Normans, Plantagenets 1066 Invasion of William the Conqueror 1154 Henry II creates trial by Jury, whereby a Jury (group of chosen judges) decides whether an individual is guilty or innocent

1215 Magna Charta signed by John Lackland and a number of barons: It recognized that no freeman could be punished without following the law of the land, everyone had the right to justice and the king’s will was not arbitrary.

Parliament (Fr parlamenter) 1295 Model Parliament (on the model of Simon de Monfort’s parliament of 1265) Each county returned two knights Two burgesses were elected from each borough (administrative unit) each city provided two citizens. The composition became the model for later parliaments, hence its name House of Commons: 2 lesser knights and burgesses had an official role

Time line 1337 – 1453 Hundred Years War War of the Roses

The Tudors 1534 Act of Supremacy: Henry VII becomes the Head of the English Church: ANGLICANISM 1588 England defeats the Spanish Armada

Two conceptions of the Law in conflict Roman Law, whereby ‘the king is ‘the source of the Law’ Common Law (based on decisions made by judges over the centuries) or law of the land, which could only be altered by High Court of Parliament

THE STUARTS 1603 Iames I Stuart comes to the throne 1625 Charles I becomes king 1628 the Petition of Rights: No man is to pay any tax not approved of by Parliament No man is to be imprisoned arbitrarily 1629 Charles I dismisses Parliament 1640 Long Parliament

The Commonwealth 1649 Charles I beheaded Unicameral Parliament (House of Commons) House of Lords (ereditary) abolished 1653 O. Cromwell dissolves Parliament, country ruled by Army 1660 Convention Parliament restored monarchy

PURITANS AND ANGLICANS John Langland John Wycliff ( ) Lollards All for reforms and against corruption in the Catholic Church Anglicans: a Church of State, not much different from the Catholic

RESTAURATION 1688 Bill of Rights It handed over many powers to the Parliament. The Parliament could decide on who would become the monarch 1679 Exclusion Bill: no Catholic could become king 1701 Act of Settlement: the Parliament decided the heir of William III (Orange)

Party System Whigs Descendants of the Parlamentarians: Middle classes, merchants, artisans Later, Liberals Tories Descendants of the Royalists: High Clergy, Aristocracy Later Conservatives

XIX Century 1832 Great Reform Bill: removed the ‘rotten boroughs’ The number of eligible voters was doubled to about a million out of 16,000,000 people A number of several more reform bills in 1867, 1884, 1918 and 1928 marked transition to a modern bi-cameral parliamentary system

XX Century Labour Party was founded in 1900 and overtook the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s Conservative Party: the largest party in the United Kingdom: 304 MPs in the House of Commons ( the only Chamber of Parliament with legislative power, the House of Lords having only veto rights)

Parliament Today The House of Commons is made up of 650 Members of Parliament (MPs). MPs are voted and whoever wins represents everyone in his local area (a constituency) even if people voted for someone else. The House of Lords has over 700 members, who are not elected but have been selected by the prime minister and appointed by the Queen. The monarch, Queen, opens and closes Parliament every year, asks the winning party in a general election to become the government and officially signs all the laws that Parliament votes for. prof Gigliola D’Avolio