Natural and Imprescriptible: The Rights of Man in 1789

On August 26, 1789, France's National Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, another landmark natural rights text. Article 1 declares that 'men are born and remain free and equal in rights', and Article 2 names 'the natural and imprescriptible rights of man': liberty, property, security and resistance to oppression. Compared with the American Declaration, the French text is more general and universal in tone, addressed to 'man' everywhere rather than to one people's grievances.

It also reflects Rousseau in calling law 'the expression of the general will', and it places sovereignty in 'the nation'. The Marquis de Lafayette, who helped draft it, consulted Thomas Jefferson, then the American minister in Paris. Philosophically, the two declarations share a core belief that rights precede government. They differ in emphasis: the American text justifies separation from a ruler, while the French text sets out principles for rebuilding an entire society.