How many amendments are included in the United States Bill of Rights?

The United States Bill of Rights includes ten amendments.

The Bill of Rights comprises the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution. They were proposed by Congress on September 25, 1789, and ratified by the states on December 15, 1791. Their purpose was to address concerns that the new Constitution did not sufficiently protect individual liberties.

The amendments cover freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition, along with protections involving weapons, searches, criminal prosecutions, juries, bail, and due process. The final two amendments in the group concern rights retained by the people and powers not delegated to the federal government.

Congress originally proposed twelve amendments, not ten. The first two proposals did not receive enough state approvals at the time; one concerned congressional apportionment and the other congressional pay. The surviving ten therefore became the Bill of Rights as commonly defined.