Omar Bennett
The US Constitution has had a profound impact on legal thinking and governance worldwide, especially in the latter half of the 20th century. The ideas of unalienable rights, the separation of powers, and the structure of the Constitution were influenced by European Enlightenment thinkers such as Montesquieu and John Locke. The opening words of the Constitution, We the People, represented a new thought: that the people, not the states, were the source of the government's legitimacy. The US Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, and ratified on June 21, 1788, and has since undergone amendments through a defined process.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Main Provisions | Seven articles that define the basic framework of the federal government |
| Articles I, II, III | Legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the federal government, respectively |
| Article IV, V, VI | Concepts of federalism, describing the rights and responsibilities of state governments, the states in relation to the federal government, and the shared process of constitutional amendment |
| Article VII | The procedure used by the 13 states to ratify the Constitution |
| Rule of Law | Rule by popular consent with laws drafted by the people's representatives |
| Separation of Powers | Inspired by English law and European Enlightenment thinkers like Montesquieu and John Locke |
| Native American Influence | The framers of the Constitution admired the federalist principles of the Iroquois Confederacy, a multi-state government that maintained individual governance |
| Influence on Legal Thinking | The U.S. Constitution has influenced legal thinking and adaptation in emerging nations, with European colonies referencing it in the mid-19th century |
| Global Influence | The Constitution has been a notable model for governance worldwide, especially in the 1970s, influencing passages in other constitutions and principles of the rule of law, separation of powers, and recognition of individual rights |
| Criticism | Anti-Federalists criticized the lack of a Bill of Rights, discrimination against southern states, direct taxation, and the loss of state sovereignty |
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What You'll Learn
The Iroquois Confederacy
The United States Constitution is the oldest and longest-standing written and codified national constitution in force in the world. The drafting of the Constitution, often referred to as its framing, was completed at the Constitutional Convention in 1787. The US Constitution has been a notable model for governance worldwide.
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English law
The US Constitution was influenced by a variety of sources, including English law, European Enlightenment thinkers, and Native American governments.
The concept of unalienable rights, the separation of powers, and the structure of the Constitution were also influenced by European Enlightenment thinkers such as Montesquieu and John Locke.
However, it's important to note that the framers of the Constitution also sought inspiration from non-European sources, specifically the governments of Native American nations. The Iroquois Confederacy, a multi-state government formed by six nations, provided a real-life example of the political concepts the framers were interested in adopting. The confederacy's federalist principles, unification through mutual defense, and conduct of foreign affairs were of particular interest to the framers, who sought to borrow aspects that enabled the assertion of people's sovereignty over vast geographic areas.
In conclusion, while English law and European Enlightenment thought played a significant role in shaping the US Constitution, the framers also drew inspiration from the Iroquois Confederacy and other Native American governments, demonstrating a willingness to look beyond traditional European models to create a unique form of government.
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European Enlightenment thinkers
The US Constitution was influenced by the ideas of European Enlightenment thinkers, including Montesquieu, John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and others. These Enlightenment thinkers advocated for a mixed government that combines elements of monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy to balance power and prevent tyranny.
Montesquieu, a French philosopher, proposed dividing government authority into three branches: the executive, the legislative, and the judiciary. This separation of powers, a cornerstone of American political philosophy, was woven into the US Constitution to ensure no single branch accumulated too much power and to protect individual liberties. The Constitution's first three articles embody this doctrine of separation of powers, with the federal government divided into the legislative branch (Article I), the executive branch (Article II), and the judicial branch (Article III).
John Locke's theory of natural rights and social contract influenced Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the Declaration of Independence. Locke's belief in inherent rights to life, liberty, and property is reflected in Jefferson's assertion of "unalienable Rights," including "Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness." The First, Fourth, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution also reflect Locke's principles, protecting freedom of speech, religion, and property, and introducing the concept of due process.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau advocated for direct democracy, where laws are made by the vote of all. He proposed that true political authority lies with the people and that the government should reflect their general will. While the Founding Fathers did not fully embrace direct democracy, Rousseau's ideas influenced American political ideology, emphasizing a government that serves its people.
The Enlightenment belief in popular sovereignty is reflected in the preamble of the Constitution, which begins with "We the People," establishing a government that serves and reflects the will of its citizens. The regular electoral process, as outlined in the Constitution, enables citizens to select their leaders and hold them accountable, ensuring a dynamic and responsive government.
The Founding Fathers' engagement with Enlightenment ideas shaped the ideological and structural framework of American governance, resulting in a resilient republic grounded in liberty and equality. The US Constitution, with its system of checks and balances, stands as a testament to the influence of European Enlightenment thinkers.
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Anti-federalism
The US Constitution was influenced by the European Enlightenment thinkers of the time, such as Montesquieu, John Locke, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson. The ideas of unalienable rights, the separation of powers, and the structure of the Constitution were largely inspired by these thinkers.
The Anti-Federalists were a late-18th-century political movement that opposed the creation of a stronger US federal government and the ratification of the 1787 Constitution. Led by Patrick Henry of Virginia, they believed that the Constitution would lead to a loss of individual liberties and an erosion of state sovereignty. They advocated for a more decentralized form of government, with greater protections for individual rights and stronger representation for the states. Anti-Federalists were concerned that the position of president might evolve into a monarchy, and that the national government would be too powerful and unresponsive to local needs. They also believed that a large central government would only serve the interests of urban areas, neglecting small towns and rural areas.
The Anti-Federalists published articles and delivered speeches against the ratification of the Constitution, which have come to be known as The Anti-Federalist Papers. They brought up concerns about the excessive power of the national government, the lack of a bill of rights, and the insufficient rights in the courts. They also feared that the government would become monarchic and replicate the cast-off governance of Great Britain.
The Anti-Federalists were strong in the key states of Massachusetts, New York, and Virginia, and their influence led to the enactment of the Bill of Rights. They became the nucleus of the Jeffersonian Republican Party and were strict constructionists of the new Constitution.
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Native American nations
The United States Constitution specifically mentions American Indians three times. The first mention is in Article I, Section 2, Clause 3, which addresses the handling of "Indians not taxed" in the apportionment of the seats of the House of Representatives according to population, suggesting that Indians need not be taxed. The second mention is in the Section 2 of the Fourteenth Amendment, which also addresses the same issue. The third mention is in Article I, Section 8, Clause 3, where Congress is empowered to "regulate commerce with foreign nations…states…and with the Indian tribes." This clause gives Congress no more power over Indian nations than it has over individual states.
In 1988, the US Senate passed a resolution acknowledging the influence of the Iroquois Confederacy on the US Constitution. The Iroquois Confederacy, also known as the Haudenosaunee, is the oldest living participatory democracy on Earth, dating back to 1142 when the Great Peacemaker founded it by uniting five nations: the Mohawk, the Onondaga, the Cayuga, the Oneida, and the Seneca. In 1722, the Tuscarora nation joined the Iroquois. Together, these six nations formed a multi-state government while maintaining their own individual governance. The structure of the Confederacy was federal in nature, operating under The Great Law of Peace, a doctrine of 117 codicils where individual tribes handled their own affairs but came together to solve issues of common importance.
Several Founding Fathers who signed the Constitution had deep familiarity with Native nations, some having negotiated treaties or engaged in diplomatic relations with them. Benjamin Franklin, for example, was closely involved in negotiating and printing treaties with Native nations, including the Iroquois Confederacy, and studied their systems of governance. In 1751, Franklin wrote:
> It would be a very strange Thing, if six Nations of ignorant Savages [sic] should be capable of forming a Scheme for such a Union, and be able to execute it in such a Manner as that it has subsisted Ages, and appears indissoluble; and yet a like Union should be impractical for ten or a Dozen English Colonies.
John Adams, whose three-volume handbook for the Constitutional Convention surveyed different types of governments and ideas about government, suggested that those drafting the Constitution should study the governments of "the ancient Germans and modern Indians," which he believed divided power among the three branches of executive, judicial, and legislative governance. Thomas Jefferson also studied Native systems of government, expressing admiration for them, although he incorrectly characterised them as having "no law." In a letter written after the completion of the first draft of the Constitution, he wrote:
> The only condition on earth to be compared with ours is that of the Indians, where they still have less law than we. The Europeans are governments of kites over pidgeons [sic].
While the constitutional framers may have viewed Indigenous people of the Iroquois Confederacy as inferior, they admired their federalist principles, particularly their ability to unify through mutual defence and conduct foreign affairs while allowing individual tribes to handle their own affairs. The fact that the framers looked to Native governments for inspiration is evident in the US Constitution's adoption of an eagle as its protector and its symbol of thirteen arrows bound together, inspired by the Iroquois' metaphor that a bundle of arrows cannot be broken as easily as a single arrow.
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Frequently asked questions
The US Constitution was influenced by several sources, including the English law and literature of republicanism, as well as the ideas of European Enlightenment thinkers like John Locke, Montesquieu, and Blackstone. The concept of federalism, or the separation of powers, was inspired by the Iroquois Confederacy, a Native American government that demonstrated a real-life example of political concepts the framers were interested in.
The Iroquois Confederacy was a multi-state government formed by six nations: the Mohawks, the Onondaga, the Cayuga, the Oneida, the Seneca, and later, the Tuscarora nation. The constitutional framers admired the Confederacy's ability to maintain individual governance while unifying through mutual defence and conducting foreign affairs. This "'stacked-government' model influenced their thinking", and they sought to borrow aspects of this government structure to suit their needs.
The US Constitution introduced novel governmental doctrines and practices, such as checks and balances, separation of powers, and defining said powers. It established a federal government divided into three branches: the legislative, consisting of a bicameral Congress; the executive, consisting of the President and subordinate officers; and the judicial, consisting of the Supreme Court and other federal courts. The Constitution also outlined the rights and responsibilities of state governments and the states' relationship with the federal government.
