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a document that King John of England was forced to sign in 1215, limiting the power of the monarchy and establishing the principle that everyone, including the king, is subject to the law -
the first permanent English settlement in North America, established in 1607 by the Virginia Company of London -
The Mayflower Compact was an agreement signed by 41 male passengers on the Mayflower in 1620, establishing a "civil body politic" for the newly established Plymouth Colony -
The Royal Proclamation of 1763, issued by King George III, aimed to organize Britain's newly acquired North American territories after the French and Indian War -
The Sugar Act, officially known as the American Revenue Act of 1764, was a British law that imposed taxes on sugar, molasses, and other goods imported into the American colonies. -
On September 25, 1789, the First Congress of the United States proposed 12 amendments to the Constitution. The 1789 Joint Resolution of Congress proposing the amendments is on display in the Rotunda in the National Archives Museum. -
The Tenth Amendment is a part of the U.S. Bill of Rights that reserves powers to the states or the people that are not delegated to the federal government by the Constitution. -
The First Amendment was written by James Madison and adopted by Congress on September 25, 1789, as part of the Bill of Rights. It was ratified on December 15, 1791 and states that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise there for or abridging the freedom of speech.
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The Second Amendment protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms, a right that has been interpreted by the Supreme Court to include an individual's right to possess firearms for self-defense. Originally rooted in the need for state militias to counter a possible federal overreach, the amendment was influenced by English common law and the English Bill of Rights 1689. -
The Third Amendment prohibits the government from quartering soldiers in private homes without the owner's consent during peacetime. During times of war, it states that quartering must follow a method prescribed by law -
The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures, requiring that government officials obtain a warrant based on probable cause to search a person's body, home, papers, or property. -
The Fifth Amendment is a part of the U.S. Constitution that protects individuals from certain legal injustices. It includes the right to a grand jury indictment for serious crimes, protection from double jeopardy being tried twice for the same crime, the right to avoid self-incrimination pleading the Fifth, the guarantee of due process of law, and the requirement for just compensation when private property is taken for public use. -
The Sixth Amendment guarantees the rights of criminal defendants, including the right to a speedy and public trial, a lawyer, an impartial jury, and the right to be informed of the charges. It also grants the accused the right to confront witnesses and compel favorable witnesses to testify on their behalf. This amendment ensures fair and transparent legal proceedings for those facing criminal charges. -
The 7th Amendment protects the right to a jury trial in federal civil cases where the dispute is over a certain dollar amount. It also prevents judges from overturning the facts found by a jury in these cases, except according to common law rules. The right to a jury trial is for civil cases, as opposed to criminal cases, and applies specifically to federal courts, not state courts. -
The Eighth Amendment prohibits excessive bail, excessive fines, and cruel and unusual punishments, protecting individuals from excessive and inhumane penalties in the U.S. legal system -
The Ninth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, part of the Bill of Rights, declares that the enumeration of specific rights in the Constitution does not mean that other rights retained by the people are denied or disparaged. It acts as a constitutional safety net to protect unenumerated, or unlisted, rights.