The Preamble: Understanding the Words that Begin the US Constitution

The United States Constitution is one of the most important documents in American history. It is the legal foundation of the country and outlines the fundamental principles that guide the nation. At the beginning of the document, there are a few lines that are used to introduce the Constitution and set the tone for what is to come. These lines are known as the Preamble, and they are just as important as the rest of the document.

In this article, we will explore the history of the Preamble and what it means for the United States today. We will also take a closer look at the individual phrases within the Preamble and how they have influenced the country’s development.

History of the Preamble

The Preamble is a relatively short section of the United States Constitution that was written in 1787. It was composed by a team of five men who were tasked with writing the Constitution, including Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton. The Preamble was drafted after the rest of the Constitution was written, as a way to introduce and explain the document.

While the rest of the Constitution outlines the specific laws and structures of the new government, the Preamble is more philosophical in nature. It sets out the principles that underlie the document and the government it creates. It is designed to give people a sense of what the Constitution stands for and what the new American government hopes to achieve.

The Preamble was not always a part of the Constitution, however. In fact, it was added fairly late in the process. The Constitution was written over the course of several months at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. The delegates spent a considerable amount of time debating and refining each section of the document, but they did not initially include a Preamble. Instead, they simply began with the phrase “We the People” and went straight into the body of the Constitution.

It was not until September 12, 1787, that delegate Gouverneur Morris proposed the addition of a Preamble. Morris, who had already made significant contributions to the Constitution, argued that a Preamble was necessary to explain the document and justify its creation. He pointed out that constitutions in other countries often included preambles, and he believed that the United States Constitution should be no different.

The proposal was quickly accepted, and the remaining delegates spent very little time debating the wording of the Preamble. They seemed to agree that it was an important addition to the Constitution and that it was necessary to outline the fundamental principles of the new government.

The Language of the Preamble

The language of the Preamble is both poetic and powerful. It has been studied and analyzed by scholars, lawyers, and politicians for centuries, and its impact on American society cannot be overstated.

The Preamble begins with the famous phrase “We the People,” which was a deliberate attempt to place power in the hands of the citizens of the United States. This phrase showed that the Constitution was not created by a select group of elites, but rather by the people themselves. It also emphasized the idea of popular sovereignty, which meant that the people would have the ultimate say in how the government operated.

The next phrase, “in order to form a more perfect Union,” speaks to the fact that the United States was not always a cohesive nation. The thirteen original colonies had different economies, cultures, and political systems. The delegates at the Constitutional Convention recognized that for the United States to succeed, it needed to be more united. This phrase also suggests that the Constitution was not designed to create a perfect Union, but rather to make the Union more perfect than it was before.

The third phrase, “establish justice,” is an important reminder that the United States was founded on principles of fairness and equality. The delegates who wrote the Constitution wanted to create a government that would treat all citizens equally and provide for the common good. They recognized that previous governments had often been unjust and oppressive, and they wanted to ensure that the new government was different.

The fourth phrase, “insure domestic tranquility,” refers to the need for peace and stability within the country. This phrase recognizes that there will always be internal conflicts and that it is the government’s responsibility to find ways to handle them in a peaceful manner. It is a reminder that the United States was created during a time of great turmoil, and that the Constitution was written in order to prevent future conflicts.

The fifth phrase, “provide for the common defense,” speaks to the need for a strong national defense. The United States had just won its independence from Great Britain, and the delegates at the Convention recognized that its newfound freedom needed to be protected. This phrase acknowledges that there will always be external threats to the country, and that the government must be prepared to defend against them.

The sixth phrase, “promote the general welfare,” recognizes that the government has a responsibility to look out for the well-being of its citizens. This phrase acknowledges that there will always be people who are vulnerable and that it is the government’s responsibility to take care of them. It is a reminder that the United States was not just founded on principles of individual freedom, but also on principles of community and collective responsibility.

The final phrase, “secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity,” is a reference to the fact that the United States was created as a haven for personal freedom. It acknowledges that the people who wrote the Constitution were not just thinking about their own generation, but also about future generations. This phrase sets out to ensure that the freedoms of the American people will be protected for generations to come.

The Preamble and the Modern United States

The United States Constitution has been in effect for over 230 years, and the principles outlined in the Preamble have guided the country ever since. While some of the language may seem archaic today, the values that it embodies are as important as ever.

Over the years, the meaning of the Preamble has been debated by legal scholars, politicians, and ordinary citizens. Some have argued that the language is too vague and does not provide enough guidance for modern-day issues. Others believe that the principles outlined in the Preamble are just as relevant today as they were in 1787.

The Preamble has been cited in countless court cases and political debates over the years. Its language has been used to justify everything from civil rights legislation to budget cuts. It has been invoked as a symbol of American democracy and a reminder of the country’s founding principles.

In recent years, there has been renewed interest in the Preamble and its significance to the United States today. Some have suggested that the principles outlined in the Preamble should be used as a blueprint for modern government, while others argue that the Constitution needs to be updated to reflect contemporary issues.

In 2020, the National Archives launched a project called “Amending America,” which is aimed at exploring the history and impact of the United States Constitution. As part of this project, the National Archives invited people to submit their own proposals for amendments to the Constitution. Many of these proposals focused on issues such as voting rights, gun control, and climate change.

One proposed amendment, called the “Fair Electorate Amendment,” sought to clarify and expand upon the language of the Preamble. The amendment would have added a new phrase to the Preamble, stating that “the right to vote is fundamental to a fair and democratic society.” This proposal recognizes that voting rights have been a contentious issue in American history, and that the right to vote is an essential component of American democracy.

Conclusion

The Preamble to the United States Constitution is a powerful statement of the country’s founding principles. Its language is both poetic and profound, and it continues to resonate with Americans today. The Preamble sets out a vision for the United States that is based on principles of justice, equality, and freedom.

While the meaning of the Preamble has been debated over the years, its importance to the country’s history and future cannot be overstated. The principles outlined in the Preamble have guided the United States for over two centuries, and they will continue to be relevant for generations to come.

The Preamble to the United States Constitution is one of the most well-known and oft-quoted parts of the entire Constitution, if only for the opening quote of “We the People…” It is, based purely on length, a relatively insignificant part of the Constitution as a whole and yet, based on meaning, it is highly significant.

The Preamble helps scholars, lawyers, and lawmakers to understand the Constitution as a whole, in its intent, its basic meaning, and its fundamental tenets. While the Preamble is not critical to the function of the Constitution for establishing the Government of the United States, it has come up time and again in court proceedings and will likely continue to rise long into the future.

Background

The Preamble was not actually written with the rest of the Constitution. The Constitution was submitted to a Style Committee after a first draft and that Committee finalized the Constitution’s writing and also added the Preamble to the Constitution’s beginning. As such, the Preamble does not add any definitive legal powers to the nature of the Constitution.

The importance of the Preamble comes, instead, from what it adds to interpretations of the Constitution as a whole. The Preamble has been an oft-debated bit of the Constitution, even though it is so short because it uses several terms, each of which might be understood in multiple ways. Again, the Preamble does not offer up a concrete, definitive set of legal provisions, but it does influence the way in which the terms and legal definitions offered up elsewhere in the Constitution might apply.

If “The United States of America” is interpreted to mean different things based on the nature of the Preamble, then those differing interpretations would have major ramifications in any given party’s understanding of the Constitution as a whole. For example, the phrase “to form a more perfect Union” was debated often and actually came into great relevance with regard to the Civil War when states were attempting to secede from the Union. The nature of the phrase, then, greatly influenced lawmakers’ understanding of whether or not such secession was legal, which had even greater significance with regard to the aftermath of the Civil War. To find out more about the Preamble and some of the important terms included within, follow the link.

Importance of “We the People”

The phrase “We the People” at the very beginning of the Preamble and the entire Constitution is one of the most well-known phrases of the Constitution. It bears special significance to the Preamble and to the Constitution as a whole for its implications and its uniqueness. “We the People” establishes firmly that the Constitution is not a document dictating regulation of states by some larger Federal Government. It is a document establishing a government which deals with the people directly, and therefore, would overrule any state dealings with the people. It also establishes, importantly, that the power of the Government comes from no other source than the people themselves, who agree to exist under the rules of the Constitution in exchange for the rights and benefits which it provides.

“We the People” thus immediately sets apart the Constitution from many of its forebears, including the Articles of Confederation in America and even other constitutional documents throughout history. The phrase is also one of the primary links between the Constitution and the other document which is known by almost every American: the Declaration of Independence.

The Declaration of Independence has no legal bearing in modern-day America; for all that it is a significant historical document, it is not an important legal document. But one of the primary ideas of the Declaration of Independence was that the people had the right to rise up against an oppressive government, as that government gained its power from the people. This concept was carried over into the Constitution through the “We the People” phrase in the Preamble, thus strongly exhibiting the intent behind the Constitution. For more information about the significance of “We the People” to the entire Constitution, click the link.

Jacobson v. Massachusetts (1905)

Jacobson v. Massachusetts was an important case in American case law for a number of reasons. It significantly affected the American understanding of what states could force citizens to do in the name of the public good. It affected the American understanding of health care and the reasons for its importance. But it also affected American understanding of the Preamble, codifying one of the more important elements of interpreting that document.

Jacobson v. Massachusetts was a case in which one man, Jacobson, refused to be vaccinated under a Massachusetts statute requiring vaccination, and furthermore refused to pay the fine that came with a refusal to get vaccinated. He took Massachusetts to court, claiming that the statute violated his rights. He argued, among other points, that the laws implemented by Massachusetts actually violated certain rights which were granted to him in the Preamble of the Constitution, and furthermore, that those laws subverted the purposes of the Constitution as a whole. This required the United States Supreme Court to consider the nature of the Preamble in more depth, especially in terms of whether or not the Preamble had legal significance in and of itself.

In the end, the Supreme Court determined that the Preamble did not have any legal significance and could not be used as an argument based on rights that it supposedly granted to a citizen. On the other hand, the Preamble did provide an interpretation of the intent of the Constitution, such that the actions were taken by Massachusetts in implementing that law actually seemed acceptable. To find out more about this case and how it was influenced by, and influenced in turn, interpretations of the Preamble of the Constitution, follow the link.