THE ROOTS OF OUR DEMOCRACY

FIRST GOVERNMENT Babylonians develop system of

government-write Hammurabi’s code

The Bible:• Hebrew prophets

developed the idea of all people being equal, created in the image of God.

• The idea caring for the weaker members of society.

GREEKS AND ROMANS The ancient Greeks and

Romans were the first civilizations in history to create governments based on Democracy

DEMOS = PEOPLE KRATIA = RULE

Athens created a direct democracy in 508 B.C.

Rome later developed an indirect democratic system.

ROMANS

Romans write down constitutional principles on Twelve Tablets

Catholic Church redefines power and authority

The Magna Carta

• British Document• King John forced to recognize his

power was limited by the Barons• First step toward limited

government

John ruled England from 1199 to 1216. He faced the following problems:

1. He quarrelled with the Pope about how to run the Church.

2. John went to war twice against the French king. He lost almost all the land that his father had gained in France!

3. John raised taxes in England to pay for the wars. This upset his BARONS! He ordered them to pay far more tax than earlier kings had done!

How did Barons strike back?• In 1214 many barons rebelled against John. • In 1215 the barons forced John to grant a

charter, which was the first time anyone had expected an English king to obey a set of rules.

King John

The Magna CartaI, King John, accept that I have to govern

according to the law.So I agree:1. Not to imprison nobles without trial2. That trials must be in courts; not held in

secret by me3. To have fair taxation for the nobles4. To let freemen travel wherever they like5. Not to interfere in Church matters6. Not to seize crops without paying for them…. and lot more things too!!

ERASMUS It was his lifelong conviction that

what was needed to regenerate Europe was sound learning applied frankly and fearlessly to the administration of public affairs in Church and State.

Believed strongly in human rights, equality, and human freedom

"laid the egg that Luther hatched“ Contemporary of Martin Luther and

Machiavelli

MARTIN LUTHER Luther leads reformation of Catholic Church His letter to the Pope entitled “Freedom of

a Christian”, which is what finally got him excommunicated (thrown out of the Church), stated that "there is no basic difference in status and dignity ... between laymen and priests, princes and bishops, religious and secular. Before God all are equal.”

JOHN CALVIN Theologian, pastor and political

reformer during Protestant Reformation

Calvin takes reformation further Led Geneva, Switzerland, to be a self-

governing theocracy Believed in public education, support

for the poor, predestination, free will, individual responsibility and equality

Followers in France called Huguenots, in Scotland called Presbyterians, in England and the American colonies called Puritans

The Petition of Right sets out specific liberties that the king is prohibited from infringing. It was passed by Parliament in May 1628, in response to abuses by the King, and agreed to by Charles I1. taxes can be levied only by

Parliament2. martial law can’t be imposed in

time of peace3. prisoners may challenge their

imprisonment through the writ of habeas corpus.

4. ban on the housing of troops is reflected in the Third Amendment to the United States Constitution.

The Petition of Right

The Bill of RightsPassed by Parliament in December 1689,

it defined certain rights to which subjects and permanent residents of a constitutional monarchy were thought to be entitled in the late 17th century.1. subjects' right to petition the monarch2. the right to bear arms3. restates requirements of the Crown to seek the consent of the people, as represented in parliament

The Mayflower Compact was the first self-governing document of Plymouth Colony. It was written by the colonists, later together known to history as the Pilgrims, who crossed the Atlantic aboard the Mayflower. Almost half of the colonists were part of a separatist group seeking the freedom to practice Christianity according to their own determination and not the will of the English Church. It was signed on November 11, 1620 by 41 of the ship's one hundred and two passengers, in what is now Provincetown Harbor near Cape Cod

The Mayflower Compact

THE GREAT AWAKENING 1730-1740

REASONS FOR THE GREAT AWAKENING

Gave colonists a shared national religious experience

Preachers felt that people needed to be concerned with inner emotions as opposed to outward religious behavior

People in New England could read and interrupt the Bible on their own

GEORGE WHITEFIELD Puritan Minister who

used raw emotional sermons to reach all classes of colonists

Preached that “good works” and “godly lives” would bring you salvation

JONATHAN EDWARDS A PURITAN MINISTER TERRIFIED LISTENERS WITH HIS SERMON “SINNERS IN THE HANDS OF AN ANGRY GOD”

OUTCOMES OF THE GREAT AWAKENING

Birth of deep religious convictions in the colonies

New churches built to accommodate new members

Colleges founded to train new ministers

OUTCOMES OF THE GREAT AWAKENING Encouraged ideas

of equality and right to challenge authority

Birth of charity and charitable organizations

Spread of ideas of self-government

THE ENLIGHTENMENT

A movement in the 1700’s that rejected traditional ways of life and looked for a more rational and scientific way to explain the world we live in

It was an emphasis on the sciences and reason to explain things

ENLIGHTENMENT ARGUMENTS

Generally we are good and our environment influences us

The use of science and reason could answer life’s mysteries

Science and reason could also answer man’s questions concerning government and himself

OUTCOMES OF THE ENLIGHTENMENT

Great surge of literacy in the colonies

Newspapers and book publications increase

Schools are synonymous with new towns and villages

Deism, God is the great clock maker

OUTCOMES OF THE ENLIGHTENMENT People are born

with natural rights Government has

an obligation to protect those natural rights

Kings have no right to govern people, people empower government

John Locke 1632-1704 Life, Liberty and Property The right to alter or abolish

Baron de Montesquieu 1712-1778 separation of powers

Jean-Jacques Rousseau 1689-1755 Social contract Consent of the governed

Voltaire 1694-1778 freedom

SAMUEL ADAMS

Born in Boston, Massachusetts Educated at Harvard Enters politics after he fails in his

business venture Serves in both the 1st and 2nd

Continental Congresses A leading political organizer against

the British in the colonies He is a leader in the Boston Tea Party

and of the Sons of Liberty

SAMUEL ADAMS

At the Boston Massacre it is believed that he played a major hand in inciting the Sons of Liberty to antagonize British troops

He will sign the Declaration of Independence

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN

Born in Boston, Massachusetts leaves school to help father in his business as a soapmaker

Printer in Philadelphia and later an editor for the Pennsylvania Gazette

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN

Writes Poor Richard’s Almanac which becomes popular for it’s American proverbs

Scientist, writer, businessmen, statesman, publisher, represented American Enlightenment and inventor

Responsible for helping get the French to join the colonies against the British

THOMAS JEFFERSON

A Virginia plantation owner He will write many political

pamphlets that criticize British policies in the colonies

Served in the Virginia House of Burgesses several terms

THOMAS JEFFERSON

He will attend both Continental Congresses

He will write the Declaration of Independence in 1776

He is governor of Virginia during the war

JOHN ADAMS Educated at Harvard Delegate from Massachusetts to the

Continental Congress On the Declaration writing committee

with Thomas Jefferson Not a popular leader like his second

cousin, Samuel Adams. Instead, his influence emerged through his work as a constitutional lawyer and his intense analysis of historical examples

The second President of the United States (1797–1801)

THOMAS PAINE

English Quaker who arrives in the colonies in 1775

Writes in 1776 Common Sense, a political pamphlet that criticizes the British monarch, supports colonial rebellion and justifies starting a new government

THOMAS PAINE

Common Sense will push colonies to rebel

Writes American Crisis, which inspires colonial soldiers to continue fighting against the British