AMERICAN GOVERNMENT Chapter 2: Origins of American Government

Section 1 Our Political Beginnings  Main Idea  Our system of government has its in the concepts and political ideas that English colonists brought with them when they settled North American. The colonies served as a school for learning about government.

Section 1 Our Political Beginnings  Colonists had knowledge of the English political system, including three key ideas about government  Ordered government Government’s rules should help people get along  Limited government Government has restricted powers  Representative government Government should serve the people

Section 1 Our Political Beginnings  English tradition of government grew from three landmark documents

Section 1 Our Political Beginnings  Magna Carta (1215) King did NOT have total power Protected the rights of trial by jury Protected due process of law

Section 1 Our Political Beginnings  Petition of Right (1628) King could NOT use the military to rule during peace time King could NOT let soldiers live in people’s homes

Section 1 Our Political Beginnings  English Bill of Rights (1689) Forbade keeping an army during peacetime Guaranteed a fair and speedy trial Ensured that all parliamentary elections were free

Section 1 Our Political Beginnings  Three types of English colonies helped train colonists in the art of governing  Charter Written grant by the King,  Royal colonies Ruled by the King  Proprietary Colonies organized by an owner

Section 1 Our Political Beginnings  Most colonies had bicameral legislatures  Two houses  Pennsylvania had a unicameral legislature  One house

Section 1 Our Political Beginnings  Study Questions What three ideas about government did the colonists bring with them from England? 2. How was the development of English government affected by (a) the Magna Carta? (b) The Petition of Right? (c) The English Bill of Rights?

Section 2 The Coming of Independence  Main Idea  Changes in British colonial policies led to resentment in the colonies and eventually to the American Revolution. Ideas expressed in the early State constitutions influenced the development of the governmental system under which we live today.

Section 2 The Coming of Independence  1760s, colonists objected to “taxation without representation”  Formed a confederation–a union of common purpose  Ben Franklin formed the Albany Plan of Union which proposed a congress of delegates from all colonies Rejected by both the colonies and the King  colonies formed the First Continental Congress Decided to boycott or refuse to buy British goods Hoped British would repeal, or recall, hated policies

Section 2 The Coming of Independence  American Revolution began on April 19, 1775  May 10, 1775, Second Continental Congress began  First government of U.S.  Produced the Declaration of Independence  Fought the War  Wrote a Constitution—a basic set of laws that creates a government  Based on popular sovereignty—government can only exist with the consent of the governed

Section 2 The Coming of Independence  Study Questions Describe how the British governed the colonies (a) before (b) After (a) Who wrote the Declaration of Independence? (b) What rights are outlined in the document? (c) How did they signify the colonists’ relationship to Britain?

Section 3 The Critical Period  Main Idea  The Articles of Confederation established a fairly weak central government, which led to conflicts among the States. The turmoil of the Critical Period of the 1780s led to the creation of a stronger National Government.

Section 3 The Critical Period  1780s--problem filled years for the U.S.  States wanted a permanent government but didn’t want to give it too much power  13 states ratified (formally approved) the Articles of Confederation 1781  Tied the states together in a loose union

Section 3 The Critical Period  Central government had the power to  Set up an army and a navy  Make war and peace  Settle state disputes  Had only one branch of government, Congress Unicameral--one house Choose a presiding officer--chairperson each year  Each state had one vote

Section 3 The Critical Period  The national government had no power to  Make the states obey the Articles or the laws passed by the legislature  States had the power to tax and print their own money  A rebellion in Massachusetts convinced leaders that America needed a stronger government

Section 3 The Critical Period  Study Questions What were the major characteristics of the Articles of Confederation? 2. How did the States respond to the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?

Section 4 Creating the Constitution  Main Idea  The Framers of the Constitution created a document that addressed the major concerns of the States attending the Philadelphia Convention. By reaching compromise on items about which they disagreed, the Framers created a new National Government capable of handling the nation’s problems.

Section 4 Creating the Constitution  1787, 55 delegates from 12 states met in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation  Delegates became known as the Framers  Decided to write a new Constitution, instead

Section 4 Creating the Constitution  Delegates from Virginia were the first to offer a plan, the Virginia Plan  3 branches of government Executive Bicameral (2 house) legislature Judiciary  The number of representative a State sent to the legislature was linked to its wealth and population Small states opposed the plan

Section 4 Creating the Constitution  The New Jersey Plan called for a government without strong and separate branches  Also proposed a unicameral legislature with an equal number of representatives per state

Section 4 Creating the Constitution  The Connecticut Compromise (Great Compromise) combined features from the Virginia and New Jersey Plans  Bicameral legislature Senate--equal representation House--representation based on State’s population

Section 4 Creating the Constitution  Constitution became a document of compromises  The Three-Fifths Compromise States could count 3/5ths of their slaves as part of their populations  Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise Forbade Congress from taxing exports Forbade Congress from acting against the slave trade for 20 years

Section 4 Creating the Constitution  Study Questions Explain the New Jersey Plan. Why was it introduced? 2. What major issues did the Framers disagree upon and what, if any, compromises did they reach?

Section 5 Ratifying the Constitution  Main Idea  The Constitution could not take effect until it had been ratified by nine States. The battle between those who supported and those who opposed the Constitution was hard fought in all the States.

Section 5 Ratifying the Constitution  9 of 13 states needed to ratify (approve) of the Constitution  Federalists--favored ratifying the Constitution  Stressed weakness of Articles  Anti-Federalists--strongly opposed ratification  Attacked increased powers of the central government  Attacked lack of Bill of Rights

Section 5 Ratifying the Constitution  Study Questions Why did the Federalists want to replace the Articles? 2. What were the main arguments used by the Anti- Federalists?