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Lesson 5: Revolution in England and North America This is the first time you have looked at it.

The English Commonwealth and the Glorious Revolution The best and most dedicated soldiers on the side of Parliament were Calvinists who had religious quarrels with Charles I. They abolished the monarchy in 1649, had Charles executed, and set up a republic or commonwealth.One member of the Constitutional Convention explained that rights are the only protection against the government: It having been found from universal experience that the most express declarations and reservations are necessary to protect the just rights and liberty of mankind from the silent powerful and ever active conspiracy of those who govern...it is submitted that the new Constitution...be bottomed upon a declaration, or Bill of Rights, clearly and precisely stating the principles upon which this Social Compact is founded to wit, That the right of conscience in matters of Religion shall not be violated; That the freedom of the press shall be secured; That the trial by Jury in criminal and civil cases, and the modes prescribed by the Common Law for safety of Life in criminal prosecutions shall be held sacred; That standing Armies in times of peace are dangerous to liberty and ought not to be permitted unless assented to by two thirds of the Members composing each house of the Legislature under the new Constitution; That elections of the Members of the Legislature should be free and frequent; That the right administration of Justice should be secured by the freedom and independency of the Judges; That excessive Bail, excessive Fines, or cruel and unusual punishments should not be demanded or inflicted; That the right of the people to assemble peaceably for the purpose of petitioning the Legislature shall not be prevented; That the Citizens shall not be exposed to unreasonable searches, seizures of their persons, papers, houses, or property.Here is an excerpt of Parliament's condemnation of Charles to death: ...[H]e (the said Charles Stuart) being admitted King of England and therein trusted with a limited power to govern by and according to the law of the land and not otherwise, and by his trust, oath, and office being obliged to use the power committed to him for the good and benefit of the people and for the preservation of their rights and liberties, yet nevertheless out of a wicked design to erect and uphold in himself an unlimited and tyrannical power to rule according to his will and to overthrow the rights and liberties of the people, and to take away and make void the foundations thereof and of all redress and remedy of misgovernment, which by the fundamental constitutions of this kingdom were reserved on the people's behalf in the right and power of frequent and successive Parliaments or National Meetings in Council, he (the said Charles Stuart) for accomplishment of such his designs and for the protecting of himself and his adherents in his and their wicked practices to the same end hath traitorously and maliciously levied war against the present Parliament and people therein represented, as (with the circumstances of time and place) is in the said charge more particularly set forth; and that he hath thereby caused and procured many thousands of the free people of this nation to be slain, and by divisions, parties, and insurrections within this land, by invasions from foreign parts, endeavored and procured by him, and by many other evil ways and means...On the walls, written in English and Dutch, is the caption "This House Is To Let" (i.e. "This House For Rent"). Such criticism was banned in England, so cartoons like this one were printed abroad and distributed to Englishmen in the Netherlands or smuggled into England. This is an engraving of the Boston Tea Party. W.D. Cooper,The History of North America. London: E. Newberry, 1789. Nevertheless, the colonists hated the new taxes and with good reason. England had just executed a king and fought a civil war about who had legitimate authority to ask for taxes. The colonists argued that Parliament could not tax them, since the colonists had no voices in Parliament. Their motto was, "No taxation without representation."We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness -- That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles, and organizing its Powers in such Form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.Two years after Cromwell's death in 1658, important nobles in Parliament requested the return, or restoration, of the executed king's son, Charles II.

Cromwell dissolves Parliament in this engraving of the time, printed in the Netherlands.Cromwell and the Calvinists imposed their strict version of Christianity in the British islands, banning, for example, the theaters that had delighted Elizabethan England.For all which treasons and crimes, this court doth adjudge that he, the said Charles Stuart, as a tyrant, traitor, murderer, and public enemy to the good people of this nation, shall be put to death by the severing of his head from his body.They were also inspired by philosophers like John Locke, whose Second Treatise on Government declared that people had the right to remove a government that failed to protect their lives, liberties, or property.Although the English still held major cities like New York and Charleston, Parliament decided the war was not worth it. A peace agreement was concluded in 1783, recognizing the colonies' independence.When a nation's foreign policy creates a reaction or leads to self-inflicted harmful effects, as they did for France after the American Revolution, these unintended consequences are called blowback.The U.S. Constitution The American colonies had joined together to defeat the English, but each colony was essentially its own sovereign nation.Additionally, tariffs--taxes on goods that crossed borders to other states--cost businessmen and consumers much money.Eventually, the idea of a federal government gained broad acceptance and representatives from each state were sent to the Constitutional Convention to draw up a Constitution.The separation of powers was based upon the work of an Enlightenment political theorist, Charles-Louis de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu.As reproduced in The Trial of Charles I--A Documentary History, ed. David Iagomarsino and Charles J. Wood (Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 1989), 106-9.The political philosophers Hobbes and Locke (discussed in Lesson 4) were both Englishmen and their ideas were shaped by the experience of this civil war.The outcry against these acts provoked the colonists to assemble and plan a rebellion against England and the king.The colonists were inspired by the English Revolution, in which people had defied the king and crafted new rights and rules for society.The following section of the Declaration of Independence was so similar to Locke's work that one signer, Richard Henry Lee, accused Jefferson of copying the Declaration out of Locke's writings.By April of 1775, colonists had already fought the English army in Massachusetts at Lexington and Concord.In 1778, the French king signed a treaty of alliance with the rebel colonies, and in a year or so the Spanish and Dutch did the same.Throughout six years of uncertain or unfavorable war, Washington somehow managed to convince enough colonists that they should, and could, defeat the English.For months, militias of poor farmers controlled most of Western Massachusetts.The Constitution separated power into three branches: legislative (Congress), executive (the president), and judicial (the courts).When he saw that Parliament would not condemn the king to death, Cromwell removed the opposing forces.He ended up opposing the people and Parliament and ruling as a absolute monarch himself.This tax would help pay for the war and also help finance the British East India Company, which had a monopoly on tea exports from China.The American Revolution In September 1774, the First Continental Congress met in Philadelphia.This passage proposes the idea of natural, human rights, just as philosophers such as John Locke had done.It also explains that governments come from the consent of the people, not from God or the divine right of kings.Washington understood that the struggle with the English, like most guerrilla warfare, would be decided by survival and not by glorious battles.In 1781, colonial and French forces defeated the English in battle at Yorktown, Virginia.The English colonies had each been founded by different groups for different purposes.Virtually every colonist was against the taxes.From The King Is Sentenced.

Lesson 5: Revolution in England and North America
This is the first time you have looked at it.

The English Commonwealth and the Glorious Revolution
The best and most dedicated soldiers on the side of Parliament were Calvinists who had religious quarrels with Charles I. They abolished the monarchy in 1649, had Charles executed, and set up a republic or commonwealth. Their leader was the capable general Oliver Cromwell. Here is an excerpt of Parliament's condemnation of Charles to death:
...[H]e (the said Charles Stuart) being admitted King of England and therein trusted with a limited power to govern by and according to the law of the land and not otherwise, and by his trust, oath, and office being obliged to use the power committed to him for the good and benefit of the people and for the preservation of their rights and liberties, yet nevertheless out of a wicked design to erect and uphold in himself an unlimited and tyrannical power to rule according to his will and to overthrow the rights and liberties of the people, and to take away and make void the foundations thereof and of all redress and remedy of misgovernment, which by the fundamental constitutions of this kingdom were reserved on the people’s behalf in the right and power of frequent and successive Parliaments or National Meetings in Council, he (the said Charles Stuart) for accomplishment of such his designs and for the protecting of himself and his adherents in his and their wicked practices to the same end hath traitorously and maliciously levied war against the present Parliament and people therein represented, as (with the circumstances of time and place) is in the said charge more particularly set forth; and that he hath thereby caused and procured many thousands of the free people of this nation to be slain, and by divisions, parties, and insurrections within this land, by invasions from foreign parts, endeavored and procured by him, and by many other evil ways and means...

For all which treasons and crimes, this court doth adjudge that he, the said Charles Stuart, as a tyrant, traitor, murderer, and public enemy to the good people of this nation, shall be put to death by the severing of his head from his body.
From The King Is Sentenced. As reproduced in The Trial of Charles I--A Documentary History, ed. David Iagomarsino and Charles J. Wood (Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 1989), 106-9.
This death sentence gives reasons similar to Enlightenment ideals about human rights and the basis of government. The political philosophers Hobbes and Locke (discussed in Lesson 4) were both Englishmen and their ideas were shaped by the experience of this civil war.
Cromwell's government proved just as arbitrary and absolute as the king that he replaced. When he saw that Parliament would not condemn the king to death, Cromwell removed the opposing forces. He eventually dissolved Parliament entirely and ruled England on his own for almost 10 years. He began as a defender of Parliament and the rights of the people against the king. He ended up opposing the people and Parliament and ruling as a absolute monarch himself. Cromwell and the Calvinists imposed their strict version of Christianity in the British islands, banning, for example, the theaters that had delighted Elizabethan England. Two years after Cromwell's death in 1658, important nobles in Parliament requested the return, or restoration, of the executed king's son, Charles II.

Cromwell dissolves Parliament in this engraving of the time, printed in the Netherlands. On the walls, written in English and Dutch, is the caption "This House Is To Let" (i.e. "This House For Rent"). Such criticism was banned in England, so cartoons like this one were printed abroad and distributed to Englishmen in the Netherlands or smuggled into England.

This is an engraving of the Boston Tea Party. W.D. Cooper,The History of North America. London: E. Newberry, 1789.
Nevertheless, the colonists hated the new taxes and with good reason. England had just executed a king and fought a civil war about who had legitimate authority to ask for taxes. The colonists argued that Parliament could not tax them, since the colonists had no voices in Parliament. Their motto was, "No taxation without representation." Virtually every colonist was against the taxes. All of the taxes were eventually revoked except for one tax, the tea tax. This tax would help pay for the war and also help finance the British East India Company, which had a monopoly on tea exports from China.
Several protestors in Boston decided to make a point by dressing up as Native American warriors. In front of large crowds, the protestors entered three English ships full of tea. The protestors threw about 10,000 pounds of tea into the harbor. This event, known as the Boston Tea Party, infuriated the English and inspired the colonists. The English demanded justice and tried to punish all of Boston, all of Massachusetts, and all of the colonies. The outcry against these acts provoked the colonists to assemble and plan a rebellion against England and the king.
The American Revolution
In September 1774, the First Continental Congress met in Philadelphia. The colonists were inspired by the English Revolution, in which people had defied the king and crafted new rights and rules for society. They were also inspired by philosophers like John Locke, whose Second Treatise on Government declared that people had the right to remove a government that failed to protect their lives, liberties, or property.
The following section of the Declaration of Independence was so similar to Locke's work that one signer, Richard Henry Lee, accused Jefferson of copying the Declaration out of Locke's writings.
We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness -- That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles, and organizing its Powers in such Form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.
From the Declaration of Independence (1776).
This passage proposes the idea of natural, human rights, just as philosophers such as John Locke had done. It also explains that governments come from the consent of the people, not from God or the divine right of kings. Finally, it says that the people have the right to get rid of any government that does not protect their natural rights.
But the revolution was already in people's hearts before the Declaration of Independence was written. By April of 1775, colonists had already fought the English army in Massachusetts at Lexington and Concord. By 1777, Frenchmen were volunteering to help the rebels fight the English. In 1778, the French king signed a treaty of alliance with the rebel colonies, and in a year or so the Spanish and Dutch did the same.
In some respects the American Revolution was a civil war. At least a third of the people opposed breaking with England and supported the English. In some respects, the American Revolution was a continuation of the war between France and England. French navies not only helped the colonists in North America, but carried the war on in India and the Caribbean.
The Continental Congress appointed George Washington to lead their army. Washington understood that the struggle with the English, like most guerrilla warfare, would be decided by survival and not by glorious battles. If the rebel colonists could hold out long enough, the English would leave them alone, especially since the American colonies were a very low priority for the English. Throughout six years of uncertain or unfavorable war, Washington somehow managed to convince enough colonists that they should, and could, defeat the English.
In 1781, colonial and French forces defeated the English in battle at Yorktown, Virginia. Although the English still held major cities like New York and Charleston, Parliament decided the war was not worth it. A peace agreement was concluded in 1783, recognizing the colonies' independence. It was a great triumph for the French over the English, but the costs of fighting a world war had bankrupted their finances. In addition, the French king's support of an anti-monarchical revolution would soon come back to haunt him as France erupted in its own revolution (see Lesson 6). When a nation's foreign policy creates a reaction or leads to self-inflicted harmful effects, as they did for France after the American Revolution, these unintended consequences are called blowback. Thanks to the peace treaty at the end of the war, the United States became the first independent European community in the Americas.
The U.S. Constitution
The American colonies had joined together to defeat the English, but each colony was essentially its own sovereign nation. The English colonies had each been founded by different groups for different purposes. They viewed each other and any idea of a central government with suspicion. It was not even clear that the colonies, now free states, wanted to be joined together. But money and taxes eventually bound them together, just as money and taxes tore them apart from England.
After the war, the American economy suffered, and some states dealt with economic matters very foolishly. In Massachusetts, poor policy led to a farmers' rebellion known as Shay's Rebellion. For months, militias of poor farmers controlled most of Western Massachusetts. Instability is bad for business, and large property owners were frightened by the happenings in Massachusetts. These property holders now saw the need for a standing federal army that could put down rebellions. A federal army could not exist without a federal government to collect funds.
Additionally, tariffs--taxes on goods that crossed borders to other states--cost businessmen and consumers much money. A federal system would eliminate such taxes, create more profit, and result in lower prices for consumers. Eventually, the idea of a federal government gained broad acceptance and representatives from each state were sent to the Constitutional Convention to draw up a Constitution.
Despite the benefits of banding together, the colonists still feared a powerful federal government. As a solution, they designed a government that would list and honor the rights of individuals and the states. One member of the Constitutional Convention explained that rights are the only protection against the government:
It having been found from universal experience that the most express declarations and reservations are necessary to protect the just rights and liberty of mankind from the silent powerful and ever active conspiracy of those who govern...it is submitted that the new Constitution...be bottomed upon a declaration, or Bill of Rights, clearly and precisely stating the principles upon which this Social Compact is founded to wit, That the right of conscience in matters of Religion shall not be violated; That the freedom of the press shall be secured; That the trial by Jury in criminal and civil cases, and the modes prescribed by the Common Law for safety of Life in criminal prosecutions shall be held sacred; That standing Armies in times of peace are dangerous to liberty and ought not to be permitted unless assented to by two thirds of the Members composing each house of the Legislature under the new Constitution; That elections of the Members of the Legislature should be free and frequent; That the right administration of Justice should be secured by the freedom and independency of the Judges; That excessive Bail, excessive Fines, or cruel and unusual punishments should not be demanded or inflicted; That the right of the people to assemble peaceably for the purpose of petitioning the Legislature shall not be prevented; That the Citizens shall not be exposed to unreasonable searches, seizures of their persons, papers, houses, or property.
Letter of Richard Henry Lee to George Mason Oct. 1, 1787 Mason Papers 3:997-98.
There were other ways that the Constitution protected the citizens against their own government. The Constitution arranged that no one person and no one part of the federal government would have unlimited power. Unlike in England, where Parliament ruled, the houses of Congress would not be the sole and ultimate authority. The power of congress would be limited by a president and by independent courts.
The Constitution separated power into three branches: legislative (Congress), executive (the president), and judicial (the courts). The separation of powers was based upon the work of an Enlightenment political theorist, Charles-Louis de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu. Montesquieu believed that each branch would prevent the others from getting too much power or acting improperly. Each branch is therefore part of the "checks and balances" that insured no one would become to powerful. He based this system on the Roman Republic, which spread power to prevent it from falling in the hands of one man (see Lesson 6 of World History To 1815).

Checks and Balances in the U.S. Constitution.
The writers of the Constitution were also suspicious of democracy. They did not want masses of poor people with too much power, and they were worried about the tyranny of a majority. In most states, as in England, a man had to own a certain amount of property before he could vote. Many states did not even allow these property owners the right to directly elect representatives to their state legislatures.
Here is one of James Madison's arguments for the Constitution and against democracies, such as in ancient Athens:
[In a pure democracy] there is nothing to check the inducements to sacrifice the weaker party or an obnoxious individual. Hence it is that such democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been found incompatible with personal security or the rights of property; and have in general been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths.
James Madison Federalist Papers 10.12.
This fear of democracy was written into in the new Constitution. Senators were elected by the state legislatures, not by popular vote. The president, too, was elected by a special system called the electoral college or by Congress. In 1913, the Constitution was amended to allow the election of senators by popular vote.
Just as in democratic Athens and in Parliament in England, equality under the law and full and fair elections in the U.S. evolved gradually. Solon in Athens did not anticipate that his reforms would lead to a full and equal democracy (see Lesson 5 of World History To 1815). Medieval kings in England did not intend to concede real power to Parliament, and certainly not in a way that would lead to representative elections (see Lesson 11 of World History To 1815). Most of the writers of the U.S. Constitution also did not anticipate or want popular elections of the sort that take place today.
The Constitution and the new nation, the United States of America, proved to be strong, enduring, and flexible. The War of Independence was not a great matter for England or for the powers of Europe. What excited Europe was the creation of a new type of nation based on Enlightenment political theory. Within a decade, this experiment would enflame France and, in the following decades, all of Europe and the Americas.
Lesson Recap
The English-speaking world in 1790 was very different from that world in 1620. The main changes were in the areas of political powers and political rights. Traditionally, English citizens and Parliament enjoyed many rights. However, these rights were informal, and kings often broke the traditions. In England, the rights of citizens and of Parliament became officially established. One king who disagreed was beheaded. Another one fled and Parliament appointed a new one. In the American colonies, individual rights were the basis for a new government, and there was no need for kings at all.
Click here for a Timeline of English and American Revolution
Questions for Essays and Discussion
At least one of the following essay questions will appear in the submission for this lesson.

1. 
   

   Compare the Glorious Revolution to the American Revolution. Are these just two struggles about the same issue, or was the American Revolution a struggle for issues beyond those in the Glorious Revolution and English Civil War?

   
   


2. 
   

   What were the social and economic benefits of the American states coming together and forming a federal government?

   
   


3. 
   

   Why were the founders of the U.S. suspicious of absolute democracy? Give at least one example of how they designed U.S. democracy to prevent absolute or direct democracy.

   
   


4. 
   

   Describe how the idea of individual rights evolved in England and its American colonies between 1600 and 1789. Your essay should at minimum mention the Enlightenment, the English Civil War, and the U.S. Constitution.

   
   


5. 
   

   Why was the House of Lords more likely to comply with the King's wishes than the House of Commons?

   
   


6. 
   

   Who were the members of the British House of Commons and how did they become members?
   Further Reading
   A. Weir, The Life of Elizabeth I, NY: Ballantine Books, 1999.
   C. Hibbert, Cavaliers and Roundheads: English at War, 1642-49, NY: Harper Collins Pub Ltd, 1994.
   T. Royle, The British Civil War: The Wars of the Three Kingdoms 1638-1660, NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004.
   S. C. A. Pincus, England's Glorious Revolution 1688-1689: A Brief History with Documents, NY: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2005.
   R. Middlekauff, The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763-1789, NY: Oxford University Press, USA, 2005.
   M. E. Bradford, Founding Fathers: Brief Lives of the Framers of the United States Constitution, Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas, 1994.
   R. Labunski, James Madison and the Struggle for the Bill of Rights, NY: Oxford University Press, USA, 2006.