Question

The Founding Fathers were very influenced by the Enlightenment movement, especially by the philosopher John Locke. John Locke defended the idea that every one of us has natural rights, these natural rights are life, liberty, and property. The role of the government is defending those rights and make possible for them to be accomplished. Once the government fails to do so, people have the right to rebel against this government and form a new one that defends these rights. Because of that, the Founding Fathers justified the rebellion against the British.With the taxes and with the way the British was handling the colonies, they were better off forming their own government and keeping trade open with the help me

What was the main influence on the Founding Fathers when forming the new government?
a) The Enlightenment movement
b) The British government
c) The French Revolution
d) The American Revolution

Answer 1

The Enlightenment movement was the main influence on the Founding Fathers when forming the new United States government, as it provided vital philosophical underpinnings for the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

Step-by-step explanation:

The main influence on the Founding Fathers when forming the new government was a) The Enlightenment movement. This intellectual movement of the 17th and 18th centuries emphasized reason, individualism, and skepticism of traditional doctrines. Visionaries like John Locke, with his theories on natural rights and social contracts, and Baron de Montesquieu, with his ideas on the separation of powers, heavily influenced the political thought that shaped the United States. The Founding Fathers, including Thomas Paine, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson, infused Enlightenment principles into the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution to justify the rebellion against the British and the establishment of a government that would safeguard the natural rights of its citizens.