The representatives of the French People, formed into a National Assembly, considering ignorance, forgetfulness or contempt of the rights of man to be the only causes of public misfortunes and the corruption of Governments, have resolved to set forth, in a solemn Declaration, the natural, unalienable and sacred rights of man, to the end that this Declaration, constantly present to all members of the body politic, may remind them unceasingly of their rights and their duties; to the end that the acts of the legislative power and those of the executive power, since they may be continually compared with the aim of every political institution, may thereby be the more respected; to the end that the demands of the citizens, founded henceforth on simple and incontestable principles, may always be directed toward the maintenance of the Constitution and the happiness of all. In consequence whereof, the National Assembly recognises and declares, in the presence and under the auspices of the Supreme Being, the following Rights of Man and of the Citizen. Article first Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions may be based only on considerations of the common good. Article 2 The aim of every political association is the preservation of the natural and imprescriptible rights of Man. These rights are Liberty, Property, Safety and Resistance to Oppression. Article 3 The principle of any Sovereignty lies primarily in the Nation. No corporate body, no individual may exercise any authority that does not expressly emanate from it. Article 4 Liberty consists in being able to do anything that does not harm others: thus, the exercise of the natural rights of every man has no bounds other than those that ensure to the other members of society the enjoyment of these same rights. These bounds may be determined only by Law. Article 5 The Law has the right to forbid only those actions that are injurious to society. Nothing that is not forbidden by Law may be hindered, and no one may be compelled to do what the Law does not ordain. Article 6 The Law is the expression of the general will. All citizens have the right to take part, personally or through their representatives, in its making. It must be the same for all, whether it protects or punishes. All citizens, being equal in its eyes, shall be equally eligible to all high offices, public positions and employments, according to their ability, and without other distinction than that of their virtues and talents. Article 7 No man may be accused, arrested or detained except in the cases determined by the Law, and following the procedure that it has prescribed. Those who solicit, expedite, carry out, or cause to be carried out arbitrary orders must be punished; but any citizen summoned or apprehended by virtue of the Law, must give instant obedience; resistance makes him guilty. Article 8 The Law must prescribe only the punishments that are strictly and evidently necessary; and no one may be punished except by virtue of a Law drawn up and promulgated before the offense is committed, and legally applied. Article 9 As every man is presumed innocent until he has been declared guilty, if it should be considered necessary to arrest him, any undue harshness that is not required to secure his person must be severely curbed by Law. Article 10 No one may be disturbed on account of his opinions, even religious ones, as long as the manifestation of such opinions does not interfere with the established Law and Order. Article 11 The free communication of ideas and of opinions is one of the most precious rights of man. Any citizen may therefore speak, write and publish freely, except what is tantamount to the abuse of this liberty in the cases determined by Law. Article 12 To guarantee the Rights of Man and of the Citizen a public force is necessary; this force is therefore established for the benefit of all, and not for the particular use of those to whom it is entrusted. Article 13 For the maintenance of the public force, and for administrative expenses, a general tax is indispensable; it must be equally distributed among all citizens, in proportion to their ability to pay. Article 14 All citizens have the right to ascertain, by themselves, or through their representatives, the need for a public tax, to consent to it freely, to watch over its use, and to determine its proportion, basis, collection and duration. Article 15 Society has the right to ask a public official for an accounting of his administration. Article 16 Any society in which no provision is made for guaranteeing rights or for the separation of powers, has no Constitution. Article 17 Since the right to Property is inviolable and sacred, no one may be deprived thereof, unless public necessity, legally ascertained, obviously requires it, and just and prior indemnity has been paid.
The Age of Enlightenment occurred during the 18th century, in the decades before the 1789 outbreak of the French Revolution. Although the Enlightenment took place many years before the outbreak of the French Revolution, its ideas and achievements still had a profound effect on the French Revolution. In fact, many historians today look back on the Enlightenment as a major cause of the revolution.
Another impact of the Enlightenment on the French Revolution can be seen in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. The document was adopted by the National Assembly on August 26th, 1789. The declaration was vitally important to the French Revolution because it directly challenged the authority of Louis XVI. For example, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen set out a series of individual rights protected by law. The basic principles of the declaration can be seen in the ideas and arguments of the great thinkers of the Enlightenment. As well, the declaration is considered to be one of the first documents that argued in favor of natural rights for all citizens and is seen as a major turning point in the history of the modern western world.
The Birth of the French Republic Declaration By: National Assembly of France Date: August 26, 1789 Source: National Assembly of France About the Author: The National Assembly of France formed on June 17, 1789 when the Estates General decided to change its name as revolutionary sentiments spread. The Assembly is responsible for stating France's revolutionary principles in the Declaration of Man and Citizen as well as writing the first French constitution in 1791. INTRODUCTIONThe Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen is the founding document of the French republic. A product of the 1789 French Revolution, it reflected a radically new view of human rights. In June 1789, King Louis XVI responded to widespread anger in France by proposing a charter of rights to the Estates General. Although he granted freedom of the press along with some measure of equality to the citizens, he preserved many of the feudal rights of his nobles. The king offered far too little, far too late. Within days, he was forced to recognize the authority of the National Assembly. For the majority of representatives in the Assembly, the Revolution meant a guarantee of citizens's rights, freedoms, and equality before the law. On August 4, 1789, the Assembly decreed the abolition of the feudal regime by freeing the few remaining serfs and eliminating all special privileges given to the nobility in matters of taxation. It also mandated equality of opportunity in access to official posts. Enlightenment principles were beginning to become law. On August 26, 1789, the Assembly further emphasized its support of the Enlightenment ideals by passing the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. The French were inspired to issue a document by a draft of a bill of rights that Thomas Jefferson offered to the Assembly. Jefferson, the principle author of the Declaration of Independence, served as U.S. ambassador to France in 1789. The French Declaration closely resembles the American one. Both granted freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and power to the people rather than a sovereign. The Declaration of Rights of Man and of the Citizen reflects French thought by further mandating equality of taxation and equality before the law. PRIMARY SOURCEThe representatives of the French people, organized as a National Assembly, believing that the ignorance, neglect, or contempt of the rights of man are the sole cause of public calamities and of the corruption of governments, have determined to set forth in a solemn declaration the natural, unalienable, and sacred rights of man, in order that this declaration, being constantly before all the members of the Social body, shall remind them continually of their rights and duties; in order that the acts of the legislative power, as well as those of the executive power, may be compared at any moment with the objects and purposes of all political institutions and may thus be more respected, and, lastly, in order that the grievances of the citizens, based hereafter upon simple and incontestable principles, shall tend to the maintenance of the constitution and redound to the happiness of all. Therefore the National Assembly recognizes and proclaims, in the presence and under the auspices of the Supreme Being, the following rights of man and of the citizen: Articles:
SIGNIFICANCEThe Declaration of Rights of Man and of the Citizen does much more than simply state the obligations of French citizens. It struck at the divine right of kings, severing the nation from a past based on religion. It is a document of the Age of Reason. The Declaration ended the thousand-year-old mystique of monarchy by demoting the king to the mere executive of the people's will. He was no longer God's choice to rule and a representative of the divine. Instead, the king was a leader who had failed his people. Accordingly, the people's revolt was justified since resistance to oppression is a natural right of men. The most enduring legacy of the Declaration lies in its assertion that citizens are equal before the law. In 1789, this assertion only applied to men. Revolutionary women such as Olympe de Gouges, author of the 1791 Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen, unsuccessfully sought to extend rights to women. Only in the twentieth century would French men and women gain equal rights and protections. Nevertheless, despite its shortcomings with respect to gender, the Declaration made it possible for all French citizens to eventually receive equal status. It dismantled the hereditary distinctions and privileges that had formed the center of monarchical society. The nature of sovereignty, the class structure of society, and the face of justice had been transformed forever in France. FURTHER RESOURCESBooksBarny, Roger. Le Triomphe du Droit Naturel: La Constitution de la Doctrine Revolutionnaire des Droits De L'Homme. Paris: Diffusion, 1997. Dunn, Susan. Sister Revolutions: French Lightning, American Light. New York: Faber and Faber, 1999. Van Kley, Dale, ed. The French Idea of Freedom: The Old Regime and the Declaration of Rights of 1789. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1994. United Nations Universal Declaration Of Human Rights , source The Avalon Project at Yale Law School. Available from http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/avalon.htm introduction Adopted by the General Assembl… Declaration Of The Rights Of Man And Citizen , Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen Statement of principles of the French Revolution, adopted by the National Assembly, accepted by Louis XV… Bill Of Rights , The Bill of Rights, which consists of the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, was drafted by the first Congress of the new government in 1… Virginia. Declaration Of Rights Of 1776 , Most of the Declaration of Rights was written by george mason, a plantation owner, real estate speculator, and neighbor of george washington. A stron… Citizenship , CITIZENSHIP. The concept of citizenship was at the heart of the Constitution. When Thomas Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence in 1776,… Northwest Ordinance , An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States Northwest of the River Ohio The Northwest Ordinance set several important prece… |
In what ways was the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen impacted by Enlightenment ideas?
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