1. C.2 SECTION 2

2.  Many of the rights that American citizens enjoy can be traced back to the political and legal traditions of England  Before the British arrived in America, England Was ruled by a Monarchy, or king And queen The monarch had much power over their daily lives.

3. parliament  King John 1215  The noble class rebelled in 1215 and forced King John to sign the Magna Carta

4.  The stipulations or the Great Charta were as follows: 1. Equal treatment under the law 2. A trial by a jury of one’s peers 3. The idea of a limited monarchy, meaning that no king or queen could have absolute power 4. Rule of law. This states that no one is above the law, not even a king or queen

5.  Henry III, who followed King John met regularly with a group of nobles and church officials  By the late 1300’s the group had grown in size and power to become a legislature, or law making body.  Parliament has had a rocky relationship with the king and queens of England. Today England has a parliamentary democracy.  The king or queen’s power is limited by the constitution.

6.  Parliament in England is made up of two houses.  The house of Lords, upper house  The house of Commons, lower house

7.  England had no written laws in its earliest days as a country.  Customs, or rules to live by, became the source of their law

8.  When a judge made a decision when no law existed, they would use precedent.  Precedent is a ruling in an earlier case that is similar to the current case.  Using precedent to make a ruling in a case is know as common law

9.  The first permanent English colony was Jamestown, VA in 1607  At first the colony was managed by a governor and council.  In 1619 the colonists chose two representatives from each community to meet with the governor and his council.  These men became know as the house of burgesses.  The House of Burgesses was the first legislature in America.  In 1624 King Charles I canceled their charter and made it a royal colony and this mean it would be controlled by the crown.

10.  The Pilgrims arrived in Massachusetts.  Even before their ship, the Mayflower, reached Plymouth the colonists realized they needed rules to govern themselves.  41 men signed the Mayflower compact.  A compact is an agreement, or contract, among a group of people.  This particular compact made sure the colonists would make “just and equal laws for the general good of the colony” and that they would “obey the laws”

11.  1. What country can we trace our political heritage to?  2. What are the stipulations of the Magna Carta? Who signed it? What year was is signed?  3.Please compare our political rights to the rights of the British.  4. What is parliament?  5. Explain how common law would be in our current judicial system.

12.  6. Where was the first permanent English settlement?  7. What is the significance of the Virginia House of Burgesses?  8.Explain how the Mayflower Compact could be a form of a direct democracy.