How Did The Roman Constitution Influence America

In 1787, the members of the Federal Convention knew that the Articles of Confederation were severely lacking what was essential for a successful government and nation. Knowing this, the convention looked to the past to construct a constitution for a young and ever changing country. The Founding Fathers’ were influenced by the Romans, the English and many others along the way, hoping that they would be more successful at producing liberty, order, and justice. The result is the long standing Constitution that has guided America and the government through the founding to present day.
Greco-Roman Tradition. The Roman constitution lacked a lot of the qualities that the Framers’ of the constitution we looking for. Roman’s political centralization seemed to put the classes against each other, something the Framers’ were against. Due to this the Romans were faced with wars. In regards to the Roman system only a few things stood out. “For the
“The English common law runs all the way back to Anglo-Saxon days in England, but it did not begin to take shape until late in the twelfth century during the reign of Henry II. It passed into North America with the coming of the first English settlers to the New World, and over the centuries was incorporated into the American system of laws by legislation and judicial decisions.” Two of the most popular documents that prove the influence of the English are the Magna Carta and the English Bill of Rights. “What is surprising, and counter to the usual portrayal that there is a strong and direct reliance of the U.S. Bill of Rights on the English heritage, is that only 9 out of the 26 rights in the U.S. Bill of Rights can be traced back to the Magna Carta! Similarly, 7 can be traced to the English Petition of Rights, and 6 to the English Bill of Rights.” Probably the most famous being the right of due process and trial by