Question

How did ideas/traditions from europe and the coloniel past shape the constitution

Answer 1

One of the most important influences on the Constitution was the Enlightenment, a philosophical movement that originated in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries. The Enlightenment emphasized reason, individual rights, and limited government, and these ideas were reflected in the Constitution through the Bill of Rights, which protects individual freedoms, and the separation of powers, which divides the powers of government among different branches to prevent any one branch from becoming too powerful.

Other important European influences on the Constitution include the English common law tradition and the English system of government, which the Founders studied and borrowed from when designing the Constitution. The Constitution also reflects the colonial experience of the United States, particularly the experience of the 13 colonies that declared independence from Great Britain and formed the new nation. The Constitution incorporates many of the principles that the colonies had established in their own constitutions, such as the principle of federalism, which divides power between the federal government and the states.

Answer 2

The fact that local government in colonial America served as the foundation for American constitutionalism is a key reality that has not been completely acknowledged by those writing in American political theory. The absence of citations to American-written colonial documents can be used to detect negligence in any work on the history of the American constitution. It is possible that the Declaration of Independence, the Magna Carta, and maybe the English Constitution will all be discussed just briefly.