What phrase names the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution?

The first ten amendments to the United States Constitution are called the Bill of Rights.

James Madison introduced the amendments in Congress in 1789 after studying proposals from the states and concerns raised during ratification. The amendments were ratified on December 15, 1791. They protect civil liberties including freedom of religion, speech, and the press, along with protections involving searches, trials, and punishment.

Congress originally considered 12 amendments, but only 10 were ratified in 1791. One of the two rejected proposals later became the Twenty-Seventh Amendment in 1992, while the other concerned congressional apportionment and was never ratified. The Bill of Rights is therefore not the Constitution’s entire set of amendments; it is specifically the first ten.