The first fundamental step in political development is the movement from total lawlessness, or anarchy, to some kind of centralized law and order. The politically developed nations have of course long accepted the concept of a central authority or government, and the Rule of Law which sets restraints upon the scope of people's actions; but this nevertheless remains as the foundation of government and of a nation's compact with its government.
When power, that is the ability to physically influence the behavior of others, is centralized, the rule of law is thus imposed. Instead of individuals arguing and settling their differences in a continuing series of battles based on personal power, the authority to establish decisions on social conduct
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Initially, these rules and regulations imposed on the political authority are informal and unwritten. Gradually these rules and regulations are enshrined in a written form. These written forms of governing principles led to the growth of the idea of constitutionalism and constitutions. The idea of constitutionalism is older than the existence of written constitutions. Constitutionalism places limits upon government, proscribing the means by which official power may be exercised. Constitutionalism establishes boundaries between the state and the individual, forbidding the state to trespass into certain areas reserved for private action. Before making in to the details of meaning, definitions, contents and types of constitutions a brief peep in to the history and evolution of constitutions at global and national level.
Historical Background
All Constitutions are the heirs of the past as well as the testators of the future.1 The very fact that the Constitution of the Indian Republic is the product not of a political revolution but of the research and deliberations of a body of eminent representatives of the people who sought to improve upon the existing systems of administration, makes a retros¬pect of the constitutional development indispensable for a proper understan¬ding of this Constitution.2
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Perhaps the earliest prototype for a law of government, this document itself has not yet been discovered; however it is known that it allowed some rights to his citizens. For example, it is known that it relieved tax for widows and orphans, and protected the poor from the usury of the rich.
After that, many governments ruled by special codes of written laws. The oldest such document still known to exist seems to be the Code of Ur-Nammu of Ur (ca2050 BC). Some of the better-known ancient law codes include the code of Lipit-Ishtar of Isin, the code of Hammurabi of Babylonia, the Hittite code, the Assyrian code and Mosaic law.3
In 621 BC a scribe named Draco codified the cruel oral laws of the city-state of Athens; this code prescribed the death penalty for many offences (nowadays very severe rules are often called "Draconian"). In 594 BC Solon, the ruler of Athens created the new Solonian Constitution . It eased the burden of the workers, and determined that membership of the ruling class was to be based on wealth (plutocracy), rather than by birth (aristocracy).Cleisthenes again reformed the Athenian constitution and set it on a democratic footing in 508
In any kind of society, there are rules that need to be followed in order to protect the people living there. Leaders depend on rules and regulations to be followed by their people in order to retain a peaceful living. “The Code of Hammurabi” are laws that were made to maintain order and fairness in society. In certain cases, the gods determine whether the person is innocent or guilty. Anyone who were to disobey the rules was to be punished harshly.
The Constitution guards against tyranny by using multiple Constitutional devices such as the separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism and bicameralism. The importance of this study is to show the success of the Constitution and to show how the United States of America has used the Constitution, without much complication for over 230 years. The Constitution is used in protecting the state's rights and the rights of the citizens of those states. The benefit of the government in the United States is the active guard against tyranny that was introduced over 230 years ago. The Constitution of the United States of America in fact protects Americans rights and guards against
The Primary objective of all leaders should be to control citizens. A society that allows authority to be challenged will never succeed. This source depicts an authoritarian or totalitarian view of what a governing body should look like. The author suggests that the primary objective of government should be the “control of the citizens”, and therefore that the individuals should entirely obey said government.
Constitutionalism was defined as a form of government limiting the power of the authority (AP study). Parliament consisted of two houses, the House of Lords and the House of Commons, which gave the nobility and the common people representation. There was a debate whether or not England should remain absolute or change to constitutionalism known as the English Civil War. As a result, the drafters of the Bill of Rights outlined what a political authority should look like. The Bill of Rights stated, “religion, laws, and liberties might not again be in danger of being subverted” (Bill of Rights, 1).
‘The Constitution reflects the time when it was written in a number of ways. Generally, these aspects of the Constitution show us how people at time were worried about different issues than we are today and that they had different sensibilities than we have. The authors of the constitution seemed to agree that no one wanted another monarch, but they had little idea how the government would actually make it without a king or an aristocrat. The constitution is called a "living document", meaning that it changes as the country changes. Through a system of checks and balances, amendments and Supreme Court rulings, the constitution has not been carved in stone, as it has been in time and in the environment.
The Natural rights philosophy also played a major role in state constitutions. In every state there was a written or higher law, which limited governmental power through a written document. These written constitutions reflected the idea that the purpose of government was to preserve and protect citizens’ natural or unalienable rights. Early American patriot and politician, Samuel Adams, concluded,” Among the natural rights of the colonists are these: first, a right to life, secondly to liberty, and thirdly to property, and together the right to defend
The three types of theories of the lawmaking process are rationalistic model, functionalist view, and conflict perspective. Rationalistic model is laws that are created as rational means of protecting the members of society from social harm(s). Functionalist view which was theorized by Emile Durkheim’s, is that laws are an institutionalized custom and need for a society to function as a whole. The final theory is conflict perspective which means laws are put in place for social control. Each one of these three theories both have their own benefits, as well as their flaws in helping to creating law(s).
Throughout history there have been links between the Iroquois constitution leading to the basis for the American Constitution. A constitution’s role is to help their country and benefit the people so things stay balanced and never lose control. As proof continues to build up, it shows that like the Iroquois the constitution holds several similar qualities on how to handle the economy and people. It has been thought, that the Iroquois have put the lining for the American guidelines. Though there are things that show to be the same, there are subtle differences that slip and show through.
By splitting the power into a central and state governments, as well as dividing powers into three distinct branches, gaining all power became a feat much harder to achieve. By establishing a checks and balances system, no type of tyranny could even begin to form within a branch without being stopped by another. Finally, all states were given the representation they deserve, therefore stopping any one group from gaining too much power. With all the separation and limitations placed on all areas of the government any type of corruption can only go so far before being immediately
The United States of America declared its independence from England because the king was abusing his powers like a tyrant. For example, the king set taxes without consent, unfair laws, and set soldiers in times of peace. According to James Madison, “The accumulation of all powers...in the same hands whether at one, a few, or many is the very definition of tyranny.” In 1781, the United States’ first constitution, the Articles of Confederation, was approved. The Articles of Confederation gave most of the power to the states but unfortunately failed because there was no leader, no court system, and no power to tax.
Hammurabi’s Code of Justice Have you ever heard the expression, treat others how you want to be treated? Well that's what Hammurabi’s code is all about. Babylonia was ruled by king Hammurabi for 42 years in 1754 BCE. In those years Hammurabi made a set of 282 laws called Hammurabi’s code to create justice and the laws were placed on a steele. Hammurabi's code was just because his purpose was to protect the weak, he made laws about property to protect your house and laws to punish people if they injure you.
It describes the rights and responsibilities of the government and of all the states as a federal government. A system whereby several states form a unity but remain independent in internal affairs. Since the Constitution came into force in 1789, it has been amended twenty-seven times to meet the changing needs of the maturing nation which is now very different from the eighteenth-century world in which it was created. The ideals of the Constitution are to form one union from all the states. The states work together as one nation but have independent internal laws.
It outlines a plan of government and provides the structure and functioning of the institutions of governments. Constitutions are expressions of popular sovereignty between the government and the governed. It specifies the powers and limitation of power of the government, as well as the right and privileges of citizens that cannot be affected by the government. Also it specified how citizens are allowed to participate in democratic decision making processes that determines public policies. In some ways, Texas Constitution executes these functions well.
The government today is based off a document written over 200 years ago called the Constitution. This document helped form the government and country we live in today.. The United States Constitution is still relevant today because it formed the way this great nation would be run, from checks and balances, separation of powers and the rule of law structuring the way the government will function. At the end of the American Revolution the founding fathers wrote and signed a document called the Declaration of Independence. This document was written to tell the sovereignty of great britain that they will not be under his rule.
The Code of Hammurabi was written by King Hammurabi and were the first set of laws to ever be created. Hammurabi created 282 laws, that set standards in his empire and in ancient Mesopotamia. Hammurabi made it clear that the laws were not only to equalize society but also establish fairness and also protect the weak from the strong. However, according to the laws, the punishment for men, women, rich, and the poor, were all different; leading that he made the laws unfair. The women of Mesopotamia had a series of laws where it clearly shows they were classified as property.