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Annenberg Classroom

Timeline

Timelines connect to each of the articles and amendments in the Constitution as well as to topics, such as health care, energy and the environment, and women’s rights. Also available is an interactive in which judges explain the parts of the Sixth Amendment.

55 resources available

Timeline

Article I

Article I creates the two sections of Congress – the Senate and the House – and outlines its powers and limits.

Timeline

Article I – Impeachment

Article I, Section 3, of the Constitution says that the House of Representatives brings charges of impeachment to remove a president, vice president or other civil officer, such as a judge. The Senate conducts the trial and decides whether person is to be removed from office.

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Article I – Commerce Clause

The Constitution is ratified. Article 1, Section 8 gives Congress the authority “To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes.”

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Article I – War Powers

The framers specified the powers of Congress in great detail in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution. They include the power to declare war.

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Article II – Treaty-Making Authority

Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution gives the president the power to make treaties with other countries, with the approval of two-thirds of the Senate.

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First Amendment

This timeline addresses freedom of speech and the press, freedom of assembly and the right to petition the government, and freedom of religion.

Timeline

First Amendment – Freedom of Religion

The First Amendment’s free exercise clause allows a person to hold whatever religious beliefs he or she wants, and to exercise that belief by attending religious services, praying in public or in private, proselytizing or wearing religious clothing, such as yarmulkes or headscarves. Also included in the free exercise clause is the right not to believe in any religion, and the right not to participate in religious activities. Second, the establishment clause prevents the government from creating a church, endorsing religion in general, or favoring one set of religious beliefs over another.

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First Amendment – Freedom of Speech

The First Amendment allows citizens to express and to be exposed to a wide range of opinions and views. It was intended to ensure a free exchange of ideas even if the ideas are unpopular. Freedom of speech encompasses not only the spoken and written word, but also all kinds of expression (including non-verbal communications, such as sit-ins, art, photographs, films and advertisements).

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First Amendment – Freedom of the Press

The First Amendment protects the free press, including television, radio and the Internet. The media are free to distribute a wide range of news, facts, opinions and pictures.

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Second Amendment

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

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Third Amendment

The Third Amendment is intended to protect citizens’ rights to the ownership and use of their property without intrusion by the government.

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Fourth Amendment

The Fourth Amendment protects people against unreasonable searches and seizures by government officials. A search can mean everything from a frisking by a police officer to a blood test to a search of an individual’s home or car. A seizure occurs when the government takes control of an individual or something in his or her possession.

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Fifth Amendment

The Fifth Amendment addresses the right to a grand jury for serious federal criminal charges, protection against double jeopardy, the right against self-incrimination, the right to due process, and the takings clause.

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Fifth Amendment – Right Against Self-Incrimination

This provision of the Fifth Amendment protects a person from being forced to reveal to the police, prosecutor, judge, or jury any information that might subject him or her to criminal prosecution.

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Fifth Amendment – Right to Due Process

The right of due process has grown in two directions: It affords individuals a right to a fair process (known as procedural due process) and a right to enjoy certain fundamental liberties without governmental interference (known as substantive due process). The Fifth Amendment’s due process clause applies to the federal government’s conduct. In 1868 the adoption of the 14th Amendment expanded the right of due process to include limits on the actions of state governments.

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Fifth Amendment – Takings Clause

The Fifth Amendment is ratified in 1791. The amendment contains a clause that says private property shall not be taken by the government for public use without just compensation.

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Sixth Amendment

The Sixth Amendment provides rights and protections to people accused of crimes. These include the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury; the right to be informed of the charges; the right to confront adverse witnesses, and the right to counsel.

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Sixth Amendment – Right to Trial by Impartial Jury

The Sixth Amendment provides many protections and rights to a person accused of a crime. One right is to have his or her case heard by an impartial jury—independent people from the surrounding community who are willing to decide the case based only on the evidence.

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Sixth Amendment – Right to Speedy Trial

Without this right, criminal defendants could be held indefinitely under a cloud of unproven criminal accusations. The right to a speedy trial also is crucial to ensuring that a criminal defendant receives a fair trial. If too much time elapses between the alleged crime and the trial, witnesses may die or leave the area, their memories may fade, and physical evidence may be lost.

Timeline

Sixth Amendment – Right to Be Informed of Criminal Charges

The Sixth Amendment right to “be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation” is another protection meant to ensure that the accused receives a fair trail. A speedy, public trial that is heard by an impartial jury is meaningless if a defendant is left in the dark about exactly the crime with which he or she is charged.

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Sixth Amendment – Right to Assistance of Counsel

The Sixth Amendment guarantees a criminal defendant the right to have an attorney defend him or her at trial. That right is not dependent on the defendant’s ability to pay an attorney; if a defendant cannot afford a lawyer, the government is required to provide one. The right to counsel is more than just the right to have an attorney physically present at criminal proceedings. The assistance provided by the attorney must be effective.

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Seventh Amendment

The Seventh Amendment extends the right to a jury trial to federal civil cases such as car accidents, disputes between corporations for breach of contract, or most discrimination or employment disputes.

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Eighth Amendment

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

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10th Amendment

The 10th Amendment says that the federal government has only those powers specifically granted by the Constitution. These powers include the power to declare war, to collect taxes, to regulate interstate business activities and others that are listed in the articles. Any power not listed is left to the states or the people.