The precepts of American civil liberty are directly descended from
those of the British political system. It is fascinating that the
individual's passion for personal liberty has not significantly
changed with the rapid advances in technology and communication.

A popular position in discussing the scope of civil liberties is to
invoke the concept of "original intent." To analyze the original
intent of most of the rights granted to the individual in this
country, it is necessary to look past the original debates on the
Constitution and view the political climate in other parts of the
world and the history that had set the precedents that determined the
references for our Founding Fathers. The political scholars and
philosophers who defined our individual rights had the benefit of
trial and error in England before they finalized the United States
Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

The history of the evolution of the individual right to keep and bear
arms spans almost one millennium. From the signing of the Magna Carta
in 1215, Englishmen had very definite and primary rights to self
defense. Ordinary Englishmen stood with the aristocracy in their
obligations of local peacekeeping.

Since its earliest inclusion until the present day, the right to keep
and bear arms has been emotionally debated by all political
philosophers. The historic arena that significantly defines the
American idea of the right took place in the latter half of the 17th
century, a time of significant colonization of this country by
European settlers.

It was the unsettled governments of this time (the Long, Rump and
Barebones Parliaments), ironically held together by the conflicts
between the army and the Puritans that brought the first wave of gun
control-disarmament to England.

On July 27, 1659, "a perfect and exact list of all Arms and
Ammunition." was to be given to the persons appointed by the
Parliament to receive such information. Additionally house to house
searches were authorized to confiscate "all arms, in the Custody or
Possession of any Popish Recusant, or other person that hath been in
arms against the Parliament." (Ordinances and Acts of the Commonwealth
and Protectorate, at 1317, 1340)

Although Catholics and others were prohibited from keeping arms in
their homes there were still required to contribute to the purchase of
arms for the local civil defense. It was also assumed that they had
the means to self defense. It is also interesting that searches were
to take place "in the day time." Searches in the night were
automatically assumed to be suspect and with malice.

In 1660, when the monarchy was restored with the ascension of Charles
II to the vacant throne, all but the most loyal of the army units were
disbanded and orders were issued for the chief militia officers to
disarm all actual and potential opponents.

In 1662, the Militia Act was passed and used to further disarm the
general, and therefore suspect, populace.

In 1671, the Hunting Act was passed to broaden the powers of the
loyalists. All individuals owning real estates worth less than 100
pounds per annum in receipts were ordered disarmed. The requirement of
property ownership for the privilege to vote was two pounds.  "[B]e it
enacted that all lords of manors.may take and seize such guns, bows,
greyhounds.search the houses.as upon good ground shall be suspected to
have or to keep in his custody any guns."(22-23 Car. II c.25) Thus
continued matters until the Glorious (and bloodless) Revolution of
1688 when the Parliament invited Mary and her husband, William of
Orange to assume the British throne.

Because of earlier abuses of power by both the monarchy and the army,
Parliament passed a "Declaration of Rights" defining the basic rights
of Englishmen. Notably included was the right, as well as, duty to
bear arms for self defense and the common good.

The British well knew the powerlessness of an unarmed citizenry and
the dangers of a government that controlled access to
defense. Tyranny.

Accordingly the statements providing for the right to keep and bear
arms in the Declaration and later Bill of Rights stated: ".That there
is a right of the subjects to petition the King, and all commitments
and prosecutions for such petitioning are illegal:.that the subjects
which are protestant may have arms for their defense suitable to their
condition and as allowed by law." (Journal of the House of Commons
from Dec. 26, 1688 to Oct. 26, 1693, at 29)

The idea of "common" or collective defense was modified to stress the
individual right to keep and bear arms.

It was with these recent upheavals still in great debate that the
founders of our nation and the authors of our Constitution and Bill of
Rights approached the individual right to keep and bear arms both
before and after our emancipation from England.

And as it has so succinctly been stated, "The Second Amendment Ain't
About Duck Hunting!"

Personal Parting Shots.

Please contact me at jhvg@saf.org if you would like a list of further
reading materials available from the Second Amendment
Foundation. Hurrah, my esses, school's out for the summer! MMD,;>).