First Principles, World View

James Madison, Virginian
James Madison, Virginian

I write to make Virginia history accessible to those interested in relating the state and their community to United States history. The Virginian political community are the residents represented in the General Assembly of the Old Dominion. That gives us a platform of 400 years to explore.

The issues for a political history of any time period can be taken from the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution. These six include national and local community, justice, domestic peace, common defense, the general welfare and the blessings of liberty that are summed up in the First Amendment.
Liberty encompasses the independent, self reliant individual in political community and their free exercise of religion, personal expression by speech, communication among local, state and national publics, peaceable assembly for lawful purposes, and petitioning the government for a redress of grievances.
Residents compass everyone in the state of Virginia, as agreed to in the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. All persons born or naturalized in the United States are citizens of the United States and of their resident state, and and every one is guaranteed due process of law and equal protection of the laws in their state and in the United States.
This understanding is elaborated in the first article of the Virginia Declaration of Rights, “that all men [and women] are by nature equally free and independent, and have certain inherent rights, of which, when they enter into a state of society, they cannot, by any compact, deprive or divest their posterity; namely, the enjoyment of life and liberty, with the means of acquiring and possessing property, and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety.”
— R. G. Zimermann
See also

1 Comment

  1. Gregrie Lee Straughan
    February 10, 2023

    My comment is more of a question. If this site is up, then you are alive. I ask because I don’t want to drop praise upon someone who isn’t here any longer and this is run by a bot or perhaps a child of his who doesn’t care what has been set down here. I appreciate it all although I just found you about 30 minutes ago. I have been researching my ancestors and have many from Virginia. This website has much to explore and I can’t wait to become deeper into the tales. Thanks for putting it up on the internet. Gregrie

    Reply

TVH hopes the website helps in your research; let me know.

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