Chapter 2, Section 1

OurEnglish

Heritage

Influence from England• English people brought with them a

history of limited and representative gov’t• England has been ruled by a monarch for

centuries

Influence from England• Noble families had

much power• Monarch gave them

ownership and control of vast land in exchange for their loyalty, tax payments and promises of military support

The Magna Carta• 1199 – King John

inherited the throne and treated the nobles harshly

• 1215 – nobles forced the king to sign the Magna Carta (means Great Charter)

The Magna Carta• This document

protected the nobles’ privileges and upheld their authority

• Granted certain rights to all land owners

• These rights eventually came to apply to all English people

The Magna Carta• The rights of the Magna Carta include: • Equal treatment under the law• Trial by one’s peers

• The Magna Carta also limited the power of the monarch by guaranteeing that no one is above the law.

Parliament• Henry III, followed

John and met regularly with nobles and church officials

• This group grew and began to include representatives of the common people

Parliament• This group of people

developed into a legislature – a lawmaking body

• This body of gov’t was known as Parliament

Parliament• For a long time, the

monarch cooperated with Parliament

• Mid 1600’s power struggles began

Parliament• Parliament removed

King James II from the throne

Parliament• Parliament invited

James II’s daughter and husband, William and Mary, to the throne

Parliament• When this happened

Parliament demonstrated that they were now stronger than the monarch

Parliament• This transfer of power is known as

the Glorious Revolution

• From this point on, no ruler

would have more power than the

legislature

Parliament• To clarify this, Parliament drew up the

English Bill of Rights:1. Monarch could not suspend Parliament’s

laws2. The monarch could not create special

courts, impose taxes, raise an army3. Members of Parliament would be freely

elected and be guaranteed free speech during meetings

Parliament• 4. every citizen

would have a fair trial by jury in court cases

• 5. cruel and unusual punishment would be banned – no use of torture

Common Law• A long time ago, England had no laws• People developed rules to live by• These rules came to be laws• Courts came to be• The judges would look at rulings in

earlier cases to help them decide the punishment

• This is known as precedent

Common Law• Example:

– If Bobby Joe comes to RMS wearing basketball shorts and they may be his favorite, but he will still have to call someone to bring him something else to wear.

– If Sue Ellen comes to RMS wearing a mini skirt then she too will have to call home for a change of clothes!!

Common Law• The same thing happened to Sue Ellen

that happened to Bobby Joe.• This is precedent – Mrs. Lewis gives

everyone who is out of dress code the same punishment

• This system of law, based on precedent, is known as common law