Influences on our Constitution

I. English Political Heritage Limited Government 1. Belief that government should be subject to strict limits on the lawful use of power.

2. Magna Carta a. Signed by King John in 1215, this document gave nobles the right to a trial by jury, and taxes could only be raised with the consent of the nobles.

b. Moved from rule of man to rule of law. c b. Moved from rule of man to rule of law. c. Outlined individual rights which a king could not violate.

B. Representative Government Idea that people should have a say in their government. In 1258, nobles forced King Henry III to create a council called Parliament.

Evolved into a bicameral, or 2 house legislature. The House of Lords represented the nobles and the House of Commons represented people who owned large amounts of land but were not members of the nobility.

3. The struggle for power between the monarchy and Parliament lasts for centuries, until it shifted to Parliament in 1688.

C. English Bill of Rights 1689 Passed by Parliament in 1689, and further limited the powers of the monarch. Said the elections to Parliament need to be free and fair, and the people should be allowed to keep and carry weapons. 3. Gave Parliament free speech to debate. 4. Rights to habeus corpus. 5. Monarchs not allowed to require excessive bail or administer cruel punishment for those accused or convicted of crimes.

D. As English colonists were coming over to North America, they brought with them the English system of constitutional government. 1. Each colony had a charter that guaranteed colonists the “rights of Englishmen.”

II. Experiments in Early Colonial Government Jamestown’s House of Burgesses, 1619 Mayflower Compact, 1620 Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, 1639 Massachusetts Body of Liberties, 1641

III. Enlightenment Ideas Enlightenment ideas such as natural rights and social contract theory were becoming widespread in the colonies. 1. Natural Rights – idea that everyone is born with the rights to life, liberty, and property.

2. Social Contract Theory – idea that government is a contract between the ruler and the ruled. Governments are created by man to protect their natural rights. If government instead abuses those rights, then the people have a right to rebel against that government.

B. Baron de Montesquieu Suggested limiting the power of government by separating the governing bodies. This concept is known as the separation of powers. 3. Share power among Legislative, Executive, and Judicial branches.

IV. Road to Revolution A. In the years leading up to the American Revolution, the colonists felt that British policies towards the colonies were violating their natural rights as British citizens, so they overthrew government.

Quartering Act of 1765 – passed by Parliament, it required the colonies to house soldiers in accomodations provided by the colonists. a. VIOLATION OF PROPERTY RIGHTS

2. Massachusetts Government Act – part of the Intolerable Acts passed after the Boston Tea Party. It placed severe limitations on the colonists’ ability to assemble in their town meetings.

B. Virginia Declaration of Rights (1776) Written by George Mason three weeks before Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence. Based on Locke’s ideas, and served as James Madison’s model for the U.S. Bill of Rights. Guaranteed free press, property rights, religious freedom, and rights of the accused.

C. Articles of Confederation Because the colonists feared a distant strong federal government, the 1st US constitution created a weak national government where the states maintained most of the power Government under the Articles: One Branch-Confederation Congress One House Legislature Each State had One vote regardless of size

D. Northwest Ordinance 1787 Set up a way to govern the Ohio Territory (NW Territory), and passed under the Articles of Confederation. Protected religious liberty, due process, property rights, and rights of the accused.

V. Federalists vs. Antifederalists A. Federalists Felt the country needed a strong central government after the failures of the Articles of Confederation. Federalists supported the Constitution in its original form.

B. Anti-Federalists Opposed the Constitution Feared a strong central government Feared the Constitution didn’t protect individual freedoms and rights. Wanted a Bill of Rights to protect the rights of the people