U.S. Civics Education Government & Early American History
The American Constitutional Republic System
The First Time the Term United States was Used in America
The geographic location called "America" comes from the name of Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci
"While the colonies may have established it, the name 'America' was attributed long before. America is named after Amerigo Vespucci, the Italian explorer who introduced the revolutionary concept in American history that the lands Christopher Columbus sailed to in 1492 were part of a separate continent.
A map (above) created in 1507 by Martin Waldseemüller was the first to depict this new continent with the name 'America,' a Latinized version of 'Amerigo.'
(Source: How Did America Get Its Name? | Library of Congress Blog (loc.gov))
In 1493, after reports of Columbus’s discoveries reached them, the Spanish rulers Ferdinand and Isabella enlisted papal support for their claims to the New World, aiming to establish their influence and claim over the Portuguese and other potential rivals.
To accommodate Spain, the Spanish-born pope Alexander VI issued bulls that set up a line of demarcation from pole to pole, 100 leagues (about 320 miles) west of the Cape Verde Islands.
Spain was granted exclusive rights to all newly discovered and undiscovered lands in the region west of the line, while Portuguese expeditions were to remain east of it. Neither power was to occupy any territory already in the hands of a Christian ruler.
(Source: Treaty of Tordesillas | Summary, Definition, Map, & Facts | Britannica)
America's land was claimed by Spain, France, Russia & England
Over the centuries, rulers of several countries claimed lands in the 'new' world known as America.
Although native people already inhabited America, under the strict authority of kings and queens, subjects—many hoping to gain status and wealth—were utilized to discover, fight for, and labor (often forced) over valuable resources in America.
This exploitation supported and expanded the power of royal elites, a topic that highlights key aspects of American History.
If you want to delve deeper into the government systems before and during colonial times, and understand their relation to Civics Education and the US Constitution, click on the link below.
About 175 years after 1st colonies were settled in North America, came "United" States of America
About 175 years after 1st colonies were settled in North America, came "United" States of America
1776 - The United States of America.
In a pivotal moment in American history, English colonists living in America united to break ties with a tyrant king and gain independence. This was a significant event that emphasized the importance of self governance.
The first instance of the term 'United States' appeared in the Declaration of Independence, where Thomas Jefferson referred to the thirteen united States.
(Source: U.S. Constitution Sesquicentennial Commission, 1935).
"The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them . . ."
- The Declaration of Independence,
July 4, 1776
From United as States to United People
Signing Declaration of Independence, by Trumbull.
The Declaration has 1,458 words including signatures. The Declaration was signed in the Philadelphia State House.
The first known formal use of "united" States of America was in the Declaration of Independence.
Signing U.S. Constitution, by C. Christy.
The document is 4,543 words, including the signatures. George Washington presided.
The Patriots Fought for independence
"Join, or Die" - Promoting the 1754 Albany Plan
Benjamin Franklin wrote an article in the Pennsylvania Gazette promoting the Albany Plan - A union of the Colonies. This cartoon (left) was published with his article. The snake cut into parts represents the separate colonies.
Franklin's point was the colonies would not survive external threats if they did not join together.
"Don't Tread On Me" - The Gadsden Flag 1776
Journal of the South Carolina Provincial Congress, 9 February 1776: "Col. Gadsden presented to the Congress an elegant standard, such as is to be used by the commander in chief of the American navy; being a yellow field, with a lively representation of a rattle-snake in the middle, in the attitude of going to strike, and these words underneath,
"DON'T TREAD ON ME!"
By the time of the War of Independence, the rattlesnake, frequently used in conjunction with the motto "Don't Tread on Me," was a common symbol for the United States, its independent spirit, and its resistance to tyranny.
https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/heritage/banners/usnavy-jack.html)
American Principles & Traditions
Excerpt from the Declaration of Independence
"WE hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal,
that they are endowed by their Creator
with certain unalienable* Rights,
that among these are
Life, Liberty, and
the Pursuit of Happiness.
Governments are instituted
among Men,
deriving their
just Powers from
the Consent of the Governed,
that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends,
it is the
Right of the People to
alter or to abolish it, and
to institute new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles . . .
We mutually Pledge to each other,
Our Lives, Our Fortunes and
Our Sacred Honor . . ."
July 4, 1776
* Unalienable - Permanent; cannot be removed
Basic Rights of Citizens
Right to Life
Right to Liberty
Right to Pursuit of Happiness
Right to Equality under the law
* * *
The people had all their rights and liberties before they created the Constitution.
The Constitution was formed, among other purposes, to make the people's liberties secure - secure not only as against foreign attack but against oppression by their own government.
They set specific limits upon their national government and upon the States, and
reserved to themselves all powers
that they did not grant.
(source: U.S. Constitution Sesquicentennial Commission, established by a
Joint Resolution of the Congress of
the United States,
approved August 23, 1935).
A Citizen's Responsibilities
The Preamble to the U.S. Constitution
- Loyalty - to the United States and the words and spirit of the Constitution
- Obey - the laws of the United States
- Vote – Learn about your representatives and determine who will represent your interests best and the interests of America.
- Jury Duty – Participate in the court system as a juror to decide facts in legal cases involving peers in your community.
* * *
Allegiance to the Republic
U.S. Constitution, Article IV, Section 4:
The United States shall guarantee to every
State in this Union
a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion;
and . . . against domestic Violence.
The Preamble to the U.S. Constitution
The Preamble to the U.S. Constitution
The Preamble to the U.S. Constitution
We, the people of the United States,
1. In order to form a more perfect union;
2. Establish justice;
3. Insure domestic tranquility;
4. Provide for the common defense;
5. Promote the general welfare; and,
6. Secure the blessing of liberty to
ourselves and our posterity,
do ordain and establish
this Constitution for the
United States of America.
The American Flag
The Preamble to the U.S. Constitution
The American Flag
(Pictured above is original flag with 13 stars representing the 13 colonies)
Today, the 50 white stars on a blue field represent the 50 states.
The colors on the flag represent:
- Red: valor and bravery
- White: purity and innocence
- Blue: vigilance, perseverance
and justice
- Stripes: The flag’s 13 alternating red and white stripes represent the original colonies
Delicate Cluster
Delicate cluster! flag of teeming life!
Covering all my lands - all my seashores lining!
Flag of death!
(how I watch'd you through the smoke of battle pressing! How I heard you flap and rustle, cloth defiant!)
Ah my silvery beauty - ah my wooly white and crimson!
Ah to sing the song of you, my matron mighty!
My sacred one, my mother!
- Walt Whitman, 1871
America's National Anthem - The Star Spangled Banner
A Brief History of the Song
The Song - America's National Anthem
The Flag that Inspired the Song
Attorney Francis Scott Key witnessed the twenty-five hour bombardment of Fort McHenry from a British troopship anchored some four miles away. He was aboard the ship to negotiate the release of an American civilian imprisoned by the British.
On September 14, 1814, while aboard the British ship during the bombardment of Ft. McHenry, Francis Scott Key witnessed at dawn the failure of the British attempt to take Baltimore.
Based on this experience, he wrote a poem that poses the question,
"Oh, say does that Star-Spangled Banner yet wave?"
Almost immediately Key's poem was published and wedded to the tune of the "Anacreontic Song." Long before the Civil War "The Star Spangled Banner" became the musical and lyrical embodiment of the American flag. . .
The Flag that Inspired the Song
The Song - America's National Anthem
The Flag that Inspired the Song
On July 26, 1889, the Secretary of the Navy designated "The Star Spangled Banner" as the official tune to be played at the raising of the flag.
During Woodrow Wilson's presidency, it was chosen by the White House to be played wherever a national anthem was appropriate. Still the song was variously criticized as too violent in tone, too difficult to sing, and, by prohibitionists, as basically a drinking song.
But on its side "The Star Spangled Banner" had a strong supporter in John Philip Sousa who, in 1931, opined that besides Key's "soul-stirring" words, "it is the spirit of the music that inspires."
That same year, on March 3, President Herbert C. Hoover signed the Act establishing Key's poem and Smith's music as the official anthem of the United States. (source: Library of Congress.gov)
The Song - America's National Anthem
The Song - America's National Anthem
The Song - America's National Anthem
Oh, say can you see,
By the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hailed
At the twilight's last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes
and bright stars,
Thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched
Were so gallantly streaming
And the rockets red glare,
The bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night
That our flag was still there.
O, say, does that
Star-Spangled Banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free
And the home of the brave?
E Pluribus Unum is Latin for - Out of Many, One
The Great Seal of the United States
The original seal of the United States created by Dr. B. Franklin, Mr. J. Adams before the Continental Congress of the newly independent United States adjourned July 4, 1776.