisław Staszic, Scipione Piattoli, Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz, Ignacy Potocki and Hugo Kołłątaj. It was then adopted by the Great Sejm.
The American Constitution was the first complete written national constitution, but it was neither the first constitution of a general government nor the first written constitution. A number of governments, starting with the Greek city-states, had customary or partially written constitutions.
The United States Constitution is often considered the oldest constitution in the world because not all of San Marino's Constitution is codified. It was ratified on 21 June 1788 after nine of the 13 original states signed.
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The French Constitution of 1791 was another landmark document
The first constitution in the world was the American Constitution. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Constitution was the first in Europe and the second oldest in the world. It was passed on 3 May 1791 and was developed by the leading minds of the Enlightenment in Poland.
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The 1811 Constitution of Venezuela was the first in Latin America
The 1811 Constitution of Venezuela was influenced by the political liberalism of the French Revolution and the American Constitution. It was also influenced by the local autonomy of the cabildos and town councils of the provinces that later formed Venezuela. The American countries declared their independence from Spain at the beginning of the 19th century, and the administrative system of the nascent republics of the new world was completely decentralised. The provinces that formed the Captaincy General of Venezuela had local power, and the clearest example of this was the declaration of independence on 19 April 1810, by the Cabildo de Caracas. The 1811 Constitution of Venezuela recognised the faith of the Catholic Church as the official religion of the Venezuelan State.
The election was indirect or second-degree: only men who owned property could elect one representative for every 20,000 inhabitants, who in turn would elect the representatives of the Chamber of Deputies and Senators, in addition to the three persons in charge of the Executive Power (triumvirate). Once signed, 228 of its articles were approved, being noteworthy the reservations generated by article 180 for the then Vice President Francisco de Miranda and the rest of the executive train.
The 1811 Constitution of Venezuela was the first constitution of its kind in Latin America, but it was neither the first constitution of a general government nor the first written constitution. A number of governments, starting with the Greek city-states, had customary or partially written constitutions. The American Constitution is often considered the oldest constitution in the world, but the Constitution of San Marino is nearly 200 years older, although not all of it is codified. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Constitution was passed on 3 May 1791 and is considered the world's second oldest constitution.
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The Greek city-states had customary or partially written constitutions
The United States Constitution is often considered the oldest constitution in the world. However, the first constitution was neither the first constitution of a general government, nor the first written constitution. The Greek city-states had customary or partially written constitutions. The American states had all complete written constitutions before the Philadelphia Constitutional Convention took place. Many of the delegates at the Philadelphia convention reacted against what they saw as the flaws in the state constitutions, which had exchanged the unlimited power of the (now overthrown) King for the unlimited power of a (now elected) legislature. The checks and balances system that emerged from the Philadelphia convention was, for many of the delegates, a reinstatement of what they believed the British constitution had long stood for, before kings began exceeding their legitimate power under it.
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Frequently asked questions
The United States Constitution is often considered the oldest constitution in the world, because not all of the Constitution of San Marino is codified.
The United States Constitution was ratified on 21 June 1788 after nine of the 13 original states signed.
The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Constitution was passed in 1791 and is considered the first constitution of its kind in Europe and the world's second oldest one after the American Constitution.
The Constitution of San Marino might be the world's oldest active written constitution, since some of its core documents have been in operation since 1600.
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