Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina - Failure To Ratify

Failure To Ratify

The Fundamental Constitutions were unpopular with most of the early settlers in the southern half of the Province (today's South Carolina), who preferred the more flexible royal charter as a basis for government. Consequently, the Fundamental Constitutions were never ratified by the assembly, and they were largely abandoned as an instrument of government by 1700. Nevertheless, several of their provisions, such as the guarantee of religious freedom and the modest property requirement for suffrage, helped to shape the culture of South Carolina and, later, of North Carolina.