Documents that Influenced American Democracy

The Great Binding Law

Written by the Iroquois, a Native American tribe, between 1300 and 1450, it said that all Iroquois could participate in government, that government existed to serve the people, not vice versa, and it created a legislative body similar to Congress with two separate groups just as Congress has the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Magna Carta

Written in 1215, it is one of the most important documents in the development of democracy. It limited the power of the king of England and established the idea that people have rights.

The Mayflower Compact

Written in 1620 by the Pilgrims when they arrived off the coast of what is now Massachusetts. The Pilgrims were English citizens who left England because they were not free to practice their religion in England. They had planned to join up with some other English colonists in Virginia, but their ship was blown off course. They realized they needed to form their own government, so they wrote the Mayflower Compact in which they made their own laws. It is an early attempt at self-government.

The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut

Written in 1639, it created a civil charter, or written code of laws, for settlers in Connecticut. It never mentioned the king or any other government and extended voting rights to anyone who owned land. It may be the first constitution ever written that established a government.

Virginia Declaration of Rights

Written in 1776, it outlined the rights of the people of Virginia and set out the plan for its government. Thomas Jefferson used many of these same ideas in the Declaration of Independence.

The English Bill of Rights

Written in 1689, it stated that the monarch of England served at the will of Parliament. It helped make England a constitutional monarchy and strengthened the rights of the people. (Note that this is the English Bill of Rights and not the American Bill of Rights which are part of the U.S. Constitution.)

The Declaration of Independence

Written in 1776, mostly by Thomas Jefferson, it outlines the grievances (complaints) the American colonists had with the king of England and the English parliament, and put forth the idea that people had natural and legal rights.

The Articles of Confederation

Written in 1777 and ratified (formally agreed to and signed) in 1781,the Articles of Confederation were the first constitution of the new United States of America. Because of the fear of creating a strong government like the one the colonists had just defeated, however, the articles were too weak to be effective. There was no president, and no power to tax, or raise an army.

The U.S. Constitution

Written in 1787, it established the government that we have today. Originally, there were three parts: The Preamble, which states that the power of the government comes from the people; the articles, which describe the structure of the government, define the government's powers, and the relationship between the individual states and the federal government, and amendments, or changes to the document.

U.S. Bill of Rights

Written in 1789 and added to the Constitution in 1791, the Bill of Rights, or first ten amendments to the Constitution, outlines our basic rights, such as the right to freedom of expression, religion, and the press. Many of them have to do with our relationship with authority if involved in a crime. Others describe the relationship between the individual states and the federal government.