LESSON FOUR
The British Origins of American
Constitutionalism
HOW DID ENGLISH
GOVERNMENT BEGIN?
 England was ruled by many tribes led by local Kings
 Eventually, tribes were united under one king
 The day to day life of the average person did not change
 King William (from France) conquered England. He introduced
feudalism but adopted and adapted many of the English practices
 The King relied on local advisors to incorporate local traditions and
practices. These advisors morphed into what became the
PARLIAMENT
HOW DID PARLIAMENTARY
GOVERNMENT BEGIN IN ENGLAND?
 Parliament grew from the counsel of local advisors
 1295 –The 1st Modern Parliament was formed with two houses
…
House of Lords – representing the feudal nobles and church officials
…
House of Commons – composed of 2 knights from each shire, 2 citizens
from each city and 2 citizens from each town (with wealth and status)
…
It became an effective way for the King to collect money and way to
negotiate with the various regions of the kingdom
…
It also became and effective way for English subjects to voice their
grievances and to try to limit monarchical power
ENGLISH COMMON LAW
 When William the Conqueror became King, there were different
systems of law in England
 In an effort to decrease the confusion for the Royal Judges, a system
of “COMMON LAW” was instituted and applied by the Judges
…
Judges had to publish their rulings for other judges to use as a
guideline. These were called “PRECEDENTS”.
…
Stare Decisis - when judges used past decisions to guide their rulings.
This created a sense of predictability and stability in the law
“RIGHTS OF ENGLISHMEN” DEVELOPS
Over the years, British Monarchs and Royal Judges came to recognize that
subjects had certain personal rights:
 The Right to Trial by a Jury of One’s Peers Under the Law of
the Land
 Security in One’s Home From Unlawful Entry
 Limits on Government’s Power to Tax
1100 – King Henry I – issued a “Charter of Liberties” which bound him to obey
certain laws regarding the treatment of nobles and clergy
1215 – Magna Carta – King John forced to sign the “Great Charter”. This
charter confirmed laws and extended them to merchants:
MAGNA CARTA
 Rule of Law:
…
The Monarch must respect established RULE OF LAW
…
Every member of society, even rulers, must obey the law
…
Government could not take action against the governed unless they
follow established law
 Basic Rights:
…
Redress of Grievances, or compensation for loss or wrong done to them
 Government by Agreement or Compact:
…
The MAGNA CARTA was between the King and a limited number of
citizens. It DID NOT include the majority of the English people
Magna Carta: seeds of later important constitutional rights
THE BRITISH CONSTITUTION

Not a single document: Common Law, Acts of Parliament, Political Customs
and Traditions

The central principle is respect for established rules and procedures “The
Rule of Law”

3 Important Documents (all a struggle for power between Parliament and the King)
…
Magna Carta (1215)
…
Petition of Rights (1628)
…
King Charles needed money for wars, without support of Parliament
…
Parliament forced King to agree to the Petition of Rights
…
No taxes w/o Parliament’s consent, Citizen’s rights (quartering troops, habeas corpus)
…
Habeas Corpus Act of 1679 – cannot hold someone in prison without cause
… English Bill of Rights (1689)
…
Limits on King’s power (limit on King’s power to tax; protection of free speech and debate)
…
2 Important Principles: Rule of Law & Representative Government
ACTIVITY: P. 32
 Get into 4 groups
 As a group, read through the section you are assigned
 Answer the questions as a group
 Compare your answers with other group
 Create a Presentation
…
Explain Key Points
…
Create a Visual (will be up during test so make them “READABLE”
 Present your topic to the class
…
Explain your topic
…
Make sure you include all the information in the answers to your
questions
…
Each person in your group should be part of the presentation
GROUPS
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
Group 4
(Habeas Corpus)
(Habeas Corpus)
(Trial by Jury)
(Trial by Jury)
Nadia
Katrina
Keziah
Emma
Scott
Jordan
Nick
Joseph
Nathan
Ryan
Michael
Rene
Drew
Montoya
Ari
Garrett
Patricia
Quinn
Danielle
Brittney
Mikel
Kyle
Jacob
Tanner
Habeas Corpus – p. 32
Trial by Jury – p. 33
GROUPS
Group One
Group Two
Group Three
Group Four
(HABEAS CORPUS)
(TRIAL BY JURY)
(HABEAS CORPUS)
(TRIAL BY JURY)
Michael
David
Jeffrey
Brett
Mercedes
Kristi
Catherine
Rosamaria
Meghan
Ashley
Alexis
Taylor
Adam
Alex
Matt
Joel
Bridgett
Mariah
Amanda
Kori
Habeas Corpus – p. 32
Trial by Jury – p. 33
QUICK REVIEW OF PRESENTATIONS
Trial By Jury
Habeas Corpus
THE MAGNA CARTA & THE
CONSTITUTION/WA ST CONSTITUTION
Limited Government
Basic Rights
Rule of Law
Government by Agreement/Consent
REVIEW QUESTIONS
1.
What is the Magna Carta? How was it created? How did it contribute
to the development of constitutional government?
2.
One constitutional scholar called the writ of habeas corpus the
“greatest guarantee of human freedom ever devised by man.” Why is
this right so fundamental?
3.
Among the key documents in the struggle for power between king and
Parliament were the Petition of Rights, The Habeas Corpus Act and
the English Bill of Rights. Explain how and why each contributed to
the development of constitutional government in England.
4.
How are the ideas in the Magna Carta, Petition of Rights, and English
Bill of Rights related to the Natural Rights philosophy and Classical
Republicanism
5.
What rights and other principles of the US Constitution or Washington
State’s constitution can you trace back to the MagnaCarta?