In 1215, English barons rebeled and foced King John to sign the Magna Carta. America’s Founding Fathers took a lot of ideas from the Magna Carta when writing the nation’s founding documents—the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. It was the first document to regulate the power of the king and government which inspired the U.S. Constitution to have all people even government leaders follow the laws. The Magna Carta was a symbol of liberty and the natural rights of man against an oppressive or unjust government.

When Pilgrims and other settlers set out on the ship for America in 1620 on a ship called the Mayflower. They intended to lay anchor in northern Virginia. But after treacherous shoals and storms drove their ship off course, the settlers landed in Massachusetts instead, near Cape Cod, outside of Virginia. Knowing life without laws could prove catastrophic, colonist leaders created the Mayflower Compact to ensure a functioning way to govern themselves. This was one of the first attempts at self-government in the English colonies. It declared that the people would placing the rights and needs of the people first when making laws. An idea that lives on in the U.S. Constitution.

In 1689, the English overthrew King James II and they chose William III and Mary II to be co-rulers of England only if they signed the English Bill of Rights. William III and Mary II agreed and signed the English Bill of Rights into law. It expanded on the work of the Magna Carta and granted goverment protection to many constitutional and civil rights to the people. It also made Parliament, Englands represenative legilative, power over the monarchy. The English Bill of Rights encouraged a form of government where the rights and liberties of individuals were protected. It’s also inspired the U.S. Bill of Rights.