Beliefs and Ideals
SSCG1: The student will demonstrate knowledge of the political philosophies that shaped the development of United States constitutional government.
SSCG2: The student will analyze the natural right philosophy and the nature of government expressed in the Declaration of Independence.
SSCG3: The student will demonstrate knowledge of the United States Constitution.
SSCG2: The student will analyze the natural right philosophy and the nature of government expressed in the Declaration of Independence.
SSCG3: The student will demonstrate knowledge of the United States Constitution.
Foundational Documents
Philosophers
Thomas Hobbes was born in Westport, England, on April 5, 1588. His father was the disgraced vicar of a local parish, and in the wake of the precipitating scandal (caused by brawling in front of his own church) he disappeared, abandoning his three children to the care of his brother. Through his association with the Cavendish family, Hobbes entered circles where the activities of the king, members of Parliament, and other wealthy landowners were discussed, and his intellectual abilities brought him close to power. He was best known for his book Leviathan (1651) and his political views on society. Due to Hobbes' ideas, they saw that people cannot survive without a strong central government that would protect them. Even today scholars still study and discuss his work.
John Locke, born on August 29, 1632, in Wrington, Somerset, England, went to Westminster school and then Christ Church, University of Oxford. At Oxford he studied medicine, which would play a central role in his life. In the Two Treatises of Government, he defended the claim that men are by nature free and equal against claims that God had made all people naturally subject to a monarch. The French Enlightenment drew heavily on his ideas, as did the Founding Fathers of the American Revolution.
Charles Louis de Secondat was born in Bordeaux, France, in 1689 to a wealthy family. Despite his family's wealth, de Decondat was placed in the care of a poor family during his childhood. He later went to college and studied science and history, eventually becoming a lawyer in the local government. Montesquieu believed that all things were made up of rules or laws that never changed. He set out to study these laws scientifically with the hope that knowledge of the laws of government would reduce the problems of society and improve human life. According to Montesquieu, there were three types of government: a monarchy (ruled by a king or queen), a republic (ruled by an elected leader), and a despotism (ruled by a dictator) He's important because he designed the blueprint for the separation of powers in America.
Rousseau was born on 28 June 1712 in Geneva, Switzerland (although he spent most of his life in France, he always described himself as a citizen of Geneva). His mother, Suzanne Bernard, died just nine days after his birth from birth complications. Rousseau saw a fundamental divide between society and human nature and believed that man was good when in the state of nature (the state of all other animals, and the condition humankind was in before the creation of civilization), but has been corrupted by the artificiality of society and the growth of social interdependence. He strongly influenced the French Revolution and the development of Liberal, Conservative and Socialist theory.
13 Colonies Map
American Revolution ThingLink
Declaration of Independence Video
Battles of The American Revolution
https://www.landofthebrave.info/revolutionary-battles.htm
Washington crossing the Delaware
During the American Revolution, Patriot General George Washington crosses the Delaware River with 5,400 troops, hoping to surprise a Hessian force celebrating Christmas at their winter quarters in Trenton, New Jersey. The unconventional attack came after several months of substantial defeats for Washington’s army that had resulted in the loss of New York City and other strategic points in the region.
During the American Revolution, Patriot General George Washington crosses the Delaware River with 5,400 troops, hoping to surprise a Hessian force celebrating Christmas at their winter quarters in Trenton, New Jersey. The unconventional attack came after several months of substantial defeats for Washington’s army that had resulted in the loss of New York City and other strategic points in the region.