Chapter 4 Clash of Political Cultures

The English Constitution-British law was the most organized and well structured in Europe

-Most of it was not a formal written document but a growing body of law, court decisions, and statutes

English Constitution -Laws and policies developed by the three bodies of government:

-1.The Monarch - and a council of their own hand-picked advisors

-2.House of Lords - 180 man assembly of aristocrats - the upper house of Parliament

-3.House of Commons - 558 members elected to their position as a lower house of Parliament

-The government was supposed to represent all three walks of life

Realities of British Policies

-The branches were supposed to work together to create balance

-In reality the House of Commons was loaded with the lower class aristocrats

-Englishmen did not think their Constitution was a balance of executive, legislative, and judicial branches

-All policy was focused on the interests of the British landed elite

-There was open patronage among the king and members of Parliament as well for political and economic favors

Realities of British Policies -Less than 20% of the British male population had the right to vote

-Property qualifications and other restrictions kept the ability to vote in the hands of the wealthy

-A few men controlled the elections in most districts due to the population of voters

The Commonwealthmen-The only group of people who spoke out against the voting inequality before 1760 were a group of men historians call the Commonwealthmen

-They were a group of radical publicists who pointed out the corruption of political life

-John Trenchard and Thomas Gordon are the most famous and wrote a series of essays called Cato’s Letters

-They pointed out corruption and tyranny was going o prevent them from being protected by their government

The Commonwealthmen-Most British citizens agreed that these men were pointing out the flaws of their government

-They were realistic in that the people were not going to change the government

-They were also unwilling to mess with a government that had just survived a civil war and the Glorious Revolution

-The Americans took the teachings to heart though, and began looking at ways to ensure their liberties and freedoms

Colonial Government-Colonists felt their governments (in the individual colonies) were modeled on the balanced constitution of Great Britain

-The royal governor was the messenger to the king and the councils were the House of Lords, elected colonists to the assemblies were the House of Commons

-They soon learned that their ideas of representation were not seen as relevant and were not taken seriously

Royal Governors-All were appointed by the king

-Most were ex-military and were not paid well - so they looked at ways to make their own money while serving the king

-They had large amounts of power in legislation and where the military commanders of the colony

-They wanted to make their time as governor as pleasant and as profitable as they could, so none of them were looking to upset the Crown

The Council-The Royal Governor had more power in the colonies than the king did, so people wanted to influence their decisions

-They were advised by a council of 12 or so men - wealthy colonists that had been chosen by the Board of Trade in London after being recommended by the governor

-These men had heavy economic and social ties to the Royal Governor and to prominent people in England - yet this steadily declines during the 1700s

Colonial Assembly-The percentage of men who owned land and could vote in the colonies was much higher than that in England

-Most were fairly young and willing to govern

-Elected members felt they had a special obligation to preserve colonial liberties

-The social pressures of dealing with a long series of imperial wars with France, demanding long public expenditures and seriousness of voting changed these men into professional, and vigilant legislatures very quickly

Distrust of the Governor-The colonial assemblies had no reason to work with the royal governors

-They refused to support anything that did not support their own interests

-Most governors allied themselves with the wealthy gentry class to make sure they personally profited

The Use of the Press-Newspapers became the most common way for all people of the colonies to know the political standing of any legislation

-Opinion pieces and essays about policies were published as well

-Heavily used in the colonies compared to Britain

Assemblies Influence on the Colonies-The language of the law became Anglicanized

-The Board of Trade, Privy Council and Parliament made decisions and settled court cases for all colonies

-Legal practices became standard in all colonies

-Most men serving in the colonial assembly were lawyers or had received some legal training

-This made the colonists more alike and they begin to share many of the same issues with England