Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen

The document known as the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen was written for the purpose of delineating the rights that every individual is entitled to. It was originally authored by Marie Joseph Paul Roche Yves Gilbert du Motier, known most commonly as the Marquis de La Fayette. He was born into French aristocracy in 1757; at the age of fourteen he enlisted in the French military. When the American war for independence broke out, La Fayette was immediately enamored by the ideals of freedom and democracy for which the Americans fought. Beginning from the tender age of nineteen and against all odds, he actively fought in the American Revolution.

After participating in the American war, La Fayette returned to his country. Once there he became intimately involved with the start of another revolution, this time within his native France. Just prior to the revolution, he was elected into the Estates-General and later became vice-president of the French National Assembly. He was known to often publicly demand that the Estates-General hold the king accountable. After the start of the war, he became both a prominent military as well as political figure, who was known to be unflinching in his demands for liberty, justice, and democracy. He was witness to much of the political turmoil prevalent in France up until his death in 1834.

While La Fayette was serving as vice-president of the National Assembly, he proposed to write a document similar to the U.S. Declaration of Independence. The assembly passed the document on August 26, 1789; it was to serve as the basis for an eventual French constitution. The document was made in order to address France's king Louis XVI, and the reason why it was made was for the purpose of imploring him to change his regime from being that of an absolute monarchy to being a constitutional monarchy.

The main point of the declaration is to emphasize what the rights of every individual is supposed to be. The declaration lays out how these rights guarantee the freedoms that a person could enjoy, such as freedom of the press, of worship, and of ownership for example. Many of the principles within the declaration also explain about the relationship that should exist between the rights of man and the laws governing society. It emphasizes how the laws of government should only be used to guarantee the protection of these rights.

As an example of this, Article 4 states that an individual can enjoy his/her rights with no limits, with the exception that the enjoyment of such rights does not trample upon the rights of others. The laws of government are meant to define the point where an individual might infringe upon another one's rights. Other than abiding by the law, Article 5 goes on to state that no one can be prevented from doing what the law does not expressly forbid nor can someone be forced to do something not considered to be law.

Besides defining what the basic role of government should be, the declaration gives citizens the ability to hold government liable for its actions. Article 6 gives all citizens the right to participate in the lawmaking process, either directly or through their representatives. Citizens are also given the right to keep public officials held accountable for the actions of their administration as stated in Article 15. Much of the declaration's principles express the importance that must be shown towards maintaining the rights of individuals.

The value of the declaration during the time it was written is that it was meant to challenge the then existing political system in France. Prior to the revolution, the principle employed to maintain the rule of aristocracy was the one stating that governing was the divine right of kings.

This form of government ensured that members of the aristocracy maintained their status and wealth in society through the privilege of birth. This caused much resentment and anguish for the rest of French society. Having witnessed the successful uprising of the American colonies against the British monarchy, France's non-aristocratic members realized it was possible to do away with absolute rule. This led to the development of events that led to the French revolution, of which this declaration played a major part.

The king's right to total authority was undermined through the declaration. In particular, Article 3 in the declaration states that sovereignty belongs to the nation; no group or individual can govern the society without consent from the nation. It was meant to bring the king's attention towards the notion that all individuals possess rights and that the purpose of government was to only maintain those rights.