WHAT KIND OF GOVERNMENT DID THE PATRIOTS WANT?
It was much easier for Colonists to say what they didn't like about British rule than it was to figure out what they wanted instead. They argued a long time about things like whether to allow slavery, whether big states should have more votes than smaller states, and who should have more power - the national (federal) government or state governments.

In the end, they made some important decisions. They decided to make sure that no single person or group had too much power by separating the government into three equal branches: the Supreme Court (judicial), the President (executive), and Congress (legislative).

To solve the debate about big states having more power than small states, they divided Congress into two. In the Senate, each state gets two votes, no matter what size they are. In the House of Representatives, the number of votes each state gets depends on how many citizens they have.

And they made it hard to change the Constitution by saying that the national government couldn't make changes by itself. First Congress would have to vote on the change. If they approved, it would go to the states for a vote. If ¾ of all the states approved the change, then it could become law.

The states did ratify the Constitution, but while they were debating it, they realized that some important things were missing. In 1789, 12 Amendments (additions) were proposed. Two of those Amendments were voted down. The other 10 were passed and are known as the Bill of Rights. Take a look at the Bill of Rights. Can you tell what was important to the people in 1789? How do these Amendments help preserve people's liberty? If you have trouble understanding the words, look at the notes.

THE FIRST 10 AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION AS RATIFIED BY THE STATES

Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;
The government will not endorse any particular religion, nor will it ever prevent people from following whatever religion they choose.
or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press;
People have the right to say or print what they want as long what they say doesn't cause harm to law-abiding citizens.
or the right of the people peaceably to assemble,
People have a right to meet with one another, even in big groups, as long as the meetings are peaceful. This gives people the right to organize public protests.
and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
People have a right to ask the government to act when they see something wrong. You can't be arrested for disagreeing with the government.

Amendment II
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
People are still debating exactly what this means, but most agree that it says that government employees are not the only people who can own guns.

Amendment III
No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.
People won't be forced to let soldiers stay in their homes.

Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
The government can't just come and search your home whenever they want. They have to have a very good reason to suspect that you have done something wrong.

Amendment V
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger;
Unless you are in the military, you can't be brought to trial just because a prosecutor (lawyer for the people) thinks you are guilty. First, they have to convince a grand jury that they can prove your guilt.
nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb;
If you are tried and found innocent, you can't be put on trial again for the same crime.
nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself,
You can't be forced to testify against yourself. This sentence was intended to make sure that people wouldn't be tortured into confessing.
nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law;
The government can't just kill you, put you in jail, or take away your property without a trial.
nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.
If public need means that the government has to use some of your property, they have to pay you for it and the payment has to be fair.

Amendment VI
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial,
People who are charged with a crime should not have to wait a long time for their trial.
by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law,
The trial should take place where the crime was committed.
and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him;
The person who is accused has the right to know what they are being accused of and who has accused them.

to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.
The person on trial can force witnesses to appear in court, and they have the right to be represented by a lawyer.

Amendment VII
In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.
For all major disputes, people have a right to have a jury decide their case, rather than just a single judge, and judges, except under special circumstances, can't overturn a jury's decision.

Amendment VIII
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
The government can't keep people who are waiting for trials in jail by demanding very high bail payments. It also can't punish people in cruel ways. Some people think that this means that the government does not have the right to put criminals to death.

Amendment IX
The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.
The Constitution gives rights to the government, but that does not mean that people don't have rights.

Amendment X
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
If the Constitution doesn't specifically grant a power to the national government, then we assume that the State or the people were meant to have that power.

THINK MORE ABOUT IT
If you could invent your own government, what would your design be? Would you make different rules for a team or school or city than for a country? How will your rules make sure that everyone is represented equally?

What do Americans celebrate when we observe Independence Day on July 4th? What do we have freedom from? What do we have the freedom to do? What kinds of things can we do to help make sure we always have those freedoms?

Americans didn't stop after 10 Amendments. Many more have been added since then. Can you guess what might have been missing? Take a look at the Amendments to check to see if you were right. Is there anything still missing? If you could add something to the Constitution, what would it be?

WHERE DID THE PATRIOTS' IDEAS ABOUT LIBERTY AND GOVERNMENT COME FROM?
The Patriots were inspired by a lot of things. The Bible, ancient Rome, and philosophers from Europe known as Enlightenment thinkers all had an impact.

One less well-known source was the Iroquois League of Nations, which was based on the consent of those governed. Based in New York State, the Iroquois Confederacy included five different tribes (Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca) who developed ways to work together without giving up their individual tribal identities. Benjamin Franklin and others studied the Iroquois constitution when they were figuring out how the U.S. government would be run.

Look at the features of American government and policy below. Can you guess which ones were done by the Iroquois Confederacy before the United States did them?

• Each participating state gets to govern itself with its own council of elected delegates.
  
  
• Each state sends delegates to a federal council that runs inter-state affairs and acts when the states need to deal with an outsider.
  
  
• Before going to war, the states try to settle disputes with negotiation.
  
  
• There is no royalty - no one gets to rule just because they are born into a certain family and no one is prevented from becoming a delegate just because they were born into a certain family.
  
  
• The government has the power to set requirements for citizenship and grant citizenship to outsiders who meet those requirements.
  
  
• At government meetings, people are expected to stay silent while others are speaking.
  
  
• Delegates are addressed by position, not name. So when they are called on at a meeting it is "The chair recognizes the Representative from XYZ" not "The chair recognizes Mr. A."
  
  
• Legislators meet in a caucus to try to work things out in smaller groups before bringing them to the full group.
  
  
• Leaders are servants of the people rather than their masters.
  
  
• Unauthorized entrance into people's homes by government representatives is illegal.
  
  
• People are guaranteed freedom of expression in political and religious matters.
  
  
• Women are allowed to participate fully in government.*
  
  
• The system of government is based, in part, on "natural" rights. Those are rights that everyone has just because they are people, not because they did something special to earn those rights.

Answer: All of these concepts were used by the Iroquois League of Nations long before the Revolutionary War, but instead of states, they had nations (tribes).

* The United States did not grant women the right to vote until 1920, more than 125 years after the Declaration of Independence was signed.