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Early Government Institutions in American Colonies

Explore the established laws, customs, and practices that influenced the government in the American colonies. Learn about the basic concepts of ordered, limited, and representative government, as well as landmark English documents that shaped early governance. Discover the different types of colonies and their governing structures.

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Early Government Institutions in American Colonies

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  1. CHAPTER 2 Government

  2. INSTITUTIONS • The established laws, customs, and practices of a society. • These early English settlers brought these ideas with them to the colonies. • These institutions helped to influence the government that would later be established.

  3. 3 BASIC CONCEPTS TO EARLY GOVERNMENT IN THE AMERICAN COLONIES • Ordered Government—They saw a need for an orderly government that could work with one another. • Local offices they had been exposed to in England emerged. These included: sheriff, coroner, justice of the peace, creation of counties and townships.

  4. 3 BASIC CONCEPTS TO EARLY GOVERNMENT IN THE AMERICAN COLONIES • Limited Government—belief that the government is not all powerful and is limited by the people in what it can and cannot do. • Each individual has certain rights that the government cannot take away. It is a system in which the government’s powers are restricted and an individual’s rights are protected.

  5. 3 BASIC CONCEPTS TO EARLY GOVERNMENT IN THE AMERICAN COLONIES • Representative Government—a system in which policies are made by officials accountable to the people who elected them. • However, don’t forget at this time, they were elected by the property owners. • This is the idea that government should serve the people.

  6. LANDMARK ENGLISH DOCUMENTS • Magna Carta (June 15, 1215)—it represents the first attempt to limit the absolute power of the British monarchy. • It was signed by King John on Runnymede Field after he was chased and captured by nobles angry with him for his absolute rule. • The document protected nobles from arbitrary acts by the king (such as taxing without consent), guaranteed rights (such as trial by jury), and forbade the king from taking life, liberty, or property without good reason.

  7. LANDMARK ENGLISH DOCUMENTS • Petition of Right—it was written in 1628 and Charles I was forced to sign it. The Petition of Right extended certain rights to commoners who were not part of the nobility. • It addressed a number of what the House of Commons considered as royal abuses of power, such as the quartering of troops in private homes and the forcing of loans to the crown. • Largely framed by Sir Edward Coke, the Petition had four provisions: that parliamentary approval was required for the levying of taxes or the granting of loans, that legal cause was required for the imprisonment of subjects (habeas corpus), that members of the armed forces could not be billeted in private houses without payment, and that martial law could not be declared in peacetime.

  8. LANDMARK ENGLISH DOCUMENTS • English Bill of Rights—it was created in 1688. The English Bill of Rights opened the road to constitutional monarchy in England under the joint rule of William III and Mary II (William & Mary of Orange). • It required that Parliamentary elections be free, guaranteed the right to a fair and speedy trial, freedom of excessive bail, and freedom from cruel and unusual punishments.

  9. The first settlement was established at Jamestown in 1607. The second settlement was at Plymouth in 1620; the colony was absorbed by Massachusetts in 1691. Virginia (1607) Massachusetts (1630) Maryland (1634) Connecticut (1635) Rhode Island (1636) the Carolinas (1663) New Hampshire (1679) Pennsylvania (1682) New Jersey (1702) Georgia (1732) North and South Carolina became separate colonies in 1730 New York (1624) was originally settled by the Dutch as New Netherland. The Swedes established Delaware as a colony (1638). These areas were eventually taken over by the English in 1664. Of the 17th-century colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America, England founded all but two.

  10. CHARTER • A written grant of authority from the king. • 12 of 13 original colonies were established this way. The exception was GA who received its charter in 1732 from Parliament.

  11. ROYAL COLONIES • Colonies controlled by the King. • The king appointed the governor and a council which was the upper house of the legislature and highest court in the colony. • The lower house of the legislature (Assembly) was elected by the property owners. • All of the actions of the colony had to be approved by the governor and the crown. • 8 of 13 colonies were royal (GA, MA, NH, NJ, NY, NC, SC, & VA)

  12. PROPRIETARY COLONIES • These were owned by an individual in which a grant of land had been given to them by the king. • The proprietor (owner) appointed the governor and the upper house in MD and DE and judges were also appointed by the proprietor. • The lower house was elected by the property owners. • In PA the house was appointed by the proprietor.

  13. LORD BALTIMORE • He was given a charter to Maryland in 1634.

  14. WILLIAM PENN • He was given a charter to Pennsylvania in 1681 and Delaware in 1682.

  15. BICAMERAL • A two house body or chamber like in the colonial legislatures in Maryland and Delaware.

  16. UNICAMERAL • A one house body or chamber like in the colonial legislature of Pennsylvania.

  17. CHARTER COLONIES • The Governor and both houses were elected by the property owners and judges were appointed by the legislature. • 2 of 13 colonies were charter colonies (CT & RI).

  18. Mayflower Compact • A voluntary agreement to govern themselves; it was America's first written agreement to self-government. • The threat of James I to "harry them out of the land" sent a little band of religious dissenters from England to Holland in 1608. They were known as Separatists because they wished to cut all ties with the established church. In 1620, some of them, known now as the Pilgrims, joined with a larger group in England to set sail on the Mayflower for the New World. • A joint stock company financed their venture. In November, they sighted Cape Cod and decided to land an exploring party at Plymouth Harbor. • A rebellious group picked up at Southampton and London troubled the Pilgrim leaders, however, and to control their actions 41 Pilgrims drew up the Mayflower Compact and signed it before going ashore.

  19. Great Fundamentals • The first basic system of laws in the English colonies (America) adopted by the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1629.

  20. Fundamental Orders of Connecticut • The first formal constitution in the English colonies (America) • Laid out a plan for government that gave the people the right to elect the governor, judges, and representatives to make laws. • It was adopted by Puritans who left the Massachusetts Bay Colony to colonize Connecticut.

  21. Virginia House of Burgesses • The first legislature in the English colonies (America) established in 1819.

  22. Salutary Neglect • Refers to the English policy of interfering very little in colonial affairs from about 1690 to 1760. During these years the colonists were given a good deal of autonomy in local matters, and the English king and parliament rarely legislated constraints of any kind. In turn, the colonists supported England. “Let sleeping dogs lie.” • During this period of time England fought a series of colonial wars. Most notable was the French and Indian War (Seven Years War) 1754-1763. At the end of this war the British policy toward the colonies changed because they began to look at the colonies as a source of revenue.

  23. George III (1738-1820) • Ruled Great Britain from 1760-1820, a member of the Hanoverian family, and successor to his grandfather, George II. • He began to strengthen the reign of the Monarch over the American colonies. George III (1738-1820).. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/

  24. WAYS GREAT BRITAIN STRENGTHEND ITS REIGN OVER AMERICAN COLONIES • Proclamation of 1763—a royal decree that prohibited the American colonists from establishing or maintaining settlements west of an imaginary line running down the crest of the Appalachian Mountains.

  25. Proclamation of 1763

  26. WAYS GREAT BRITAIN STRENGTHEND ITS REIGN OVER AMERICAN COLONIES • Sugar Act (1764) (Revenue Act of 1764)—called for the strict enforcement of tax on sugar into the colonies

  27. WAYS GREAT BRITAIN STRENGTHEND ITS REIGN OVER AMERICAN COLONIES • Stamp Act (1765)—tax on newspapers, legal documents, playing cards, etc… • It required the use of stamped paper for legal documents, diplomas, almanacs, broadsides, newspapers and playing cards. The presence of the stamp on these items was to be proof that the tax had been paid. • Funds accumulated from this tax were to be earmarked solely for the support of British soldiers protecting the American colonies.

  28. WAYS GREAT BRITAIN STRENGTHEND ITS REIGN OVER AMERICAN COLONIES • Townshend Duties (1767)—tax on imports of tea, glass, paper, lead, and paint. • The Townshend duties were repealed in 1770, except for the tax on tea

  29. WAYS GREAT BRITAIN STRENGTHEND ITS REIGN OVER AMERICAN COLONIES • Intolerable Acts (1774) (Restrictive Acts, Coercive Acts)—Restrictive acts passed by the British Parliament in 1774 in retaliation for the Boston Tea Party. • Four acts closed Boston harbor until restitution had been made for the tea destroyed; revoked the Massachusetts charter and established military government; removed British Colonial officials from the jurisdiction of Colonial courts; and provided for the quartering of British troops in occupied dwellings. • A fifth act, the Quebec Act, which had been under consideration before, placed the territory between the Ohio and the Mississippi under the jurisdiction of the province of Quebec.

  30. New England Confederation(1643-1684) • Formed as a “league of friendship” for defense against Indians. • It was formed by the Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth, New Haven, and Connecticut settlements.

  31. Albany Plan of Union (1754) • The thought of Benjamin Franklin where delegates of each of the 13 colonies would meet annually in an assembly or conference. • They were concerned with trade and defense against the French and Indians. Engraved Portrait of Benjamin Franklin. Corbis(2006). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/

  32. Stamp Act Congress(October 7, 1765) • Meeting of American colonials to formalize protest against the Stamp Act (1765). Representatives from New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Delaware, South Carolina, Maryland, and Connecticut met in New York City and issued the 14 point Declaration of Rights and Grievances, which condemned taxation by the British without Colonial representation in Parliament. • Parliament refused to acknowledge the grievances but, under pressure from British merchants, repealed the Stamp Act in March of 1766.

  33. Committees of Correspondence • Committees set up by towns, cities, and legislatures in Colonial America. • Formed originally to communicate with other American colonies about opposition to British laws (Sugar Act, Stamp Act), they helped promote Colonial unity and organization of the Continental Congress. • Notable among them were the Boston committee, formed in 1772 by Samuel Adams, and the Virginia committee formed in 1773, on which Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry served. The Boston committee directed the Boston Tea Party in 1773.

  34. First Continental Congress (Sept. 5, 1774-Oct. 26, 1774) • As a result of the Intolerable Acts (1774) a meeting was called for each colony to send delegates to Philadelphia to discuss the situation. • 55 total delegates were sent from every colony except Georgia. • They drafted a document called Declaration of Rights and Grievances which explained the colonial position and protested the British policies.

  35. First Continental Congress(Continued) • They also imposed an embargo, an agreement prohibiting trade, on Britain, and agreed not to use British goods. • They agreed to meet again in May of 1775 if their grievances had not been met.

  36. Second Continental Congress (May 10, 1775-March 1, 1781) • By the time they met in Philadelphia, the British had failed to compromise, and the first shots of the Revolutionary War had been fired at Lexington and Concord. • Most of the delegates from the First Continental Congress attended. The most notable newcomers were: Benjamin Franklin (PA), John Hancock (MA), and Thomas Jefferson (VA). • John Hancock was chosen President of the Congress.

  37. Second Continental Congress (Continued) • They organized a “continental army” and placed George Washington as commander-in-chief. George Washington at the end of his presidency.. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/

  38. Second Continental Congress (Continued) • The unicameral Congress exercised both executive and legislative powers through committees and the colonies (later states) had one vote.

  39. Common Sense (1776) • Pamphlet published by Thomas Paine in January of 1776. • His writing influenced many colonists. • Paine, who was a one-time British corset-maker argued that monarchy was a corrupt form of government and that George III was an enemy to liberty. Thomas Paine (1737-1809).. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/

  40. Common Sense (1776)(Continued) • Paine made the following points: • Governments, even good ones, are at best necessary evils; they were less desirable the farther the government was from the governed. • Ignoring the lingering loyalty many Americans still felt for the king, he argued ardently for independence. Monarchy was branded an absurd form of government and George III a “Royal Brute.” • It made no sense, in Paine's mind, for a small country like Britain, an island, to rule a continent like America. • Independence would foster peace and prosperity. An independent America could avoid the senseless progression of European wars and grow rich by trading with all countries, not just the mother country. Thomas Paine (1737-1809).. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/

  41. Declaration of Independence • On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee (VA) proposed a resolution declaring “that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.” Declaration of Independence. Jupiterimages Corporation(2006). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/ Richard Henry Lee, head of the Virginia radicals.. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/

  42. The drafting of the document was entrusted to a committee: John Adams (MA) Thomas Jefferson (VA) Roger Sherman (CT) John Adams, Washington's vice president.. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/ Thomas Jefferson, Third President of the United States. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/ Connecticut's Roger Sherman (1721-1793).. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/ Robert R. Livingston (NY) Benjamin Franklin (PA) Robert R. Livingston (1746-1813).. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/ Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) .. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/

  43. Declaration of Independence(Continued) • On July 2, 1776, the delegates agreed to Lee’s resolution and on July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was formally adopted. • It was designed to influence public opinion, both at home and abroad, especially in France, to which the United States looked for military support. • This was the creation of the United States of America, 13 separate states.

  44. The Declaration is composed of several parts: • An introduction that states the reasons for embracing independence. Jefferson drew heavily on the natural rights philosophy of the English political philosopher John Locke. Governments, it was argued, had their origins in a social compact between the people and their rulers. The people were to offer their obedience in return for the governments' pledge to protect the natural rights of life, liberty and property; Jefferson, however, softened Locke's list of rights by referring to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." Governments that failed to provide or protect these rights could legitimately be abolished. • A series of indictments that justified the decision for independence. The Declaration presents a long list of charges against George III, Parliament and royal officials. Charging the king with offenses was a departure from previous positions that had excoriated the ministers and politicians, but not the monarch. Some of the complaints registered in the document may seem strange or even trivial to today's reader, but it must be remembered that the purpose of the Declaration was the molding of public opinion and not the recording of facts. • A conclusion. Based on the long series of infractions detailed in the Declaration, the words of Richard Henry Lee were echoed, "That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved...."

  45. Articles of Confederation • Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation on November 15, 1777, but it was not ratified by all 13 states, the last being Maryland, until 1781. • The Articles then took effect on March 1, 1781. • This was America’s first form of government and it had a unicameral legislature with no executive or judicial branch. • The Congress only had the powers designated to it by the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation, 1777.. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/

  46. make war and peace send and receive ambassadors enter into treaties set up a monetary system borrow money fix uniform weights and measures regulate Indian affairs establish post offices settle disputes among the states raise a navy raise an army by asking the states for troops. Articles of Confederation(Continued) Congress could:

  47. 7 WEAKNESSES OF THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION • No power to tax • No power to regulate commerce (trade) domestic or foreign • No power to enforce the laws it made • No court system • No executive branch • 9 of 13 states had to approve laws • 13 of 13 states had to approve amendments

  48. 3 SUCCESSES OF THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION • Led country through the Revolutionary War • Land Ordinance of 1785—allowed land sales in Ohio & Mississippi River Valley • Northwest Ordinance of 1787—established territory northwest of Ohio River

  49. Mount Vernon (March 1785) • representatives from Maryland and Virginia met at the home of George Washington to discuss difficulties over trade. • When they adjourned they called for another meeting that would involve all of the 13 states to discuss “a federal plan to regulating commerce.” Mount Vernon: Home of George Washington (?) Retrieved May 28, 2009 from: http://teachingamericanhistory.org/convention/images/mt_vernon2-s.jpg

  50. Annapolis (September 11, 1786) • All 13 states were invited but only 5 of 13 states attended (NY, NJ, PA, DE, & VA). • 4 states (NH, MA, RI, & NC) appointed delegates but they did not attend. • They called for another meeting to take place in May of 1787 in Philadelphia for the purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation. Annapolis State House.. IRC(2005). Retrieved May 28, 2009, fromDiscovery Education: http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/

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