Download - English Government
English Government
Who made the laws?
• Legislature – lawmaking body of a government• Parliament –
legislative body in Britain
Magna Carta• In 1215, nobles forced King John to sign this
document giving nobles certain rights, especially over land ownership• Showed the king would now have limits to power
by guaranteeing no one was above the law• Rule of Law• Viewed as the most important document in the
history of government• Established the concept of limited government• Page 768
Magna Carta
Parliament
• King Henry III met with nobles regularly• Developed into Parliament or the
legislative body for England• Britain moved from an Authoritarian
Absolute Monarchy to a Democratic Constitutional Monarchy by the late 1300s
Other Key Events in English Gov’t History• 1688 – Parliament removed King James from his
position• Showed parliament was the true power of England
• 1689 – English Bill of Rights• Gave parliament power to raise taxes, make laws and
control the army• Monarch could not suspend Parliamentary laws• Parliament is the TRUE power
• Parliament would be elected freely• Free speech & a right to trial were established• Banned cruel & unusual punishment
Common Law
• Based on precedents (an earlier ruling in a similar situation)• Rests on Court decisions rather than
lawmakers
The Enlightenment
• Greatest influence on American government• Philosophy in which reason or ability to think
was used as the basis for authority• Examples• Documents: Declaration of Independence, Bill
of Rights• People: Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Paine,
Thomas Jefferson
Principals of American Democracy
• Rule of Law – Magna Carta – no one is above the law• Limited Government – Magna Carta & John
Locke– government is not all powerful, it may only do what people have given it to do• Consent of the Governed – John Locke – citizens
source of power• Individual rights – John Locke – seen in the
Declaration of Independence – protected by the government
Principals of American Democracy cont.
• Representative Government – government represents the wants & needs of citizens• Majority Rule – When differences arise, we will
abide by what most people want• Minority Rights – at the same time as going with
the majority, we will respect the rights of the minority
John Locke• English philosopher – believed in limited government• Wrote the Second Treatise of
Government • Natural Rights• People have certain rights that
cannot be taken away• Life, Liberty & Property
• His ideas led to the rebirth of democracy• “Whenever Law ends, Tyranny begins.”
– Second Treatise of Government• Class Discussion: What do you think he
means by this quote?
• Helped develop the Social Contract Theory with Jean Jacques Rousseau• Government is bound by contract with its
people but people give up absolute freedom• In exchange, the government protects the rights
of citizens• The role of government is protect citizens’ rights• If the government is not doing this, the people can
redefine their government (EX: vote them out of office)
• If the government itself infringes on the rights of people or seriously undermines the people, the people have a right to revolution