| dc.description.abstract | Constitutions emerged in their modern, written form in the late eighteenth century, first in the United States and, soon after, in Europe. Throughout the following two centuries, many more constitutions were adopted, forming the foundational legal framework for new political states after revolutions or wars, for the union of previously separate territories or, eventually, for newly-independent nations after decolonisation or following the breakup of empires. The modern constitution, significantly, rested on an idea of popular constituent power; it was represented as the work or the voice of ‘the people’, the expression of the national spirit, or the embodiment of the popular will. The actual processes of making a constitution, however, were historically rarely popular, at least in a sense we would understand today. In some pre-twentieth century instances, the electors played a role in the ratification of their country’s constitution (indirectly, via the legislature, or directly by popular referendum), but the processes of appointing the constitution-making body, determining its terms of reference and choosing the content of the constitution, were left primarily to the political class, almost always elite men who already exercised political power. The notion of public participation was largely abstract and the idea of ‘the people’ or ‘the nation’ behind the ‘the national will’ was correspondingly narrow. Moreover, with some few and limited exceptions,1 even where there was a popular element (such as the election of delegates to the constituent assembly or convention, or to the ratifying body), the constitution-makers themselves were all men. Women were not unresponsive to these processes. From at least the mid-nineteenth century onward, women were active in many countries as campaigners for constitutional rights (in particular, the right to vote). Their activism expanded in the twentieth century. In the post-World War II years, a tiny number played an official role as appointed members of constitution-making bodies in a handful of countries (for instance, Burma, Japan, West Germany, Italy and Spain).2 However, until the 1980s, the formal offices of constitution maker remained dominated by men, representing and advancing a predominantly male perspective on constitutional values and on what should be included in a constitution. | en |