Protestant Reformation: Reversals of Power

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Protestant Reformation Reversals of Power
1500 Henry VIII Catholic (sort of) 1547-53
Edward VI Protestant 1553-58 Mary I (Bloody
Mary) Catholic 1558-1603 Elizabeth I
Protestant 1588 Spanish Armada
destroyed 1603-25 James I Protestant 1625-49
Charles I Catholic 1640-50 English Civil
War 1649 Monarchy abolished by Oliver Cromwell's
Roundheads 1660-1685 Charles II Converted to
Catholicism on deathbed 1685-88 James II
Catholic 1689 Glorious Revolution 1689-1702
William of Orange and Queen Mary Protestant
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Human Rights development in England before
colonization

• Edward Coke's Petition of Right (1623)
• No taxation without representation no man
  hereafter be compelled to make or yield any gift,
  loan, benevolence, tax, or such like charge,
  without common consent by act of parliament
• English Bill of Rights (1689)
• ...that the subjects which are Protestants may
  have arms for their defence suitable to their
  conditions and as allowed by law
• That excessive bail ought not to be required,
  nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and
  unusual punishments inflicted

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British Constitution

• Magna Carta (1215) British nobles force King
  John on the southern England plain of Runnymede
  to sign this document (written in Latin) pledging
  to protect the rights of nobles (condemned by
  Pope)
• Petition of Right (1628) Written by the great
  common law exponent Edward Coke (pronounced
  cook), protected the rights of people and
  Protestant Parliament against King, restated
  Magna Carta and rights
• English Bill of Rights (1689) Parliament forced
  Prince William to sign before taking the crown
  from last Catholic King James II, model for U.S.
  Bill of Rights

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Common law concepts from British Constitution

• Trial by jury (predates Magna Carta)
• Stare Decisis Don't change past precedents,
  dependability and fairness in law
• Ban on Ex Post Facto laws Don't pass a law
  criminalizing something that already happened
• Habeas Corpus No imprisonment without a court
  hearing

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Development of Common law
Stare decisis is a maxim among ... lawyers,
that whatever has been done before may legally be
done again and therefore they take special care
to record all the decisions formerly made against
common justice and the general reason of
mankind. Jonathan Swift, Gullivers Travels
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Declaration of Independence

• 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
• Asserts three things
• 1. There is a God
• 2. He gave us rights
• 3. People create government to protect rights

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Goals of the law

• Based upon moral, economic, political and social
  values
• Desired outcomes of the law
• 1. Protect human (individual) rights
• 2. Promote fairness
• 3. Resolve conflicts
• 4. Promote order/stability
• 5. Promote desirable social or economic behavior
• 6. Represent the will of the majority
• 7. Protect the rights of minorities (listed in
  the book, though it's identical to 1)

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Constitutions contrastedWhich one says that
rights can be curtailed if the government has a
really, really good reason?

• U.S. Constitution
• Congress shall make no law respecting an
  establishment of religion, or prohibiting the
  free exercise thereof or abridging the freedom
  of speech, or of the press or the right of the
  people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the
  Government for a redress of grievances

• Soviet Constitution (1977)
• Citizens of the USSR enjoy in full the social,
  economic, political and personal rights and
  freedoms proclaimed and guaranteed by the
  Constitution of the USSR and by Soviet laws. The
  socialist system ensures enlargement of the
  rights and freedoms of citizens Enjoyment by
  citizens of their rights and freedoms must not be
  to the detriment of the interests of society or
  the state...

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Contrast between U.S. and United Nations rights

• U.S.
• Rights endowed by our Creator i.e., God
• Rights inalienable
• Bill of Rights defines government limits
• First Amendment Congress shall make no law ...

• U.N.
• No God mentioned
• Rights have exceptions
• UDHR defines limits of individual rights
• Article 29 In the exercise of his rights,
  everyone shall be subject only to such
  limitations as are determined by law...

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How else would rights be taken by government
except ...

• by law?

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Security in U.S. Constitution

• 1. Separation of Powers The break-up of
  government into different bodies, each with its
  own roles.
• Legislative Makes the laws
• Executive Enforces the laws
• Judicial Judges whether the law has been broken
  in a case
• 2. Checks and balances A stop that each branch
  has on other branches of government
• President Veto
• Congress Veto override, impeachment
• Supreme Court Judicial review, declares
  unconstitutional laws null and void

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Security in U.S. Constitution

• 3. Federalism Distribution of government powers
  at different levels, some at the federal but most
  at the state and local levels (see 9th and 10th
  Amendments)
• 4. Enumeration of Powers A list of powers the
  government has and can't go beyond (most powers
  are listed in Article I, Section 8 of U.S.
  Constitution)
• 5. Bill of Rights A list of things government
  can't do.

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Legal Systems

• Common Law Legal system based upon British
  traditions, followed by most English-speaking
  nations
• Civil Law Legal System based upon Roman legal
  system, followed by most other nations.
• Definition of Civil Law in common law countries
  Civil law connotes torts, i.e., lawsuits, as
  opposed to criminal law.

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Common law system

• Criminal law When an individual is charged with
  doing a wrong against all of society everyone
  and is charged by the state. The standard of
  evidence for conviction is beyond a reasonable
  doubt.
• Civil law When an individual is charged with
  causing a harm to a particular individual in
  society (or group in society) and is sued in
  court. The standard of evidence for a decision is
  beyond a preponderance of evidence.

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Criminal law system

• Felony More serious crimes (in Massachusetts,
  crimes that can result in a jail term)
• Misdemeanor Less serious crimes

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Terms from First Chapter

• Jurisprudence
• Common Law v. Civil Law
• Criminal laws v. Civil laws
• Felonies
• Statute
• Misdemeanors
• Civil action
• Prosecutor
• Beyond a reasonable doubt

• Plaintiff
• Defendant
• Judicial Review
• Separation of powers
• Federalism
• Bill of Rights
• Unconstitutional
• Preponderance of the evidence