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Jump Back in Time The New Nation (1790-1828)
 
James Madison, Fourth President of the United States, 1828
 James Madison, who wrote the Bill of Rights, as president in 1828

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The New United States of America Adopted the Bill of Rights
December 15, 1791
Mason had drafted the Virginia state constitution in 1776, asserting the principle of inalienable rights--certain individual rights that cannot be taken away.

Elected to the new House of Representatives, James Madison agreed with Mason. In the fall of 1789, he sponsored the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, speaking out on freedom of religion, speech, and the press. Ultimately, George Mason's views prevailed. When James Madison drafted the 10 amendments to the Constitution that were to become the Bill of Rights, he drew heavily upon the ideas put forth in the Virginia Declaration of Rights.

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