Origins of the American

RevolutionUS History: Spiconardi

Influences on the American Government

Ancient Greece (Athens) Democracy rule by

the people

Ancient Rome Republic voters elect

representatives who speak and act for the people in government

Magna Carta Placed limits on the

king’s power to rule

English Bill of Rights Established the

precedent that representative government & the rule of law outweighed the monarch’s power

Influences on the American Government

The Enlightenment Thinkers John Locke

Right to life, liberty, and property Baron de Montesquieu

separation of powers & checks and balances Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Social Contract – government needs the consent of the governed

Colonial Assemblies & Government New England

Town Meetings allowed citizens to govern themselves through direct democracy

House of Burgesses First representative

lawmaking body established in the colonies (Virginia 1619)

The Colonial Experience: Salutary Neglect & Mercantilism Salutary Neglect

Colonies left alone by England to deal with local matters

Parliamentary laws that were meant to keep the colonies subservient were not enforced

Mercantilism Policy in which country

exports more than it imports

Colonies exist to provide raw materials and markets for the economic benefit of the mother country

Mercantilism in English Colonies

Practice Questions “The individual can be free only

when the power of one government branch is balanced by the other two.”

~Baron de Montesquieu

The idea expressed in this quotation is best illustrated by which aspect of the United States government?

1. Existence of a Cabinet

2. Separation of powers

3. Elastic clause

4. Executive privilege

In the colonial era, developments such as the New England town meetings and the establishment of the Virginia House of Burgesses represented…

1. Colonial attempts to build a strong national government

2. Efforts by the British to strengthen control over the colonies

3. Steps in the growth of representative democracy

4. Early social reform movements