Who was Sir William Blackstone?

Answer 1

Answer

William Blackstone was a British jurist best known for his comprehensive and influential analysis of the laws of England, including, to some extent, the unwritten British constitution. We identified legal principles as natural rights and was able to synthesize a vast amount of law into a systematic whole. In short, he created a kind of "theory of the law" that seemed to explain the structure and limits of British law.

Because American law is based on British law, his "Commentaries" were likely amongst the most important sources drawn on in drafting and understanding the provisions of the American (written) Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

His Commentaries were so influential in their day, that he is often cited as a source for what the American framers of the Constitution "really meant" when that document was written.

That said, he died in 1780, before the end of the American Revolution, likely believing that British victory was inevitable (and probably happy in his belief).

Answer Sir William Blackstone was an English jurist and professor who produced the historical and analytic treatise on the common law called Commentaries on the Laws of England, which still remains an important source on classical views of the common law and its principles. Blackstone wrote his books on common law shortly before the United States Constitution was written. Many terms and phrases used by the framers were derived from Blackstone's works. U.S. courts frequently quote Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England as the definitive pre-Revolutionary War source of common law; in particular, the United States Supreme Court quotes from Blackstone's work whenever they wish to engage in historical discussion that goes back that far, or further (for example, when discussing the intent of the Framers of the Constitution).