EOC Concept 2 Describe the historical foundations of the U.S. governmental system

1600s English system of government (principles) At the heart of the English system were two principles: 1. Limited government 2. Representative government Both greatly influenced the development of the United States

Limited Government Idea: “Government is not all-powerful” Accepted as part of the English system First appeared in Magna Carta

Limited Government Magna Carta, also know as the Great Charter 1. King John was forced to sign in established the principle of limited gov’t (power of monarch, or gov’t, was limited, NOT ABSOLUTE!!) 3. Provided protection against unjust punishment (and loss of life, liberty, property except according to law) IDEA: continued in the 5 th Amendment 4. King agreed that certain taxes couldn’t be levied without popular consent

Representative Government People elect delegates to make laws and conduct government. English parliament (representative gov’t) 1295-power to enact laws two-chamber (bicameral) structure Upper chamber- legislative body (House of Lords) appointed by monarch Lower chamber-included commoners (House of Commons) elected by the people Each house can check the work of the other The head of the British gov’t is the prime minister chosen from the political party that holds the most seats (Commons)

Petition of Right While Parliament maintained influence, strong monarchs dominated England Charles I dissolved Parliament Charles I called Parliament back into session Representatives forced the king to sign the Petition of Right

Petition of Right Severely limited king’s power. The king couldn’t: 1. collect taxes without Parliament’s consent 2. imprison people without just cause 3. house troops in private homes without permission of owner 4. declare martial law unless country was at war

English Bill of Rights Parliament removed James II from the throne and crowned William III and Mary II Transition of power known as the Glorious Revolution

English Bill of Rights-1689 Set limits on what a ruler could and could not do Applied to the American colonists (English subjects)

English Bill of Rights Key ideas: (1)Monarchs do not have a divine right to rule. They rule with the consent of the people’s representatives in Parliament (2) The monarch must have Parliament’s consent to suspend law, levy taxes, or maintain an army (3) The monarch cannot interfere with parliamentary elections and debates (4) The people have the right to petition the gov’t and have a fair and speedy trial by a jury of their peers (5) The people should not be subject to cruel and unusual punishments or to excessive fines and bail.

English Bill of Rights A Major cause of the American revolution was that the colonists felt they were deprived of these rights. Created to strengthen the protections of the Magna Carta

The Enlightenment Eighteenth-century philosophers influenced the framers of the Constitution. Ideas of John Locke Reasoned that all people were born free, equal, and independent. Believed that people possessed natural rights to life, liberty, and property Argued that if a government failed to protect their natural rights, the people could change that gov’t

The Enlightenment Locke denied that people were born with an obligation to obey their rulers: “Freedom of [people] under government is to have a standing rule to live by…made by the legislative power vested in it; a liberty to follow [one’s] own will in all things, when the rule prescribes not, and not to be subject to the inconstant, uncertain, unknown, arbitrary will of another…” -John Locke, 1690

The Enlightenment Meaning of the quote: Government was legitimate only as long as people continued to consent to it. Declaration of Independence and the Constitution reflect Locke’s ideas