Which document's Preamble begins with “We the People” in the United States?

The Preamble to the United States Constitution begins with “We the People.”

Those three words identify the people as the source of the Constitution’s authority. The Preamble then states the document’s broad purposes, including forming a more perfect Union, establishing justice, securing domestic tranquility, providing for the common defense, promoting the general welfare, and securing liberty.

Delegates to the Constitutional Convention met in Philadelphia in 1787 to replace the weaker Articles of Confederation. The Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, and took effect after the required states ratified it. It remains the framework of the U.S. federal government celebrated in national commemorations such as America’s 250th anniversary.

A common mix-up is confusing the Constitution with the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration announced separation from Britain in 1776, while the Constitution established the structure and powers of the new national government. The Bill of Rights is also part of the constitutional tradition, but it consists of the first ten amendments, not the Preamble.