Roots of American Democracy

1. Roots of American Democracy Civics Chapter 2

2. Henry III Henry III met with a group of nobles and church official on a regular basis. They advised the king and helped to govern The group�s meetings were called parler from the French word meaning �to talk� Parliament

3. Henry III By the 1300�s, Parliament had developed into a legislature. That is a group of people who make laws for a state or country. Parliament started out as one group, but eventually split into two groups.

4. Henry III The upper house called the House of Lords grew out of the nobles who advised the King The lower house called the House of Commons was made up of representatives of the towns and counties This arrangement divided government between two houses of Parliament

5. The Glorious Revolution The role of Parliament changed once again in 1600 during the rule of James II England went through a time of great unrest. They even removed King James from power!

6. The Glorious Revolution The throne was offered to William and Mary When parliament did this, they demonstrated that its power was greater than the King�s. From this time on, the power of Parliament would come from English citizens.

7. The Glorious Revolution To make sure that no king or queen would ever question the legislature�s right to govern, Parliament drew up a Bill of Rights. This gave Parliament the sole power to make laws, to raise taxes, and to control the army. It also set up a system of elections by which representatives to Parliament would be chosen.

8. Unwritten Constitution The government of England never had its rules written down. There were the documents such as the Magna Carta and English Bill of Rights that helped to shape the government But no document contained a master plan for government.

9. Common Law The day-today- laws people live by can be unwritten as well. If enough people follow a certain law, then that law exists, even if no legislature ever voted on it or wrote it down. Since nothing was written down, when cases came in front of a court, judges were asked to look at precedent- a ruling in an earlier case that was similar.

10. Common Law This system of law, based on precedent is known as common law. An important aspect of common law was that it was consistent.

11. Roots of American Democracy Today our laws about property, contracts, and personal injury are based on English Common Law. This was the English heritage. It includes the ideas: That the ruler is not above the law People should have a say in government Citizens have a basic right that is protected by law

12. Bell Ringer Get out your workbook sheets. ANSWER THIS QUESTIONS: Give an example of a precedent. Come up with your own situation or example of a precedent.

13. The Colonial Experience

14. The Colonial Experience A colony is a group of people in one place who are ruled by the government of another place. When English citizens left their country to settle in America, they were called colonists.

15. The Colonial Experience They lived in America but were still under the rule of Parliament. For most practical purposes, the colonists were beyond the reach of their home government. If the colonists committed crimes, there were no English police or courts. If Parliament was looking a a new law, there was no way for American colonists to have their opinion heard.

16. The Colonial Experience For these reasons, the English colonists in America could not depend on Parliament. They would have to learn to govern themselves.

17. The House of Burgesses In 1607 a group of English colonists arrived in what is present day Virginia. They would found Jamestown, which became the first permanent English settlement.

18. The House of Burgesses In 1619, the people of Jamestown took steps to deal with pressures. Colonists from each town or plantation would choose two representatives called Burgesses. These 22 men would form the Jamestown House of Burgesses. It had very little power and solved very few problems.

19. The Mayflower Compact In 1620 a new group of settlers arrived in America. The Plymouth settlers drew up a plan for government to direct the colony. Even before their ship, The Mayflower reached America, the document was signed; a document called the Mayflower Compact.

20. The Mayflower Compact A compact is an agreement, or contract, made among a group of people. The Mayflower Compact said: The government would make just and equal laws (for men) Signers would pledge to obey the laws Set up a direct democracy All men would rule and a majority rules Town meetings- citizens gather to discuss and vote on issues that mattered to them

21. Other Colonial Government By 1733 the colonial settlements grew into colonies. Each new colony set up its own government Each colony had Governor voted on or appointed by the King Legislature

22. British or American?? As the years past, the colonial government took on more power and responsibility. The British colonists were living as Americans They were building Towns Churches Roads Hospitals Fire departments

23. British or American?? They built a thriving economy and learned they could settle their own problems without the help of Britain. At first the British government was content at leaving the colonies alone. But as the colonies grew more successful, Great Britain saw them as a source of great wealth. In the mid-1700s the action of Parliament led to a series of events that made some colonists see themselves as real Americans.

24. Towards Independence

25. Money in the Colonies During the law 1600s and 1700s, the government of Great Britain followed a policy of mercantilism.

26. Mercantilism The theory that a country should sell more goods to other countries than it buys. The British thought this would bring wealth. This wealth would then be used to develop the nation�s industry and navy. For the policy to work, Britain needed a source of cheap materials with which to manufacture goods. So after ignoring the American colonies for many years, the British government began to realize the value of the colonies.

27. Taxes When George III took the throne, British policy was to squeeze as much wealth as possible out of America. Parliament passed a series of laws that required the colonies to sell raw materials to Britain at low prices. The colonists also had to buy British goods at higher prices.

28. Taxes The situation became worse. After 1763 Britain fought a long, expensive war with France and had gone into debt. To pay its heavy war debts, Britain began to place heavy taxes on the American colonies.

29. Taxes Example of the taxes: Stamp Act- colonists had to attach expensive tax stamps to newspapers and legal documents

30. Taxes �No taxation without representation� What does this mean?

31. Taxes Many colonists took action by boycotting, or the refusing to buy all British goods. The boycott had its intended effect: Parliament repealed the Stamp Act

32. Taxes This did not help the situation. Parliament passed a new series of laws, which the American called the Intolerable Acts They allowed for the constricting of the colonists� rights (no trial by jury); Quartering Act where British troops lived in American homes

33. The First Continental Congress The government bonded together to fight the Intolerable Acts In 1774, 12 colonies sent delegates to a meeting in Philadelphia It became known as the First Continental Congress

34. The First Continental Congress A congress is a formal meeting at which delegates discussed matters of concern The First Continental Congress lasted 7 weeks

35. The First Continental Congress They sent a letter to the king stating: The rights of the colonists need to be restored They also planned to extend the boycott of English goods

36. The First Continental Congress The king refused to meet their demand and decided to use force In 1775 there were two battles at Lexington and Concord More and more people were talking about independence.

37. The Push for Independence Independence means self reliance and freedom from outside control; self government Samuel Adams had long insisted in independence. Now it was being pushed for by Ben Franklin

38. The Push for Independence These men formed the Second Continental Congress They met in Philadelphia in the year 1775 Not everyone thought it was a good idea. Why??? The Congress soon saw it needed to be independent. A committee was formed to create a document that would announce our independence.

39. The Declaration of Independence The work was done almost entirely by one man- Thomas Jefferson It said all Americans had the right to be independent.

40. The Declaration of Independence Not al the ideas came from Jefferson. Jean-Jacques Rousseau- all people were created equal, no one had power over another person John Locke- natural rights

41. The Declaration of Independence The Declaration of Independence argued that the British government did not look after the interests of the colonies nor protect their rights. For this reason, the British government was no longer the rightful government.

42. The Declaration of Independence Congress approved the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. The colonies were independent in theory. The war with Great Britain had just began.

43. The Nation�s First Governments

44. What to replace it with? The Declaration of Independence did not declare America to be a single country. The 13 colonies became 13 separate countries each with its own set of laws and government. They called themselves �states.�

45. What to replace it with? At the time, the idea of separate, independent states appealed to most Americans. They were uninterested in creating a large central government of their own.