Thinking About GovernmentNo More King

Unit 2: SSCG1, SSCG2

Our Political Beginnings

• The beginnings of the United States can be found when explorers, traders, and settlers first made their way into North America.

• It was the English who came in the largest numbers and it was the English who controlled the 13 colonies that stretched for 1,300 miles along the Atlantic Coast.

Basic Concepts of Government

• English settlers brought century old knowledge of political system (established laws, customs, practices, and institutions) with them.

• 3 Types of Government brought by the English:– Ordered Government– Limited Government– Representative Government

Ordered Government

• Orderly regulation of relationships• Local governments• Established offices and units of government– Office of sheriff– Coroner– Assessor – Justice of the peace– Grand jury– Counties– Townships

Limited Government

• Idea that government is not all-powerful• Limited government: – Government is restricted in what it may do and

each individual has certain rights that government cannot take away

Representative Government

• Representative Government:– The idea that government should serve the will of

the people • People should have a voice in deciding what

government should and should not do.• “Government of, by, and for the people”

Landmark English Documents• Basic ideas of ordered government, limited government,

and representative government can be found in several English documents:– Magna Carta– The Petition of Right– The English Bill of Rights

• The American Nation has built on, changed, and added to those ideas and institutions that settlers brought here from England.

• Much of American government and politics today is based on these early English ideas.

The Magna Carta

• Magna Carta:– established that the power of the monarch was not

absolute and guaranteed trial by jury and due process of law to the nobility.

• A group of determined barons forced King John to sign• Signed at Runnymede in 1215• Barons were seeking protection against heavy taxes

and military campaigns• Respected by some monarchs but ignored by others

for 400 years

The Petition of Right• Petition of Right:

– 1628– Parliament forced King Charles to sign– Limited the king’s power – demanded that the king no longer imprison or punish any person

but by the lawful judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land– Insisted that the king not impose martial law (rule by the military)

in time of peace, or require homeowners to shelter the king’s troops without their consent

– People shouldn’t be taxed without consent of parliament– Challenged the divine right of kings– Declared that even a monarch must obey the law of the land

The English Bill of Rights

• 1689• Parliament drew up this document to be signed by

William and Mary of Orange in order to prevent abuse of power

• Prohibited a standing army in peace time (except with the consent of Parliament)

• Guaranteed right to a fair trial• Freedom from excessive bail• Freedom from cruel and unusual punishment

The English Colonies• 13 Colonies were established separately, over a span of 125 years• Georgia was the last colony to be formed, with the settlement of

Savannah in 1733• Georgia was founded largely as a haven for debtors • Each colony was established on the basis of a charter• Charter:

– A written grant of authority from the king• 3 Different Kinds of Colonies:

– Royal– Proprietary– Charter

Royal Colonies

• Subject to the direct control of the crown• On the eve of the revolution there were 8 Royal

Colonies: New Hampshire, Massachusetts, NY, NJ, Virginia, NC, SC, & GA

• King named a governor• King named a council (bicameral-two house)– Upper house of the legislature– Lower house of legislature was elected by qualified

property owners

The Proprietary Colonies• By 1775 there were 3 Proprietary Colonies: Maryland,

Pennsylvania, & Delaware• Organized by a proprietor (person whom the king had made a

grant of land)(1632 king granted Maryland to Lord Baltimore, 1681 king granted Pennsylvania to William Penn – in 1682 he also received Delaware.

• Charter granted that the land could be settled/governed as much as the owner chose

• Governor was appointed by the proprietor• Unicameral legislature: In Pennsylvania the legislature was

unicameral (one-house) Maryland and Delaware were bicameral (two-house)

Political Philosophers

• Thomas Hobbes (1611-1677)– First to develop the social contract theory– A ruler with absolute authority helps end conflicts– Government is based on negotiation between ruler

and ruled.– People cannot break this agreement once it is

established.– Wrote Leviathan

• Proposes the idea of a state of nature in which people have a right to everything

Political Philosophers

• John Locke (1632-1704)– Expanded the ideas of Hobbes– Wrote Two Treatises of Government– Government rules by consent of the governed.– If government does not meet the people’s needs, they

can change it.– All persons are guaranteed natural rights (life, liberty,

property). – All persons are born free, equal, and independent.– Natural Rights Theory

Political Philosophers

• Baron de Montesquieu– Best government for a group depends on that

group.– Political authority is divided into executive,

legislative, and judicial powers.– Government does not have to be permanent.– Wrote The Spirit of Laws

Social Contract Theory

• Social Contract Theory– By contract, people surrender to the state of the power

needed to maintain order. – Argues that the state arose out of a voluntary act of

free people.– State exists only to serve the will of the people, that

they are the soul source of political power. • Created by Thomas Hobbes– Believed people were born evil and needed

government to keep them from destroying each other.