Continuities?

In late 1774, representatives of the American British colonies met. It was the First Continental Congress. Together, these men wrote a Declaration of Rights and Grievances. This document demanded better treatment from Britain. King George III was the king of England at the time. The declaration demanded liberties that were guaranteed by “the English Constitution, and several charters.” These included:

• freedom from taxation without representation
• the right to a trial by a jury of peers
• protection of life, liberty, and property

These phrases were taken from British legal and political documents. They all showed up later in the US Constitution. So, is American democracy based on British ideas of liberty and rights? Let’s look at three important documents and events in British history.

Magna Carta

The 1774 Declaration referred to Britain’s “constitution.” But Britain didn’t have a constitution. Instead, Britain had a number of charters and compacts, or legal agreements. These documents granted certain rights to the population.

The first of these documents was the Magna Carta. It was signed by King John on June 15, 1215. A group of nobles forced him to sign it.

The Magna Carta guaranteed certain rights and freedoms. These were given mostly to the nobles. It also made some reforms, or changes. These reforms limited the taxes that nobles could be forced to pay. They also guaranteed the nobles fair treatment in a court trial.

Sound familiar? This is exactly the kind of stuff you find in the US Constitution and Bill of Rights.

Note these comparisons:

So, the Magna Carta did influence the founders of the United States. But remember, the Magna Carta only protected important and powerful men.

English Civil War

A second important event in British history was the English Civil War of 1642-1651. A civil war is a conflict within a country. On one side of the conflict, people supported King Charles I. On the other side, people supported the English Parliament. Parliament’s members were partly elected. But, the king was not elected. A war like this, between a king and an elected parliament, can easily be seen as a model for the American War of Independence. After all, it was a fight for democracy.

The English Civil War was also caused by anger over taxes. The taxes had been introduced by the king without the support of Parliament. It was this fact that made many people particularly angry. Years later, colonists would experience the same anger. This would kickstart the American Revolution. (Remember the colonists’ demand that there be “no taxation without representation.”)

The English Civil War gave rise to several groups that were very democratic. One was the Levellers. The Levellers were radical supporters of the Parliamentary side. They called for:

• rule by the people (a phrase that would come back in the American Revolution)
• a widespread right to vote
• religious tolerance

But the Levellers did not win the war. By 1660, Charles I’s son— Charles II—was restored to the throne.

Glorious Revolution

Now for a third important event in English political history: the Glorious Revolution of 1688. This bloodless revolution is often seen as a big influence on the American Revolution. Before the Revolution, Charles II’s son was in power. His name was James II.

The Glorious Revolution took place partly because James II suspended Parliament. He then tried to rule by himself. Unsurprisingly, this move was unpopular with the nobles. They rebelled to take James II off the throne. The rebels put William of Orange and his wife, Mary, on the throne. However, they wanted to limit the new rulers from taking complete power. So, William and Mary had to sign a document in 1689. It was the English Bill of Rights, and it had a lot of similarities to the later American Constitution and Bill of Rights.

For example:

But some argue the Glorious Revolution was not really revolutionary. It was mostly organized by a group of wealthy men. All they did was replace one king with another.

Limitations of the argument

One could argue that there was no real tradition of democracy in England. The Magna Carta only protected the nobles. The English Civil War ended with the return of a king. The English Bill of Rights was very limited.

British political thinkers who most inspired the Americans were also not in power. In Britain, their work was not widely read. However, these thinkers were very popular in the American colonies. The writings of Thomas Paine and other American rebels drew on their ideas.

Why were these ideas so popular in the American colonies? Unlike England, the colonies had many people who owned land. Also, the colonies were far away from the British government. They had to make decisions on their own, and many elected local governments. Finally, many different religious groups lived together in the colonies. All this made the ideas of the radical writers very appealing.

This isn’t to say that the British legal and political tradition wasn’t important to the American Revolution. It was. It’s just that the thinkers who had the most influence on American laws were not powerful in Britain.