7 principles of the constitution essay

Background Essay: “A Glorious Liberty Document:” The U.S. Constitution and Its Principles

7 principles of the constitution essay

Guiding Questions: How are republican principles of limited government, separation of powers, and checks and balances reflected in the U.S. Constitution?

  • I can identify the ways the Founders tried to limit the power of the government.
  • I can explain how the principles of government in the Constitution limit the power of the government.
  • I can explain how the Constitution protects liberty.

Essential Vocabulary

Introduction.

In 1852, abolitionist Frederick Douglass gave a speech on the meaning of the Fourth of July. He addressed the inequalities and injustices for Black Americans that made them feel they did not belong and had no reason to celebrate the holiday. However, he also stated his belief that the Constitution was “a glorious liberty document.” Douglass believed that the document created a constitutional government with the central purpose of protecting liberty and a free society for all Americans.

Photograph of Frederick Douglass.

The Founders of the Constitution wanted to build a new and enduring representative government based on the authority of the people. Important constitutional principles guided their work at the Constitutional Convention during the summer of 1787. The balancing act of including these principles was difficult but necessary to protect the liberties of the people. Given their assumptions about human nature, and always keeping in mind the ideals of the Declaration of Independence, the Founders created a Constitution rooted in sound principles of government.

Human Nature and Limited Government

The Founders’ understanding of human nature determined the kind of government they created. In Federalist No. 51, James Madison asked, “What is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature?” The Founders believed that humans were flawed but capable of virtue. Therefore, humans must be allowed to govern themselves, but that government had to be limited and controlled by the people, or liberty would be lost.

The Constitution defines the powers of the national government. Some powers are enumerated powers , or specifically listed. Others are implied powers or not explicitly listed. These are powers that relate to other powers and are therefore implied. For example, the power to raise an army for defense implicitly includes the power to raise an air force. The Founders wanted to strengthen the national government over what existed under the Articles of Confederation, but they also wanted to limit the powers of that government.

Republican Government and Popular Sovereignty

Based upon the Enlightenment ideas of John Locke, the Declaration asserted that just governments derive their powers from the consent of the governed and thus laid the basis for American self-government. This is the principle of popular sovereignty , which means the people hold ultimate authority. The authority of the people themselves is the greatest limit on the power of the government. In Federalist No. 39 , Madison defined a republic as a government that derives its powers from the people and is governed by representatives elected by the people to serve for a defined period.

The republican principle of self-government guided the Founders in creating the new constitutional government. The Preamble begins, “We the People,” and lists the guiding principles of government. The Constitution also provides for defined terms of office, including two years for the House of Representatives, four years for the president, and six years for the Senate. The most republican feature of the Constitution is the predominance of the legislative branch, which is closest to the people.

Separation of Powers

The Founders trusted the people and their representatives in the new government but created additional tools to prevent government from amassing too much power. Madison made it clear in Federalist No. 48 that the people cannot rely on mere “parchment barriers,” limits written on paper, to control government. Government is most effectively limited through well-founded institutions. The Founders chose to divide power as the best way to avoid tyranny and to ensure the rights of the people are protected. The Constitution contains many examples of the separation of powers . Each division of government exercises distinct powers to carry out its functions and to prevent the accumulation of power. The Congress is divided into two houses—a House of Representatives and a Senate—in a principle called bicameralism. The national government is divided into three branches with different powers and functions to prevent any one branch from becoming too powerful. A legislature makes the law, an executive enforces the law, and a judiciary interprets the law. Some specific constitutional examples are Congress’s power to declare war, the president’s power to make treaties, and the courts’ power to hear cases resulting from legal disputes. The government is also divided into different levels—national, state, and local—to separate power and limit government. This principle of different levels of government having their respective powers is called federalism .

Checks and Balances

Another central device limiting the power of the national government is the provision for the three branches to check and balance each other’s powers. The Constitution contains many such examples of checks and balances . Congress may pass a law, but the president has to sign or veto it. The president can make treaties, but the Senate has to ratify them. The Supreme Court can review a congressional law or an executive order. Another example is that the House can impeach a president and the Senate can remove a president from office if found guilty in a trial presided over by the chief justice of the Supreme Court. There are numerous other examples that would make a very long list.

The division of power among different levels of government is called federalism. As Madison described in Federalist No. 39 , the Constitution is a mixture of the national and the federal principles. In other words, sometimes the national government has exclusive power, and at other times, the national government shares power with the states. Some examples of federalism from the Constitution include the ratification process for the document itself. The people and their representatives had to decide whether to ratify, or approve, the Constitution in popular ratifying [approving] conventions in the states. The amendment process includes ratification by three-quarters of state legislatures or state conventions. Structuring these processes through the states ensures that approval of and changes to the national government are balanced among the states. Similarly, the Senate equally comprises two senators per state, who were originally elected by state legislatures. The Electoral College gives the states a voice in presidential elections through electors the states choose. These provisions also ensure that though the federal government is supreme, the states have a meaningful role in the system.

In the American federal system, both the national and state governments have sovereignty. In general, the national government is sovereign over national matters, such as national defense, foreign trade, and immigration, while states are sovereign over local matters, including basic rules of public order. As Madison noted in Federalist No. 45 , “The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite.” In the federal system, the ultimate power to make decisions for the entire nation rests exclusively with the national government, which, when operating under its proper jurisdiction,is supreme in its enumerated powers. Article VI of the Constitution states that the Constitution, all constitutional laws, and all treaties are the supreme law of the land. More generally, the Constitution empowers the national government to govern for the entire nation. It makes the laws for the country. It makes decisions related to war and peace and conducts relations with foreign nations. It regulates trade between the states and settles disputes among them.

Constitutional Government

American constitutional government is rooted in the ideas of limited government, popular sovereignty, separation of powers, checks and balances, and federalism. These ideas protect the liberties of the people and their right to govern themselves. The Constitution contains words and principles that have the flexibility to respond to centuries of social, economic, and technological change. While the text of the Constitution has words that should be adhered to closely, they are hardly etched in marble. Besides the amendment process that offers a constitutional means of change over time, the American people and their representatives breathe life into the meaning of their Founding documents. They have done so for more than two centuries, through civil dialogue, debate, and deliberation, to reason through the often contested meaning of the Constitution.

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7 principles of the constitution essay

Background Essay Graphic Organizer: “A Glorious Liberty Document”: The U.S. Constitution and Its Principles

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“A Glorious Liberty Document”: The U.S. Constitution and Its Principles

How are the republican principles of limited government, separation of powers, and checks and balances reflected in the U.S. Constitution?

7 principles of the constitution essay

James Madison and Federalist No. 51

7 principles of the constitution essay

The Battle of the Branches: Madison’s “Auxiliary Precautions”

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The seven principles of the constitution.

7 principles of the constitution essay

This lesson is intended to set the stage for student analysis of the U.S. Constitution. To understand how the Constitution establishes the framework for government, students need to be introduced to the principles the framers used to guide them when considering different governmental functions. In this introduction, the students will define the seven basic principles of the Constitution. 

Essential Questions

Students will be able to:

  • Identify the seven principles of the U.S. Constitution
  • Express the vocabulary meaning in both a written and graphic context
  • Contextualize the Constitution within the framework of the seven principles   

Other Materials

  • “Copy of the U.S. Constitution printed and sold by Nathaniel Patten”

Suggested Instructional Procedures

1.      Begin with a brief overview of how the United States government is constructed; i.e. three branches of government and what those branches do. This brief overview should be based on general questions that can be answered by individual students in order to activate prior knowledge.

2.      Handout “seven principles” worksheet and explain to the students they will be learning about the seven most important principles the framers used to write the Consitution.

a.      As you go through the definitions on the powerpoint, the students will need to copy them down in the correct box on their worksheet.

b.      Ask the students, “Can anybody give me any examples of this principle?” – Example: Checks and Balances = president's ability to veto.

c.      After the definition is copied, you will give the students a few minutes to draw a picture that represents the definition in the appropriate box on their worksheet.

d.      After the students have created their picture, ask for two or three examples (students will describe what they have created).

3.      Once the powerpoint with the definitions and images are complete, ask the students;

a.      “Can anyone name examples of any of these principles they have experienced, seen on the news, or have experienced lately?”

b.      “Can anybody give me examples from the US Constitution of any of these principles?”  

4.      Exit Ticket: Have students put the worksheet in their bag, handout exist tickets, and tell them:

a.      Write down your favorite principle ( the list is on the last powerpoint slide), what that principle means, and why it is your favourite? 

  • Popular Sovereignty : People Control the government
  • Republicanism : A political philosophy that advocates for people electing their own legislatures to represent them government
  • Limited Government: The government only has the power provided to by the Constitution
  • Federalism:  Separation of governmental power between state and national government
  • Separation of Powe:  The separation of political power into three independent branches of government
  • Checks and Balances:  Different branches of government are empowered to balance the power of the other branches to ensure that no one branch consolidates too much power  
  • Individual Rights :  Rights guaranteed by the Constitution to citizens         

Related Resources for Students

Seven Principles and their connection to the Constitution

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Plans in this Unit

Grade level, standards/eligible content, about the author.

This lesson was created by Brendon Floyd, Education Intern at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania 

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First Amendment Exhibit Historic Graphic

New exhibit

The first amendment, historic document, an examination into the leading principles of the federal constitution (1787).

Noah Webster | 1787

Engraving by F. Halprin after painting by Jared Flagg of Noah Webster, portrait, 1875.

Noah Webster is best known as the leading lexicographer and linguistic reformer who published Americans’ first dictionary in 1828. However, he wrote frequently on politics and constitutionalism as well, often combining his interests, such as when he quipped in a 1788 essay that “a bill of rights , a perpetual constitution on parchment guaranteeing that right, was a useless form of words.” Despite his deep interest in reforming the way Americans used language, Webster did not believe that constitutions endured or failed based on what was written into them. Instead, as he argued forcefully in An Examination into the Leading Principles of the Federal Constitution , under the pseudonym, “An American Citizen,” constitutional freedom rested on the relatively equal distribution of property and, to a lesser extent, a general diffusion of knowledge. Webster was no leveler and could write with elitist disdain. His deeper point was simply that constitutions rested on broader foundations. Webster wrote at once confident and wary that Americans possessed the character and society necessary to sustain republicanism.

Selected by

William B. Allen

William B. Allen

Emeritus Dean of James Madison College and Emeritus Professor of Political Science at Michigan State University

Jonathan Gienapp

Jonathan Gienapp

Associate Professor of History at Stanford University

In America, we begin our empire with more popular privileges than the Romans ever enjoyed. We have not to struggle against a monarch or an aristocracy—power is lodged in the mass of the people.

On reviewing the English history, we observe a progress similar to that in Rome—an incessant struggle for liberty from the date of Magna Charta, in John’s reign, to the revolution. The struggle has been successful, by abridging the enormous power of the nobility. But we observe that the power of the people has increased in an exact proportion to their acquisitions of property. Wherever the right of primogeniture is established, property must accumulate and remain in families. Thus the landed property in England will never be sufficiently distributed, to give the powers of government wholly into the hands of the people. But to assist the struggle for liberty, commerce has interposed, and in conjunction with manufacturers, thrown a vast weight of property into the democratic scale. Wherever we cast our eyes, we see this truth, that  property  is the basis of  power ; and this, being established as a cardinal point, directs us to the means of preserving our freedom. Make laws, irrevocable laws in every state, destroying and barring entailments; leave real estates to revolve from hand to hand, as time and accident may direct; and no family influence can be acquired and established for a series of generations—no man can obtain dominion over a large territory—the laborious and saving, who are generally the best citizens, will possess each his share of property and power, and thus the balance of wealth and power will continue where it is, in the  body of the people .

A general and tolerably equal distribution of landed property is the whole basis of national freedom:  The system of the great Montesquieu will ever be erroneous, till the words  property or lands in fee simple  are substituted for  virtue , throughout his  Spirit of Laws .

Virtue , patriotism, or love of country, never was and never will be, till men’s’ natures are changed, a fixed, permanent principle and support of government. But in an agricultural country, a general possession of land in fee simple, may be rendered perpetual, and the inequalities introduced by commerce, are too fluctuating to endanger government. An equality of property, with a necessity of alienation, constantly operating to destroy combinations of powerful families, is the very  soul of a republic —While this continues, the people will inevitably possess both  power  and  freedom ; when this is lost, power departs, liberty expires, and a commonwealth will inevitably assume some other form.

The liberty of the press, trial by jury, the Habeas Corpus writ, even Magna Charta itself, although justly deemed the palladia of freedom, are all inferior considerations, when compared with a general distribution of real property among every class of people. The power of entailing estates is more dangerous to liberty and republican government, than all the constitutions that can be written on paper, or even than a standing army. Let the people have property, and they  will  have power—a power that will for ever be exerted to prevent a restriction of the press, and abolition of trial by jury, or the abridgement of any other privilege. The liberties of America, therefore, and her forms of government, stand on the broadest basis. Removed from the fears of a foreign invasion and conquest, they are not exposed to the convulsions that shake other governments; and the principles of freedom are so general and energetic, as to exclude the possibility of a change in our republican constitutions.

But while  property  is considered as the  basis  of the freedom of the American yeomanry, there are other auxiliary supports; among which is the  information of the people . In no country, is education so general—in no country, have the body of the people such a knowledge of the rights of men and the principles of government. This knowledge, joined with a keen sense of liberty and a watchful jealousy, will guard our constitutions, and awaken the people to an instantaneous resistance of encroachments.

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7 principles of the constitution essay

What are the Principles of the US Constitution?

7 principles of the constitution essay

Brief summary of the principles of the American Constitution. A definition and example is provided for each principle.

The Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776. The United States a nation in its infancy now needed to create its government. The predecessor to the current Constitution was called the Articles of Confederation. Because of its many flaws the Articles of Confederation was replaced in 1787 at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. There are seven principles that the Constitution of the United States of America is based on. Every one of its seven articles will refer back to at least one of these principles. Understanding the Constitution is impossible without understanding the basic principles that it was created from.

Popular Sovereignty

“We the people…” the first three words of the preamble to the Constitution describes the essence of popular sovereignty. The power in the government of the United States comes directly from the people. This is a simple concept and one that is the basis of any democratic form of government. Article one of the Constitution covers the legislative branch of government which is directly elected by the people. The legislative branch is the only branch of government that can create the laws which govern the people of the United States of America.

Limited Government

Limiting the power of government was extremely important to the founding fathers who had just overthrown a tyrannical king. The government of the United States is limited by our written laws. The principle of limited government is seen throughout the constitution. For example the first amendment to the Constitution, which is freedom of speech, forbids the government from controlling what people say or write.

Separation of Powers

The constitutional principle of separation of powers refers to the division of powers within the government. This separation of powers creates a government in which there is no concentration of power in any one branch, power is equally divided. The United States has three branches of government; legislative, executive, and judicial. The legislative branch is responsible for making laws while the executive branch carries out the law, and the judicial branch interprets the law.

Checks and Balances

The principle of checks and balances is closely related to separation of powers. This principle explains the concept of each of the three branches of government having the authority to check the power of the others. The president checks the power of the legislative branch by vetoing bills, the legislative can then check his power by passing the bills with a 3/4th majority, while the judicial branch can checks the power of the legislative branch through declaring a law unconstitutional.

Individual Rights

Individual rights are a principle of the constitution which is dealt with primarily in the Bill of Rights. When the American Revolution ended and the new nation was developing its government many citizens were worried that their individual or unalienable rights would be trampled on by the new government; just as they were trampled on by King George the III. Ratification of the Constitution was made possible by adding the Bill of Rights which is the first ten amendments to the Constitution. Most of these amendments deal with basic human rights such as freedom of speech, the right to bear arms, and no cruel and unusual punishment.

Federalism is the principle of the constitution which splits power between a national or federal government and the local governments. This principle is important because the Articles of Confederation failed because there was no strong central government. Without a strong central government countries are weak and vulnerable. Federalism creates a strong central government while maintaining strong state governments as well which are necessary to handle regional problems.

Other Principles

There are some principles of the Constitution that are sometimes left out because they overlap or because writers do not want to include them. One is republicanism. This principle refers to the fact that the United States does not have a direct democratic government but a republic where people vote for representatives who then make the decisions for them. Another principle sometimes mentioned is judicial review. This principle overlaps with checks and balances because it refers to the power that the Supreme Court has to declare laws unconstitutional.

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The Six Principles of The Constitution

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Published: Mar 16, 2024

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Popular sovereignty, separation of powers, checks and balances, judicial review, limited government.

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7 principles of the constitution essay

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7 Primary Sources for the U.S. Constitution From the Articles of Confederation

Following are various primary source documents encompassing the Articles of Confederation through the creation of the Bill of Rights. You can get an editable copy of this post to use in your classroom. Simply click on the button at the bottom of the page. You will be prompted to make a copy of the Google doc and can use 1 or all of the following documents as you see fit. 

The first plan of government of the United States was the Articles of Confederation.  

This document gave the states a lot of power.  The forefathers feared a strong central government might become too powerful. However, it soon became apparent that it was not good enough for the growing nation. 

Excerpt of the Articles of Confederation 

Article I. The Stile of this confederacy shall be “The United States of America.”

Article II. Each state retains its sovereignty, freedom, and independence, and every Power, Jurisdiction and right, which is not by this confederation expressly delegated to the United States, in Congress assembled.

Article III. The said states hereby severally enter into a firm league of friendship with each other, for their common defence, the security of their Liberties, and their mutual and general welfare, binding themselves to assist each other, against all force offered to, or attacks made upon them, or any of them, on account of religion, sovereignty, trade, or any other pretence whatever.

Source: Articles of Confederation, March, 1781.  (U.S. Congress) 

Various people took notes at the Constitutional Convention. But, James Madison’s notes are particularly important for their detail and on account of his special role in the creation of the Constitution.  They are summaries of what happened; not an exact transcript.

Records of the Federal Convention 

Resol [Resolution]: 4. first clause “that the members of the first branch of the National Legislature ought to be elected by the people of the several States” being taken up

Mr. Sherman opposed the election by the people, insisting that it ought to be by the State Legislatures. The people he said, immediately should have as little to do as may be about the Government. They want information and are constantly liable to be misled.

Mr. Gerry. The evils we experience flow from the excess of democracy. The people do not want virtue; but are the dupes of pretended patriots. 

Mr. Mason. argued strongly for an election of the larger branch by the people. It was to be the grand depository of the democratic principle of the Govt. It was, so to speak, to be our House of Commons

Mr. Wilson contended strenuously for drawing the most numerous branch of the Legislature immediately from the people. 

Mr. Madison considered the popular election of one branch of the national Legislature as essential to every plan of free Government. 

On the question for an election of the first branch of the national Legislature, by the people, Massts. ay. Connect. divd. N. York ay. N. Jersey no. Pena. ay. Delawe. divd. Va. ay. N. C. ay. S. C. no. Georga. ay. [Ayes–6; noes–2; divided–2.]

Source: James Madison’s Notes of Debates in the Federal Convention , May 31, 1787.

Excerpt of U.S. Constitution 

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Article. I.

Section 1. All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.

Tenth Amendment

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Source: U.S. Constitution (1787; 1791)

“Federalists” supported the ratification (passage) of the U.S. Constitution. The Federalist Papers were eighty-five essays, op-eds really, written by Alexander Hamiltion, James Madison, and John Jay.  The essays explained the meaning of the U.S. Constitution and why it should be ratified.  They remain influential today to help understand the meaning of the Constitution.   

Excerpt of Federalist No. 1

It may perhaps be thought superfluous to offer arguments to prove the utility of the UNION, a point, no doubt, deeply engraved on the hearts of the great body of the people in every State, and one, which it may be imagined, has no adversaries. But the fact is, that we already hear it whispered in the private circles of those who oppose the new Constitution, that the thirteen States are of too great extent for any general system, and that we must of necessity resort to separate confederacies of distinct portions of the whole. 1 This doctrine will, in all probability, be gradually propagated, till it has votaries enough to countenance an open avowal of it. For nothing can be more evident, to those who are able to take an enlarged view of the subject, than the alternative of an adoption of the new Constitution or a dismemberment of the Union. It will therefore be of use to begin by examining the advantages of that Union, the certain evils, and the probable dangers, to which every State will be exposed from its dissolution. This shall accordingly constitute the subject of my next address.

  • The same idea, tracing the arguments to their consequences, is held out in several of the late publications against the new Constitution. 

Source: Federalist No. 1 by “Publius” (Alexander Hamilton), originally published in the Independent Journal , October 27, 1787.

There were many people against the ratification of the Constitution. Sometimes known as “Anti-Federalists,” they included some leading figures of the day.  

Excerpt of Speech of Patrick Henry (June 5, 1788)

Mr. Chairman … I rose yesterday to ask a question which arose in my own mind. When I asked that question, I thought the meaning of my interrogation was obvious: The fate of this question and of America may depend on this: Have they said, we, the States? Have they made a proposal of a compact between states? If they had, this would be a confederation: It is otherwise most clearly a consolidated government. The question turns, Sir, on that poor little thing-the expression, We, the people , instead of the States , of America. I need not take much pains to show that the principles of this system are extremely pernicious, impolitic, and dangerous. Is this a monarchy, like England-a compact between prince and people, with checks on the former to secure the liberty of the latter? Is this a Confederacy, like Holland-an association of a number of independent states, each of which retains its individual sovereignty? It is not a democracy, wherein the people retain all their rights securely.  ….

When I thus profess myself an advocate for the liberty of the people, I shall be told, I am a designing man, that I am to be a great man, that I am to be a demagogue; and many similar illiberal insinuations will be thrown out; but, Sir, conscious rectitude, outweighs those things with me: I see great jeopardy in this new Government. I see none from our present one: I hope some Gentleman or other will bring forth, in full array, those dangers, if there be any, that we may see and touch them.

Source: Speech of Patrick Henry, June 7, 1788; Speech Delivered at the Virginia Convention Debate of the Ratification of the Constitution 

Excerpt of Brutus No. 1

But if, on the other hand, this form of government contains principles that will lead to the subversion of liberty — if it tends to establish a despotism, or, what is worse, a tyrannic aristocracy; then, if you adopt it, this only remaining asylum for liberty will be [shut] up, and posterity will execrate your memory. . . .

The first question that presents itself on the subject is, whether a confederated government be the best for the United States or not? Or in other words, whether the thirteen United States should be reduced to one great republic, governed by one legislature, and under the direction of one executive and judicial; or whether they should continue thirteen confederated republics, under the direction and control of a supreme federal head for certain defined national purposes only? 

This inquiry is important, because, although the government reported by the convention does not go to a perfect and entire consolidation, yet it approaches so near to it, that it must, if executed, certainly and infallibly terminate in it.

Source: “Brutus” (identity unclear) To the Citizens of the State of New-York, Brutus No. 1 (1787).  

Many people felt the Constitution was incomplete without a Bill of Rights.  

Excerpts: Jefferson and Madison Discuss Need of Bill of Rights 

Thomas Jefferson: 

I sincerely rejoice at the acceptance of our new Constitution by nine states.  It is a good canvas, on which some strokes only want retouching. What these are, I think are sufficiently manifested by the general voice from north to south, which calls for a bill of rights. It seems pretty generally understood, that this should go to juries, habeas corpus, standing armies, printing, religion and monopolies. 

James Madison Replies: 

My own opinion has always been in favor of a bill of rights; provided it be so framed as not to imply powers not meant to be included in the enumeration. At the same time I have never thought the omission a material defect nor been anxious to supply it even by subsequent amendment, for any other reason than that it is anxiously desired by others. I have favored it because I supposed it might be of use, and if properly executed could not be of disservice.

Source: Letters from Thomas Jefferson to James Madison (July 31, 1788) and James Madison to Thomas Jefferson (October 17, 1788).

Ideas for Teaching with these Resources

  • Students can analyze the differences in the Articles of Confederation and The Constitution
  • Working in pairs identify the various points of view from the Federal Convention. Which delegates agreed with each other, which did not? Cite evidence to justify your answers.
  • Identify the priorities of the Federal Papers versus Brutus and Patrick Henry
  • Do Madison and Jefferson agree on the need for a Bill of Rights? What justification is given for their opinions?

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