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Rights of Englishment

Throughout the colonies, free Americans enjoyed the rights and liberties of English subjects. England had one of the most advanced political democracies in Europe, and English freedoms were envied throughout the world The American colonists were fiercly protective of these freedoms, which they called "The Rights of Englishmen."

The Magna Carta

English rights had been developing for centuries. The first step toward guaranteeing these rights came in 1215. In that year, English nobles forced King John to sign a document that was called the Magna Carta, Latin for "great charter."

The Magna Carta established a council of nobles that later became England's Parliament. The Magna Carta also guaranteed English political and civil liberties. It limited the power of the king by guaranteeing rights to nobles and "freemen." These rights included:

property could not be seized by the king or his officials
people could not be taxed, unless the council of nobles agreed
You could not be put on trial based only on an official's word, without witnesses.
Could only be punished by a jury of your peers.

Parliament is England's lawmaking body and was the model for representative government in the colonies. Parliament has two houses -- the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Members of the House of Commons are elected. Members of the House of Lords are nonelected nobles, judges, and clergy.

English colonists in America did not want to give up the right of representative goverment. Because the King and Parliament were too far away to manage every detail of the colonies, some self-government was allowed. Many colonies created their own representative assemblies that would impose taxes and pass laws on them.

Parliament

English bill of rights

After King James II shut down Parliament and put down a Protestant rebellion in 1688, Parliament secretly invited his daughter, Mary, and her husband, William of Orange, to take the throne. When they arrived with their army on England shores, King James II fled.

William and Mary agreed in 1689 to sign and uphold the English Bill of Rights. This was a list of specific rights and privileges guaranteed to the English people and to Parliament.

These rights included:

the King could not cancel laws or pass taxes unless Parliament agreed.
Free elections and frequent meetings of Parliament would be held
Excessive fines and cruel punishments (torture) were forbidden
People had the right to complain to the King or Parliament without being arrested

john peter zenger trial

John Peter Zenger was the publisher of the New York Weekly Journal. In 1735, he was arrested after he wrote and published an article that criticized the governor of New York. The article claimed that the governor had accepted bribes, removed judges he didn't like, and had also tried to fix elections.

Since the King appointed the governor, it was seen as also a criticism against the king. At the time, however, it was illegal to criticize the king in print. For this reason, he was arrested and put on trial.

Zenger's lawyer argued that people had the right to speak and publish the truth, which is all Zenger had done. The jury agreed, and Zenger was released. Zenger's trial was the foundation for the freedom of the press, which became a foundational right in America.

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