Influence of Ancient Greece and Rome In the

Influence of Ancient Greece and Rome In the year 507 B. C. , the Athenian leader Cleisthenes introduced a system of political reforms that he called demokratia, or “rule by the people. ” Although this Athenian democracy would survive for only two centuries, Cleisthenes’ invention was one of ancient Greece’s most enduring contributions to the modern world. http: //www. history. com/topics/ancient-greece-democracy At about the same time that popular government was introduced in Greece, it also appeared on the Italian Peninsula in the city of Rome. The Romans called their system a rēspūblica, or republic, from the Latin rēs, meaning thing or affair, and pūblicus or pūblica, meaning public—thus, a republic was the thing that belonged to the Roman people, the populus romanus. http: //www. britannica. com/EBchecked/topic/157129/democracy/233830/T he-Roman-Republic

Leading European Political Thinkers John Locke Charles-Louis Montesquieu Niccolo Machiavelli Jean Jacques Rousseau William Blackstone Alexis de Tocqueville

John Locke FRS, widely known as the Father of Classical Liberalism, was an English philosopher and physician regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers.

Charles-Louis Montesquieu Charles-Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu, generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French social commentator and political thinker who lived during the Age of Enlightenment

Niccolò Machiavelli Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli was an Italian historian, politician, diplomat, philosopher, humanist and writer based in Florence during the Renaissance. http: //www. historyguide. org/intellect/machiavelli. html

Jean Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of the 18 th-century. His political philosophy influenced the French Revolution as well as the overall development of modern political, sociological, and educational thought.

William Blackstone Sir William Blackstone KC SL was an English jurist, judge and Tory politician of the eighteenth century. He is most noted for writing the Commentaries on the Laws of England.

Alexis de Tocqueville Alexis-Charles-Henri Clérel de Tocqueville was a French political thinker and historian best known for his Democracy in America and The Old Regime and the Revolution.

Preamble of the 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.

Founding Fathers George Washington James Madison Thomas Jefferson John Adams Benjamin Franklin Alexander Hamilton George Mason Gouverneur Morris Roger Sherman James Wilson Edmund Randolph http: //www. constitutionfacts. com/us-founding-fathers/aboutthe-founding-fathers/

Other Readings “The Social Contract” by Jean Jacques Rousseau “Letter from a Birmingham Jail”, Martin Luther King, Jr. “The Ballot or the Bullet” speech, Malcolm X Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom, 1786

Primary Readings Magna Carta Mayflower Compact English Bill of Rights Two Treatises of Civil Government, John Locke Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson The Federalist Papers – 1, 9, 10, 39, 51, 78 U. S. Constitution Democracy in America, Alexis de Tocqueville

“The Social Contract” Of The Social Contract, Or Principles of Political Right (Du contrat social ou Principes du droit politique) (1762) by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, is the book in which Rousseau theorized about the best way in which to set up a political community in the face of the problems of commercial society which he had already identified in his Discourse on Inequality (1754).

Magna Carta, also called Magna Carta Libertatum or The Great Charter of the Liberties of England, is an Angevin charter originally issued in Latin in the year 1215

Mayflower Compact The "Mayflower Compact" was signed on November 11 th, 1620, on board the Mayflower shortly after she came to anchor off Provincetown Harbor. The Pilgrims had obtained permission from English authorities to settle in Virginia, whose northern border at the time extended up to what is now New York.

English Bill of Rights The English Bill of Rights is an English precursor of the Constitution, along with the Magna Carta and the Petition of Right. The English Bill of Rights limited the power of the English sovereign, and was written as an act of Parliament. As part of what is called the “Glorious Revolution, ” the King and Queen William and Mary of Orange accepted the English Bill of Rights as a condition of their rule.

Two Treatises of Civil Government The Two Treatises of Government is a work of political philosophy published anonymously in 1689 by John Locke.

Declaration of Independence On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia in the Pennsylvania State House (now Independence Hall), approved the Declaration of Independence, severing the colonies' ties to the British Crown.

Federalist Papers Beginning on October 27, 1787 the Federalist Papers were first published in the New York press under the signature of "Publius". These papers are generally considered to be one of the most important contributions to political thought made in America. The essays appeared in bookform in 1788, with an introduction by Hamilton. Subsequently they were printed in many editions and translated to several languages. The pseudonym "Publius" was used by three man: Jay, Madison and Hamilton. Jay was responsible for only a few of the 85 articles. The papers were meant to be influential in the campaign for the adoption of the Constitution by New York State. But the authors not only discussed the issues of the constitution, but also many general problems of politics.

Democracy In America De la démocratie en Amérique is a classic French text by Alexis de Tocqueville. Its title translates as On Democracy in America, but English translations are usually entitled simply Democracy in America

“Letter from Birmingham Jail” The Letter from Birmingham Jail is an open letter written on April 16, 1963, by Martin Luther King, Jr. The letter defends the strategy of nonviolent resistance to racism, arguing that people have a moral responsibility to break unjust laws.

“The Ballot or the Bullet” “Mr. Moderator, Brother Lomax, brothers and sisters, friends and enemies: I just can't believe everyone in here is a friend, and I don't want to leave anybody out. The question tonight, as I understand it, is "The Negro Revolt, and Where Do We Go From Here? " or What Next? " In my little humble way of understanding it, it points toward either the ballot or the bullet. ” … Malcolm X

Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom “. . . Jefferson wanted to be remembered for, besides writing the Declaration of Independence, was writing the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom and founding the University of Virginia, …” http: //www. vahistorical. org/collections-and-resources/virginia -history-explorer/thomas-jefferson? legacy=true

Vocabulary Government ….

Vocabulary Government is the institution through which a society makes and enforces it public policies.

Vocabulary Public Policies. .

Vocabulary The Public Policies of a government are, in short, all of those things a government decides to do.

Vocabulary Legislative Power

Vocabulary Legislative Power is the power to make laws and frame Public Policies

Vocabulary Executive Power

Vocabulary Executive Power is the power to execute, enforce and adminster laws.

Vocabulary Judicial Power

Vocabulary Judicial Power is the power to interpret laws, to determine their meaning, and to settle disputes that arise within the society.

Vocabulary Constitution

Vocabulary Constitution is the body of fundamental laws setting out the principles, structures, and processes of a government.

Vocabulary Dictatorship

Vocabulary Dictatorship is where ultimate power is held by a single person or a small group.

Vocabulary Democracy

Vocabulary In a Democracy, supreme authority rests with the people.

Vocabulary State

Vocabulary State can be defined as a body of people, living in a defined territory, with a government and with power to make and enforce laws with no one having a higher authority.

Vocabulary Sovereign

Vocabulary Sovereign means a state has absolute power within its own territory.