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Creating a New Government. By: Mrs. Nicholson. Virginia Declaration of Rights. Written by George Mason It was an introduction to the Virginia Constitution. It lists the rights of the people. Freedom to worship as they wished Freedom of the press
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Creating a New Government By: Mrs. Nicholson
Virginia Declaration of Rights • Written by George Mason • It was an introduction to the Virginia Constitution. It lists the rights of the people. • Freedom to worship as they wished • Freedom of the press • People accused of breaking the law have the right to a trial. This is the basis for the Bill of Rights
Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom • Written by Thomas Jefferson • This law separated church and state and established religious freedom. • Before this, everyone belonged to the English church. They had to attend its services and support the church by paying taxes.
The Need For A Plan After the American Revolution, the United States of America was a free and independent nation. But, they had a challenge: • How would they set up their new nation? • How would they protect the rights of each citizen?
Constitutional Convention 1787 @ Independence Hall in Philadelphia, PA • This lasted about 4 months. It was very hot and the windows were kept closed to keep the discussions secret. • Delegates (representatives) were sent. George Washington, Governor Edmund Randolph, George Mason and James Madison were some of the key Virginians.
Constitutional Convention 1787 • George Washington was the President of the Constitutional Convention • James Madison is called the “Father of the Constitution” • The ideas of the Virginians were the basis for the principles of the new government for the USA.
James Madison • One of the youngest members. • Wrote down some ideas that became known as the Virginia Plan. • Madison helped to convince delegates that a constitution was needed Constitution- a document explaining how a country should be governed.
The New Government Virginia Plan • 3 Branches of Government • 2 Houses of Lawmakers • Congressmen based on population of the state New Jersey Plan • 1 House for Lawmakers • All states have the same number of congressmen. The Great Compromise Lawmaking branch will have 2 Houses SENATE Each state will have the same number of lawmakers HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES The number of lawmakers will be based on the states’ population
Checks and Balances Each branch can limit what the other branches do.
The Delegates of the Convention signed the new Constitution in September 1787. • States had to ratify (approve) it to be law. • Patrick Henry and George Mason opposed (against) the new plan because they thought it gave too much power to the national government. • George Mason thought it should have a Bill of Rights. • James Madison and others agreed to work for amendments (additions) to the Constitution. This would create the Bill of Rights. • On June 25, 1788 Virginia lawmakers voted to accept the Constitution. Virginia became the 10th State to join the union.
THE CONSTITUTION The Constitution is organized into 3 parts: • Preamble: Introduces the Constitution. It starts with “We the People” • Articles: Establishes how the government is structured and how the Constitution can be changed. There are seven articles. • Amendments: Changes to the Constitution; the first ten are called the Bill of Rights.
Bill of Rights • Added in 1791 • Based on the VA Declaration of Rights • Made of the first ten amendments The First Amendment Listed 5 Freedoms: • Freedom of Religion • Freedom of Speech • Freedom of the Press • Freedom of Assembly • Freedom of Petition We want a new playground!