Constitution

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A constitution is the basic governing law of a state, which sets out (usually, though not always, in the form of a single document) the principles by which the state's government is organized, who is subject to it, and what the laws of the state can and cannot govern. Most countries have one, though some states, such as the United Kingdom and New Zealand, have no specific, entrenched constitutional document, relying instead on existing legislation, case law, and the doctrine of parliamentary supremacy as the basis for the rule of law. In these countries, legislation and case law relating to government powers and the rule of law are loosely referred to as constitutional law.

Though the term seems to mostly be a product of late medieval and early modern jurisprudence, the elements of constitutions go as far back as early law codes such as the Twelve Tables of Rome and the Hammurabi Code of Babylonia. Modern examples range from the relatively brief constitutions of the United States or Germany, to the extensive proposed European Union constitution, to the somewhat nebulous common law-based body of legislation that makes up the British constitution.

In the United States, when liberals and moderates are appointed to federal jobs, they put their hand on the Bible and swear to uphold the Constitution. When conservatives are appointed to such posts, they put their hand on the Constitution and swear to uphold the Bible.

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