Bell Work:If you could create a new law, what would it be? Why?

Chapter 2.1

Our Political Beginnings:

Introduction: Colonist brought knowledge of the English

political system to North America.

Basic Concepts of Government:Early colonist brought over 3 important

ideas that helped shape our current government.

1. Ordered Government2. Limited Government3. Representative Government

Ordered Government:Those first English colonist saw the need

for an orderly regulation of their relationships with one another.

Basically, the governments rules should help people get along.

They created local governments, based on those they had in England. - ex: sheriff, coroner, justice of the peace, counties, and townships

Limited Government:The second idea early colonist brought with

them was that of limited government.Refers to the idea that government is not

all powerful. -Restricted in what it can do. -Each person has certain rights that

cannot be taken away.Idea of limited government had been

around about 400 years before the first colony was established in North America

Representative Government:Idea that the government should serve the

will of the people.People should also have a say in deciding

what the government should and should not do.

This had also been around for many years, but seemed to flourish here.

Landmark English Documents: Magna Carta (1215):

-King did not have total power.-Protected rights of :

*trial by jury*due process of law.*Arbitrary taking of life* Liberty* Property

At first these protections were intended only for the privileged classes. Over time they became the rights of all English people.

Petition of Right (1628): Limited the power of the king in many ways.

People had to be judged by their peers.King could not use military to rule during

peacetime.Soldiers could not be ordered to live in

peoples homes.People could not be forced to pay a tax,

unless approved by parliament.

English Bill of Rights (1689): Similar to our Bill of Rights.

Fair and speedy trialNo cruel and unusual punishmentFree elections

Three Types of English Colonies:Royal Colonies- Ruled directly by the king.Proprietary Colonies- Organized by an

owner whom the king had granted land.Charter Colonies- Colonist governed

themselves.

*Each colony was based on a charter. (Written grant given by king.)

*Most colonies were bicameral, meaning they had two chambers of legislature.

*Pennsylvania was unicameral meaning it only had one chamber of legislature.

Knock knock!!DaisyDAISY ME ROLLIN, THEY HATIN’

Bell Work:List and explain the 3 important ideas that colonist brought with them from England?1.2.3.

Bell Work:List the 3 types of colonies, and who was in control in each.

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2.2

The Coming of Independence:

Introduction:Great Britain became more involved in

ruling its colonies in the 1760’s. They created new taxes and laws that

caused the colonist to object to, “taxation without representation.”

These actions would eventually lead to the decision to break from Great Britain.

A decision to revolt was not one to be taken lightly-or alone. The colonies would need to learn to work together.

Growing Colonial Unity:New England Confederation

-“league of friendships”This was the first time the colonies had

formally agreed to work together. The reason they came together was to

protect against the growing danger from Native Americans.

as danger from the Native Americans passed, and friction among the settlements grew, the confederation eventually dissolved.

Albany Plan:Ben Franklin proposed a congress of

delegates from all coloniesThese delegates would have the power to:

- raise military and naval forces- make war and peace with the Native Americans- regulate trade- and tax

Both the colonies and the king rejected it.

First Continental Congress:New laws passed in Great Britain’s

Parliament, caused delegates to meet in Philadelphia.

These laws were known as the Intolerable Acts.

Urged colonist to boycott, or refuse to buy British made goods.

Hoped this would force the British to repeal, or take away their hated laws.

Second Continental Congress:Our first national government (1776-1781)

-Fought a war-Raised armies and a navy-Created a money system-Formed alliances with foreign powers.-Was unicameral. (only one house of legislature)

The Declaration of Independence:After a year of fighting, Richard Henry Lee,

proposed that the colonies become free and independent.

Special Features of the Declaration of Independence:- first paragraph announces the independence of the United States.- the rest of the document points out all of the wrong doings by King George III and the British parliament.

State Constitutions: Each state adopted a written constitution,

or a body of fundamental laws. Common Features of State Constitutions

Popular Sovereignty:

Government can exist only with consent of the people.

Limited Government:

Many restrictions on what the government could do.

Civil Rights and Liberties:

In every state it was made clear that the sovereign people held certain rights that the government must respect at all times.

Separation of Powers:

Powers granted to the new state governments were purposely divided among three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial. Each branch was given powers to check, or restrain the other branches.

Bell Work:What became known as our first national government? Was it bicameral or unicameral?

Bell Work:Explain what the first paragraph of the

Declaration of Independence did?What does the body of the Declaration of

Independence consist of?

2.3

The Critical Period:

Introduction:The Articles of Confederation established a

fairly weak central government, which led to conflicts among the States. The turmoil of the critical period of the 1780’s led to the writing of the Constitution and the creation of a stronger national government.

Articles of Confederation:The Articles of Confederation:

Established a fairly weak central government, which led to conflicts among the states.

This established “ a firm league of friendship” among the States.

The Articles were finally ratified by all 13 states in 1781

- Maryland was the last to ratify the Articles.

Government Structure:Government Structure: Unicameral,

congress was made up of delegates who were chosen yearly by the states. Each state had one vote in congress.

Presiding Officer :or president of congress was chosen by congress.

No executive or judicial branch

Powers of Congress:Powers of Congress: Although congress

was limited in power, it did have several important powers.-Make war and peace-Make treaties-Borrow, and set up money system-Build a navy, and raise an army-settle disputes among states

State Obligations:State Obligations: By agreeing to the

articles of confederation, state pledged to obey the article and acts of congress.-provide funds and troops requested by congress.

* States had to give up their war making powers.-treat citizens of other states fairly and equally.-return fugitives-allow open travel between state borders.-States would retain power that was not given to congress.

Weaknesses:Weaknesses of the Articles of

Confederation:-Congress did not have the power to tax.-Congress could not regulate trade between states.-Congress lacked the power to make states obey the Articles of Confederation.

The Critical Period:The Critical Period, the 1780’s: The

Revolutionary War ended in 1781, with the signing of the Treaty of Paris.

Although the war was over, peace brought new problems to the young nation.- States were not getting along and didn’t trust each other.-States refused to support the central government both financially and in any other way.-States set high taxes on goods from other states.

Need for a Stronger Government:The Need for a Stronger Government: The

Articles of Confederation created a government that was unable to deal with the nation’s problems.

As time passed, demand for a stronger national government grew.• Mount Vernon- Maryland and Virginia met to setting

trade disputes between the two States.• Annapolis- Meeting by all the States to handle trade

disputes. Turnout was poor, but the convention called for another meeting of the States in Philadelphia.- Goal : to revise the Article of Confederation.

A meeting of the delegates in Philadelphia later became known as the Constitutional Convention.

Bell Work:List the 3 major weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation.

2.4

Creating the Constitution:

The Framers:The Framers: Each state sent delegates to

attend the Philadelphia Convention. These delegates are known as the framers of the Constitution.

The framers were in Philadelphia to revise the articles of confederation.

Instead, they decided to write a whole new constitution.

The Virginia Plan:The Virginia Plan: (James Madison)Called for 3 branches of governmentBicameral legislature (2 houses of

government)Number of representatives each state sent

to congress was linked to wealth and population.- large heavily populated states liked this plan. - smaller populated states did not.

The New Jersey Plan:The New Jersey Plan: (William Patterson)Called for a government without strong and

separate branches.Unicameral (1 house of legislature)Representatives would be equal for all

states.- smaller populated states favored this plan.- large states did not.

Compromises:Connecticut Compromise:Combined the basic features of both the

Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan. -3 branches of government-Bicameral (Senate and House of Rep.)-Representatives in Senate = 2 for every state-Representatives in the house = based on state’s population

Three-Fifths Compromise: Because representation in congress would be

based on a states population, slaves became an issue.

Southern slave states would have more representatives in the house.- Northern states felt that since the slaves were not considered citizens, they should not be counted.

It was decided that 3/5th of slaves would be counted in a state’s population.

Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise:

The convention agreed that Congress would have the power to regulate foreign and interstate trade.-Southerners worried that Congress would act against Southern interest of the agricultural South.

*export tax on tobacco*Interfere with slave trade

Through the compromise it was agreed that:Congress could not tax a states exports.Congress could not take any actions against

slave trade for 20 years.

Sources of the Constitution:The Framers were the delegates that

helped construct the Constitution.-Most came from wealthy backgrounds.-Most were well educated on the governments of ancient Greece, Rome, and modern day Europe.-More importantly, the framers drew on their experiences with the Second Continental Congress, Articles of Confederation, and their own State governments.

Bell WorkAccording to the Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise, what couldn’t the new congress do?