Topic: Legal History
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Rough Draft of Declaration of Independence
On July 2, 1776, Jefferson presented his draft of the Declaration of Independence to the Continental Congress. In the document’s powerful preamble, he stated that “all men” had certain “inalienable...
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U.S. Constitution, Bill of Rights
The first ten amendments to the Constitution make up the Bill of Rights. Its first version, shown here, included twelve amendments, but the first two were dropped. When the Bill...Media › audio
Statute for Religious Freedom (Audio)
This is a dramatic reading of Jefferson’s Bill for Religious Freedom which became a statute (law) in 1786. Along with writing the Declaration of Independence and founding the University of...
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13th Amendment
The 13th Amendment to the Constitution, passed by Congress in January 1865 and ratified by the states in December of the same year, proclaimed an end to slavery in the...
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14th Amendment
This amendment to the Constitution, passed in 1866 and ratified in 1868, granted citizenship to those born in the United States, guaranteeing the rights of citizenship and equal protection under...
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15th Amendment
The 15th Amendment to the Constitution was passed by Congress in 1869 and ratified by the states in 1870. It guaranteed that the right to vote would be granted to...
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19th Amendment
This document is the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution which guarantees women the right to vote. The amendment was first introduced to Congress in 1878 and it took over...
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A Bill Establishing a Provision for Teachers of the Christian Religion
In 1784, Patrick Henry proposed this bill, which would have provided tax-supported religious instruction for Virginians. Henry believed that Christian morality made people better citizens. He also thought that the...
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A Declaration by the Representatives of the United Colonies
This document, written by Thomas Jefferson almost exactly one year before the Declaration of Independence, explains the reasons why the Continental Congress established the Continental Army. The document denies that...
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