htav annual conference 2014 ideological influences on the american revolution andrew butcher...

Andrew Butcher Copyright 2014

HTAV Annual Conference 2014

Ideological Influences on the American Revolution


Magna Carta

The democratic aspiration is no mere recent phase in human history . . . It was written in

Magna Carta.“ Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1941 Inaugural address

Written by 13th Century barons in England in order to protect their rights and property

(think heavy taxes) from King John.


Magna Carta

Two core principals from the document underlay common American beliefs of the revolutionary

period:“No freeman shall be taken, imprisoned, disseised, outlawed, banished, or in any way destroyed, nor

will We proceed against or prosecute him, except by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the

land.""To no one will We sell, to no one will We deny or

delay, right or justice.“


Magna Carta

• American colonists used these principals as a source for the Constitution and the Bill of Rights

• “The Magna Carta mattered because it demonstrated limits to the power of the monarch, which became one of the fundamental principles of British law. “ (Mancall)

• Churchill claimed that the Declaration of Independence was essentially a restatement of Magna Carta


Republicanism• The Roman Republic and the Greek City State (Polis) of

antiquity served as main inspiration. • Citizens within these societies voluntarily

subordinated their private interest to the common good

• These participatory republics predicated their stability and authority on the virtue of the citizenry as a whole and their resistance to corruption or tyranny.

• Citizenship was generally associated with some form of land holding (slaves excluded)- it was thought that they had far more invested in the society- the public good


Republicanism

• Eighteenth-century republicans, believed a person with "virtue" owned property, possessed an intrinsic sense of morality, and was willing to subordinate his own interests for the interests of the community- the public good.

• These were the only sorts of people whom Founding Father Benjamin Franklin thought capable of freedom.

• Republican government was, by design, antithetical to monarchies or aristocracies


Republicanism: Civic Virtue‘The preservation of liberty rested on the ability of the

people to maintain effective checks on wielders of power and hence in the last analysis rested on the vigilance and

moral stamina of the people...." Virtuous citizens needed to be strong defenders of liberty and challenge the corruption and greed in government. The duty of the virtuous citizen

became a foundation for the American Revolution’ (Bailyn)


Glorious Revolution 1688 & English Bill of Rights 1689

• James II reign saw both Britain and colonies ruled in tyrannical fashion

• Overthrown- replaced by William of Orange• In exchange for the restoration, parliament limited the

authority of the monarch. • Bill of Rights 1689, monarch could no longer:• Dismiss a judge or create new courts without

Parliamentary consent • Maintain a standing army in peacetime • Raise taxes

• Both events served as an example for colonists


Enlightenment

• 18th century cultural movement centred in France

• Major philosophers Descartes and Diderot.

• Diderot spread the enlightenment's ideas with the ‘Encyclopédie’

• Suggests that the centrality of freedom, democracy and reason are primary values in society


Enlightenment

• Argued for:

• the establishment of a contractual basis of rights • organization of states into self-governing republics • application of rationalism to every problem• Religious Tolerance

• Leads to Scientific Method


Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778)The Social Contract (1762)

Argues that:• Society divided into two parts • First division the whole population (women included)

that represents the general will and is the legislative power within the state

• This division is necessary because the sovereign cannot deal with particular matters like applications of the law (separation of powers)

• The second division is that of the government being distinct from the sovereign

• When the government exceeds the boundaries set in place by the people, it is the mission of the people to abolish such government, and begin anew


John Locke (1632-1704)

An Essay Concerning Human Understanding in 1689

• humans are not born with any innate essence but rather are shaped by their environment

• The human mind is therefore a tabula rasa, a blank slate on which experience is written

• Empiricism- All men are created equal

Video: 3 Minute Philosophy John Locke:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-buzVjYQvY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-buzVjYQvY


John LockeTwo Treatises of Government 1690• a major influence on political thought in the

colonies.• 1st Treatise disputes the concept of a

monarch's divine right to rule • claims that people are endowed with

certain Natural Rights to life, liberty and property

• 2nd Treatise ‘standing army prelude to tyranny’

• Social contract theory- right to revolt against a government which infringed Natural Rights

• Great influence on Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration of Independence


James OtisWrits of Assistance Case (1761)• Court case against British officials search warrants, Writs of Assistance begins

revolutionary ideology• John Adams “"the child independence was then and there born”

The Rights of the British Colonies Asserted and Proved (1764)• Asserts that rights are not derived from human institutions, but from nature

and God. Thus, government does not exist to please monarchs, but to promote the good of the entire society

Considerations on Behalf of the Colonists (1765)• Expands argument from The Rights of the British Colonies Asserted and

Proved. He furthers the notion of natural rights (to property) by linking it to the theory of equal representation

• Believes there is a problem in the British Constitution: “No taxation without representation” (Locke’s right to property)

• Otis tries to find an answer within the British system- fails- British answer with Declaratory Act (1766)- colonists are ‘virtually’ represented


Thomas PaineCommon Sense (1776)• Attacks the idea of inherited authority• Suggests independence from Britain• 100,000 copies sold in 3 months• Whilst Otis argued that there was a flaw with the British Constitution- Pain

believes entire system wrong

Video: "Common Sense" Explained: US History Reviewhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1bt6bNmtg8

The American Crisis (1776)• Washington has it read to the men at Valley Forge• “These are the times that try men's souls”

Video: Thomas Paine- The Age of Reason, watch 5 to 10.30 min https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mtlohotiqc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1bt6bNmtg8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mtlohotiqc


Suggestions for Assessment Tasks


America as Unit 3, AOS 1: Mini Essays


America as Unit 4, AOS 1, 2007 Examination


Question (C)Question (c): Using your knowledge and the representation, explain why this cartoon appeared in November 1774.

In response to the Boston Tea Party (1773) British Parliament introduced the Coercive Acts in April 22, 1774. This graphic was published seven months after the acts had taken effect expressing the growing outrage felt by colonists over their passage. They included the Boston Port Act represented by the frigates in the left background, the British blockaded Boston Harbour demanding the full cost for the lost tea be repaid- colonists saw this as an infringement of Natural Rights to property and liberty; also represented by the Liberty Tree in the centre of the image. Further, the Massachusetts Government Act took away charter replacing it with royal control subverting Enlightenment and Republican ideals of self governance. The depicted cage further emphasises the infringement of Natural Rights to liberty and relates to the Administration of Justice Act, nicknamed by colonists ‘the Murder Act’ due to the fact that it allowed for British officials and soldiers charged with a crime to be tried in another colony or Great Britain. The cannons in the foreground refer to the Quartering Act, already in place since 1765, that allowed British troops to be housed in vacant buildings- this further inflamed commonly held fears of a standing army as stated in Locke’s Second Treatise on Government; where he suggested that a standing army is the prelude to tyranny. The final legislation involved in the Coercive Acts, the Quebec Act, expanded the size of Quebec at the expense of New England, this raised colonial fears that their liberty and natural right to religion would be further suppressed at the hands of Quebec French Catholics- their recent enemies in the French and Indian Wars.

htav annual conference 2014 ideological influences on the american revolution andrew butcher...

Documents

magna carta american

common american beliefs

core principals

bill of rights

franklin delano roosevelt

form of land holding

ideological influences

roman republic