Second Amendment

References & Edit History Related Topics

Images

Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States

Related Questions

How did Caetano v. Massachusetts address the Second Amendment and stun guns?
How did District of Columbia v. Heller change the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the Second Amendment?
How did Justice Antonin Scalia interpret the Second Amendment’s phrase about a well-regulated militia in District of Columbia v. Heller?
How did Justice Stephen Breyer criticize the historical reasoning in District of Columbia v. Heller?
How did Presser v. Illinois interpret the Second Amendment in 1886?
How did Queen Elizabeth I attempt to create a national militia in England?
How did ancient Roman law regulate weapons crossing the Rubicon?
How did the English Civil Wars contribute to debates about militias and arms?
How did the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause affect the outcome of McDonald v. City of Chicago?
How did the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting affect the national debate over gun-control legislation?
How did the Supreme Court rule in District of Columbia v. Heller?
How does the individual-right interpretation of the Second Amendment differ from the collective-right interpretation?
How is the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution worded?
How were guns used in the American colonies before the American Revolution?
What did the Supreme Court say New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen did not decide about gun ownership?
What does selective incorporation mean in the Supreme Court’s decision in McDonald v. City of Chicago?
When was the Second Amendment ratified as part of the Bill of Rights?
Which District of Columbia gun laws were challenged in District of Columbia v. Heller?
Which limits on firearm possession did the Supreme Court say were not questioned by District of Columbia v. Heller?
Which types of gun-control restrictions have federal and state courts generally allowed after District of Columbia v. Heller?
Why did Anti-Federalists support adding protections for militias to the Bill of Rights?
Why did Justice John Paul Stevens disagree with the majority in District of Columbia v. Heller?
Why did Justice Stephen Breyer disagree with the majority in McDonald v. City of Chicago?
Why did McDonald v. City of Chicago leave questions about noncitizens’ firearm rights unresolved?
Why did Otis McDonald challenge Chicago’s handgun registration law?
Why did the Articles of Confederation include provisions about militias?
Why did the Supreme Court describe self-defense in the home as central to the Second Amendment in District of Columbia v. Heller?
Why did the Supreme Court strike down New York’s proper-cause requirement for concealed-carry permits in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen?
Why did the U.S. Senate’s 2013 proposal to expand background checks for gun purchases fail?
Why was Dick Heller allowed to bring the lawsuit in District of Columbia v. Heller?
Does the Second Amendment allow owning guns for self-defense?
Which U.S. Supreme Court justices think the Second Amendment recognizes the individual’s right to bear arms in self-defense?
What does the 25th Amendment say?
What is the Fourteenth Amendment?
What does the Fourteenth Amendment forbid?
Why was the Bill of Rights added?
How was the Bill of Rights added to the U.S. Constitution?
Does the Bill of Rights apply to the states?
What is the Fifth Amendment?

Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States — Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States The Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

Second Amendment

United States Constitution

Written by

Patrick J. Charles

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

Last updated

Nov. 8, 2026 •History

Second Amendment, amendment to the Constitution of the United States, adopted in 1791 as part of the Bill of Rights, that provided a constitutional check on congressional power under Article I Section 8 to organize, arm, and discipline the federal militia. The Second Amendment reads, “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” Referred to in...

Discover the world with Britannica

Subscribe to Continue Reading

Free Trial | No Ads | Exclusive Content

Explore Subscriptions

DNA

Right

Mobile