C++ Rules for Constructors and Destructors

C++ constructors and destructors work automatically to guarantee the appropriate creation and removal of a class instance. The following features and rules apply to C++ constructors and destructors:

Constructors:

The name of the constructor must be identical to the name of the class.
You must not include any return type, not even void!
A class can have any number of constructors, including none. The compiler automatically creates a constructor for a class that has none.
The default constructor is the one that either has no parameters or it has a parameter list in which all the parameters use default arguments.
The copy constructor enables you to create a class instance using an existing instance. If you do not declare a copy constructo, the compiler creates on for you. The compiler creates a shallow copy constructor. This constructor simply copies data members. If your class includes dynamic data (using new, for example) you need to write your own copy constructor to do a deep copy including dynamic data structures.
The instantiation of a class (declaring an instance of the class) involves a constructor. Which constructor is called depends on how many constructors you have declared and you declared the class instance. For example, instantiation with no arguments will call the default constructor.

Destructors:

The name of the destructor must begin with the tilde character (~). The rest of the destructor name must be identical to the name of its class.
You must not include any return type, not even void!
A class can have no more than one destructor. If you omit the destructor, the compiler automatically creates one for you.
The destructor cannot have any parameters.
The class destructor is automatically invoked when the instance of that class goes out of scope.