International Day of Democracy Timeline

1789

The U.S. Constitution

The document establishes the principles of democracy in the United States of America.

1787-1789

French Revolution

French revolutionaries' overthrow the last monarchy in France (and sentence the last monarch, Louis XVI, to death by guillotine).

1215

Magna Carta

King John of England cedes absolute power by signing the Magna Carta. Although it doesn't create a democracy, it forms the basis for a parliamentary form of government.