Home›Ideas & Texts›Documents›Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the CitizenDocumentsDeclaration of the Rights of Man and of the CitizenCitation FormatsGeneral ReferenceGeneral Reference Citation TextPolitical Atlas. "Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://political.interactiveatlas.org/documents/declaration-of-the-rights-of-man-and-of-the-citizen.Copy General ReferenceAPA StyleAPA Style Citation TextPolitical Atlas. (n.d.). Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://political.interactiveatlas.org/documents/declaration-of-the-rights-of-man-and-of-the-citizenCopy APA StyleBibTeXBibTeX Citation Text@misc{politicalatlas-declaration-of-the-rights-of-man-and-of, author = {Political Atlas}, title = {Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen}, year = {2026}, url = {https://political.interactiveatlas.org/documents/declaration-of-the-rights-of-man-and-of-the-citizen}, note = {Accessed August 30, 2026} }Copy BibTeXContested and Comparative ScholarshipDevelopingThe Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen is a foundational document of the French Revolution that set out universal civil and natural rights, adopted by France's National Assembly in August 1789. It was ratified by King Louis XVI later that year.Well-attestedFactsCross-Tradition ConnectionsSourcesDissenting Readings (1 dissenting reading)Comments (0)Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)FactsYearWell-attested1789 1Key ProvisionWell-attestedDeclares in Article 1 that men are born and remain free and equal in rights, and in Article 3 that the principle of all sovereignty resides essentially in the nation, establishing popular sovereignty and natural rights as the constitutional basis of the new French state. 1DatesAdoptedWell-attested1789-08-26 1Cross-Tradition ConnectionsDrafted ByMarquis de Lafayette, Political Figures Well-attested Presented an early draft, composed with Jefferson's input, to the National Assembly on 11 July 1789; the adopted text was substantially reworked by a later committee dominated by Abbe Sieyes.Source Lafayette's Draft of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (Encyclopedia Virginia)tier 1InfluencedPopular Sovereignty, Political Concepts Well-attested Source Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (Elysee)tier 1Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Documents Well-attested ConnectedThe 1789 Declaration's language of universal, inalienable rights was a direct model the 1948 drafters of the Universal Declaration drew on.Source History of the Declaration (UN)tier 1Influenced ByDeclaration of Independence, Documents Well-attested ConnectedLafayette drafted the 1789 Declaration with input from Jefferson, then serving as the United States minister to France.Source Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (Elysee)tier 1French Revolution, Movements Well-attested ConnectedThe National Constituent Assembly adopted the Declaration on 26 August 1789, weeks after the Revolution began.Source French Revolution (Britannica)tier 1Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Political Figures Well-attested Montesquieu, Political Figures Well-attested Source Montesquieu (Britannica)tier 1Thomas Jefferson, Political Figures Well-attested ConnectedThen U.S. minister to France; discussed the project with Lafayette and annotated early drafts.Source Lafayette's Draft of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (Encyclopedia Virginia)tier 1ShapedFrance, Countries Well-attested Sources1. Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (Elysee)tier 1Elysee (French Presidency)View the SourceLafayette's Draft of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (Encyclopedia Virginia)tier 1Encyclopedia Virginia (Virginia Humanities)Drafted By: Marquis de LafayetteView the SourceLafayette's Draft of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (Encyclopedia Virginia)tier 1Encyclopedia Virginia (Virginia Humanities)Influenced By: Thomas JeffersonView the SourceHistory of the Declaration (UN)tier 1United NationsInfluenced: Universal Declaration of Human RightsView the SourceFrench Revolution (Britannica)tier 1Encyclopaedia BritannicaInfluenced By: French RevolutionView the SourceDissenting Readings (1 dissenting reading)DescriptionThe 1789 Declaration defined citizenship in terms ("Man," "the Citizen") that the revolutionary constitutions then read as excluding women from political rights entirely. In September 1791, Olympe de Gouges published a Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Female Citizen, restating the 1789 text article by article with women written in, to expose what she held was the Revolution's betrayal of its own universal principles. She was also an outspoken abolitionist at a time the Declaration's universal language did not extend to the enslaved population of France's colonies, which chattel slavery there outlived the Declaration by several years. She was guillotined in 1793 on political charges unrelated to this pamphlet.A dissenting reading, from Olympe de Gouges, Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Female Citizen (1791)Olympe de Gouges (Britannica), Encyclopaedia BritannicaComments (0)No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.Sign in to join the discussion.Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? 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