origins of american government chapter...
TRANSCRIPT
Origins of American Government Chapter 2:1:
Objectives: 2:1 Our Political Beginnings
o Students will identify the three concepts of government that influenced the American colonies.
o Students will explain the significance of three landmark English documents
o Students will describe the three types of colonies that the English established in the American colonies.
• (Heb 11:16) But now they
desire a better country, that is,
an heavenly: wherefore God is
not ashamed to be called their
God: for he hath prepared for
them a city.
INTRODUCTION:
o Great Britain had the greatest influence upon the formation of the government of the United States.
o The earliest English settlers established laws, customs and practices that had been developing for centuries.
Ordered Government:
o The first English colonists saw the need for an orderly regulation of their relationships with one another--that is, for government.
o They based it on what they knew from Great Britain.
o Local government offices such as sheriff, coroner, justice of the peace, grand jury, counties, townships were from Great Britain.
Limited Government:
o The colonists believed that
government is limited and
there are certain rights that the
government could not take
away.
Limited Government:
o The concept of limited
government described was deeply
rooted in English belief with the
signing of the Magna Carta in
1215, and developed for nearly
400 years all the way to the time
Jamestown was settled.
Representative Government:
o The early English settlers also carried the important concept to America of the representative government.
o The idea that government should serve the will of the people had also been developing in England for centuries.
o That people should have a voice in deciding what government should and should not do.
Landmark English Documents:
o Magna Carta: Limited the monarchy from being an absolute power.
o Guaranteed such fundamental rights as trial by jury,
o due process of law,
o protection against arbitrary taking of life, liberty, or property.
o This was initiated after the barons were tired of King John’s arbitrary heavy taxes for military campaigns, and was signed in 1215.
o Initially for the noble class but later extended to the people.
Landmark English Documents:
o Petition of Right: Magna Carta was respected by some monarchs and ignored by others for 400 years.
o Parliament developed its power.
o In 1628, Charles I asked parliament for more money in taxes but parliament refused until he signed the Petition of Right.
Landmark English Documents:
o The Petition of Right limited the king’s power by demanding that the king not imprison political critics without trial by jury.
o Not declare martial law,
o or rule by the military, during peacetime;
o nor require people to shelter troops without the homeowner’s consent.
o And clearly stated that the monarch must obey the laws of the land.
Landmark English Documents:
o Bill of Rights: 1688, after years of revolt, Parliament invited William and Mary of Orange to the throne and was known as the Glorious Revolution where casualties were light.
o This solidified the limited monarchy.
Landmark English Documents:
o The English Bill of Rights prohibited a standing army in peace time, except with the consent of parliament, and required that all parliamentary elections be free.
o The monarch must consult parliament on everything.
o The right to a fair and speedy trial, freedom from excessive bail, and from cruel and unusual punishment.
Government in Colonies:
o 13 colonies were organized for different purposes.
o For example, Virginia is organized as a commercial venture.
o Massachusetts was settled by people seeking personal and religious freedom and so forth.
Government in Colonies:
o Each colony had a charter, a written grant of authority from the king.
o This grant gave colonists or companies a grant of land and some government rights while the crown retained a certain amount of power over a colony.
o Over time, these instruments of government led to the establishment of three different kinds of colonies: royal, proprietary, and charter.
Royal Charter
o Royal colonies were subject to direct control of the crown.
o The king named a governor to serve as the colony’s chief executive.
o A council, also named by the king, served as an advisory body to the royal governor.
Royal Charter
o In time this council evolved to the upper house of the colonial legislature.
o It also became the highest court in the colony.
o The lower house of a bicameral (two-house) legislature was elected by those property owners qualified to vote.
o The laws passed by the legislature had to be approved by the governor and the crown.
Proprietary Colonies:
o A proprietor was person to whom the king had made a grant of land.
o By charter, that land could be settled and governed much as the proprietor (Owner) chose.
o Lord Baltimore granted Maryland as haven for Catholics.
o Pennsylvania and Delaware given to William Penn as haven for Quakers.
Proprietary Colonies:
o Pennsylvania was a unicameral
(one-house) body.
o As in the royal colonies,
appeals from the decisions of
the proprietary colonies could
be carried to the king in
London.
Charter Colonies:
o Connecticut and Rhode Island were charter colonies and were largely self governing.
o The governors of these colonies were elected by white male property owners and although the king’s approval was required before the governor could take office, it was not often asked.
Charter Colonies:
o Laws made by the bicameral
legislature were not subject to
the governor’s veto nor was the
crown’s approval needed.
• Discussion Questions:
• What type of colonial system would you have
(royal, proprietary, or charter) and why would
you chose that system?