Eleanor Finch
The United States Constitution is the supreme law of the United States of America. It was drafted at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia between May 25 and September 17, 1787, and superseded the Articles of Confederation on March 4, 1789. The Constitution defines the framework of the federal government, uniting a group of states with different interests, laws, and cultures. It consists of four sections: an introductory paragraph titled Preamble, a list of seven Articles that define the government's framework, an untitled closing endorsement with the signatures of 39 framers, and 27 amendments that have been adopted under Article V. The first ten Amendments introduced were referred to as the Bill of Rights, which defines citizens' and states' rights in relation to the government. The Constitution has been interpreted and amended over time, with Supreme Court judicial review playing a significant role in its evolution.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Purpose | To form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty. |
| Separation of Powers | The federal government is divided into three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial. |
| Freedom of Speech | Citizens have the right to express themselves freely and be exposed to a wide range of opinions and views. |
| Freedom of Religion | Individuals have the right to hold and exercise their own religious beliefs, and the federal government cannot establish an official national church or favour one set of religious beliefs over another. |
| State and Federal Government Relationship | The Constitution outlines the rights and responsibilities of state governments in relation to the federal government. |
| Influence of Alexander Hamilton | Hamilton played a crucial role in defending and shaping the Constitution, advocating for a strong central government and contributing to the Federalist essays in support of ratification. |
| Amendments | The Constitution has been amended several times, with the first ten amendments known as the Bill of Rights, guaranteeing individual freedoms and rights. |
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What You'll Learn
The Constitution united citizens of different interests, laws, and cultures
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. The drafting of the Constitution, often referred to as its framing, was completed at the Constitutional Convention, which assembled at Independence Hall in Philadelphia between May 25 and September 17, 1787. The delegates to the convention were chosen by the state legislatures of 12 of the 13 original states; Rhode Island refused to send delegates. The convention's initial mandate was limited to amending the Articles of Confederation, which had proven highly ineffective in meeting the young nation's needs.
The first ten Amendments introduced were referred to as the Bill of Rights, consisting of ten amendments that were added to the Constitution in 1791, as supporters of the Constitution had promised critics during the debates of 1788. The First Amendment (1791) prohibits Congress from obstructing the exercise of certain individual freedoms: freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and the right to petition. Its Free Exercise Clause guarantees a person's right to hold whatever religious beliefs they want and to freely exercise that belief, and its Establishment Clause prevents the federal government from creating an official national church or favoring one set of religious beliefs over another. The amendment guarantees an individual's right to express and to be exposed to a wide range of opinions and views. It was intended to ensure a free exchange of ideas, even unpopular ones.
The Constitution acted as a colossal merger, uniting a group of states with different interests, laws, and cultures. The Constitution's first three articles embody the doctrine of the separation of powers, in which the federal government is divided into three branches: the legislative, consisting of the bicameral Congress (Article I); the executive, consisting of the president and subordinate officers (Article II); and the judicial, consisting of the Supreme Court and other federal courts (Article III). The justification for judicial review is to be explicitly found in the open ratifications held in the states and reported in their newspapers. John Marshall in Virginia, James Wilson in Pennsylvania, and Oliver Ellsworth of Connecticut all argued for Supreme Court judicial review of acts of state legislature.
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The Bill of Rights: the first 10 amendments to the Constitution
The United States Constitution is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. The drafting of the Constitution, often referred to as its framing, was completed at the Constitutional Convention, which assembled at Independence Hall in Philadelphia between May 25 and September 17, 1787. The Constitution includes an introductory paragraph titled "Preamble", which lays out the purposes of the new government.
The Bill of Rights is the first 10 amendments to the Constitution. It defines citizens' and states' rights in relation to the government. The amendments of the Bill of Rights add to the Constitution specific guarantees of personal freedoms, such as freedom of speech, the right to publish, practice religion, possess firearms, assemble, and other natural and legal rights. The First Amendment prohibits Congress from obstructing the exercise of certain individual freedoms: freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and the right to petition.
The Bill of Rights was proposed following the often bitter 1787–88 debate over the ratification of the Constitution and written to address the objections raised by Anti-Federalists. Congress approved twelve articles of amendment on September 25, 1789, and submitted them to the states for ratification. Ten of the proposed 12 amendments were ratified by three-fourths of the state legislatures on December 15, 1791. The ratified Articles (Articles 3–12) constitute the first 10 amendments of the Constitution, or the U.S. Bill of Rights.
The concepts codified in these amendments are built upon those in earlier documents, especially the Virginia Declaration of Rights (1776), as well as the Northwest Ordinance (1787), the English Bill of Rights (1689), and the Magna Carta (1215). The Bill of Rights is one of the three founding documents, along with the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, that have secured the rights of the American people for more than two and a quarter centuries and are considered instrumental to the founding and philosophy of the United States.
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The Constitution's first three articles embody the separation of powers
The US Constitution is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. The Constitution includes four sections: an introductory paragraph titled Preamble, a list of seven Articles that define the government's framework, an untitled closing endorsement with the signatures of 39 framers, and 27 amendments that have been adopted under Article V.
The Constitution's first three articles embody the doctrine of the separation of powers, in which the federal government is divided into three branches. These are the legislative, consisting of the bicameral Congress (Article I); the executive, consisting of the president and subordinate officers (Article II); and the judicial, consisting of the Supreme Court and other federal courts (Article III).
The Framers of the U.S. Constitution divided the federal government's powers between these three separate branches of government. James Madison, for example, borrowed ideas from Montesquieu, a French noble and scholar who advocated for a separation of powers structure. In doing so, the Framers created a powerful national government with the ability to rule the country effectively. This was a drastic change compared to the Articles of Confederation.
The three branches of government each exercise their authority under a system of checks and balances, with an interplay of power among them. The legislative branch makes the law, the executive branch enforces the law, and the judicial branch interprets the law.
When ruling on whether one branch has usurped the authority of another in separation-of-powers cases, the Court has sometimes adopted a formalist approach to constitutional interpretation, which closely adheres to the structural divisions in the Constitution.
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The Constitution's ratification process
The United States Constitution, the supreme law of the United States of America, superseded the Articles of Confederation on March 4, 1789. The Constitution was drafted at the Constitutional Convention, which assembled at Independence Hall in Philadelphia between May 25 and September 17, 1787. The convention was convened to amend the Articles of Confederation, which had become ineffective in meeting the young nation's needs. However, the delegates ultimately proposed and created a new form of government.
The drafting of the Constitution, also referred to as its framing, was completed by state delegates during the four-month Constitutional Convention. The document was signed by 38 out of 41 delegates present on September 17, 1787, and then sent to the states for ratification. The Constitution stipulated that it would not be binding until ratified by nine of the 13 existing states, a two-thirds majority. This process ignored the amendment provision of the Articles of Confederation, which required unanimous approval of all the states.
The first state to ratify the Constitution was Delaware on December 7, 1787, followed by Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, and Connecticut. On June 21, 1788, New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify the Constitution, making it the official framework of the government of the United States. The remaining four states—Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, and Rhode Island—ratified the Constitution by May 29, 1790.
The ratification process was contentious, with some states voicing opposition to the Constitution on the grounds that it did not adequately protect certain rights, such as freedom of speech, religion, and the press. To address these concerns, the Massachusetts Compromise was reached in February 1788, stipulating that amendments—the Bill of Rights—would be immediately proposed to protect these freedoms. The Bill of Rights, consisting of the first ten amendments to the Constitution, was added in 1791.
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The Constitution's influence on the Supreme Court
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. The Constitution establishes the framework of the federal government of the United States, which consists of three branches: the legislative, the executive, and the judicial.
The judicial branch consists of the Supreme Court and other federal courts. Article III, Section I of the Constitution establishes the federal judiciary and states that "The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish." The Supreme Court was initially made up of jurists who had been intimately connected with the framing of the Constitution and the establishment of its government as law.
Article III, Section II of the Constitution establishes the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. The Court has original jurisdiction over certain cases, such as suits between two or more states and cases involving ambassadors and other public ministers. It also has appellate jurisdiction over almost any other case that involves a point of constitutional or federal law. The Certiorari Act of 1925 gives the Court the discretion to decide whether or not to hear a case when exercising its appellate jurisdiction.
The Judiciary Act of 1789 gave the Supreme Court original jurisdiction to issue writs of mandamus (legal orders compelling government officials to act in accordance with the law). However, the Supreme Court noted that the Constitution did not permit the Court to have original jurisdiction in this matter. Since Article VI of the Constitution establishes the Constitution as the supreme law of the land, the Court held that an Act of Congress that is contrary to the Constitution could not stand.
The Supreme Court plays a crucial role in the constitutional system of government. As the highest court in the land, it is the court of last resort for those seeking justice. Its power of judicial review ensures that each branch of government recognizes its limits and protects civil rights and liberties by striking down laws that violate the Constitution. The Supreme Court has the final say on when a Constitutional right is protected or violated and sets limits on democratic government by ensuring that popular majorities cannot pass laws that harm or take advantage of unpopular minorities.
The Supreme Court has been criticized for having excessive power and engaging in a "judicial coup." Some argue that it has taken power away from juries and that its decisions are influenced by legal elites and companies. Despite these concerns, the Supreme Court remains a vital institution in interpreting and upholding the Constitution.
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Frequently asked questions
It is the supreme law of the United States of America.
It consists of four sections: an introductory paragraph titled Preamble, a list of seven Articles that define the framework of the federal government, an untitled closing endorsement with the signatures of 39 framers, and 27 amendments that have been adopted under Article V.
The legislative, consisting of the bicameral Congress (Article I); the executive, consisting of the president and subordinate officers (Article II); and the judicial, consisting of the Supreme Court and other federal courts (Article III).
The Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments to the Constitution, defining citizens' and states' rights in relation to the government.
Key figures include George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Jay, and James Wilson.
