10 of the Most Important Political Documents
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Political historical documents have the power to alter the course of human history. From political theories, to declarations of revolution, to human rights protections, these 10 most important political historical documents have shaped the modern world.
#10: Magna Carta
King John issued the Magna Carta, or “The Great Charter,” in 1215. At the time, he faced the threat of rebellion from the country’s powerful nobles who resisted his heavy taxation and failed policies. Many of the 63 clauses of the Magna Carta asserted the barons’ various rights and property rights. However, certain clauses left a legacy that heavily influenced the governments of new nations, making it one of the most important historical documents.
The Magna Carta’s assertion that “No ‘scutage’ or ‘aid’ may be levied in our kingdom without its general consent” meant that the king did not have the right to impose new taxes on the people without first obtaining approval from the noblemen. This clause would be used by the U.S. Continental Congress to justify its Declaration of Independence. However, perhaps the most lasting impact of the Magna Carta comes from Clause 39 and 40 of the primary source. They provided for English citizens the right to a speedy trial and trial by their peers. Additionally, these clauses inspired the 1628 Petition of Rights and the Habeas Corpus Act of 1679. In fact, it became the foundations of the British legal system and inspired the American justice system and the Bill of Rights.[1]Salisbury Cathedral – Key clauses of Magna Carta
#9: John Locke Two Treatises of Government
John Locke anonymously published Two Treatises of Government in 1689. It is one of the most important historical documents because it laid the foundation for the American and French Revolutions. They in turn changed the world and its political order. In his First Treatise, Locke refuted Sir Robert Filmer’s theory of the ‘Divine Right of Kings.’ Filmer argued that the foundations for legitimate rule and government came from the biblical Adam and was passed down through generations to contemporary monarchical rulers. Therefore, he argued, legitimate power is derived from God. Locke refuted this claim, arguing that no monarchs claimed to derive power from Adam.
In the Second Treatise, Locke presented his own theory of legitimate rule and government. He argued that men exist in a natural state of equality, subject only to the laws of God and nature. He said that no human in his natural state has the power to govern others. However, humans can appoint or elect others to preserve natural law and the protection of property. Therefore, Locke argued that a government’s legitimacy is derived from the ‘consent of the governed.’ Locke’s Second Treatise also asserted the right of people to wage revolution against governments that do not serve the interests of its citizens.
Locke’s writing was extremely influential. In fact, it led to the establishment of the English government as a constitutional monarchy under the control of Parliament. It also led to greater freedom of religion and expression. John Locke’s Two Treatises of Government is perhaps most noteworthy for providing the justification for the United States’ Declaration of Independence and the foundations for its Constitution.[2]Second Treatise on Government – Second Treatise On Government
#8: Declaration of Independence
In the mid-18th century, the British Crown found itself in debt, partly because of its expenditures in protecting its American colonies during the French and Indian War. To pay its debts, the Crown began imposing taxes and restrictions on the colonies which had established a long tradition of self-governance. Protests and boycotts to the new Crown taxes and restrictions led to British crackdown on the colonists. Tensions continued to flair and evolved into full-scale war in 1775 with the Battles of Lexington and Concord. In 1776, through the Declaration of Independence, the Continental Congress outlined its grievances against Britain and declared itself an independent nation.[3]US History – The Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence represented the culmination of enlightenment ideas about rationality and the derivation of a government’s legitimacy from the consent of the governed. It created a government based on a set of fundamental human rights, “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” Though the United States struggled, especially initially, to uphold these fundamental rights for all people, it inspired people, nations, and revolutions across the globe.[4]Office of the Historian – The Declaration of Independence, 1776
#7: Declaration on the Rights of Man and Citizen of 1789
The Declaration on the Rights of Man and Citizen was adopted by the French National Assembly in 1789. It declared a number of basic human rights including the rights to “liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression,” and it specified limits to governmental power, stating that the law “has only the rights to forbid such actions as are injurious to society.”[5]The Online Library of Liberty – Georg Jellinek, The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of Citizens: A Contribution to Modern Constitutional History [1895]
It proclaimed that all men are innocent until proven guilty, upheld the right of people to freedom of religion and expression, and maintained the right to public property as an inviolable one. Adopted during the French Revolution, the Declaration is one of the sources of history that reveal the extent to which Enlightenment ideas and the U.S. experience influenced French political theory and constitutional law in the late 18th century. The ideas expressed in the Declaration permeated the constitutional governments of other nations. In fact, this along with other important historical documents, provided inspiration for the United Nations 1948 Declaration of Human Rights.
#6: Communist Manifesto
First published in 1848, the The Declaration on the Rights of Man and Citizen was the work of German political philosophers Karl Marx and Frederick Engels. The Communist Manifesto describes the progression of world history as one of class struggle. In a rapidly industrializing society, Marx and Engels argued that the bourgeoisie was exploiting the proletariat who would inevitably rise up in armed revolution, seize the means of production, and abolish private property and classes. The Communist Manifesto inspired revolutions large and small. In fact, the Russian and Chinese Revolutions were inspired by it. The ideas it espoused about the abolition of private property fueled the large-scale reorganization of both societies into collectivized agricultural units that ultimately led to famine.[6]Marxists – Manifesto of the Communist Party
The Communist Manifesto also provided the ideological basis for the Cold War. This divided the world into two camps—communist and capitalist—and threatened nuclear war and mass destruction. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Western capitalism emerged as the dominant economic system. However, Marx and Engels’s Manifesto did not fall into oblivion. In a world characterized by growing inequality, The Communist Manifesto is a primary source that remains relevant and continues to inspire contemporary critiques of capitalism.[7]Project Syndicate – Is Marx Still Relevant?
#5: Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919 and set out peace terms following the end of World War I. The treaty was negotiated by the Allied powers and largely concerned the future of post-war Germany. At the outset, peace negotiations revealed very different visions for the country. The French wanted revenge and the complete debilitation of Germany. On the other hand, Britain and the United States wanted peace conditions that would prevent a second war.
The Treaty created the League of Nations, an organization committed to collective security. However, at the same time, it prevented Germany from joining it. It stripped Germany of various territories and all of its colonies, significantly reduced the size of its armed forces, prohibited it from owning certain weapons, and committed Germany to making large financial reparations. Germany was even required to accept the “War Guilt Clause”. This clause forced it to accept responsibility for causing World War I.
Germany protested the Treaty but was forced to sign. In the US, the Senate refused to ratify it. The Treaty of Versailles severely damaged the German national consciousness. Promises to reclaim Germany’s prewar status contributed to the rise in popularity of Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party. In addition, it brought on the emergence of new international tensions as Hitler ignored many of the Treaty’s provisions.[8]TREATY OF PEACE WITH GERMANY (TREATY OF VERSAILLES) Ultimately, the Treaty of Versailles failed to prevent World War II, a war that destroyed much of Europe, saw the extermination of millions of people, and led to the creation of nuclear weapons. The Treaty of Versailles is one of the most important historical documents because it led to a war that changed the world as people knew it.[9]Holocaust Encyclopedia – TREATY OF VERSAILLES, 1919
#4: Beveridge Report
The Beveridge Report was published on December 1, 1942. Sir William Beveridge’s “Social Insurance and Allied Services” report argued that governments should work to combat society’s ‘Five Great Evils:’ Want, Disease, Ignorance, Squalor, and Idleness. These historical documents set forth plans for education and housing reforms, the idea of a full-employment economy, and a complete system of social insurance and welfare that would provide for all people without work the benefits and services necessary for living. Some of the benefits he proposed included maternity and unemployment benefits, state pensions, and a universal health care system.[10]The National Archives – The Beveridge Report and the foundations of the Welfare State
The report resonated with much of the population as they dealt with the hardships and sacrifices necessitated by World War II. In fact, a vast majority of the public supported the report’s recommendations. The overwhelming public interest and reaction forced Parliament to seriously consider the report. However, ultimately, they adopted the National Health Service and other social reforms and social security. More broadly, the detailed Beveridge Report laid the theoretical foundation for the modern welfare state cementing itself as one of the most important historical documents.[11]BBC – Fact File : Beveridge Report
#3: Marshall Plan
In 1948, the United States launched the Marshall Plan, formally known as the European Recovery Program. The United States pledged massive economic assistance to help rebuild Europe after World War II. In addition, as a subsidiary of the Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan became an important part of the U.S. policy. The U.S. believed in containing communism and the influence of the Soviet Union on post-war Europe. In fact, the Marshall plan promoted European economic recovery and integration. It also created an economy conducive to U.S. investment. In many cases, the U.S. aid provided by the Marshall Plan succeeded in stifling the rising influence of left-wing parties in Western Europe.
While the Marshall Plan partially achieved its goal of preventing the spread of communism by promoting economic recovery, it also helped heighten and draw the lines of the Cold War. The Soviet Union viewed the Marshall plan as an American attempt to meddle in European affairs. They refused aid and prevented states within its sphere of influence from accepting it as well. It promoted the idea of “shared interests and cooperation between the United States and Europe”. By doing so, it laid the foundations for the creation of NATO. This organization developed in opposition to the Soviet Union and its subsidiary states.[12]Office of the Historian – North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), 1949 To this day, the Marshall Plan remains one of the most important historical documents.
#2: Charter of the UN
After the League of Nations failed to prevent World War I, the United Nations replaced it in 1945. The founding members signed the Charter of the United Nations on June 6, 1945. To this day it remains one of the most important historical documents. After World War II had ravaged much of Europe, the participating countries committed to “save succeeding generations from the scourge of war…to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights…to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom.”[13]China – The Role of the United Nations
The UN serves a role in the international community that no other organization can match. In fact, today it continues to play a positive role in the promotion of peace, development, and the protection of human rights.[14]CHARTER OF THE UNITED NATIONS AND STATUTE OF THE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
#1: Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) started in 1970. To this day, it remains one of the most important historical documents. It serves as the keystone of the non-proliferation trend in international developments at the end of the Cold War. The NPT stipulated three central features. First, no Nuclear Weapon State should transfer its weapons or technology to Non-Nuclear Weapon States. Second, no Non-Nuclear Weapon State should receive or pursue the development of nuclear weapons. Third, states had the right to pursue and share knowledge about the use of nuclear technology. However, only for peaceful purposes.[15]UNODA – Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)
The United States and the Soviet Union both signed it. The NPT represented a breakthrough in the state of foreign affairs. In fact, the two countries had, in the decade prior to the signing of the NPT, come very close to engaging in nuclear war. The NPT also represented, in the wake of strong anti-nuclear public sentiment, international commitment to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and ultimate elimination of nuclear weapons. The NPT currently includes 189 states. It remains an important international agreement and primary source document. However, some states, including Israel and Pakistan, have refused to sign the agreement. Additionally, in 2003, North Korea withdrew from the agreement and began testing nuclear weapons.[16]CSIS – The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
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