George Mason
A prominent political figure in the mid to late 18th century, George Mason was at the forefront of politics.He held many political positions in his career, such as a justice and a trustee. When the Stamp Act was passed, Mason and his followers were outraged by lack of representation in the British Parliament, and often fought alongside Washington himself to gain colonist rights. His close relationship with Washington helped him to become even more prominent through history later on.
He wrote the Fairfax resolves, which were twenty four solutions to the issue of the passage of the Intolerable Acts by the British and their subsequent blockade.These articles helped to create the basis for most of his concerns in the creation of the constitution in the convention itself. The articles were largely used by Thomas Jefferson when writing the constitution, putting his level of influence politically equal to significant figures like John Locke. In the convention itself, George Mason was wary of granting the federal government too much power. He was an advocate for a three- term presidency, bicameral legislatures, the gradual emancipation of slaves, and greater rights for the people. He feared that the House of Representatives had too little power to actually represent the people, while the Federal government had too much, and vehemently opposed the
When the constitution was first created, Mason refused to sign the document and fought for the addition of explicit state rights and individual rights. After he left the convention and went back to Virginia, he was a major leader for the anti-federalists and publicly spoke against the ratification of the Constitution without it having the Bill of Rights. His efforts helped for the development and success of the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights themselves were based off of the Virginian Declaration of Rights, which George Mason himself had drafted earlier in 1776.
He wrote the Fairfax resolves, which were twenty four solutions to the issue of the passage of the Intolerable Acts by the British and their subsequent blockade.These articles helped to create the basis for most of his concerns in the creation of the constitution in the convention itself. The articles were largely used by Thomas Jefferson when writing the constitution, putting his level of influence politically equal to significant figures like John Locke. In the convention itself, George Mason was wary of granting the federal government too much power. He was an advocate for a three- term presidency, bicameral legislatures, the gradual emancipation of slaves, and greater rights for the people. He feared that the House of Representatives had too little power to actually represent the people, while the Federal government had too much, and vehemently opposed the
When the constitution was first created, Mason refused to sign the document and fought for the addition of explicit state rights and individual rights. After he left the convention and went back to Virginia, he was a major leader for the anti-federalists and publicly spoke against the ratification of the Constitution without it having the Bill of Rights. His efforts helped for the development and success of the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights themselves were based off of the Virginian Declaration of Rights, which George Mason himself had drafted earlier in 1776.
"That no free government, or the blessing of liberty, can be preserved to any people but by a firm adherence to justice, moderation, temperance, frugality, and virtue, and by frequent recurrence to fundamental principles."
-George Mason