Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
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The Fundamental Orders were adopted by the Connecticut Colony council on January 14 1638. OS (January 24 1639 NS)[1][2] The orders describe the government set up by the Connecticut River towns, setting its structure and powers.
It has the features of a written constitution, and is largely considered the first written Constitution in Western history, and thus earned Connecticut its nickname of The Constitution State. The orders were transcribed into the official colony records by the colony's secretary Thomas Welles.
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[edit] Individual rights
The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut is a short document, but contains some principles that were later applied in creating the United States government. Government is based in the rights of an individual, and the orders spell out some of those rights, as well as how they are ensured by the government. It provides that all free men share in electing their magistrates, and uses secret, paper ballots. It states the powers of the government, and some limits within which that power is exercised.
In one sense, the Fundamental Orders were replaced by a Royal Charter in 1662, but the major outline of the charter was written in Connecticut and embodied the Orders' rights and mechanics. It was carried to England by Governor John Winthrop and basically approved by the British King, Charles II. The colonists generally viewed the charter as a continuation and surety for their Fundamental Orders.
Today, the individual rights in the Orders, with others added over the years, are still included as a Declaration of Rights in the first article of the current Connecticut Constitution, adopted in 1965. The first written constitution of America.
[edit] See also
- Provisions of Oxford (1258)
- Mayflower Compact (1620)
- Instrument of Government (1653)
[edit] References
- ^ Roland, Jon. The Fundamental Orders. The Constitution Society. Retrieved on 2007-01-14.
- ^ Fundamental Orders. The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Columbia University Press (2005). Retrieved on 2006-09-13.
[edit] Further reading
- Original text of the Fundamental Orders Of Connecticutpl:Fundamental Orders
