It may appear to be a truism to state that constitution-making is the pre-eminently political act. Modern constitutionalism first emerged in British North America with the American colonial constitutions beginning with the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut in 1639. After the Declaration of American Independence in 1776, virtually all of the new states drafted and adopted state constitutions which took modern constitutionalism a long step forward. That trend reached its first full flowering in the U.S. Constitution of 1787. With it emerged the twin ideas of constitutional choice and constitutional design as the first expressions of political and civic life in democratic republics. In the words of the Federalist, the Americans demonstrated that governments could be established by "reflection and choice," rather than by "force" or "accident." Constitution-making, properly considered, brings us back to the essence of the political.
 
All around the world, there are five Constitutional Models, such as: (1) Constitution as Frame of Government and Protector of Rights, it is adopted by English-speaking countries of the New World; (2) Constitution as Code, it prevails in Continental European democracies and India; (3) Constitution as Revolutionary Manifesto, it is popular with Soviet bloc countries and Yugoslavia; (4) Constitution as Political Ideal, it is adopted by Latin American and African states; (5) Constitution as Adaptation of Ancient Traditions, it prevails in United Kingdom, Israel, Iran.[1]
 

[1] Vincent Ostrom, Hobbes, Covenant and Constitution, Publish 10:4 (Fall 1980) and Political Theory, op. cit.

If you want to read the full article, you need to ask for permission from Sekou ( ). If you have the permission, you can login now.