The Enlightenment influenced the Americans to revolt against the British government due to the ideas that prohibited unfair treatment of the people and promoted equality of all men, resulting in the American Revolution, similar to...
By karly12
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1500
...the influence the Enlightenment ideas had on the rebels of the Haitian Revolution.
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Thomas Hobbes 2
...contract between a government and its people that provides a description of the role each group should play for a society to be most beneficial. -
Thomas Hobbes 1
The Enlightenment and Revolution chapter of a textbook that covers historical events stated, "Hobbes argued that to escape such a bleak life, people gave up their rights to a strong ruler. In exchange, they gained law and order. Hobbes called this agreement, by which people created government, the social contract." (Black & Beck 551). The ideas of Hobbes started the Enlightenment and influenced people to think a different way. He developed the initial social contract. A social contract is a... -
John Locke 1
An article from ushistory.org, titled, Foundations of American Government, stated, "According to Locke, a ruler gains authority through the consent of the governed. The duty of that government is to protect the natural rights of the people, which Locke believed to include LIFE, LIBERTY, AND PROPERTY. If the government should fail to protect these rights, its citizens would have the right to overthrow that government" (ushistory.org). John Locke was a European Enlightenment thinker. He thought... -
John Locke 2
...that people needed a government and that the job of that government was to protect the three basic rights of the people. Everyone had the right to life, liberty and property. If the rights of the people were not being protected by the government, then they had the option to speak up and fight back. -
Voltaire 1
As stated in the textbook, "Although he made powerful enemies, Voltaire never stopped fighting for tolerance, reason, freedom of religious belief, and freedom of speech" (Black & Beck 553). After staying in England for two years, Voltaire, an extremely influential Enlightenment thinker, grew to appreciate the English government more than his own French government. Upon returning to France, he mocked French laws and customs in his work. He even began to question the Christian religion. The... -
Voltaire 2
...French government was outraged by his work. He fled to Paris in fear, but nevertheless, continued to promote religious freedom or the separation of church and state. He believed that one's religion should be completely separate from the government. -
Baron de Montesquieu
The textbook presented, "Here was a government, he thought, in which power was balanced among three groups of officials... Montesquieu called this division of power among different branches separation of powers" (Black & Beck 553). Montesquieu was a French philosopher who believed that the British government was the best one of his time. He simplified their system and recognized that there were three branches that kept each other in check. He called this the separation of powers. -
Beccaria 1
As presented in the textbook, "An Italian philosophe named Cesare Bonesana Beccaria (bayk•uh•REE•ah) turned his thoughts to the justice system. He believed that laws existed to preserve social order, not to avenge crimes" (Black & Beck 554). Beccaria focused on the work of the justice system. He did not believe in a corrupt justice system, but he thought that punishments should not be as extreme as they had previously been. People were facing exile for the smallest of crimes. Beccaria... -
Beccaria 2
...ultimately wanted to abolish torture and capital punishment. Capital punishment at the time was like if a dog owner were to throw their dog out on the street or even kill him if he were to rip up a pair of shoes. The dog should receive a punishment for doing this; however, the punishment should not be to that extreme. If the dog were to do something much worse like attack a neighbor nearly to death, then the punishment should be more severe. -
Raynal 1
The Haitian Revolution and its connection to the Enlightenment was analyzed by Rebekah Nicholson in her article titled, The Enlightenment and Its Effects on the Haitian Revolution of 1789-1804. Her article stated, "The work contained three main ideas: the invalidity of slavery, the freedom of will, and sympathy towards a violent revolution" (Nicholson 92). Raynal believed whole heartedly that all men should be treated equally. He thought that everyone deserved freedom. If a government... -
Raynal 2
...was not providing people with the freedom they deserved, they should fight back. He, like Locke, believed in the idea of a revolution. However, he supported the idea of revolting in a violent manner. -
Boston Massacre 1
An article describing the Boston Massacre that occurred prior to the American Revolution was edited by Eric Foner and John A. Garraty. As stated in the article, "The Boston Massacre occurred on March 5, 1770. A squad of British soldiers, come to support a sentry who was being pressed by a heckling, snowballing crowd, let loose a volley of shots. Three persons were killed immediately and two died later of their wounds; among the victims was Crispus Attucks, a man of black or Indian parentage"... -
Boston Massacre 2
...(History.com). The Boston Massacre was an extreme violation of the rights of the people by the government. In total, five people died as a result of the massacre. The Enlightenment influenced the Americans' reaction to the massacre because of the ideas of John Locke. Locke believed that the government needed to protect the lives, liberty, and property of the people. If people connected to the government were violating these rights, a rebellion was necessary. Because... -
Boston Massacre 3
the rights of the Americans were violated, they rebelled against the government. -
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Revolutionary Violence 1
"One of the more important facets of a revolution is violence. In this respect the American Revolution truly fits the description of a real Revolution... the violence and its consequences were an important part of the Revolutionary experience. It is from this violent uproar that the United States of America was born" (). The American Revolution was a violent revolution where the Americans fought for their independence from Britain. An Enlightenment thinker... -
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Revolutionary Violence 2
named Raynal supported revolutionary violence. His ideas influenced the Americans to literally fight for what they believed they deserved. -
U.S. Constitution Draft 1
A website called lawgovpol.com contained an article titled Separation of Powers, which discussed the effect of Montesquieu's thoughts on the American Revolution and government following the revolution. The article stated, "The idea of a separation of powers arrived at a critical time in world history. Both the American and French Revolutions drew on Montesquieu’s theory that government branches should be kept separate. The strongest working expression of the separation of powers was... -
U.S. Constitution Draft 2
...incorporated into the United States Constitution, which was drafted in 1787 and enacted in 1789" (lawgovpol.com). While drafting the U.S. Constitution, several people expressed the need for separation of powers. They wanted their government to include three branches: an executive branch, a judicial branch, and a legislative branch. Montesquieu was the first to develop this idea. His ideas influenced the American government system. -
U.S. Constitution Enactment 1
An article written by Martin Kelly, an author, displayed the utilization of a social contract in the United States following the American Revolution. As stated in the text, "The idea of the social contract had a huge impact on the Founding Fathers, especially Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. The U.S. Constitution itself starts with the three words, "We the people..." embodying this idea of popular sovereignty in the very beginning of this key document" (Kelly). The... -
U.S. Constitution Enactment 2
...U.S. Constitution was formed to capture the ideas that the people wanted in their government. This document is a social contract between Americans and their government. Thomas Hobbes, the first Enlightenment thinker to establish the importance of a social contract influenced Americans to utilize the contract in their own country and government. -
Eighth Amendment 1
An article from the National Constitution Center on the Eighth Amendment stated, "The Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution states: 'Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.' This amendment prohibits the federal government from imposing unduly harsh penalties on criminal defendants, either as the price for obtaining pretrial release or as punishment for crime after conviction" (Stevenson & Stinneford). The... -
Eighth Amendment 2
...Eighth Amendment prohibits capital punishment and unnecessary torture of criminals. This reflects the ideas of Beccaria, a philosopher who promoted the abolition of both torture and capital punishment. He felt it was unfair and unnecessary to give all criminals the same unfair treatment without taking into consideration the gravity of the committed crime. His thoughts shaped the ideals of the American government after the American Revolution. -
Thomas Jefferson 1
The U.S. Constitution was developed after the American Revolution. An article from a website that contains an extensive amount of information about the U.S. Constitution described effects of the Enlightenment on the Constitution. The article said, "Thomas Jefferson was a man of deep religious conviction — his conviction was that religion was a very personal matter, one which the government had no business getting involved in... As president, he discontinued the practice started by... -
Thomas Jefferson 2
...his predecessors George Washington and John Adams of proclaiming days of fasting and thanksgiving. He was a staunch believer in the separation of church and state" (usconstitution.net). Thomas Jefferson was strongly affected by Voltaire's idea of the importance of the separation of church and state. When he became president, he made sure to forget about practices of previous presidents that he found to be religious or unfit for a president who he felt should not be including... -
Thomas Jefferson 3
...their religious beliefs in their government system. -
Works Cited 1
“Foundations of American Government.” Ushistory.org, Independence Hall Association, www.ushistory.org/gov/2.asp.
History.com Staff. “Boston Massacre.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 2009, www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/boston-massacre.
Nicholson, Rebekah (2006) "The Enlightenment and Its Effects on the Haitian Revolution of 1789-1804," McNair Scholars Journal: Vol. 10: Iss. 1, Article 11. -
Works Cited 2
Kelly, Martin. “What's the Social Contract Mean for the Political System?” ThoughtCo, ThoughtCo, www.thoughtco.com/social-contract-in-politics-105424.
“Jefferson's Wall of Separation Letter - The U.S. Constitution Online.” Amendment 18 - The U.S. Constitution Online - USConstitution.net, www.usconstitution.net/jeffwall.html.
“The Separation of Powers.” Lawgovpol.com, Lawgovpol.com, 19 Jan. 2015, lawgovpol.com/separation-of-powers/. -
Works Cited 4
Stevenson, Bryan A., and John F. Stinneford. “The 8th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.” National Constitution Center – Constitutioncenter.org, National Constitution Center, constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/amendments/amendment-viii. -
Works Cited 3
“Violence In The Revolution.” American History From Revolution To Reconstruction and Beyond, University of Groningen, www.let.rug.nl/usa/essays/before-1800/was-the-american-revolution-a-revolution/violence-in-the-revolution.php.
Bessler, John D. (2016) “The Italian Enlightenment and the American Revolution: Cesare Beccaria’s Forgotten Influence on American Law,” Mitchell Hamline Law Journal of Public Policy and Practice: Vol. 37: Iss. 1, Article 1.
