DEMOCRACY IN THE NEW WORLD

1. Protestants a) Were impatient with the Old World authority.

b) Laymen insisted on their right to make decisions. c) Believed in individual judgment and autonomy.

d) Congregational democracy existed before a political democracy.

2. Ownership of Landa) In England, only white male landowners could vote (20%)b) In the American colonies this number was over 50%--why?

“Due to no titled, privileged class and a growing population, there was a slow, steady increase in ordinary people participating in political life well before the American Revolution.”—Robert Middlekauff

ENGLISH POLITICAL IDEAS IN THE COLONIES

Individual Rights

From the start, the colonists viewed themselves as having the same rights as the people of England.

They had the freedom to elect representatives and were governed by a fair and just common law. (Magna Charta)

Political Liberty

The English people fought for the concept that they could have more of a say in how they were governed.

Colonists developed this idea that full authority should rest in the hands of the citizens.

Both of these ideas can be seen in early American documents: Mayflower Compact, Charters, etc…

GEOGRAPHY

One essential factor that helped the idea of self-rule to grow.

Vastness of the land and rough conditions led to a tough individualism--People had to make their own decisions.

Enabled people to overcome Theocratic rulers who suppressed opposition. (Anne Hutchinson, Roger Williams)

Frustrated and weakened the power of autocratic rulers.

These factors will lead to a new form of government:

Democracy

How does American Capitalism differ from European?

Land

Labor became an advantage, not a sign of lower class

Land invalidated feudal or manorial system

Slavery and plantations were more efficient ways of using land

Class structure is flexible and based on wealth, not on family name or honors

European thought that trade and business were degrading

Replaced in America: “The main business of America has been business.”

Capitalism practiced by the Puritans and the Quakers