Our English Heritage Chapter 2/Section 1

Influences from English Government Many of the rights American citizens have today can be traced back to England Magna Carta Parliament-legislative body English Bill of Rights Common Law

Magna Carta King John of England mistreated the nobles (wealthy citizens) In 1215, they rebelled and forced him to sign the Magna Carta Magna Carta means “Great Charter” A charter is an agreement

The Magna Carta guaranteed certain rights to the nobles and eventually these rights were guaranteed to all English citizens Rights included equal treatment under the law & trial by one’s peers

Parliament-Legislative Body Henry III (came after King John) met with a group of advisers regularly Eventually, this group became a legislature known as Parliament Legislature: law-making body In mid-1600s, Parliament and King struggled over how much power King should have

Glorious Revolution In 1688, Parliament removed King James II and replaced him with his daughter, Mary, and her husband, William. This proved that Parliament was stronger than King/Queen

English Bill of Rights In 1689, Parliament wrote the English Bill of Rights Stated that: Monarch could not suspend (stop) Parliament’s laws Monarch could not create special courts, impose taxes, or raise an army without approval from Parliament Declared members of Parliament would be freely elected & guaranteed free speech Guaranteed every citizen the right to fair trial & banned cruel and unusual punishment

English Parliament in 1600s

Common Law In its early days, England had no written laws Therefore, they developed certain customs Custom: a repeated way of handling situations When judges were asked to decide a case, they looked at precedent Precedent: ruling in previous similar case Common Law: a system of law based on precedent & customs

Common Law example If someone were accused of trespassing, the judge would look at previous cases to see how others accused of trespassing had been sentenced. This would help the judge determine what type of punishment was fair and consistent.

Bringing English Heritage to America America had been settled by the English at Jamestown in 1607 (first permanent English settlement) Jamestown is an example of an English colony Colony: a group of people in one place who are ruled by a parent country elsewhere Colonists had strong ties with England and brought many of the traditions of that country to America

Jamestown First permanent English settlement

Virginia Charter The Virginia Company of England was granted a charter to begin colonies in the state of Virginia in America Charter: written document granting land and authority to set up colonial governments Charter gave colonists the same rights as English citizens, even though they lived in America

Virginia House of Burgesses In 1619, colonist chose two representatives from each county in the state to meet with the governor (appointed by England’s king/queen) and his council Representatives were known as burgesses

These 22 men formed the House of Burgesses *** VA House of Burgesses was first representative assembly, or legislature, and marked the beginning of self- government in America!

Mayflower Compact In 1620, Pilgrims arrived in America and establish Plymouth colony (in Massachusetts) While aboard their ship, the Mayflower, they wrote a plan for the government they would establish in Plymouth called the Mayflower Compact Compact: an agreement/contract among people

Mayflower Compact, continued Mayflower Compact stated that the government would: Make “just and equal laws…for the general good of the colony” **Established a tradition of Direct Democracy in New England (Northeast United States)

Early Colonial Governments By 1773, 13 English colonies stretched from Massachusetts to Georgia Each colony set up its own government with: Governor Legislature Eventually, the colonists learn to handle things on their own and began doubting the need for help from Great Britain