The Colonial Period Chapter 2 Section 1 ORIGINS

The Colonial Period Chapter 2 Section 1

ORIGINS OF THE AMERICAN REPUBLIC I. Sources of the Constitution A. British Customs and Traditions: Magna Carta; Petition of Right; English Bill of Rights. B. European Philosophers: Locke; Hobbes; Montesquieu; Rousseau C. Colonial experiences: Mayflower Compact; elected assemblies. D. State Constitutions: Preamble closely resembles opening to Mass. Constitution; Bill of Rights included.

� 1607 – Jamestown, Virginia Colony ◦ First permanent English settlement in North America �People came from many regions to North America in the 1600 s �Britain established and governed 13 colonies �English colonists brought ideas about government An English Political Heritage

�Some ideas already embodied in existing governing systems in North America �English system – two principles of government 1. Limited government 2. Representative government � Greatly influenced the development of the United States

�Colonists accepted the idea that government was not all-powerful by the time they reached North America �Magna Carta – Great Charter ◦ King John forced to sign in 1215 ◦ Provided basis for limited government Limited Government

◦ Provided protection against unjust punishment and the loss of life, liberty, and property except according to law ◦ Certain taxes could not be levied without popular consent ◦ Rights originally only applied to nobility ◦ Opponents of absolute monarchy used the precedent set to gain more political liberties �Limited Government – a system in which the power of the government is limited, not absolute

� 1625 – Charles I ◦ Dissolved Parliament ◦ Lodged troops in private homes ◦ Some areas under martial law Petition of Right

� 1628 – called Parliament back into session ◦ Representatives forced the king to sign the Petition of Right �Greatly limited power of monarch �Repealed what he had put in place

� 1688 – Parliament removed James II and crowned William III and Mary II ( William & Mary of Orange) ◦ Peaceful transfer known as the Glorious Revolution �English Bill of Rights – document that set clear limits on what a ruler could and could not do ◦ Applied to American colonies English Bill of Rights

1. Monarchs do not have absolute authority 2. The monarch must have Parliament’s consent to suspend laws, levy taxes, or maintain an army 3. The monarch cannot interfere with parliamentary elections and debates English Bill of Rights

4. The people have a right to petition the government and to have a fair and speedy trial by jury of their peers 5. The people should not be subject to cruel and unusual punishments or to excessive fines and bail

�Representative Government – a system of government in which people elect delegates to make laws and conduct government �English Parliament – representative assembly with the power to enact laws ◦ Upper chamber and lower chamber American legislatures grew out of the English practice of representation Representative Government

�Ideas and writings of English philosophers influenced the American colonists ◦ John Locke ◦ Voltaire ◦ Jean Jacque Rousseau �Believed that people should contract among themselves to form governments to protect their natural rights New Political Ideas

�Locke reasoned that in a state of nature (before governments were formed), all people were born free, equal, and independent ◦ Believed that the laws of nature, “natural law” provided rights to life, liberty, and property ◦ If government failed to protect these natural rights, the people could change that contract (social contract)

�Such political philosophy was revolutionary in an age when monarchs still claimed they had God-given absolute powers �Government was legitimate only as long as people continued to consent to it

� 1607 -1733 �Present evolved – 13 English colonies founded system of American government �Each colony had its own government ◦ Governor, Legislature, Court System Government in the Colonies

�Women vote and enslaved persons could not �Every colony had some type of property qualification for voting � 9 of the 13 colonies had an official or established church

�Key practices 1. A written constitution that guaranteed basic liberties and limited the power of government 2. A legislature of elected representatives 3. The separation of powers between the governor and the legislature

�Mayflower Compact – document Pilgrims signed in 1620; first example of colonial plan for self-government � 1636 – Great Fundamentals First basic system of laws 1639 – Fundamental Orders of Connecticut America’s first formal constitution Written Constitution

�Fundamental Orders of Connecticut ◦ America’s first formal constitution or charter ◦ Laid out a plan for government that gave the people the right to elect the governor, judges, and representatives to make laws

� 1619 – Virginia House of ◦ First legislature in America Burgesses �In England the king appointed the leaders of the Church of England; Puritans rejected this idea ◦ Believed that he members of each congregation should choose their own misters and leaders Colonial Legislature

�Puritans freedom migrated to gain religious �Believed that church members should elect the colony’s government �As a result, representative government was established �Colonial legislatures were examples of the consent of the governed because a large number of qualified men voted

�Colonial charters divided the power of government �Separation of Powers – the division of power among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government Separation of Powers

�Idea popularized by Charles-Louis Montesquieu �Colonial legislatures became the political training grounds for the leaders who would later write the Constitution