This is absolutely correct. The U.S. Constitution is a direct descendant of the Magna Carta, which for its time was a much more revolutionary document than was the Constitution.I would argue that the principles of truth being discussed here were carried over from Europe.
But a free nation is much like a new car. A new car is never as pristine as the day you drive it off the lot. No matter how hard you try to maintain it, over the years little dings and scratches appear, until someday, its just another old car.
Likewise, the U.S. was never so pristine as when the Constitution was first ratified. Almost immediately after that freedoms began to be compromised until we find ourselves in our present predicament.
England's car is just older than ours.