Ok, a moment of reflection... Back in the 18th Century, when America rebelled & won independance, they wanted to be 'free'. A group of people drew up a document which guaranteed that the guys in 18th Century America would have a very different government system to that current in Britain. Essentailly, there was no king, and they could tell their government what to do (mostly via voting) - which was essentially the problem with the 18th Century British system. However, they were still subject to the law, they still paid taxes, etc etc. Now, in the 21st Century, Britain no longer has a ruling monarchy (we have a monarchy, but they do not rule!), and people can & do tell the government what to do (mostly via voting). We still hang on to our traditions, like being a 'subject of the crown', but these are fairly meaningless in reality - other than to bring tourists. So the difference is... btw - who authorised the founding fathers to write the Constitution? I've always wondered - and would like to know.
very short history lesson the government of the USA rests on 3 foundation stones- 1- the decleration of independce, written by men sent to a meeting called to decide what to do about the problems with england. while it is not a formal part of the constution it carries weight with the courts and as the first statement of thought 2- the constution, this is the written law that set up our government. written to replace the articles of confederation which was the first constitution. it was the result of a constutional convention called to address the problems found under the articles. 3- the federalist papers, a group of mostly letters written by the various founding fathers during the time period 1776 to 1800 mostly. these letters provide an insight into the thoughts of the men that designed our system and often shed light on what they were trying to do. they are often refered to by the courts when deciding issues. all three foundation stones were the result of the work of the same basic group of men working over a period of years. for the most part they were choosen for their knowledge and abilties by the people they repersented. most were private citzens although many had held public office. for the most part they were affulent but not with family money. most were self made men with a proven track record of sucess and a reputation for honesty and morality. in retrospect perhaps one of the greatest groups ever assembled for any reason.
The way I heard was that the French ideas of liberty spread to the American Colonist commoners and invoked revolution there, after which the French revolted during the meeting of an Estates General called by the King. I'm not too sure about these two events influencing each other, in times of limited transportation and press.
Loosely speaking, yes we did lose the war of independance, but it wasn't quite the U.S. against Britain. Britain agreed to Independance because they were fight the French, Spanish and Dutch at the time. They had too many resources tied up in the U.S. that were needed elsewhere. The Americans wanted to sign the Treaty quite quickly as they freared the rise of French power in the east, and they didn't want to change masters. Is a more correct version but yes well done. As for the common wealth madagasgar was never part of our Empire but Frances, I am sure if you asked nicely we would let you join.
Thanks for the offer. Before we get too far of, we should remember that the American society and laws are English based. We were an English colony, we speak English, and we follow basic English common law. That being said, I'm sure there is very little difference between US and UK society. I'm sure there are greater differences from the other European countries.
Re: very short history lesson Thank lynn1212, a good, clear & concise chunk of info! Now... who actually choose these guys? And how? Do not forget, not all the colonists supported the Rebellion. Did they have a say?
The only real difference is guns, you have less restrictions than we do. Apart from that we are quite similar. There again we are the bridge between Europe and America. In some respects we are more European and in some more American.
who choose them at first most of them were involved in the movement and were sent by their follow rebels to be. almost all were considered pillers of the community and were leaders even if they did not hold formal office. i guess consenus might be the best term. for the constutional convention the state governments choose the men and no the tories were not consulted ijn advance since they would have narked to the brits. the decleration was announced and everyone was invited to join in the fight. most did some didn't.
The colonists who were loyal to the Crown were called Tories. They were allowed to go to Canada. Many who didn't go to Canada became settlers in the Mississppi and Ohio regions.
nobody attually picked the represtatives in the costitutional convention. nobody even gave them permission to write it. They just sorta chose to. The fact that it was ratified shows that people didn't find the articles of confederation suffiecnt.
Yep, pretty much. After they decided the Articles of Confederation were insufficient, they called for a document that had a stronger but more definded central government and a real judiciary branch. The Constitutional Convention was held and each state sent delegates. After a long time of fussing and all, they finally came up with a Constitution had three branches of government with equal power. That gives it the checks and balances it needed. It still wasn't good enough though. The writers didn't include anything about personal and state's rights. They added 10 amendments and these became known as the Bill of Rights. Once the Bill of Rights was added, it was time for ratification. The first state to ratify was Delaware. This was 1789, six years after the end of the Revolution.
