What is the {democratic republic} for {foundational text} of {U.S. Declaration of Independence}
In the U.S Declaration of Independence, what is the foundational text for a democratic republic?
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The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are documents that provide the ideological foundations for the democratic government of the United States.
The Declaration of Independence provides a foundation for the concept of popular sovereignty, the idea that the government exists to serve the people, who elect representatives to express their will.
The US Constitution outlines the blueprint for the US governmental system, which strives to balance individual liberty with public order.
National treasures
In the US National Archives in Washington, DC, armed guards stand on constant watch in the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom. There, underneath bullet-proof glass and beneath the watchful eyes of a state-of-the-art system of cameras and sensors, the faded pages of three documents are enshrined: the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. At night, the documents are stored in an underground vault, rumored to be strong enough to withstand a nuclear attack.
Photo showing visitors examining documents in cases at the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom.
Photo showing visitors examining documents in cases at the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom.
Interior of the Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom in Washington, DC. Image credit: National Archives
Why are these pieces of paper so highly protected and cherished? In short, it’s because they serve as the ideological foundations for the government of the United States. They express both the inspiration for American democracy and the blueprint for carrying it out.
In this article, you'll learn the origins of these documents, and we'll examine the democratic ideals found within them.
The Declaration of Independence
Setting the stage
In 1776, the thirteen British colonies in North America were rebelling against British rule, after more than a decade of strife over taxation and government representation. As the Revolutionary War got underway, representatives from each of the colonies agreed it was time to put forward a statement expressing the colonies’ reasons for desiring independence.
This momentous task fell upon Thomas Jefferson, a 33-year-old Virginia lawyer. Jefferson was inspired by the English Enlightenment philosopher John Locke, whose writings on government put forward two ideas that would become quite important to Jefferson:
That all humans are born with “natural rights,” including the right to protect their lives, liberty, and property
That government is a “social contract” between people and their rulers, which can be dissolved if rulers fail to promote the people’s welfare
Although these ideas seem pretty tame by modern standards, in the eighteenth century they were tantamount to treason. The nations of Europe were led by monarchs, who exercised the divine right of kings and owed little or no consideration to the will of their subjects. English citizens had some rights, certainly, but no one would dare to say that the English monarchy could simply be dissolved.
Portrait of Thomas Jefferson.
Portrait of Thomas Jefferson.
Thomas Jefferson. Painted by Mather Brown, 1786. Image credit: WikimediaCommons
Nevertheless, Jefferson, in writing the Declaration, hoped to dissolve the relationship between the American colonies and Britain. He drafted the Declaration and gave it to his colleagues, John Adams of Massachusetts and Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, for revisions. After incorporating their suggestions, Jefferson submitted the Declaration to the colonial representatives for approval.
Read the full text of the Declaration of Independence
What is the Declaration of Independence?
At the most basic level, the Declaration of Independence is a list of grievances against the British Crown, seeking the sympathy of the international community for the cause of the colonies in revolting against their mother country. But at a higher level, the ideas expressed in the Declaration serve as the inspiration for American democratic values. They are some of the most poetic and meaningful words in all of American writing:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.
— That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,
— That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”
These ideas, that all men are created equal and that government is based on the consent of the governed, became the foundation for the US political ideal of popular sovereignty: that the government exists to serve the people, who elect representatives to express their will.
The colonial representatives voted to adopt the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, which has been celebrated as the official birthday of the United States ever since.
The Constitution
Although the Declaration served as an inspiration for American democracy, it did not outline an actual system of government. In the years during and immediately after the Revolution, the US government operated under the Articles of Confederation, a government system that placed most power in the hands of state governments.
We’ll talk more about the specifics of the Articles of Confederation later on in this course, but for now, suffice it to say that by the late 1780s, it was clear that the Articles weren’t working. The United States needed a new, stronger blueprint for government.
In 1787, representatives from the states met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at the Constitutional Convention. Their task was a difficult one: to create a government system that was powerful enough to meet the needs of the United States, but not so powerful that it would become tyrannical. Likewise, they wanted to balance the will of the majority with the rights of the minority, so that the powerful many could not trample the few.
Painting depicting the Constitutional Convention, with George Washington standing above statesmen including James Madison and Alexander Hamilton. 
Painting depicting the Constitutional Convention, with George Washington standing above statesmen including James Madison and Alexander Hamilton.
Artist’s depiction of the Constitutional Convention. Painted by Junius Brutus Stearns, 1856. Image credit: Teaching American History
Under the leadership of Revolutionary War hero George Washington, the delegates debated the elements of a new Constitution. The final version, influenced strongly by Virginian James Madison and New Yorker Alexander Hamilton, reinforced the idea that government derives from a social contract by citizens for their mutual advantage:
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
The Constitution drafted in Philadelphia more than two hundred years ago still forms the basis for US government today. Amended just twenty-seven times in that period (including the first set of ten amendments, or the Bill of Rights, which was passed immediately after the Constitution’s ratification), the US Constitution is the oldest functioning national constitution in the world. It serves as the blueprint for the unique form of political democracy found in the United States.
What do you think?
How are the original goals of the Constitution similar to, and different from, the original goals of the Declaration of Independence?
What does popular sovereignty mean? How would you define it in your own words?
Which aspects of the Declaration and the Constitution do you see as most critical to the ideals of American democracy?