THE EMERGENCE OF INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS IN EUROPE: A HISTORICAL RECAPTURE

Abstract

The modern conception of individual rights took many centuries to emerge in its current state. The Europeans trace the origin of representative traditions of democratic political system and many aspects of their culture to ancient Greek and Roman civilizations, collectively referred as the ‘Western Heritage’. The idea germinated during the intellectual, cultural, and religious reform movements, and this growth took speed during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The movements of Renaissance, Reformation and Humanism played a key role in the emancipation of people. This paper recaptures the history of the origin and development of individual rights within European context.

Key words: Renaissance, Reformation, Humanism, English Bill of Rights, French Revolution, Declaration of Independence, Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen