Civics question 14 of 128

Many documents influenced the U.S. Constitution. Name one.

Source: official USCIS question list for the 2025 version of the civics test. This site is independent and not affiliated with USCIS.

Background

The test accepts the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, the Federalist Papers, the Anti-Federalist Papers, the Virginia Declaration of Rights, the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, the Mayflower Compact, and the Iroquois Great Law of Peace, and naming one is enough. Each contributed something different. The Articles of Confederation mattered most as a warning, because its central government could not tax or enforce its own decisions. The Virginia Declaration of Rights supplied language that shaped the Bill of Rights. The Mayflower Compact and the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut were early examples of colonists writing down their own rules of government. The Iroquois Great Law of Peace organized a confederation of nations long before the framers met, and Congress has formally recognized its influence on American ideas of union.

This background section is written by US Citizenship Test Practice to explain the civics fact. It is not part of the USCIS question list, and the official answer above is the one to give at the interview.

Where this question sits

It is part of Principles of American Government, inside the American Government section of the test.

Related questions

• 1. What is the form of government of the United States?
• 2. What is the supreme law of the land?
• 3. Name one thing the U.S. Constitution does.
• 4. The U.S. Constitution starts with the words "We the People." What does "We the People" mean?
• 5. How are changes made to the U.S. Constitution?
• 6. What does the Bill of Rights protect?