First Amendment to the United States Constitution restrained but by despotic Governments." Eight of the other twelve states made similar pledges. However, these declarations were generally considered "mere admonitions to state legislatures", rather than enforceable provisions. After several years of comparatively weak government under the Articles of Confederation, a Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia proposed a new constitution on September 17, 1787, featuring among other changes a stronger chief executive. George Mason, a Constitutional Convention delegate and the drafter of Virginia's Declaration of Rights, proposed that the Constitution include a bill of rights listing and guaranteeing civil liberties. Other delegates—including future Bill of Rights drafter James Madison—disagreed, arguing
Provisional Constitution of the Republic of China The Constitutional Protection Movement launched by the Military Government of the Republic of China in Guangzhou on 10 September 1917, was intended to "protect" this provisional constitution. As the Chinese Civil War divided the country into warring factions, the provisional constitution was gradually superseded by the constitutions issued by each rival government. In the Beiyang Government, the provisional constitution was replaced by Cao Kun's constitution on 10 October 1923. In the Nanjing Government, this constitution was not replaced until 1 June 1931, when the Provisional Constitution of the Political Tutelage Period was announced, although the old constitution was already rarely