AMERICAN CONSTITUTION
The United States Constitution is the highest law of the United States of America. It was put in writing on September 17, 1787 by the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and later put into effect, or ratified, by representatives of the people of the first 13 states. When nine of the states ratified the document, they put forth a union of sovereign states, and a federal government for that union. That government started on March 4, 1789, replacing the Articles of Confederation.
The Constitution of the United States is the oldest federal constitution now in use.
Since 1787, the United States Constitution has been changed 27 times by amendments (changes).
www.civicallyspeaking.org/simplified_const.pdf
FOUNDING FATHERS
The Founding Fathers of the United States are the political leaders who signed the Declaration of Independence or otherwise participated in the American Revolution as leaders of the Patriots, or who participated in drafting the United States Constitution eleven years later. During the American Revolutionary War, the Founders were opposed by the Loyalists who supported the British monarchy and opposed independence (though most Loyalists remained in the U.S. after 1783 and supported the new government). Some authors draw a distinction between the Founders, who signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776 or participated in the Revolution, and the Framers, who drafted the United States Constitution to replace the Articles of Confederation, in 1787.That distinction is not made in this article.
Warren G. Harding is credited with coining the phrase “Founding Fathers” in his keynote address to the 1916 Republican National Convention when he was still a Senator.
According to Joseph J. Ellis, the concept of the Founding Fathers of the U.S. emerged in the 1820s as the last survivors died out. Ellis says the “the founders,” or “the fathers,” comprised an aggregate of semi-sacred figures whose particular accomplishments and singular achievements were decidedly less important than their sheer presence as a powerful but faceless symbol of past greatness. For the generation of national leaders coming of age in the 1820s and 1830s — men like Andrew Jackson, Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, and John C. Calhoun — “the founders” represented a heroic but anonymous abstraction whose long shadow fell across all followers and whose legendary accomplishments defied comparison. “We can win no laurels in a war for independence,” Webster acknowledged in 1825. “Earlier and worthier hands have gathered them all. Nor are there places for us … [as] the founders of states. Our fathers have filled them. But there remains to us a great duty of defence and preservation.”
For their era, the 1787 delegates (like the 1776 signers) were average in terms of life spans. Their average age at death was about 67. The first to die was Houston in 1788; the last was Madison in 1836.
The one who reached the oldest age was Johnson, who died at 92. John Adams lived to the age of 90. A few—Franklin, Jefferson, Madison, Williamson, and Wythe—lived into their eighties. Either 15 or 16 (depending on Fitzsimons’s exact age) died in their seventies, 20 or 21 in their sixties, eight in their fifties, and five only in their forties. Three (Alexander Hamilton, Richard Dobbs Spaight and Button Gwinnett) were killed in duels.
Most of the delegates married and raised children. Sherman fathered the largest family: 15 children by two wives. At least nine (Bassett, Brearly, Johnson, Mason, Paterson, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, Sherman, Wilson, and Wythe) married more than once. Four (Baldwin, Gilman, Jenifer, and Alexander Martin) were lifelong bachelors.
The Founding Fathers of America, A Brief Overview
United States Historical Documents
In April of 1775, Paul Revere made his famous ride to warn that King George had sent troops to arrest John Hancock and Samuel Adams. Armed colonists met the British soldiers, and the American Revolution began.
A committee of five men were appointed to draft the Declaration of Independence : Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, John Adams of Massachusetts, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, and Robert R. Livingston of New York. Thomas Jefferson did most of the actual writing. He worked on the declaration during the last two weeks of June in 1776. Benjamin Franklin made a few minor changes to the document.
On July 2, 1776, the Second Continental Congress took a vote and accepted the resolution that the “United Colonies are, and right ought to be, free and independent States.” Two days later, the Declaration of Independence was formally adopted. The next year, the Second Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation. This document called for a loose group of separate states without any central government. The Articles of Confederation worked fine during the war with England. But when the war came to an end, the various states began to fight among themselves. The Founding Fathers –George Washington, Ben Franklin, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and others–decided to draw up a new document that would be stronger and more effective than the Articles of Confederation. This new document was the –a big collection of rules. It was written during the Constitutional Convention in 1787 but it didn’t go into effect until 1789. The first ten Amendments to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights , was added in 1791.
The wonder of the internet provides us with quick easy access to many primary source historical documents. Not only can you read the full text, but you can also see images of the original documents.
The 55 delegates who attended the Constitutional Convention were a distinguished body of men who represented a cross section of 18th-century American leadership. Almost all of them were well-educated men of means who were dominant in their communities and states, and many were also prominent in national affairs. Virtually every one had taken part in the Revolution; at least 29 had served in the Continental forces, most of them in positions of command.
Political Experience
The group, as a whole, had extensive political experience. At the time of the convention, four-fifths, or 41 individuals, were or had been members of the Continental Congress. Mifflin and Gorham had served as president of the body. The only ones who lacked congressional experience were Bassett, Blair, Brearly, Broom, Davie, Dayton, Alexander Martin, Luther Martin, Mason, McClurg, Paterson, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, Strong, and Yates. Eight men (Clymer, Franklin, Gerry, Robert Morris, Read, Sherman, Wilson, and Wythe) had signed the Declaration of Independence . Six (Carroll, Dickinson, Gerry, Gouverneur Morris, Robert Morris, and Sherman) had affixed their signatures to the Articles of Confederation . But only two, Sherman and Robert Morris, underwrote all three of the nation’s basic documents. Practically all of the 55 delegates had experience in colonial and state government. Dickinson, Franklin, Langdon, Livingston, Alexander Martin, Randolph, Read, and Rutledge had been governors, and the majority had held county and local offices.
Occupations
The delegates practiced a wide range of occupations, and many men pursued more than one career simultaneously. Thirty-five were lawyers or had benefited from legal training, though not all of them relied on the profession for a livelihood. Some had also become judges.
At the time of the convention, 13 individuals were businessmen, merchants, or shippers: Blount, Broom, Clymer, Dayton, Fitzsimons, Gerry, Gilman, Gorham, Langdon, Robert Morris, Pierce, Sherman, and Wilson. Six were major land speculators: Blount, Dayton, Fitzsimons, Gorham, Robert Morris, and Wilson. Eleven speculated in securities on a large scale: Bedford, Blair, Clymer, Dayton, Fitzsimons, Franklin, King, Langdon, Robert Morris, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, and Sherman. Twelve owned or managed slave-operated plantations or large farms: Bassett, Blair, Blount, Butler, Carroll, Jenifer, Mason, Charles Pinckney, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, Rutledge, Spaight, and Washington. Madison also owned slaves. Broom and Few were small farmers.
Nine of the men received a substantial part of their income from public office: Baldwin, Blair, Brearly, Gilman, Jenifer, Livingston, Madison, and Rutledge. Three had retired from active economic endeavors: Franklin, McHenry, and Mifflin. Franklin and Williamson were scientists, in addition to their other activities. McClurg, McHenry, and Williamson were physicians, and Johnson was a university president. Baldwin had been a minister, and Williamson, Madison, Ellsworth, and possibly others had studied theology but had never been ordained.
A few of the delegates were wealthy. Washington and Robert Morris ranked among the nation’s most prosperous men. Carroll, Houstoun, Jenifer, and Mifflin were also extremely well-to-do. Most of the others had financial resources that ranged from good to excellent. Among those with the most straitened circumstances were Baldwin, Brearly, Broom, Few, Madison, Paterson, and Sherman, though they all managed to live comfortably.
A considerable number of the men were born into leading families: Blair, Butler, Carroll, Houstoun, Ingersoll, Jenifer, Johnson, Livingston, Mifflin, Gouverneur Morris, both Pinckneys, Randolph, Rutledge, Washington, and Wythe. Others were self-made men w ho had risen from humble beginnings: Few, Franklin, Gorham, Hamilton, and Sherman.
Geographic and Educational Background
Most of the delegates were natives of the 13 colonies. Only eight were born elsewhere: four (Butler, Fitzsimons, McHenry, and Paterson) in Ireland, two (Davie and Robert Morris) in England, one (Wilson) in Scotland, and one (Hamilton) in the West Indies. Reflecting the mobility that has always characterized American life, many of them had moved from one state to another. Sixteen individuals had already lived or worked in more than one state or colony: Baldwin, Bassett, Bedford, Dickinson, Few, Franklin, Ingersoll, Livingston, Alexander Martin, Luther Martin, Mercer, Gouverneur Morris, Robert Morris, Read, Sherman, and Williamson. Several others had studied or traveled abroad.
The educational background of the Founding Fathers was diverse. Some, like Franklin, were largely self-taught and had received scant formal training. Others had obtained instruction from private tutors or at academies. About half of the individuals had at tended or graduated from college in the British North American colonies or abroad. Some men held advanced and honorary degrees. For the most part, the delegates were a well-educated group.
Longevity and Family Life
For their era, the delegates to the convention (like the signers of the Declaration of Independence ) were remarkably long-lived. Their average age at death was almost 67. Johnson reached the age of 92, and Few, Franklin, Madison, Williamson, and Wythe lived into their eighties. Fifteen or sixteen (depending on Fitzsimmon’s exact age) passed away in their eighth decade, and 20 or 21 in their sixties. Eight lived into their fifties; five lived only into their forties, and two of them (Hamilton and Spaight) were killed in duels. The first to die was Houston in 1788; the last, Madison in 1836.
Most of the delegates married and raised children. Sherman fathered the largest family, 15 children by 2 wives. At least nine (Bassett, Brearly, Johnson, Mason, Paterson, Charles Cotesworth, Pinckney, Sherman, Wilson, and Wythe) married more than once. Four (Baldwin, Gilman, Jenifer, and Alexander Martin) were lifelong bachelors. In terms of religious affiliation, the men mirrored the overwhelmingly Protestant character of American religious life at the time and were members of various denominations. Only two, Carroll and Fitzsimons, were Roman Catholics.
Post-Convention Careers
The delegates subsequent careers reflected their abilities as well as the vagaries of fate. Most were successful, although seven (Fitzsimons, Gorham, Luther Martin, Mifflin, Robert Morris, Pierce, and Wilson) suffered serious financial reverses that left them in or near bankruptcy. Two, Blount and Dayton, were involved in possibly treasonous activities. Yet, as they had done before the convention, most of the group continued to render outstanding public service, particularly to the new government they had helped to create.
Washington and Madison became President of the United States, and King and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney were nominated as candidates for the office. Gerry served as Madison’s Vice President. Hamilton, McHenry, Madison, and Randolph attained Cabinet posts. Nineteen men became U.S. senators: Baldwin, Bassett, Blount, Butler, Dayton, Ellsworth, Few, Gilman, Johnson, King, Langdon, Alexander Martin, Gouverneur Morris, Robert Morris, Paterson, Charles Pinckney, Read, Sherman, and Strong. Thirteen served in the House of Representatives: Baldwin, Carroll, Clymer, Dayton, Fitzsimons, Gerry, Gilman, Madison, Mercer, Charles Pinckney, Sherman, Spaight, and Williamson. Of these, Dayton served as Speaker. Four men (Bassett, Bedford, Brearly, and Few) served as federal judges, four more (Blair, Paterson, Rutledge, and Wilson) as Associate Justices of the Supreme Court. Rutledge and Ellsworth also held the position of Chief Justice. Seven others (Davie, Ellsworth, Gerry, King, Gouverneur Morris, Charles Pinckney, and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney) were named to diplomatic missions for the nation.
Many delegates held important state positions, including governor (Blount, Davie, Franklin, Gerry, Langdon, Livingston, Alexander Martin, Mifflin, Paterson, Charles Pinckney, Spaight, and Strong) and legislator. And most of the delegates contributed in m any ways to the cultural life of their cities, communities, and states. Not surprisingly, many of their sons and other descendants were to occupy high positions in American political and intellectual life.
Ratifying the Constitution…
On September 17, 1787, the document was signed and sent to Congress, which soon forwarded printed copies to the state legislatures. Then began the great debate. Madison, Hamilton, and Jay wrote the brilliant Federalist Papers. George Mason, Elbridge Gerry, and Patrick Henry led the Antifederalists in opposing it. Others joined in the argument, in pamphlets, articles, speeches, and letters. By June 21, 1788, conventions in nine states later approved it. Thus the States, which had so recently gained their independence, gave up some of their hard-won sovereignty “in Order to form a more perfect Union.”
Angra dos Reis é um 
Biography: Barack Hussein Obama was born Aug. 4, 1961, in Honolulu, Hawaii. His father, Barack Obama, Sr., was born of Luo ethnicity in Nyanza Province, Kenya. He grew up herding goats with his own father, who was a domestic servant to the British. Although reared among Muslims, Obama, Sr., became an atheist at some point.
Em 1967, ano em que foi lançado What a Wonderful World, vivia-se um dos períodos raciais e políticos mais conturbados nos Estados Unidos. Era o ano de Martin Luther King e de Malcom X, o ano dos happenings hippies e da contestação à Guerra do Vietname.
