Reddit reviews The Creation of the American Republic, 1776-1787

The American Constitution itself is really considered the first of it's kind. There are many things that influenced the Constitution, and gave the Constitution it's name.

The founding of the American Republic - and the constitution - was strongly influenced by the Roman Republic. The framers studied classical history extensively and often looked at the "Constitutio" which where edicts, decrees and rescripts that governed the Roman Republic and later empire.The Roman constitution was not a single document, but rather a series of precedents and traditions that formed the structure in which the government operated. Later the Roman Emperor declared the Constitutio Antoniniana, which granted citizenship to freemen living in the Roman Republic.

I believe (and I am a American history student, not a roman history) that using the term to describe the core laws that was popularized by Livy's Ab Urbe condita which described the history of the Roman Republic. Later the term described edicts from the emperor, and the most important decrees by the Pope (Apostolic constitution) starting in the 1570s.

The idea of the constitution being a legal contract was influenced by Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Social Contract. The Magna Carta, which restricted the powers of government, and the "British Constitution" which like the roman Constitution was mainly tradition based were also influential, and led to the idea that authority could be granted by agreement rather then by princely authority.

The early colonies where created on the basis of charters that granted colonies under the authority of the government of England. In 1630, the settlers of Connecticut formed their government not based off of the external charter, but instead drafted the "Fundamental Orders." When the colonies declared independence, they chose likewise to replace the defunct charters with documents, which they called "Constitutions"

Sources -
Ab Urbe condita - http://www.forumromanum.org/literature/livius/trans1.html
The Social Contract: http://www.constitution.org/jjr/socon.htm
The Radicalism of the American Revolution: http://www.amazon.com/Radicalism-American-Revolution-Gordon-Wood/dp/0679736883
The Creaton of the American Republic: http://www.amazon.com/The-Creation-American-Republic-1776-1787/dp/0807847232/ref=pd_sim_b_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=0CZ9HPT323HSRGHGG1WG
Ancient Rome in America: http://shc.stanford.edu/news/research/ancient-rome-america
The Founders and the Classics

Oh, I've got some good books in this category. I took an Anglo-American Constitutionalism class during undergrad, which had some great readings on the American Constitution.

Plain Honest Men by Richard Beeman

Creation of the American Republic by Gordon Wood

Peripheries and Center by Jack P. Greene

The last two are awesome, awesome books that really changed the way I thought about early America and the creation of the Constitution.

As a future social studies educator, my other suggestion would be to find a history teacher at your school who is really passionate about the subject and ask them about what they read and how they read. One of the most important things in learning about history is how to read history correctly. Or, if a university is near by, e-mail professors who study a topic that you're interested in and see if you can correspond with them or talk to them. They may lend you free books, too!

I have read dozens of books on the Revolutionary period and the creation of the Constitution so I have some understanding of the role of judicial review. It was developed mainly to prevent popular politics. (Debt relief laws being the prime target for elimination.) Indeed, the entire concept of a separate constitutional law is a tool of elites to deny the citizenry the power they had to make change through legislative sovereignty. If you are interested I can recommend some works for further reading. The place to start is with Gordon Wood. (How 'bout them apples?)

Though you are right I should have read the decision before commenting. This isn't the huge change I thought it was. The Bill of Rights has long been incorporated to cover state governments. It looks like this part of the 8th somehow missed out and is now being included. I guess I overreacted.

The Creation of the American Republic is very comprehensive.