Chapter 2 Lecture Notes
1. Question to be answered:
a. How did American colonist benefit from a developing English tradition of ordered, limited, and representative government? Including landmark documents, including the Magna Carta, the Petition of Right, and the English Bill of Rights.
b. What are the three types of colonial Governments and how were they organized?
i. Other terms to be included that you will need to know:
1. Charter, bicameral, proprietary, unicameral
I. Origins of American Government
a. Constitution grew out of a long heritage of law and politics
b. Beginnings
i. Found in the mid-sixteenth century
1. Explorers, traders, and settlers
2. French, Dutch, Spanish, Swedes, and others contributed
3. English came in the largest numbers
a. Controlled the 13 colonies
b. 1,300 miles along the Atlantic Coast
c. Concepts of Government
i. Brought from England
ii. Ordered Government
1. Orderly regulation of their relationships with one another for Gov’t
2. Created local Gov’t
a. Resembled England
b. Office of Sheriff, coroner, assessor, and justice of the peace, grand jury, counties, townships.
iii. Limited Government
1. Idea that Gov’t is not all powerful
2. Government should be restricted in what they do
3. Individuals have certain rights that the governments cannot take away
4. Started with Jamestown
iv. Representative Government
1. Government should serve the will of the people
2. People should have a voice deciding what the government should or should not do.
3. Idea of “Government of, by, and for the people”
d. Documents leading to the creation of the United States Government.
i. Can be traced to several landmark documents in English history
1. Magna Carta
a. Barons forced King John to sign the Magna Carta
b. Barons created the Magna Carta, weary of King John’s military campaigns and heavy taxes, seeked protection against the acts of the king.
c. Included fundamental rights
i. Trial by jury, due process of law, protection against the arbitrary taking of life, liberty, or property
2. Petition of Right
a. 1628 Charles I asked Parliament for money in taxes, Parliament refused until he signed the Petition of Right
b. Limited the king’s power
i. King could no longer imprison or punish any person but by lawful judgment of his peers. ALTERNATIVELY, by the law of the land, king could no longer use martial law in a time of peace, or require homeowners to shelter the king’s troops without their consent.
3. English Bill of Rights
a. In 1688 after years of revolt and turmoil, Parliament offered the crown to William and Mary of Orange.
i. This time period is known as the Glorious Revolution
ii. To avoid future turmoil, Parliament drew up a list of provisions that William and Mary had to agree
iii. Known as the English Bill of Rights
iv. Prohibited a standing army in peace time, except with consent of Parliament, and require that all Parliamentary elections be free
v. Right to a fair trial, freedom from excessive bail
e. The English Colonies are the first attempt to establish the Government
i. 13 colonies were established separately
ii. Each colony was established on the basis of a charter
1. Written grant of authority from the king
2. First colony, Virginia was founded with the first permanent English settlement in North America at Jamestown in 1607
a. Organized as a commercial venture, first colonist were employees of the Virginia Company, a private trading company
3. Massachusetts was first settled by people who wanted greater personal and religious freedom
4. Georgia was the last to be formed.
5. Similarities between the colonies far out wade the differences.
iii. There are THREE TYPES of Colonies
1. ROYAL COLONIES
a. Direct Control o f the Crown
b. 1775 there were 8
c. Virginia was not as successful as what it’s sponsors had hoped so the king revoked its charter and it became the first royal colony
d. Royal Colony Set-up
i. King named a governor
1. Served as the colony’s chief executive
ii. King named a council, advisory body of the royal government
1. Eventually became the upper house
a. Became the highest court in the colony
2. Lower house of the BICAMERAL (two-house) legislature was elected by those property owners qualified to vote.
iii. HOW were laws passed?
1. Laws passed had to be approved by the governor and the crown
a. Ruled harshly
2. PROPRIETARY COLONIES
a. Three
b. Organized by a proprietor
i. Person who the king had made a grant of land by charter
ii. Land could be settled and governed
c. Government was like the Royal Colony
i. Legislature Maryland and Delaware legislatures were bicameral
ii. Legislature Pennsylvania legislature was UNICAMERAL
1. One house body
2. Governors council did not act as one house of the legislature
3. CHARTER COLONIES
a. Connecticut and Rhode Island
i. Largely Self-Governed
ii. Kings approval was required before governor could take office. It was not often asked
iii. How did they pass laws
1. Laws made by their bicameral legislatures were not subject to the governor’s veto not was the crowns approval needed.
iv. Judges in charter colonies were appointed by the legislature
2. How did Britain become more involved with the colonies in the 1760’s and how did the colonists react to the changes in British policies.
a. Each Colony was separately controlled under the King
i. Helped through Privy Council and the Board of Trade in London
b. Parliament took little interest in the Colony’s
i. Why was this case?
ii. Each Colonial legislature began to assume broad lawmaking powers
1. Found the Power of the purse to be effective
1. What does this mean?
1. Made a royal governor their way by not voting for the money to pay his salary
iii. 1700’s the colonies had become in general a Federal Government
1. Meaning the Central Government in London was responsible for colonial defense and for foreign affairs
2. Uniform system of money, credit, and trade.
3. Beyond this the colony’s were allowed to self-rule
1. Little was taken in direct taxes
iv. George III COMES ALONG
1. Suffers from a disease called Porphyria
1. A blood disorder (a disease that makes you rely on drinking another persons blood to survive?
2. Effects the nerve endings and sometimes they do not work at all
3. In George III case it is a maddening disease
2. Comes to the throne in 1760
1. Britain began to deal with the colonies more harshly.
2. Restrictive Trading acts were expanded
3. New Taxes were imposed
3. Colonists take exception
1. Taxation without representation
2. They did think of themselves as royal subjects of the crown
1. Did not agree with British Parliament
3. England was poorly informed of the actions that would take place in American
1. Kings Ministers were stubborn and poorly informed
2. Within years colonists faced a choice SUBMIT or VETO
c. Explain why the colonies planned the first continental congress and what took place. What were the successes and failures to the first meeting? How did the first continental congress lead to the second continental congress? What important people attended?
i. Early attempts to revolt
1. 1643 Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth, New Haven, and Connecticut formed the NEW ENGLAND CONFEDERATION
1. Confederation is a joining of several groups for a common purpose.
2. Formed a “League of Friendship”
1. Defense against the Native Americans
2. As fear of Native Americans decreased the league dissolved
2. ALBANY PLAN
1. 1754, British board of trade called for a meeting of seven of the northern colonies at Albany
1. Connecticut, Maryland, Mass, New Hampshire, New York, Penn, and Rhode Island
2. Purpose to discuss the problems of colonial trade and the danger of attacks by the French and Native American allies.
3. Benjamin Franklin; offered the Albany Plan of Union
1. Proposed formation of annual congress of delegates (representatives) from each colony
2. Power to raise military, naval forces, make war and peace, regulate trade, tax, collect customs.
3. Agreed on by representatives attending the meeting
1. Turned down by the colonies and the crown
3. Stamp Act Congress
1. Nine colonies excepts Georgia, New Hampshire, North Carolina, and Virginia
2. Rebelled to the harsh tax and trade policies placed on by Britain
3. Stamp act of 1765 required the use of tax stamps on all legal documents, certain business agreements, and on newspapers.
1. Complained taxation without representation
4. Delegates
1. Prepared a strong protest, called the DECLARATION OF RIGHTS and GRIEVANCES against the new British policies and sent it to the king
5. Parliament
1. Repealed the Stamp Act
2. New laws were passed and new policies were made connecting the colonies to England
3. Colonist fight back with boycotts
1. Refusal to buy or sell certain products or services
2. March 5th, 1770 British troops in Boston open fire on a jeering crowd, killing five
1. Became known as Boston Massacre
3. Organized resistance
1. Samual Adams and the COMMITTEES OF CORRESPONDENCE
2. Formed a way to communicate with each other
4. Protests multiplied
1. Famous Boston Tea Party December 16th 1773
ii. First Continental Congress
1. Spring of 1774, Parliament passed another set of laws
d. What was the outcome of the second continental congress?
e. Other terms to be included:
i. Confederation, Albany Plan of Union, delegate, boycott, repeal, and popular sovereignty.
3. What did the Second Continental Congress create? Explain the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation. With all of the chaos that is going on in trying to find its own identity, how did the movement for change towards a more powerful government occur at the Constitutional Convention?
a. Other terms to be included: Ratification, presiding officer
i. This time period is known as the “The Critical Period”
ii. First and Second Continental Congress had NO legal bases.
i. They were intended to be temporary
B. Started with The Articles of Confederation
a. Richard Henry Lee
i. Proposed “A Plan of confederation”
1. Considered the problems of uniting the former colonies
ii. November 15, 1777 Articles of Confederation were approved
1. Established a firm league of friendship
a. Each state kept its sovereignty, freedom, and independence
b. AND Power, Jurisdiction, those not expressly delegated to the United States
iii. Ratification (Formal approval of each of the 13 states was needed
1. 11 States agreed
a. Delaware and Maryland did not ratify at first.
b. Structure of the Starting Government
i. Congress was the Sole body Created
1. Unicameral
a. Delegates chosen yearly by the states
b. Each state had one vote in congress know matter its population
ii. Articles of the starting constitution established no executive or judicial branch
1. Handled by committees of Congress.
iii. Each year congress would choose one of its members as its president
1. Known as its presiding officer (chair)
a. NOT the president of the US
c. Power of the temporary Congress
i. Make War and peace
ii. Send and receive ambassadors
iii. Make Treaties
iv. Borrow Money
v. Set up a money system
vi. build a navy
d. State Obligations to the temporary Federal Government
i. Stats pledged to obey the Articles and acts of the Congress
1. Provide funds and troops requested by Congress
2. Treat citizens from other states fairly
3. Surrender fugitives
e. Weaknesses
i. Federalist= Stressed that the difficulties could only be overcome by a new government based on the proposed Constitution.
ii. Anti-federalist= Attacked every part of the new document.
1. Wanted the word God to be added.
2. The greatly increased powers of the central government
a. Lack of a bill of rights
i. Proposed document did not provide for such basic liberties as freedom of speech, press, and religion.
ii. Fair trial
4. Who attended at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, who was not there? Explain why the Virginia Plan was as well and the New Jersey plan including their similarities and difference with both. What was the outcome of the Constitutional Convention?
a. Other terms to be included:
i. Framers, Connecticut Compromise, Three-Fifths Compromise, Commerce and slave trade
b. It was Hot, Windows were closedSoldiers kept guard outside
c. The Framers WHO established the Government that still guides us TODAY!
i. All but Rhode Island attended
ii. “Never before or since has so remarkable a group been brought together.
1. Later called the demo-gods
iii. 74 Delegates were chosen “Were they elected”
iv. The group who attended the convention in Philadelphia were known as delegates
1. Average age 42
2. Most served in the war
3. James Madison, Gouverneur Morris, Edmund Randolph, and Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin oldest at 81, George Washington 55
4. May 25 Elected George Washington president of the convention
1. Then they decided each state delegation would have one vote.
d. Organization and the Procedure
i. Met at Independence hall in Philadelphia
1. Same room the Declaration of Independence was signed 11 years earlier
e. Worked in secrecy
i. Drew much public attention
ii. William Jackson Kept the convention journal
1. Not very accurate
iii. James Madison’s voluminous NOTES.
1. Became the floor leader
2. Contributed more to the constitution then all others.
3. Titles “Father of the Constitution”
iv. Framers met 89 of 116 days
1. Final meeting on September 17
f. The HUGE Decision
i. Philadelphia convention was called to revise the Articles of Confederation
ii. They knew from the start they would be creating a NEW government for the United States
iii. They would replace the Articles of Confederation
g. The Virginia Plan
i. Largely the work of Madison “Virginia Plan”
1. Called for a new government
1. Three separate branches
1. Legislature
1. Would be Bicameral
2. Population was based on two things
1. Amount of money given to the central government
2. Population
3. Lower House
1. House of Representatives
2. Popularly elected in each state
4. Upper House
1. Senate chose by the House from a list of persons nominated by the State Legislatures.
2. Executive
3. Judicial
2. Congress would choose a “National Executive” and a “National Judiciary”
1. Formed a “Council of Revision”
1. Could veto acts of Congress
1. Veto could be override by the two houses.
3. Virginia plan would create a New Constitution
4. Goal was a true National Government
5. Smaller States did not like it.
h. New Jersey Plan
i. Paterson of New Jersey
1. Retained the Unicameral Congress of the Confederation
1. Each state had equal Representation
2. Called for a Federal Executive of more than one person
1. Approved by the congress and could be removed with a majority vote.
3. Federal Judiciary
1. Composed of a single “Supreme Tribunal” appointed by the executive.
ii. Among the major differences in each plan the main sticking point
1. How should the States be represented in Congress?
1. Would it be based on population or financial contributions as with the Virginia Plan
2. Would it be based on the states equality
iii. There needed to be a Compromise
1. Large states expected to dominate the new government
2. Small states feared they would not be able to protect their interest.
i. Connecticut Compromise
i. Congress was composed of two houses
1. Smaller Senate states were represented equally
2. In the House, the representation of each state would be based on population
ii. The Connecticut Compromise was so vital in the writing of our Constitution it has been called the Great Compromise.
iii. Three-Fifths Compromise
1. One it had been agreed that the houses seats would be based on population the questions arose:
1. Should slaves have the right to vote or be counted
2. Southern states said they should be counted
3. Northern states did not want them to be counted
4. Framers agreed to a 3/5 compromise
1. All free people should be counted
2. All others will be counted as 3/5’s of a person
1. For the 3/5’s won by the southern states the northern states would get money.
5. To sum up the 3/5 Compromise, southern states could count slaves but had to pay for them.
6. 3/5 Compromise disappeared with the adoption of the 13th amendment, which abolished slavery.
iv. Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise
1. Convention also gave Congress the power to regulate foreign and interstate trade.
1. Southern states feared the north would act against the interest of the agricultural south
2. Feared the new government would try to pay for itself out of export duties. (Tobacco was the major export.
2. Southerners insisted on certain protections
1. Commerce and Slave Trade Compromise
1. Congress was forbidden the power to tax the exports of goods from any state
2. Forbid the power to act on slave trade for 20 years
v. The framers used many sources
1. To form the new Federal Government
2. Rousseau’s Social Contract Theory
3. John Locke’s Two treaties of Government
vi. “Committee of Stile”
1. Was organized to revise the stile of and arrange the articles which were agreed.
5. How did the Federalist feel about the Constitution? How did the Anti-Federalist feel about the constitution and what were their actions? Where did the first Congress Convene? Who was inaugurated as the first president?
i. Other terms to be included;
ii. Quorum
b. Two groups emerge out of each state
i. Federalist
1. Favored ratification
2. Many of the people who helped frame the constitution
3. stressed the weaknesses of the Articles and the only way to fix the republic was only by a new government.
ii. Anti-Federalist
1. Opposed it
2. Attacked nearly everything
3. Objected to the ratification process
4. Absence of the mention of God
5. States could not print money
6. Two major issues
1. Increased powers of the central government
2. Lack of a bill of rights
1. Did not provide liberties such as; freedom of speech, press, and religion
iii. 9 States Ratify
1. As states ratified there were many debates
2. The 11th State New York gave rise to the document
1. The “Federalist”
1. Collection of essays 85 essays supporting the constitution
1. Written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay
2. Considered some of the best political writings in the English language.