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Zoe Gong
Have you ever heard some of greatest thinkers of history, their ideas beyond Europe and
enlightenment against the feudal autocracy, religion and privilege, enlightenment, promoted the
freedom, democracy and equality thoughts. Some thinkers of the Enlightenment thought
influenced politics, economy and the American war for independence. Lay the foundation for the
United States constitution and independence. The Enlightenment thinkers begin the new
philosophes, to overthrow the feudal rule and religion. The oppression of Americas and more
taxes, let Americas cited the idea from John Locke declaration of independence. A new
constitution of the United States, has absorbed idea of Locke, Montesquieu and Rousseau.
superstition, and guide the individual people's minds in the world. In 1700s and 1800s, on France
is an infant state, people's minds are controlled by the church, which makes people to break old
ideas, also the Renaissance to promote the scientific, some people begin against dictatorship, the
science and communications were radically reoriented during the ...... were directly inspired by
Enlightenment ideals and respectively marked the peak of its influence and the beginning of its
decline. The Enlightenment ultimately gave way to 19th-century Romanticism. Also, some
famous thinkers continues to today. Like John Lockes idea, he believe everybody were basically
reasonable and moral, they had natural rights, which belonged when human from birth. And
people are naturally cruel and selfish, social contract idea from Thomas Hobbes. Montesquieus
3 branches of government. Voltaire defended the idea of freedom of speech. Rousseau through
close social contract. On the Enlightenment the new thinker against the Catholic Church, for the
declared impendence from British. The 13 English colonies was North America, on the colonies,
Britain applied mercantilist policies, and they increase the taxes paid by the colonists, the
relations between Britain and North America grew stained. After that, the British soldiers opened
fire, 5 colonists died, the colonists protest a tax on tea, begin the Boston Tea Party. The Declaring
Independence was follow idea of John Locke, which is the natural rights, belonged when human
from birth. And the Declaration of Independence emphasized the principle of popular
sovereignty, all government power comes from the people. As found on www.history.com The
Philadelphia on July 4, a date now celebrated as the birth of American independence and its
most famous passage: We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal;
that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are
lifegovernments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of
the governed. Finely, in 1777, Americans let French join them, so they win. The treaty of Paris
officially ended the war. The declaration of independence is of great significance to the birth of
After end of the war, the North Americans build the new constitution, in 1789, the
constitution become the supreme law of the land. The new Constitution established Americas
national government and fundamental laws, it had the natural rights idea of Locke. The idea from
judicial, also it have the idea of Rousseau, the social contract. The constitution created a federal
republic, as found on www.history.com Under Americas first governing document, the Articles
of Confederation, the national government was weak and states operated like independent
countries. At the 1787 convention, delegates devised a plan for a stronger federal government
with three branchesexecutive, legislative and judicialalong with a system of checks and
balances to ensure no single branch would have too much power. And Americas first
constitution, the Articles of Confederation, was ratified in 1781, a time when the nation was a
loose confederation of states, each operating like independent countries. The national
government was comprised of a single legislature, the Congress of the Confederation; there was
no president or judicial branch. The Articles of Confederation gave Congress the power to
govern foreign affairs, conduct war and regulate currency; however, in reality these powers were
sharply limited because Congress had no authority to enforce its requests to the states for money
or troops. Every branch of government was protected by checks and balances, in 1789 the
constitution become the supreme law of the land. The constitution of the United States is one of
the earliest written constitution in the history of the world, it helped the development of the
American independence cannot lack the influence of the enlightenment, and the idea of
enlightenment historians. Those thinkers influence every one, John Lock, Thomas Hobbes,
Montesquieu, Voltaire and Adan Smith. Enlightenment to promote people's minds, broke the
feudal rule, begin at Paris, flowed across Europe and beyond, and then spread to all over the
world. After American Revolution, the Paris officially ended the war and they have a new
constitution, the constitution created federal republic with power divided. If people do not have
the idea of Locke, Montesquieu, and Rousseau, and the new constiution today people will do not