Collection Of Good Ideas Colonial Influences

Cato’s LettersEnglish Bill of RightsMayflower CompactCollection of Good IdeasColonialInfluencesWhere did America get its ideas aboutgovernment?

What’s the big idea? Rule of Lawo All people must follow the laws, and the laws should be enforcedfairly. Self Governmento People can make decisions on how their government should work. Due Processo People have the right to fair and reasonable laws. Officials have tofollow rules when enforcing laws and need to treat all people in thesame way. Limited Governmento A government that has been limited in power by a constitution, orwritten agreement. Rightso A set of things that people believe they should be free to do withoutrestrictions.

Hey! Anyone Have Any Good Ideas?Our Founding Fathers did not invent the American system ofgovernment out of thin air. They, like the other colonists, wereinfluenced by many different ideas and traditions. The biggestinfluence came from their British heritage. (Remember thecolonists WERE British until the American Revolution!) Events inBritish history and things that were happening during their owntime affected the way the Founders thought government shouldwork.The Founders didn’t have the Internet, so they got their ideas frombooks and other printed materials. What would have been on theminds of American colonists on the verge of arevolution? Let’s take a peek at what mighthave been on the shelf of a private coloniallibrary

King v. Nobles: Round OneWay back in the Middle Ages, England was ruledby a king who shared some of his powers with thewealthy nobility. The nobility would carry out theking’s wishes, and the king would allow thenobles to make some local decisions. But in theearly 1200s, King John tried to take all the powerfor himself! The angry nobles fought back.

King v. Nobles: Round OneIn 1215, they created a documentcalled the Magna Carta that limitedthe power of the king and protectedcertain rights for the nobles. Thenobility was powerful enough toforce King John to sign the Magna Carta.This was a big deal because it introduced theconcepts of limited government, rule of law, anddue process. It also helped create the nation’sParliament (kind of like Congress in the U.S.).

Magna CartaMagna CartaThe Magna Carta was a governmentdocument that limited the power ofthe king of England and protectedthe rights of the nobility. It was writtenby the English nobility in 1215.Big Ideas: Limited Government Rights Rule of Law Due Process

I Think We Took a Wrong Turn!Fast forward over 400 years. The next documentin the colonial library is the Mayflower Compact.It was written to solve a basic problem:Who is in charge?The Pilgrims left England in a ship called theMayflower headed for the Virginia colony in1620. A strong storm blew the ship off course,and they ended up in what is nowMassachusetts.

I Think We Took a Wrong Turn!This area was not under the control of thecompany that sent them, so the Pilgrimswere in independent territory.They needed a Government- fast!The men agreed to create a new government andto follow its rules. In exchange, they would allprotect each other. This is called self-government.

Mayflower CompactMayflower CompactMagna CartaThe Mayflower Compact was an agreementamong individuals that created a governmentthat would provide order and protect the rightsof the colonists. It was written by a group ofEnglish Pilgrims as they traveled toMassachusetts in 1620.Big Ideas: Self Government Rule of Law

King v. Nobles: Round TwoMeanwhile, back in England, the Parliamenthad been battling it out with the king in a seriesof civil wars. Parliament eventually came out ontop and passed the English Bill of Rights in 1689.Like the Magna Carta, this document expandedthe rights of the Parliament and the people,while limiting the powers of the king even more.This document was well-knownbecause it affected peopleliving in Britain and the newBritish colonies in America.

English Bill of RightsEnglish Bill of RightsMayflower CompactMagna CartaThe English Bill of Rights was a governmentdocument that expanded the powers of theEnglish Parliament and expanded the rights ofthe people, as well as further limited the rightsof the king. It was written by the members ofthe English Parliament in 1689.Big Ideas: Limited Government Rights Due Process Rule of Law

Hot off the Press!In the 1720s, authors using the fake names Cato the Elderand Cato the Younger published a series of newspapereditorials in Britain. The authors argued against the king’sheavy-handed rule. These articles were titled Cato’sLetters, and they were also published in colonialAmerican newspapers. Cato’s Letters became sopopular that they were collected into a book. Half of theprivate libraries in colonial America owned a copy!Cato’s Letters discussed many different ideas, such asfreedom of expression, which became very influential inthe colonies.

Cato’s LettersCato’s LettersEnglish Bill of RightsMayflower CompactMagna CartaCato’s Letters were made up of a collectionof newspaper articles published to convincepeople to support the freedom ofexpression and to fight against the heavyhanded rule of the British government. Theywere written by two anonymous Englishjournalists in the 1720’s.Big Ideas: Rights Rule of Law

Calling For IndependenceBy the 1700s, King George III and Parliament weremaking more and more demands on thecolonies. Many were getting fed up and began tomeet and discuss breaking away from Britain.In the mid-1770s, representatives from most of the13 colonies met in Philadelphia. Here, theFounders discussed the options for the future.

Calling For IndependenceWhile these meetings were happening, ajournalist named Thomas Paine published apamphlet called Common Sense in 1776. InCommon Sense, Paine did not introduce any newideas. Instead, he explained the arguments forindependence in a way that was easy foreveryday colonists to understand. Heencouraged them to support the fight forindependence from Britain.Just six months later, the Declaration ofIndependence was signed.

Common SenseCommon SenseCato’s LettersEnglish Bill of RightsMayflower CompactMagna CartaCommon Sense was a pamphletwritten to convince theAmerican colonists to supportbecoming independent fromEngland. It was written by acolonial journalist and circulatedin 1776.Big Ideas: Self Government Rights

From Big Ideas to theConstitutionThe movers and shakers in the colonialperiod spent a lot of time thinking aboutthese big ideas, and how to put them intopractice.Give it a try yourself by matching eachaspect of the U.S. Constitution to the bigideas that you just learned about.

From Big Ideas to theConstitutionA“This Constitution and the laws of the United States . shall be the supreme law ofthe land.” All government officials “shall be bound by an oath to support thisconstitution.”U.S. Constitution, Article VISelf– Government:popular or representativesystem where the peoplecreate and run their owngovernmentRule of Law: the idea thatall people must follow thelaws, and that the laws areenforced fairlyDue Process: People have theright to fair and reasonable laws.Officials have to follow ruleswhen enforcing the laws and treatall people in the same way.Rights: A set of things thatpeople believe they shouldbe free to do withoutrestrictionsALimited Government: thepower of government islimited by the Constitution,and each branch is limitedin what it can do

BFrom Big Ideas to theConstitutionThe first ten amendments in the Bill of Rights guarantee certain rights and freedoms thatinclude: Freedom of speech, the press, and religion Right to petition the government and to bear arms Prohibition of excessive bail or fines, or cruel and unusual punishments for crimesSelf– Government:popular or representativesystem where the peoplecreate and run their owngovernmentRule of Law: the idea thatall people must follow thelaws, and that the laws areenforced fairlyDue Process: People have theright to fair and reasonable laws.Officials have to follow ruleswhen enforcing the laws and treatall people in the same way.Rights: A set of things thatpeople believe they shouldbe free to do withoutrestrictionsBLimited Government: thepower of government islimited by the Constitution,and each branch is limitedin what it can do

CFrom Big Ideas to theConstitutionThe U.S. Constitution created three branches of government. Each branch is given thepower to check, or limit the power of the other two. The system of checks and balanceskeeps any one branch from getting too powerful.Self– Government:popular or representativesystem where the peoplecreate and run their owngovernmentRule of Law: the idea thatall people must follow thelaws, and that the laws areenforced fairlyDue Process: People have theright to fair and reasonable laws.Officials have to follow ruleswhen enforcing the laws and treatall people in the same way.Rights: A set of things thatpeople believe they shouldbe free to do withoutrestrictionsLimited Government: thepower of government islimited by the Constitution,and each branch is limitedin what it can doC

DFrom Big Ideas to theConstitution“ No person shall.be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law”U.S. Constitution, 5th AmendmentSelf– Government:popular or representativesystem where the peoplecreate and run their owngovernmentRule of Law: the idea thatall people must follow thelaws, and that the laws areenforced fairlyDue Process: People have theright to fair and reasonable laws.Officials have to follow ruleswhen enforcing the laws and treatall people in the same way.Rights: A set of things thatpeople believe they shouldbe free to do withoutrestrictionsDLimited Government: thepower of government islimited by the Constitution,and each branch is limitedin what it can do

EFrom Big Ideas to theConstitution“WE THE PEOPLE of the United States.do ordain and establish this Constitution for theUnited States of America.”Preamble to the Constitution, 1787Self– Government:popular or representativesystem where the peoplecreate and run their owngovernmentERule of Law: the idea thatall people must follow thelaws, and that the laws areenforced fairlyDue Process: People have theright to fair and reasonable laws.Officials have to follow ruleswhen enforcing the laws and treatall people in the same way.Rights: A set of things thatpeople believe they shouldbe free to do withoutrestrictionsLimited Government: thepower of government islimited by the Constitution,and each branch is limitedin what it can do

So what are you going to do?Choose a modern method ofcommunication(text stream, Facebook, Twitter, etc.)and show a conversation/ stream withtwo of the inspiration documentsdebating who’s more important to theConstitution!

Cato’s LettersEnglish Bill of RightsMayflower CompactCollection of Good IdeasColonial InfluencesUse modern communicationtechnique to discuss who is the mostimportant- must have at least 10“exchanges”.

colonies. Many were getting fed up and began to meet and discuss breaking away from Britain. In the mid-1770s, representatives from most of the 13 colonies met in Philadelphia. Here, the Founders discussed the options for the future.