The following text is a transcription of the first ten amendments to the Constitution in their original form. These amendments were ratified December 15, 1791.The authority to amend the Constitution of the United States is derived from Article V of the Constitution. The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution prevents Congress from making laws respecting an establishment of religion. The Bill of Rights is the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution, adopted as a single unit in 1791. The original text of the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States. Amends the California Constitution to remove current provision that allows jails and prisons to impose involuntary servitude to punish crime (i.e. There have been 27 amendments to the Constitution, beginning with the Bill of Rights, the first 10 amendments, ratified December 15, 1791. Founded in 1991, the Institute for Justice (IJ) is a nonprofit, public interest law firm. The Tenth Amendment (Amendment X) to the United States Constitution, a part of the Bill of Rights, was ratified on December 15, 1791.