Unit 2: Foundations of
United States Government
Limited
Gov.
Bill of
Rights
Ideas from
England
Petition
of Right
Rep. Gov.
4 English Ideas Explained
0 1. Limited gov.
0 One person does NOT have all the power
0 Magna Carta
0 1215 England
0 Citizens force King John to sign
0 Limited power of king
0 Rule of law—gov leaders must act according to a set of laws
0 2. Representative gov
0 Bicameral
0 Two houses of legislative branch
0 3. Petition of Right
0 1628
0 Parliament forces Charles I to sign it
0 Limited power of the monarch
0 Parliament (elected by people) had more power
0 4. English Bill of Rights
0 Citizens rights from gov violations
English Documents Explained
0 Magna Carta webpage
0 Petition of Right
0 English Bill of Rights
Colonies
0 Charters
0 English monarchs gave settlers right to establish a colony
0 Most charters included limited and rep gov.
0 Governments
0 As number of colonies grew, each developed limited and
rep gov.
Searching for Unity
0 a. Tough to unite
0 i. Colonies formed for different reasons
01. Profit
02. Religion
03. Georgia: refuge for debtors
0 ii. Different economies and geography
01. New England: fishing and lumber
02. South: crops
13 Original Colonies
Attempts at Unity
New England
Confederation
Albany Plan of
Union
• 1643
• Vs. Indians
• Had little power
• Little cooperation among
colonies
• Council of reps
• Levy taxes to raise army
• Regulate trade with Indians
• Colonies rejected the plan
An Ocean Apart
0 a. Anger over British taxes unite the colonies
0 b. First Continental Congress
0 i. Protest British policies
0 ii. Send King George III the Declaration and
Resolves of the First Continental Congress
0 iii. British tighten control
0 iv. Colonists declare independence in 1776
0 Schoolhouse Rock: No More King
Articles of Confederation
Articles of Confederation
Year
Established
• 1777
How?
• All 13 states had to ratify. Done in 1781
How
powerful?
• Not very. Most did not want a powerful
national gov
Legislative
Powers
• Each state had 1 legislative vote
• majority rule
• 9 votes needed for major decisions
Limits on
power
• Could not tax
• Could not regulate trade
• No executive branch
• No judicial branch
Articles of Confederation DID
NOT WORK
0 Reasons:
0 1. each colony was very different
including issue of slavery
0 2. size of new nation was
large/communication was slow
0 3. states did their own thing—ignored
federal laws and taxes
0 4. Aritcles of Confederation HAD NO
POWER!
What next?
0 Many felt we needed a strong federal government
0 Otherwise, we would have no country!
0 Example: Shays’s Rebellion
Articles of Confederation
Video (7 minutes)
0 Articles of Confederation video
Constitutional Convention
Constitutional Convention
General Info
0 *Delegates met in Philadelphia in 1787 to revise the
Articles of Confederation
0 *However, delegates moved quickly to form a stronger
national gov.
0 *worked 4 months in a hot Phila summer in secrecy
8 signed
Dec of Ind
7 on 1st
Cont. Cong.
The
Delegates
7 state
governors
Wealthy/
educated
Key People
0 George Washington
0 Benjamin Franklin
0 Alexander Hamilton
0 James Madison
George Washington
Benjamin Franklin
Alexander Hamilton
James Madison
Rival Plans
Virginia Plan
New Jersey Plan
Powers of National
Government
1. Levy taxes
2. Make national laws
3. Regulate trade
1. Levy taxes
2. Regulate trade
Executive Branch
Strong executive chosen
by legislature
Legislative Branch
Judicial Branch
Weak executive
controlled by the
legislature
1. Bicameral
1. Strong unicameral
2. Membership based on 2. Each state has 1 vote
state population
3. Reps chose by state
legislatures
3. 1st house elected by
people
4. 2nd house elected by
1st house
Supreme Court and lower Supreme Court with
courts
justices named by
The Great Compromise
Legislative Branch
Executive Branch
1. Bicameral legislative branch
a. House: based on
population
b. Senate: 2 per state
The Electoral College
Trade
1. Congress could not ban
import of slaves before 1808
2. Congress could not tax goods
on exports
Slavery
1. North: believed it was
wrong; also believed they
should not count towards
population
2. Southern states want slaves
to count
3. 3/5 compromise: each slave
Finalizing the Constitution
0Most signed the new
Constitution, even though
many still opposed.
Federalists vs. Anti
Federalists
a. Federalists
i. Constitution would protect rights and was
necessary to hold nation together
b. Antifederalists
i. Did not want the new gov.
ii. Constitution would create a gov. that
would threaten people’s rights and state’s
rights
RATIFICATION!
0After a lot of debate,
all states eventually
ratified (passed) the
Constitution