Editing Constitution (section)

==History and development==
Since 1789, along with the [[Constitution of the United States of America]] (U.S. Constitution), which is the oldest and shortest written constitution still in force,<ref>({{cite book|last=Jordan|first=Terry L.|title=The U.S. Constitution and Fascinating Facts About It|edition=8th|publisher=Oak Hill Publishing Company|year=2013|place=Naperville, IL|page=25}})</ref> close to 800 constitutions have been adopted and subsequently amended around the world by independent states.<ref name="auto3" />

In the late 18th century, [[Thomas Jefferson]] predicted that a period of 20 years would be the optimal time for any constitution to be still in force, since "the earth belongs to the living, and not to the dead".<ref>({{cite web|date=6 September 1789|title=Thomas Jefferson to James Madison|url=http://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/v1ch2s23.html/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181014001321/http://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/v1ch2s23.html|archive-date=14 October 2018|access-date=29 July 2015|website=Popular Basis of Political Authority|pages=392–97}})</ref> Indeed, according to recent studies,<ref name="auto3">({{cite book|last1=Zachary|first1=Elkins|title=The Endurance of National Constitutions|last2=Ginsburg|first2=Tom|last3=Melton|first3=James|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2009|place=New York}})</ref> the average life of any newly written constitution is around 19 years. However, a great number of constitutions do not last more than 10 years, and around 10% do not last more than one year, as was the case of the [[French Constitution of 1791]].<ref name="auto3"/> By contrast, some constitutions, notably that of the United States, have remained in force for several centuries, often without major revision for long periods.

The most common reasons for these frequent changes are the political desire for an immediate outcome{{clarify|date=December 2021}} and the short time devoted to the constitutional drafting process.<ref name="auto">({{cite web|last1=Ginsburg|first1=Tom|last2=Melton|first2=James|title=Innovation in Constitutional Rights|url=http://www.law.nyu.edu/sites/default/files/upload_documents/November%2019%20Ginsburg%20Melton%20Innovation%20in%20Constitutional%20Rights%20.pdf/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140717043443/http://www.law.nyu.edu/sites/default/files/upload_documents/November%2019%20Ginsburg%20Melton%20Innovation%20in%20Constitutional%20Rights%20.pdf|archive-date=17 July 2014|access-date=29 July 2015|website=NYU|publisher=Draft for presentation at NYU Workshop on Law, Economics and Politics}})</ref> A study in 2009 showed that the average time taken to draft a constitution is around 16 months,<ref name=":1">({{cite web|last1=Ginsburg|first1=Tom|last2=Zachary|first2=Elkins|last3=Blount|first3=Justin|date=2009|title=Does the Process of Constitution-Making Matter?|url=http://lexglobal.org/files/Does%20the%20Process%20of%20Constitution-Making%20Matter.pdf/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417025418/http://lexglobal.org/files/Does%20the%20Process%20of%20Constitution-Making%20Matter.pdf|archive-date=17 April 2018|access-date=29 July 2015|website=University of Chicago Law School|publisher=Annu. Rev. Law Soc. Sci.5|pages=201–23 [209]|place=Chicago, IL}})</ref> however there were also some extreme cases registered. For example, the [[Myanmar]] 2008 Constitution was being secretly drafted for more than 17 years,<ref name=":1" /> whereas at the other extreme, during the drafting of [[Japan]]'s 1946 Constitution, the bureaucrats drafted everything in no more than a week. Japan has the oldest unamended constitution in the world.<ref name="anomalous-constitution">{{cite news|title=The Anomalous Life of the Japanese Constitution |url=https://www.nippon.com/en/in-depth/a05602/the-anomalous-life-of-the-japanese-constitution.html |date=15 August 2017 |access-date=11 August 2019 |website=Nippon.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190811213143/https://www.nippon.com/en/in-depth/a05602/the-anomalous-life-of-the-japanese-constitution.html |url-status=live |archive-date=11 August 2019}}</ref> The record for the shortest overall process of drafting, adoption, and ratification of a national constitution belongs to [[Romania]]'s 1938 constitution, which installed a royal dictatorship in less than a month.<ref>({{cite web|last1=Ginsburg|first1=Tom|last2=Zachary|first2=Elkins|last3=Blount|first3=Justin|date=2009|title=Does the Process of Constitution-Making Matter?|url=http://lexglobal.org/files/Does%20the%20Process%20of%20Constitution-Making%20Matter.pdf/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417025418/http://lexglobal.org/files/Does%20the%20Process%20of%20Constitution-Making%20Matter.pdf|archive-date=17 April 2018|access-date=29 July 2015|website=University of Chicago Law School|publisher=Annu. Rev. Law Soc. Sci.5 |pages=201–23 [204]|place=Chicago, IL}})</ref> Studies showed that typically extreme cases where the constitution-making process either takes too long or is extremely short were non-democracies.<ref>({{cite web|last1=Ginsburg|first1=Tom|last2=Zachary|first2=Elkins|last3=Blount|first3=Justin|date=2009|title=Does the Process of Constitution-Making Matter?|url=http://lexglobal.org/files/Does%20the%20Process%20of%20Constitution-Making%20Matter.pdf/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417025418/http://lexglobal.org/files/Does%20the%20Process%20of%20Constitution-Making%20Matter.pdf|archive-date=17 April 2018|access-date=29 July 2015|website=University of Chicago Law School|publisher=Annu. Rev. Law Soc. Sci.5:201–23|page=203|place=Chicago, IL}})</ref> 

In principle, constitutional rights are not a specific characteristic of democratic countries. Autocratic states have constitutions, such as that of [[North Korea]], which officially grants every citizen, among other things, the [[freedom of expression]].<ref>({{cite journal|last1=Chilton|first1=Adam S.|last2=Versteeg|first2=Mila|date=2014|title=Do Constitutional Rights Make a Difference?|publisher=Coase-Sandor Institute for Law & Economics Working Paper No. 694|ssrn=2477530|website=Coase-Sandor Institute for Law & Economics}})</ref> However, the extent to which governments abide by their own constitutional provisions varies. In North Korea, for example, the [[Ten Principles for the Establishment of a Monolithic Ideological System]] are said to have eclipsed the constitution in importance as a frame of government in practice. Developing a legal and political tradition of strict adherence to constitutional provisions is considered foundational to the [[rule of law]].

===Pre-modern constitutions===
====Ancient====
[[File:Hammurabi.jpg|thumb|upright|Detail from [[Hammurabi]]'s [[stele]] shows him receiving the laws of [[Babylon]] from the seated [[sun deity]].]]
Excavations in modern-day [[Iraq]] by [[Ernest de Sarzec]] in 1877 found evidence of the earliest known [[code of justice]], issued by the [[Sumer]]ian king [[Urukagina]] of [[Lagash]] {{Circa|2300 BC}}. Perhaps the earliest prototype for a law of government, this document itself has not yet been discovered; however, it is known that it allowed some rights to his citizens. For example, it is known that it relieved tax for widows and orphans, and protected the poor from the [[usury]] of the rich.

After that, many [[Forms of government|governments]] ruled by special codes of written laws. The oldest such document still known to exist seems to be the [[Code of Ur-Nammu]] of [[Ur]] (c. 2050 BC). Some of the better-known ancient law codes are the [[code of Lipit-Ishtar]] of [[Isin]], the [[code of Hammurabi]] of [[Babylonia]], the [[Hittite laws|Hittite code]], the [[Assyrian law|Assyrian code]], and [[613 Commandments|Mosaic law]].

In 621 BC, a scribe named [[Draco (lawgiver)|Draco]] codified the oral laws of the [[city-state]] of [[Athens]]; this code prescribed the [[death penalty]] for many offenses (thus creating the modern term "draconian" for very strict rules). In 594 BC, [[Solon]], the ruler of Athens, created the new ''[[Solonian Constitution]]''. It eased the burden of the workers and determined that membership of the ruling class was to be based on wealth ([[plutocracy]]), rather than on birth ([[aristocracy]]). [[Cleisthenes of Athens|Cleisthenes]] again reformed the Athenian constitution and set it on a democratic footing in 508 BC.

[[File:Aristotle's constitutions diagram.png|thumb|left|upright=1.35|Diagram illustrating the classification of constitutions by [[Aristotle]]]]
[[Aristotle]] (c. 350 BC) was the first to make a formal distinction between ordinary law and constitutional law, establishing ideas of constitution and [[constitutionalism]], and attempting to classify different forms of constitutional government. The most basic definition he used to describe a constitution in general terms was "the arrangement of the offices in a state". In his works ''[[Constitution of the Athenians (Aristotle)|Constitution of Athens]]'', ''[[Politics (Aristotle)|Politics]]'', and ''[[Nicomachean Ethics]]'', he explores different constitutions of his day, including those of Athens, [[Lycurgus of Sparta|Sparta]], and [[Carthage]]. He classified both what he regarded as good and what he regarded as bad constitutions, and came to the conclusion that the best constitution was a mixed system including monarchic, aristocratic, and democratic elements. He also distinguished between citizens, who had the right to participate in the state, and non-citizens and slaves, who did not.

The Romans initially codified their constitution in 450 BC as the ''[[Twelve Tables]]''. They operated under a series of laws that were added from time to time, but [[Roman law]] was not reorganized into a single code until the ''[[Codex Theodosianus]]'' (438 AD); later, in the Eastern Empire, the ''[[Corpus Juris Civilis|Codex repetitæ prælectionis]]'' (534) was highly influential throughout Europe. This was followed in the east by the ''Ecloga'' of [[Leo III the Isaurian]] (740) and the ''Basilica'' of [[Basil I]] (878).

The ''[[Edicts of Ashoka]]'' established constitutional principles for the 3rd century BC [[Maurya Empire|Maurya]] king's rule in [[History of India|India]]. For constitutional principles almost lost to antiquity, see the [[code of Manu]].

====Early Middle Ages====

Many of the Germanic peoples that filled the power vacuum left by the [[Western Roman Empire]] in the [[Early Middle Ages]] codified their laws. One of the first of these [[Germanic tribal laws|Germanic law codes]] to be written was the Visigothic ''Code of [[Euric]]'' (471 AD). This was followed by the ''[[Lex Burgundionum]]'', applying separate codes for Germans and for Romans; the ''[[Lex Alamannorum|Pactus Alamannorum]]''; and the [[Salic Law]] of the [[Franks]], all written soon after 500. In 506, the ''[[Breviary of Alaric|Breviarum]]'' or ''"Lex Romana"'' of [[Alaric II]], king of the Visigoths, adopted and consolidated the ''Codex Theodosianus'' together with assorted earlier Roman laws. Systems that appeared somewhat later include the ''[[Edictum Rothari]]'' of the [[Lombards]] (643), the ''[[Lex Visigothorum]]'' (654), the ''Lex Alamannorum'' (730), and the ''[[Lex Frisionum]]'' (c. 785). These continental codes were all composed in Latin, while [[Anglo-Saxon language|Anglo-Saxon]] was used for those of England, beginning with the Code of [[Æthelberht of Kent]] (602). Around 893, [[Alfred the Great]] combined this and two other earlier Saxon codes, with various Mosaic and Christian precepts, to produce the ''[[Doom book]]'' code of laws for England.

[[Japan]]'s ''[[Seventeen-article constitution]]'' written in 604, reportedly by [[Prince Shotoku|Prince Shōtoku]], is an early example of a constitution in Asian political history. Influenced by [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] teachings, the document focuses more on social morality than on institutions of government, and remains a notable early attempt at a government constitution.

The [[Constitution of Medina]] ({{langx|ar|صحیفة المدینه}}, Ṣaḥīfat al-Madīna), also known as the Charter of Medina, was drafted by the [[Islamic prophet]] [[Muhammad]] after his flight ([[Hegira|hijra]]) to Yathrib where he became political leader. It constituted a formal agreement between Muhammad and all of the significant tribes and families of Yathrib (later known as [[Medina]]), including [[Muslim]]s, [[Jew]]s, and [[pagan]]s.<ref>See:
* Reuven Firestone, ''Jihād: the origin of holy war in Islam'' (1999) p. 118;
* "Muhammad", ''Encyclopedia of Islam Online''</ref><ref>Watt. Muhammad at Medina and R.B. Serjeant "The Constitution of Medina." ''Islamic Quarterly'' 8 (1964) p. 4.</ref> The document was drawn up with the explicit concern of bringing to an end the bitter intertribal fighting between the clans of the Aws ([[Banu Aus|Aus]]) and [[Khazraj]] within Medina. To this effect it instituted a number of rights and responsibilities for the Muslim, Jewish, and pagan communities of Medina bringing them within the fold of one community&nbsp;– the [[Ummah]].<ref>R.B. Serjeant, ''The Sunnah Jami'ah, pacts with the Yathrib Jews, and the Tahrim of Yathrib: Analysis and translation of the documents comprised in the so-called "Constitution of Medina."'' Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, Vol. 41, No. 1. (1978), p. 4.</ref> The precise dating of the Constitution of Medina remains debated, but generally, scholars agree it was written shortly after the [[Hijra (Islam)|Hijra]] (622).<ref>Watt. ''Muhammad at Medina''. pp. 227–228 Watt argues that the initial agreement was shortly after the hijra and the document was amended at a later date specifically after the battle of Badr (AH [anno hijra] 2, = AD 624). Serjeant argues that the constitution is in fact 8 different treaties which can be dated according to events as they transpired in Medina with the first treaty being written shortly after Muhammad's arrival. R. B. Serjeant. "The Sunnah Jâmi'ah, Pacts with the Yathrib Jews, and the Tahrîm of Yathrib: Analysis and Translation of the Documents Comprised in the so-called 'Constitution of Medina'." in ''The Life of Muhammad: The Formation of the Classical Islamic World'': Volume iv. Ed. Uri Rubin. Brookfield: Ashgate, 1998, p. 151 and see the same article in BSOAS 41 (1978): 18 ff. See also Caetani. ''Annali dell'Islam, Volume I''. Milano: Hoepli, 1905, p. 393. Julius Wellhausen. ''Skizzen und Vorabeiten'', IV, Berlin: Reimer, 1889, pp. 82ff who argue that the document is a single treaty agreed upon shortly after the hijra. Wellhausen argues that it belongs to the first year of Muhammad's residence in Medina, before the battle of Badr in 2/624. Wellhausen bases this judgement on three considerations; first Muhammad is very diffident about his own position, he accepts the Pagan tribes within the Umma, and maintains the Jewish clans as clients of the Ansars see Wellhausen, Excursus, p. 158. Even Moshe Gil a skeptic of Islamic history argues that it was written within 5 months of Muhammad's arrival in Medina. Moshe Gil. "The Constitution of Medina: A Reconsideration." ''Israel Oriental Studies'' 4 (1974): p. 45.</ref>

In [[Wales]], the [[Cyfraith Hywel]] (Law of Hywel) was codified by [[Hywel Dda]] c. 942–950. It served as the main law code in Wales until it was superseded by the [[Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542]].

====Middle Ages after 1000====
The ''Pravda Yaroslava'', originally combined by [[Yaroslav the Wise]] the [[Grand Prince of Kiev]], was granted to [[Great Novgorod]] around 1017, and in 1054 was incorporated into the ''[[Russkaya Pravda]]''; it became the law for all of [[Kievan Rus']]. It survived only in later editions of the 15th century.

In England, [[Henry I of England|Henry I's]] proclamation of the [[Charter of Liberties]] in 1100 bound the king for the first time in his treatment of the clergy and the nobility. This idea was extended and refined by the English barony when they forced [[John of England|King John]] to sign [[Magna Carta]] in 1215. The most important single article of Magna Carta, related to "''[[habeas corpus]]''", provided that the king was not permitted to imprison, outlaw, exile or kill anyone at a whim&nbsp;– there must be [[due process]] of law first. This article, Article 39, of Magna Carta read:

{{Blockquote|text=No free man shall be arrested, or imprisoned, or deprived of his property, or outlawed, or exiled, or in any way destroyed, nor shall we go against him or send against him, unless by the legal judgement of his peers, or by the law of the land.|author=|title=|source=}}

This provision became the cornerstone of English liberty after that point. The [[social contract]] in the original case was between the king and the nobility but was gradually extended to all of the people. It led to the system of [[Constitutional Monarchy]], with further reforms shifting the balance of power from the monarchy and nobility to the [[British House of Commons|House of Commons]].

The [[Nomocanon]] of [[Saint Sava]] ({{langx|sr|Законоправило/Zakonopravilo}})<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=QDFVUDmAIqIC&pg=PA118 ''The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century''  John Van Antwerp Fine ] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221227154539/https://books.google.com/books?id=QDFVUDmAIqIC&pg=PA118 |date=December 27, 2022 }}. Google Books. Retrieved July 12, 2013.</ref><ref>[http://www.search.com/reference/Nomocanon Metasearch Search Engine] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010145226/https://www.search.com/reference/Nomocanon |date=October 10, 2017 }}. Search.com. Retrieved July 12, 2013.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.emu.co.uk/short-term-loans/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111125010613/http://www.alanwatson.org/sr/petarzoric.pdf|url-status=dead|title=Short Term Loans|archive-date=November 25, 2011}}</ref> was the first [[Serbia]]n constitution from 1219. [[St. Sava's Nomocanon]] was the compilation of [[Civil law (legal system)|civil law]], based on [[Roman Law]], and [[canon law]], based on [[Ecumenical Councils]]. Its basic purpose was to organize the functioning of the young [[Kingdom of Serbia (medieval)|Serbian kingdom]] and the [[Serbian Ortodox Church|Serbian church]]. Saint Sava began the work on the Serbian Nomocanon in 1208 while he was at [[Mount Athos]], using ''The Nomocanon in Fourteen Titles'', ''Synopsis of Stefan the Efesian'', ''Nomocanon of [[John Scholasticus]]'', and Ecumenical Council documents, which he modified with the canonical commentaries of Aristinos and [[Joannes Zonaras]], local church meetings, rules of the [[Holy Fathers]], the law of [[Moses]], the translation of Prohiron, and the [[Byzantine emperors]]' [[Novellae Constitutiones|Novellae]] (most were taken from [[Justinian]]'s Novellae). The Nomocanon was a completely new compilation of civil and canonical regulations, taken from [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] sources but completed and reformed by St. Sava to function properly in Serbia. Besides decrees that organized the life of the church, there are various norms regarding civil life; most of these were taken from Prohiron. [[Legal transplants]] of [[Roman Law|Roman]]-[[Byzantine law]] became the basis of the Serbian medieval law. The essence of Zakonopravilo was based on [[Corpus Iuris Civilis]].

[[Stefan Dušan]], emperor of Serbs and Greeks, enacted [[Dušan's Code]] ({{langx|sr|Душанов Законик/Dušanov Zakonik}})<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20100803074722/http://www.dusanov-zakonik.com/indexe.html Dusanov Zakonik]}}. Dusanov Zakonik. Retrieved July 12, 2013.</ref> in [[Serbia]], in two state congresses: in 1349 in [[Skopje]] and in 1354 in [[Serres]]. It regulated all social spheres, so it was the second Serbian constitution, after St. Sava's Nomocanon (Zakonopravilo). The Code was based on [[Roman Law|Roman]]-[[Byzantine law]]. The legal [[Legal transplants|transplanting]] within articles 171 and 172 of Dušan's Code, which regulated juridical independence, is notable. They were taken from the Byzantine code [[Basilika]] (book VII, 1, 16–17).

In 1222, Hungarian King [[Andrew II of Hungary|Andrew II]] issued the [[Golden Bull of 1222]].

Between 1220 and 1230, a [[Saxony|Saxon]] administrator, [[Eike von Repgow]], composed the ''[[Sachsenspiegel]]'', which became the supreme law used in parts of Germany as late as 1900.

Around 1240, the [[Copt]]ic Egyptian Christian writer, [['Abul Fada'il Ibn al-'Assal]], wrote the ''[[Fetha Negest]]'' in [[Arabic language|Arabic]]. 'Ibn al-Assal took his laws partly from apostolic writings and Mosaic law and partly from the former [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] codes. There are a few historical records claiming that this law code was translated into [[Ge'ez language|Ge'ez]] and entered Ethiopia around 1450 in the reign of [[Zara Yaqob]]. Even so, its first recorded use in the function of a constitution (supreme law of the land) is with [[Sarsa Dengel]] beginning in 1563. The ''Fetha Negest'' remained the supreme law in Ethiopia until 1931, when a modern-style [[Constitution of Ethiopia|Constitution]] was first granted by Emperor [[Haile Selassie]] I.

[[File:ConstCATMonso1535.png|thumb|upright=0.75|left|Third volume of the compilation of Catalan Constitutions of 1585]]
In the [[Principality of Catalonia]], the [[Catalan constitutions]] were promulgated by the Court from 1283 (or even two centuries before, if [[Usatges of Barcelona]] is considered part of the compilation of Constitutions) until 1716, when [[Philip V of Spain]] gave the [[Nueva Planta decrees]], finishing with the historical laws of [[Catalonia]]. These Constitutions were usually made formally as a royal initiative, but required for its approval or repeal the favorable vote of the [[Catalan Courts]], the medieval antecedent of the modern Parliaments. These laws, like other modern constitutions, had preeminence over other laws, and they could not be contradicted by mere decrees or edicts of the king.

The ''[[Kouroukan Fouga|Kouroukan Founga]]'' was a 13th-century charter of the [[Mali Empire]] in [[West Africa]], reconstructed from oral tradition in 1988 by [[Siriman Kouyaté]].<ref>Mangoné Naing, [http://www.oecd.org/swac/events/38516561.pdf SAH/D(2006)563 The Kurukan Fuga Charter: An example of an Endogenous Governance Mechanism for Conflict Prevention] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010064658/http://www.oecd.org/swac/events/38516561.pdf |date=October 10, 2017 }}, Inter-generational Forum on Endogenous Governance in West Africa organized by Sahel and West Africa Club / [[OECD]], Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), June 26 to 28, 2006. pp. 71–82.</ref> It included the "right to life and to the preservation of physical integrity" and significant protections for women.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Adewale |first1=Adeyinka |title=Pre-colonial Political Order in Africa |date=2023 |work=Reimaging Africa: Lifting the Veil of Ignorance |pages=9–38 |editor-last=Adewale |editor-first=Adeyinka |url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-40360-6_2 |access-date=2024-10-05 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer Nature Switzerland |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-031-40360-6_2 |isbn=978-3-031-40360-6 |last2=Schepers |first2=Stefan |editor2-last=Schepers |editor2-first=Stefan}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y2AFmBOiLRAC&dq=kouroukan+fouga+human+rights&pg=PA334 |title=Frontiers of Language and Teaching, Vol.2: Proceedings of the 2011 International Online Language Conference (IOLC 2011) |publisher=Universal-Publishers |isbn=978-1-61233-559-9 |language=en}}</ref>{{Rp|page=334}}

The [[Golden Bull of 1356]] was a decree issued by a ''[[Imperial Diet (Holy Roman Empire)|Reichstag]]'' in Nuremberg headed by Emperor [[Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles IV]] that fixed, for a period of more than four hundred years, an important aspect of the constitutional structure of the [[Holy Roman Empire]].

In [[China]], the [[Hongwu Emperor]] created and refined a document he called ''[[Huang Ming Zu Xun|Ancestral Injunctions]]'' (first published in 1375, revised twice more before he died in 1398). These rules served as a constitution for the [[Ming dynasty]] for the next 250 years.

The oldest written document still governing a sovereign nation today is that of [[San Marino]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2011/aug/08/jon-huntsman/oldest-surviving-one-document-text/ |title=The United States has "the longest surviving constitution". |publisher=PolitiFact.com |access-date=November 10, 2013}}</ref> The ''[[Constitution of San Marino|Leges Statutae Republicae Sancti Marini]]'' was written in Latin and consists of six books. The first book, with 62 articles, establishes councils, courts, various executive officers, and the powers assigned to them. The remaining books cover criminal and civil law and judicial procedures and remedies. Written in 1600, the document was based upon the ''Statuti Comunali'' (Town Statute) of 1300, itself influenced by the ''Codex Justinianus'', and it remains in force today.

In 1392 the ''[[Carta de Logu]]'' was [[legal code]] of the [[Giudicato of Arborea]] promulgated by the ''giudicessa'' [[Eleanor of Arborea|Eleanor]]. It was in force in [[Sardinia]] until it was superseded by the code of [[Charles Felix of Sardinia|Charles Felix]] in April 1827. The Carta was a work of great importance in [[Sardinia]]n history. It was an organic, coherent, and systematic work of legislation encompassing the [[Civil law (area)|civil]] and [[penal law]].

The ''[[Great Law of Peace|Gayanashagowa]]'', the oral constitution of the [[Haudenosaunee]] nation also known as the Great Law of Peace, established a system of governance as far back as 1190 AD (though perhaps more recently at 1451) in which the [[Sachem]]s, or tribal chiefs, of the Iroquois League's member nations made decisions based on universal consensus of all chiefs following discussions that were initiated by a single nation. The position of Sachem descends through families and are allocated by the senior female clan heads, though, prior to the filling of the position, candidacy is ultimately democratically decided by the community itself.<ref name = Tooker>{{cite book |editor=Clifton JA |title=The Invented Indian: cultural fictions and government policies |publisher=Transaction Publishers |location=New Brunswick, NJ|year=1990 |pages= [https://books.google.com/books?id=ARbVmr941TsC&pg=PA107 107–128] | chapter = The United States Constitution and the Iroquois League |isbn=978-1-56000-745-6 | author = Tooker E}}</ref>

===Modern constitutions===
[[File:Filip_Orliks_konstitution_front_1-crop.tif|thumb|upright|The Cossack [[Constitution of Pylyp Orlyk]], 1710]]
[[File:Washington Constitutional Convention 1787.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|A painting depicting George Washington at the [[Constitutional Convention (United States)|Constitutional Convention]] of 1787 signing of the U.S. Constitution]]
In 1634 the [[Kingdom of Sweden]] adopted the [[Instrument of Government (1634)|1634 Instrument of Government]], drawn up under the [[Lord High Chancellor of Sweden]] [[Axel Oxenstierna]] after the death of king [[Gustavus Adolphus]]. This can be seen as the first written constitution adopted by a modern state.

====English civil war era====
On 4 January 1649, the [[Rump Parliament]] declared "that the people are, under God, the original of all just power; that the Commons of England, being chosen by and representing the people, have the supreme power in this nation".<ref name=Fritze>Fritze, Ronald H. & Robison, William B. (1996). ''Historical Dictionary of Stuart England, 1603–1689'', Greenwood Publishing Group, {{ISBN|0-313-28391-5}} [https://books.google.com/books?id=8goko0Lpr5sC&pg=PA118 p. 228] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221227154532/https://books.google.com/books?id=8goko0Lpr5sC&pg=PA118&f=false |date=December 27, 2022 }}</ref>

The [[English Protectorate]] set up by [[Oliver Cromwell]] after the [[English Civil War]] promulgated the first detailed written constitution adopted by a modern state;<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/240140/Instrument-of-Government]{{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150522182843/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/240140/Instrument-of-Government|date=May 22, 2015}} Instrument of Government (England [1653]). ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Retrieved July 12, 2013.</ref> it was called the [[Instrument of Government]]. This formed the basis of government for the short-lived republic from 1653 to 1657 by providing a legal rationale for the increasing power of Cromwell after Parliament consistently failed to govern effectively. Most of the concepts and ideas embedded into modern constitutional theory, especially [[bicameralism]], [[separation of powers]], the written constitution, and [[judicial review]], can be traced back to the experiments of that period.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.constitution.org/cmt/wormuth/wormuth.htm|title=The Origins of Modern Constitutionalism|author=Francis D. Wormuth|year=1949|publisher=Harper & Brothers}}</ref> Drafted by [[John Lambert (General)|Major-General John Lambert]] in 1653, the ''Instrument of Government'' included elements incorporated from an earlier document "[[Heads of Proposals]]",<ref>Tyacke [https://books.google.com/books?id=McvcmiZ6h8gC&dq=%22Heads+of+Proposals%22+++%22Instrument+of+Government%22&pg=PA69 p. 69]</ref><ref>Farr [https://books.google.com/books?id=MmxFHPk0MSUC&dq=%22Heads+of+Proposals%22+++%22Instrument+of+Government%22&pg=PA81 pp. 80,81] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221227154533/https://books.google.com/books?id=MmxFHPk0MSUC&pg=PA81&dq=%22Heads+of+Proposals%22+++%22Instrument+of+Government%22&as_brr=3#v=onepage&q=%22Heads%20of%20Proposals%22%20%20%20%22Instrument%20of%20Government%22&f=false |date=December 27, 2022 }}. See ''Declaration of Representation'' of June 14, 1647</ref> which had been agreed to by the [[Army Council (1647)|Army Council]] in 1647, as a set of propositions intended to be a basis for a constitutional settlement after King [[Charles I of England|Charles I]] was defeated in the [[First English Civil War]]. Charles had rejected the propositions, but before the start of the Second Civil War, the [[Grandee (New Model Army)|Grandees]] of the [[New Model Army]] had presented the ''Heads of Proposals'' as their alternative to the more radical [[Agreement of the People]] presented by the Agitators and their civilian supporters at the [[Putney Debates]]. The ''Instrument of Government'' was adopted by Parliament on 15 December 1653, and [[Oliver Cromwell]] was installed as [[Lord Protector]] on the following day. The constitution set up a state council consisting of 21 members while executive authority was vested in the office of "[[Lord Protector of the Commonwealth]]." This position was designated as a non-hereditary life appointment. The ''Instrument'' also required the calling of triennial [[Parliament]]s, with each sitting for at least five months.

The ''Instrument of Government'' was replaced in May 1657 by England's second, and last, codified constitution, the [[Humble Petition and Advice]], proposed by Sir [[Christopher Packe (politician)|Christopher Packe]].<ref>[[Sidney Lee|Lee, Sidney]] (1903), Dictionary of National Biography [https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofnati00leesuoft#page/991/mode/1up Index and Epitome p. 991].</ref> The Petition offered hereditary [[monarchy]] to [[Oliver Cromwell]], asserted [[Parliament of England|Parliament]]'s control over issuing new [[taxation]], provided an independent council to advise the king and safeguarded "Triennial" meetings of Parliament. A modified version of the Humble Petition with the clause on kingship removed was ratified on 25 May. This finally met its demise in conjunction with the death of Cromwell and the [[Restoration (England)|Restoration]] of the monarchy.

====British colonies in North America====
In 1639, the [[Colony of Connecticut]] adopted the [[Fundamental Orders of Connecticut|Fundamental Orders]], which was the first [[North America]]n constitution. It is the basis for every new Connecticut constitution since, and is also the reason for [[Connecticut]]'s nickname, "the [[Constitution State]]".

All of the British colonies in North America that were to become the 13 original United States, adopted their own constitutions in 1776 and 1777, during the American Revolution (and before the later [[Articles of Confederation]] and [[United States Constitution]]), with the exceptions of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. The [[Massachusetts|Commonwealth of Massachusetts]] adopted [[Constitution of Massachusetts|its Constitution]] in 1780, the oldest still-functioning constitution of any U.S. state; while Connecticut and Rhode Island officially continued to operate under their old colonial charters, until they adopted their first state constitutions in 1818 and 1843, respectively.

===Democratic constitutions: 18th century===
[[File:Konstytucja 3 Maja.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|''[[Constitution of May 3, 1791 (painting)|Constitution of 3 May 1791]]'' (painting by [[Jan Matejko]], 1891). [[Polish people|Polish]] [[Stanisław August Poniatowski|King Stanisław August]] (left, in regal [[Stoat|ermine]]-trimmed cloak), enters [[St. John's Cathedral, Warsaw|St. John's Cathedral]], where [[Sejm]] [[Chamber of Deputies|deputies]] will swear to uphold [[Constitution of May 3, 1791|the new Constitution]]; in the background, [[Warsaw's Royal Castle]], where the Constitution has just been adopted.]]
What is sometimes called the "enlightened constitution" model was developed by philosophers of the [[Age of Enlightenment]] such as [[Thomas Hobbes]], [[Jean-Jacques Rousseau]], and [[John Locke]]. The model proposed that constitutional governments should be stable, adaptable, accountable, open and should represent the people (i.e., support [[democracy]]).<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/134169/constitution constitution (politics and law)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150417032859/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/134169/constitution |date=April 17, 2015 }}. ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Retrieved July 12, 2013.</ref>

''[[Constitution of Pylyp Orlyk|Agreements and Constitutions of Laws and Freedoms of the Zaporizian Host]]'' was written in 1710 by [[Pylyp Orlyk]], ''[[hetman]]'' of the [[Zaporozhian Host]]. It was written to establish a free [[Cossack Hetmanate|Zaporozhian-Ukrainian Republic]], with the support of [[Charles XII of Sweden]]. It is notable in that it established a democratic standard for the separation of powers in government between the legislative, executive, and judiciary branches, well before the publication of Montesquieu's ''[[Spirit of the Laws]]''. This Constitution also limited the executive authority of the ''hetman'', and established a democratically elected Cossack parliament called the General Council. However, Orlyk's project for an independent [[Ukraine|Ukrainian]] State never materialized, and his constitution, written in exile, never went into effect.

[[Corsican Constitution]]s of 1755 and 1794 were inspired by [[Jean-Jacques Rousseau]]. The latter introduced [[universal suffrage]] for property owners.

The [[Instrument of Government (1772)|Swedish constitution of 1772]] was enacted under King [[Gustavus III]] and was inspired by the [[separation of powers]] by [[Montesquieu]]. The king also cherished other [[Age of Enlightenment|enlightenment]] ideas (as an [[Enlightened absolutism|enlighted despot]]) and repealed torture, liberated agricultural trade, diminished the use of the [[death penalty]] and instituted a form of [[religious freedom]]. The constitution was commended by [[Voltaire]].<ref name=Borg>{{cite book |last1=Borg |first1=Ivan |last2=Nordell |first2=Erik |last3=Rodhe |first3=Sten |last4=Nordell |first4=Erik |title=Historia för gymnasiet. Årskurs 1 |edition=4th |year=1967 |publisher=AV Carlsons |location=Stockholm |language=sv |id={{LIBRIS|10259755}} |page=410}}</ref><ref name=B>{{cite book |editor-last=Bäcklin |editor-first=Martin |title=Historia för gymnasiet: allmän och nordisk historia efter år 1000 |edition=3rd |year=1965 |publisher=Almqvist & Wiksell |location=Stockholm |language=sv |id={{LIBRIS|1610850}} |pages=283–284}}</ref><ref name=Borg412>{{cite book |last1=Borg |first1=Ivan |last2=Nordell |first2=Erik |last3=Rodhe |first3=Sten |last4=Nordell |first4=Erik |title=Historia för gymnasiet. Årskurs 1 |edition=4th |year=1967 |publisher=AV Carlsons |location=Stockholm |language=sv |id={{LIBRIS|10259755}} |pages=412–413}}</ref>

The [[United States Constitution]], ratified 21 June 1788, was influenced by the writings of [[Polybius]], [[John Locke|Locke]], [[Charles de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu|Montesquieu]], and others. The document became a benchmark for [[republicanism]] and codified constitutions written thereafter.<ref name="auto2">{{Cite web|title=Goodlatte says U.S. has the oldest working national constitution|url=https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2014/sep/22/bob-goodlatte/goodlatte-says-us-has-oldest-working-national-cons/|website=PolitiFact}}</ref>

The [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]] [[Constitution of May 3, 1791|Constitution]] was passed on 3 May 1791.<ref>{{cite book|title=Constitutions of the World|first=Albert|last=Blaustein|author-link=Albert Blaustein|publisher=Fred B. Rothman & Company|date=January 1993|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2xCMVAFyGi8C&q=May+second+constitution+1791&pg=PA15|isbn=978-0-8377-0362-6}}</ref><ref>Isaac Kramnick, ''Introduction'', {{cite book|title=The Federalist Papers|first=James|last=Madison|url=https://archive.org/details/federalistpapers00madi|url-access=registration|page=[https://archive.org/details/federalistpapers00madi/page/13 13]|quote=May second oldest constitution.|publisher=Penguin Classics|year=1987|isbn=978-0-14-044495-7|author-link=James Madison}}</ref><ref name="Markoff">"The first European country to follow the U.S. example was Poland in 1791." [[John Markoff (professor)|John Markoff]], ''[[iarchive:wavesofdemocracy0000mark/page/121/mode/2up|Waves of Democracy]]'', 1996, {{ISBN|0-8039-9019-7}}, p. 121.</ref> Its draft was developed by the leading minds of the [[Enlightenment in Poland]] such as King [[Stanislaw August Poniatowski]], [[Stanisław Staszic]], [[Scipione Piattoli]], [[Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz]], [[Ignacy Potocki]] and [[Hugo Kołłątaj]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.communications-unlimited.nl/the-polish-constitution-of-may-3rd-a-milestone-in-the-history-of-law-and-the-rise-of-democracy/ |title=The Polish Constitution of May 3rd – a milestone in the history of law and the rise of democracy |access-date=2018-09-14}}</ref> It was adopted by the [[Great Sejm]] and is considered the first constitution of its kind in Europe and the world's second oldest one after the American Constitution.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.postdiploma.pl/ConstENA5.pdf |title=The Constitution of May 3 (1791) |access-date=2018-09-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171116194049/http://www.postdiploma.pl/ConstENA5.pdf |archive-date=November 16, 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Another landmark document was the [[French Constitution of 1791]].

The [[1811 Constitution of Venezuela]] was the first [[Constitution of Venezuela|Constitution]] of [[Venezuela]] and Latin America, promulgated and drafted by [[Cristóbal Mendoza]]<ref name="Diccionario_Perozo_1999">Briceño Perozo, Mario. "Mendoza, Cristóbal de" in ''Diccionario de Historia de Venezuela'', Vol. 3. Caracas: Fundación Polar, 1999. {{ISBN|980-6397-37-1}}</ref> and [[Juan Germán Roscio]] and in [[Caracas]]. It established a federal government but was repealed one year later.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://research.kent.ac.uk/warandnation/1811-miranda-declares-independence-in-venezuela-and-civil-war-begins/|title=1811 Miranda Declares Independence in Venezuela and Civil War Begins|website=War and Nation: identity and the process of state-building in South America (1800-1840)|language=en-GB|access-date=2020-02-01}}</ref>

On 19 March 1812, the [[Spanish Constitution of 1812]] was ratified by a [[Cortes Generales|parliament]] gathered in [[Cadiz]], the only Spanish continental city which was safe from [[Peninsular War|French occupation]]. The Spanish Constitution served as a model for other liberal constitutions of several [[South Europe]]an and [[Latin America]]n nations, for example, the [[Liberal Revolution of 1820|Portuguese Constitution of 1822]], constitutions of various [[Italy|Italian]] states during [[Carbonari]] revolts (i.e., in the [[Kingdom of the Two Sicilies]]), [[Constitution of Norway|the Norwegian constitution of 1814]], or the [[1824 Constitution of Mexico|Mexican Constitution of 1824]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Payne |first=Stanley G. |author-link=Stanley G. Payne |title=A History of Spain and Portugal: Eighteenth Century to Franco |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofspainpo00payn/page/432 |volume=2 |year=1973 |publisher=University of Wisconsin Press |location=Madison |isbn=978-0-299-06270-5 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/historyofspainpo00payn/page/432 432–433] |quote=The Spanish pattern of conspiracy and revolt by liberal army officers ... was emulated in both Portugal and Italy. In the wake of Riego's successful rebellion, the first and only pronunciamiento in Italian history was carried out by liberal officers in the kingdom of the Two Sicilies. The Spanish-style military conspiracy also helped to inspire the beginning of the Russian revolutionary movement with the revolt of the [[Decembrist revolt|Decembrist army officers]] in 1825. Italian liberalism in 1820–1821 relied on junior officers and the provincial middle classes, essentially the same social base as in Spain. It even used a Hispanized political vocabulary, for it was led by ''giunte'' (juntas), appointed local ''capi politici'' (''jefes políticos''), used the terms of ''liberali'' and ''servili'' (emulating the Spanish word serviles applied to supporters of absolutism), and in the end talked of resisting by means of a ''guerrilla''. For both Portuguese and Italian liberals of these years, the Spanish constitution of 1812 remained the standard document of reference. }}</ref>

In [[Brazil]], the [[Brazilian Constitution of 1824|Constitution of 1824]] expressed the option for the monarchy as a political system after Brazilian Independence. The leader of the national emancipation process was the Portuguese prince [[Pedro I of Brazil|Pedro I]], the elder son of the king of Portugal. Pedro was crowned in 1822 as the first emperor of Brazil. The country was ruled by a Constitutional Monarchy until 1889 when it adopted the Republican model.

In [[Denmark]], as a result of the [[Napoleonic Wars]], the [[absolute monarchy]] lost its personal possession of [[Norway]] to [[Sweden]]. Sweden had already enacted its [[Instrument of Government (1809)|1809 Instrument of Government]], which saw the division of power between the [[Riksdag of Sweden|Riksdag]], the king and the [[judiciary]].<ref>{{cite journal |first=Leif |last=Lewin |title=Majoritarian and Consensus Democracy: the Swedish Experience |journal=Scandinavian Political Studies |volume=21 |issue=3 |date=1 May 2007 |pages=195–206 |doi=10.1111/j.1467-9477.1998.tb00012.x | issn = 0080-6757}}</ref> However the Norwegians managed to infuse a radically democratic and liberal [[Constitution of Norway|constitution]] in 1814, adopting many facets from the American constitution and the revolutionary French ones, but maintaining a hereditary [[Constitutional monarchy|monarch]] limited by the constitution, like the Spanish one.

The first [[Swiss Federal Constitution]] was put in force in September 1848 (with official revisions in 1878, 1891, 1949, 1971, 1982 and 1999).

The [[Serbian revolution]] initially led to a proclamation of a proto-constitution in 1811; the full-fledged Constitution of Serbia followed few decades later, in 1835. The first Serbian constitution (Sretenjski ustav) was adopted at the national assembly in [[Kragujevac]] on 15 February 1835.

The [[Constitution of Canada]] came into force on 1 July 1867, as the British North America Act, an act of the British Parliament. Over a century later, the BNA Act was patriated to the Canadian Parliament and augmented with the [[Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.canlii.org/en/ca/laws/stat/schedule-b-to-the-canada-act-1982-uk-1982-c-11/latest/schedule-b-to-the-canada-act-1982-uk-1982-c-11.html#sec60|title=Constitution Act, 1982, s. 60}}</ref> Apart from the ''Constitution Acts, 1867 to 1982'', Canada's constitution also has unwritten elements based in common law and convention.<ref>The Constitutional Law Group, Canadian Constitutional Law. 3rd ed. Toronto: Emond Montgomery Publications Ltd., 2003, p. 5</ref><ref>Saul, John Ralston. ''The Doubter's Companion: A Dictionary of Aggressive Common Sense''. Toronto: Penguin, 1995.</ref>