Thomas Jefferson drew on Virginia’s Declaration of Rights for the Declaration of Independence first lines. The Virginia Constitutional Amendment accepted it after it was drafted by George Mason. The Declaration of Independence was written to justify seceding from a state; the Constitution and Bill of Rights were written to create one. The Declaration of Independence has never been modified, although the Charter has been revised many times1. The Virginia Declaration of the rights influenced the Declaration of Independence and set the standard for the American Bill of Rights. Virginia’s Declaration of Rights was widely copied by the other colonies and became the basis of the Bill of Rights. As the cornerstone and foundation of governance, the delegates of the friendly citizens of Virginia, meeting in a complete and free assembly, make a Declaration of Rights, whose rights relate to them and their descendants.
Section 1 of the Virginia Declaration declared that all men are equally autonomous and democratic and that they have definite inalienable rights, including the happiness and wellbeing, freedom, and real estate, as well as the pursuit and attainment of contentment and protection, in language that was later reiterated in the Declaration of Independence. Section 2 acknowledged the people as the source of all authority, and Section 3 declared the people’s power to challenge administrations that failed to satisfy these demands. Section 4 expressed the republican notion that no one is the right to authority just because of their ancestors, while Section 5 declared the distribution of powers. The remainder of the Declaration of Rights described rights that would subsequently be integrated into the United States Bill of Rights.
The Bill of Rights was based on this document, which was extensively replicated by other provinces. The Bill of Rights outlines the people’s rights in regard to the Constitution of the United States. These rights included the enjoyment of life and freedom, as well as the ability to acquire and hold property, as well as the pursuit and acquisition of pleasure and safety. Freedom of the press, right to religious freedom of religion, and the mandate that no man be stripped of his liberty unless by the legislation of the nation or by the judgments of his contemporaries were among the civil freedoms mentioned.
The Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights have all based on the premise that everyone has certain fundamental rights that authorities are supposed to defend. The Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights are all different types of papers with various objectives. The Declaration of Independence was written to justify seceding from a government; the Constitution and Bill of Rights were written to construct one. The Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights established limits on democracy; the Constitution was written to both create and restrain an active government. The dread of an excessively central authority pushing its will on the citizens of the republics is reflected in the Declaration and Bill of Rights.
In many respects, the Declaration, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights are melded together in the imaginations of Americans because they embody what is best about America, despite their parallels and distinctions. They are emblems of freedom, which permits us to succeed, and egalitarianism, which assures that we are all treated equally in the eyes of the court. The Declaration of Independence spelled forth which freedoms were essential and inalienable. Those rights, however, did not become valid and enforceable until the Constitution and the Bill of Rights were defined. In other words, the Declaration of Independence referred to the fundamental liberties of the American people, which were implied in the Constitution and specified in the Bill of Rights.
Bibliography
Heinemann, R. L., Kolp, J. G., Parent Jr, A. S., & Shade, W. G. Old Dominion, New Commonwealth: A History of Virginia, 1607–2007. University of Virginia Press, (2008).
Footnotes
- Heinemann, R. L., Kolp, J. G., Parent Jr, A. S., & Shade, W. G. Old Dominion, New Commonwealth: A History of Virginia, 1607–2007. University of Virginia Press, (2008).