Magna Carta Dbq

For the first time in English history, the Magna Carta placed limitations on the English King. In 1215 the English nobles created the Magna Carta, also known as the Great Charter, because they disagreed with King John’s style of governing. This document stated the rights of the people, and the King. One of these rights included the right to trial by jury. Today we take the right to trial by jury for granted, but back then the peasants really appreciated it. Another right granted to the people through the Magna Carta said that the King could not raise taxes without the consent of the nobles. Imagine if all of a sudden President Obama would raise the taxes, you would not be too happy; neither would the nobles or the peasants. Habeas Corpus, a very important right that the people had gained, meant that people could not be punished for something foolish such as not being smart, being ugly, etc.

On June 15, 1215, the nobles of England decided to go meet King John in a place near London.

Here the nobles forced the king to sign the Magna Carta. The Magna Carta eventually led to the rise of Parliament. Parliament, a place where nobles could have their opinions heard, separated into two houses. One house had the nobles and people in the higher clergy, while the other had knights and burgesses. The way they have split Congress today closely resembles the way Parliament was split back then. The Senate represents the nobles, while the House of Representatives resembles the knights and the burgesses. In 1265, the nobles and Simon de Montfort rebelled against the young King Henry III. Soon the nobles scheduled the first meeting of Parliament, which was held in London. Parliament’s main purpose was to pass or veto laws and to decide on allowing taxes or not. All in all, Magna Carta and Parliament were the first step to representative government and the way we govern our country

today.

The House of Burgesses

The creation of the House of Burgesses represented the beginning of self-government in America. On July 30, 1619, the House of Burgesses met for the first time in a church located in Jamestown, Virginia. Twenty- two representatives and the governor, George Yeardley, made up the House of Burgesses. The governor made his personal council by appointing six people, the remaining fifteen were voted in by men over the age of seventeen that owned land. For the first few years the House of Burgesses met only once a year. Near the mid 1620’s, the House of Burgesses started to meet more often. The House of Burgesses was the first representative government in America. The members would make laws that benefit the colony, and include the ideas of the people. On the other hand, the governor had the right to veto any law. Today, our House of Representatives resembles the House of Burgesses. All in all, the House of Burgesses was another step leading to our representative government today.

Mayflower Compact
The Pilgrims’ Mayflower Compact created a system of government to help successfully rule themselves. Forty- one men aboard a ship, the Mayflower, wrote and signed the Mayflower Compact. The pilgrims’ wrote the Mayflower Compact, because they did not want to end up starving and dying from disease like Jamestown. This also led to the implementation of equal laws. Equal laws benefitted everyone and were voted upon. Until 1691, the Mayflower Compact had no trace of English law.