Louisiana Purchase

Governing the Colonies

Chapter 4 Section 1Governing the Colonies

Explain how English political traditions influenced the 13 colonies.Describe the responsibilities of early colonial governments.Identify John Peter Zengers role in establishing freedom of the press.Understand how the Navigation Acts affected the colonies economy.
Objectives


Terms and People
legislature a group of people who have the power to make lawsbill of rights a written list of freedoms that a government promises to protecthabeas corpus the principle that a person cannot be held in prison without being charged with a specific crime


Terms and People (continued)
freedom of the press the right of journalists to publish the truth without restriction or penaltylibel the publishing of statements that damage a persons reputation


How did English ideas about government and trade affect the colonies?
All English colonies shared a common English heritage, and that heritage included the idea that citizens had political rights.
England also promoted the theory of mercantilismthat colonies existed to benefit their parent countrybut some colonists began to question that theory.


In 1215, English nobles forced King John to sign the Magna Carta, which was the first document to place restrictions on an English rulers power.
The rights listed in the Magna Carta were at first limited to nobles.
Over time, the rights were extended to all English citizens.



ParliamentGreat CouncilUnder the Magna Carta, nobles formed a Great Council to advise the king, and this body developed into the Parliament.Two-House LegislatureParliament was a two-house legislature.The House of Lords was made up of nobles who inherited their titles.Members of the House of Commons were elected, but only a few rich men and landowners had the right to vote.TaxesParliaments greatest power was that no monarch could raise taxes without its consent.


In the 1640s, power struggles between King Charles I and Parliament led to the English Civil War.
Parliamentary forces eventually won the war, executed the king, and briefly ruled England.


In 1660, the monarchy was restored, but Parliament retained its traditional rights.
In 1688s Glorious Revolution, Parliament removed King James II from the throne and invited his daughter Mary and her husband William to rule.
A condition of their rule, however, was that they sign the English Bill of Rights.


The English Bill of Rights:
restated many of the rights granted by the Magna Carta.upheld habeas corpus.required that Parliament meet regularly.


The legal rights that Englishmen had won over the centuries led the colonists to expect a voice in their government.
By 1760, every British colony in North America had a legislature of some kind, although the legislatures sometimes clashed with the colonial governors appointed by the king.


Virginia and MassachusettsVirginiaFrom 1619, the House of Burgessesthe first legislature in British North Americamade laws for the Jamestown Colony.MassachusettsMassachusetts set up a legislature called the General Court in 1629.In 1634, Massachusetts colonists gained the right to elect delegates to the General Court.


The British government gave William Penn outright ownership of Pennsylvania.
But in 1701, the colonists forced Penn to agree that:
only the General Assemblynot Penn or his councilcould make laws.only the king could overturn laws passed by the General Assembly.


British and colonial governments were similar in some ways, but they had important differences.

Great BritainAmerican ColoniesKingGovernorInherited executive powerAppointed by and served the king but paid by the colonial legislatureParliamentColonial LegislaturesHouse of LordsAristocrats with inherited titles also inherited legislative powerUpper House or CouncilAppointed by governorProminent colonists but without inherited titlesHouse of CommonsElected by men who held significant amounts of propertyLess than 1/4 of British men qualified to voteLower House or AssemblyElected by men who held propertyAbout 2/3 of colonial men qualified to vote


In the colonies, 50 to 75 percent of white men could vote, which was a far greater percentage than in England.


Another important right for American colonists was the freedom of the press.
In England, writers who criticized the government were punished, even if what they said was true.
However, a trial in the colonies granted writers new freedom to publish the truth.


John Peter Zenger, publisher of the New York Weekly Journal, was charged with libel for printing articles that criticized the governor.
Jurors found Zenger not guilty because the articles he published were based on facts.


The Zenger case helped establish the principle that a democracy depends on well-informed citizens.
Therefore, the press has a right and a responsibility to keep the public informed of the truth.
Today, freedom of the press is recognized as a basic American liberty.


Under the theory of mercantilism, colonies existed in order to enrich their parent country.
In 1651, the English Parliament passed the first of several Navigation Acts, laws designed to funnel the colonies wealth to England.
While colonists maintained some important rights, they felt burdened by Britains economic policies.


Pros and Cons of the Navigation ActsProsColonial traders had a sure market for their goods in England.The law contributed to a booming shipbuilding industry in New England.ConsMany colonists began to resent the Acts because they thought the Acts favored English merchants at the colonists expense.Some colonists thought they could make more money if they were free to sell to foreign markets themselves.Some colonists smuggled goods to foreign markets to avoid the Navigation Acts.


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Louisiana Purchase

Documents

colonies chapter

english colonies

colonies terms

colonies economy

english nobles

english bill of rights

english citizens

objectives chapter