ROOTS OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY OUR ENGLISH HERITAGE In feudal times English Noblemen were given land if they pledged to support the King. In return the Nobles gave Kings: armies, equipment and taxes to support wars. In 1215 the Nobles rebelled.

Magna Carta King John was forced, by the Nobles, to sign an agreement that limited his own power and gave some rights to the nobles. King John admitted that his power had limits.

Parliament Henry III followed John to the throne. He met regularly with a group of Nobles and church officials. This group of advisors grew into a lawmaking body by the late 1300’s. The King still ruled England but the Parliament made most day to day decisions. Eventually divided into two groups or houses (House of Lords and House of Commons)

Petition of Right 1628 King Charles asked for money from Parliament and was turned down. He began to oppress anyone who openly disagreed with him. Parliament reacted by passing the Petition of Right which granted basic rights to the people in exchange for money for the King.

Petition of Right People were granted: No taxes without consent of Parliament No imprisonment without trial No “quartering soldiers” No martial law in time of peace

English Bill of Rights 1689 (a time of great unrest) Parliament removed King James II and installed William and Mary of Orange (why is this important?) To ensure power the English Bill of Rights was written. Laws, taxes, army all were placed under the Parliament’s control and a list of basic rights established.

The Colonies English citizens left their country to settle in America Colonies established. 1607 Jamestown was the first settlement, set up a representative body to make rules. 1620 Pilgrims landed at Plymouth in what is now New England Signed an agreement called the Mayflower Compact. The men would vote on decisions.

Colonial Governments By 1773 Thirteen Colonies were established. Each colony had it’s own government. Colonial governments included a legislative body. (like Parliament)

British taxes The American Colonies grew and prospered. In the 1750’s and 60’s American Colonists and British soldiers defeated the French in what became known as the French-Indian War. (George Washington and many others fought in this war)

British Taxes The French-Indian War was long and expensive for England. Parliament levied taxes on the Colonies to pay for it. The Colonists resented British taxes because they didn’t have a representative in Parliament. Colonists protested taxes and boycotted British products.

More taxes In 1773, as a result of a Tax on tea, some colonists threw tons of tea into Boston harbor. (Boston Tea Party) To show it was in control, Parliament passed the Coercive Acts. We called them Intolerable.

Intolerable Acts The Intolerable Acts Closed the port of Boston Took away trial by jury Allowed soldiers to enter homes without warrants Made public assembly illegal Colonists banded together to protest.

First Continental Congress To fight the Intolerable Acts representatives from 12 colonies met together in 1774. They decided to send a letter to King George III demanding rights be restored (and to boycott again) Also, decided to meet again if things didn’t get better in a year

Second Continental Congress The King refused to give in. Later that year colonial militias and British soldiers shot at each other in the towns of Lexington and Concord. 1775 delegates assembled in Philadelphia for a Second Continental Congress. Some wanted Independence some wanted to reconcile with England

The Declaration of Independence After a year a committee was formed to write a formal declaration of American independence. Thomas Jefferson was the main writer (Took many ideas from English Philosopher John Locke) Called for a new form of government, equal rights and listed the grievances against the king.

The Declaration of Independence Jefferson believed that because of a “long train of abuses” that the British government no longer had authority over the colonies. On July 4th 1776 delegates signed and pledged “their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor”