Abstract
It is definitively not my intention to wade into such debates about the wisdom of the Second Amendment or to deal with pending or recent court interpretations. Rather, I want to explore how it came to be and what role British history had in its genesis. For Americans like myself, such history helps us to understand the meaning of our own Constitution. For the Britons, it is a powerful example of how your own constitutional principles shaped the legal landscape of far-flung countries once within the British Empire. And for those simply interested in law as a discipline, irrespective of geography, I hope this serves as a useful case study of how distant history can help contemporary lawyers interpret the meaning of a legal text adopted over 225 years ago.
Recommended Citation
Diarmuid F. O'Scannlain,
Glorious Revolution to American Revolution: The English Origin of the Right to Keep and Bear Arms,
95
Notre Dame L. Rev.
397
(2019).
Available at:
https://scholarship.law.nd.edu/ndlr/vol95/iss1/8