1. Lesson 4:
What Were the British Origins of American Constitutionalism?

2. Lesson 4 Purpose
This lesson describes the evolution of British constitutional government.
It examines the early stages of English government in the feudal period.
It also traces the development of representative institutions in Enl=gland, English common law, the relationship between legal ad constitutional structures, and the difference between British and American constitutionalism.

3. Lesson 4 Objectives
Explain how rights and representative government evolved in England and how this evolution influenced the Founders.
Identify the origins of some of Americans’ most important constitutional rights.
Evaluate, take, and defend positions on
The influence of the Magna Carta on the development of rights.
The importance of habeas corpus and trial by jury.

4. Lesson 4 Term & Concepts Common Law Magna Carta Precedent
The body of unwritten law developed in England from judicial decisions based on custom and earlier judicial decisions. Constitutes the basis of the English legal system and became part of American law, except in Louisiana, which inherited its civil law system from France.
Magna Carta
King John of England agreed to this document in 1215… The Magna Carta granted certain civil rights and liberties to English nobles and to all "freemen," such as the right to a jury of one's peers and the guarantee against loss of life, liberty, or property except in accordance with law. Some rights were guaranteed for all the king's subjects, free or not free. In doing so, the Magna Carta limited the power of the king, who agreed that his will could be bounded by law, and became a landmark in the history of constitutional government
Precedent
Previous court decisions upon which legal issues are decided.
Redress of Grievances
The correction of complaints. The First Amendment protects the right of the people to petition government to obtain remedies for claimed wrongs.

5. Lesson 4 Terms & Concepts (Continued)
Rights of Englishmen
Refers to certain historically established rights, beginning with the rights of the Magna Carta, that all English subjects were understood to have. These included the right not to be kept in prison without a trial, the right to trial by jury, security in one's home from unlawful entry, and no taxation without consent, among others.
Rule of Law
The principle that both those who govern and those who are governed must obey the law and are subject to the same laws. This principle is contrasted to the "rule of men," in which those in power make up the rules as they please. The rule of law requires an independent judiciary that is immune from political or other manipulation.
Stare Decisis
Latin: "Let the precedent (decision) stand." The doctrine that a court should follow the previous decisions of other courts on cases in which the facts are substantially the same. This principle plays a key role in common law systems such as those of Britain and the United States.
Writ of Habeas Corpus
Latin: "You shall/should have the body." A court order directing that a prisoner be brought to court before a judge to determine whether that prisoner's detention is lawful.

6. Roots of English Government
After fall of Roman Empire, England divided into tribes
1066 – William the Conquer unites tribes into a single Kingdom. (Establishes Feudalism)
English monarch
Made laws
Supervised law enforcement
Heard court cases
Defended the kingdom
The kings advisers evolved into
Parliament & the Royal court

7. Parliamentary Government Begins
Edward I summons “Model Parliament”
2 Representative Parts (Houses)
House of Lords: Nobility & Church officials
House of Commons: Citizens & Knights (w/ wealth & status)
For monarchs, Parliament was a convenient way to negotiate with all of the country’s interests at once
English subjects found it to be an effective way to voice grievances & limit monarchs power

8. The Development of “Common Law”
William the Conqueror creates a common law for entire kingdom
Judges must publish decisions (creates precedents)
This system gives predictability and stability to laws

9. The “Rights of Englishmen”
Magna Carta (1215) – King John signs a charter that confirmed certain traditional rights
Rule of Law
Every member of society (even Monarch) must obey laws
Outlaws arbitrary government
Basic Rights
Establishes compensation for loss or wrong done to those if the Crown infringes on their common law rights
Government by Contract
Established principle of drawing up agreements between parties as a basis for legitimate government (Magna Carta)

10. The British Constitution
Not a single document, instead consists of common law, important acts of Parliament, and tradition.
Important documents include Magna Carta (1215), Petition of Right (1628), English Bill of Rights (1689).
Habeas Corpus established
Government must justify why a person is held in custody.
Limits government from jailing persons arbitrarily or indefinitely

11. English Bill of Rights Influences on Founders Rule of Law
Restate idea in Magna Carta that rule of law is the foundation of limited government
Representative Government
Only representative government is legitimate
Americans reject representation by social classes, instead favoring the idea of social equality

12. Lesson 5:     What Basic Ideas about Rights and Constitutional Government Did Colonial Americans Hold?

13. Lesson 5 Purpose
This lesson describes how basic ideas of Constitutional government were developed and used in the American colonies before independence.
It also explains how social and economic conditions in America sometimes required old ideas about government to be adapted or discarded.
Occasionally the colonists needed to create entirely new institutions.

14. Lesson 5 Terms & Concepts
Charter
A written document from a government or ruler that grants certain rights to an individual, group, organization, or to people in general. In colonial times, a charter granted land to a person or company along with the right to found a colony on that land.
Constituent
A person represented by an elected official.
Covenant
A binding agreement made by two or more persons or parties. In Protestant churches during the Reformation, a covenant was an agreement made in the sight of God. The Mayflower Compact was such a covenant.
Indentured Servant
A person who voluntarily sold his or her labor for a set period of time in return for the cost of passage to the American colonies. Indentured servants provided the most important source of labor in the colonies in the seventeenth century and for a large part of the eighteenth century.

15. Lesson 5 Terms & Concepts (Continued)
Magistrate
A lower-level judicial officer, usually elected in urban areas, who handles traffic violations, minor criminal offenses, and civil suits involving small amounts of money. More generally, magistrate means public official.
Mayflower Compact
An agreement to form a political body signed on November 21, 1620, by all adult males aboard the Mayflower before the ship landed in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The signers agreed to submit to "just and equal Laws" put into effect under the compact "for the general good of the Colony."
Suffrage
The right to vote.

16. Lesson 5 Objectives
Describe the early development of America’s traditions of constitutional government.
Explain why American colonists attached special importance to such constitutional principles as written guarantees of basic rights and representative government.
Evaluate, take, and defend position on
The differences between life in colonial American and in England during the same period.
The relationship between natural rights theory and slavery in America
How natural rights philosophy and history help to explain the colonists’ views of the proper role of government.

17. Colonial Settlements = Constitutional Experiments
England provided two incentive plans for settlers
Royal Proprietorship (11 of 13 colonies)
Land given to friends of the king
Proprietors then found ways to lure settlers to their colony
Joint-Stock Company (Virginia)
Land given to companies in order to generate profits (business)
Mayflower Compact
Pilgrims lay foundation for Massachusetts gov’t
Early example of social contract theory

18. The Unique American Experience
Higher wages and more land available
Colonists ignore many English land customs (primogeniture: land passed down to eldest son)
Wealth & family name did not mean automatic success. Ambition & hard work as, if not more, important.
The chance to improve one’s life became a fundamental ideal of America.

19. The Rights of Colonial Charters
Many royal charters (written document that grants rights) echo ideals of Magna Carta
Tradition of expressing rights in writing became an essential part of American constitutions
Examples of rights granted
Habeas Corpus
Trial by Jury
Right to own property
Avoid self-incrimination
Free from cruel & unusual
punishment

20. Whose Rights Were Excluded?
In some colonies the following rights were restricted
Only Protestant White Men can vote
Women not granted political rights
½ to 2/3 immigrants were indentured servants (similar to slavery until period of indenture ended)
Native Americans treated as foreigners, often removed from land
African slavery
% of population
Treated as property, denied basic human rights

21. Colonial Ideas of Constitutional Gov’t
Fundamental Rights
Started as fundamental rights of Englishmen
Developed into protections under natural rights philosophy
Rule of Law
Government official must obey the laws and could not exercise power arbitrarily
Separation of Powers
Legislatures – Make laws
Governors - Enforce laws
Courts – Interpret laws

22. Colonial Governments: More Representative Than Britain?
Property requirements for voting
Land in American relatively easily to obtain, so % of eligible voters larger than in England
Colonial legislatures served shorter terms, meaning more voter choice
Members of colonial legislatures needed to live in the district they represented, unlike England