The Origin of Democracy in the United States

The Influence of Greek, Roman, Judeo-Christian, English Ideas and the Enlightenment

Athens 500 BCE

• demos kratos

• direct democracy

• Who was a citizen?

• Council of 500

• role of assembly

• role of slaves

Rome 6th c. BCE

• first republic

• established a clear hierarchy

• patrician vs plebeian

• 12 Tables

• two consuls (executive and judicial power)

• magistrates/praetors

• senate

• assembly

Structure of govKey facts

Judeo-Christian Tradition

• Ten Commandments (murder, theft, lying...)

• “...all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights...” (DOI)

• Leviticus 25:10--”Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof.”

• Genesis 8:21--all men are sinners

English Influence: Part 1• Magna Carta (Great Charter) 1215

• move to limit the power of the king

• creation of Parliament

• king must follow laws

• due process

• short vs long-term effects

English Influence: Part 2

• Petition of Right (1628)

• Glorious Revolution (1689)

• English Bill of Rights (1689)

• Locke’s Second Treatise of Government (1690)

• Commentaries on the Law (1765)

What to study...• Road to the Constitution ppt

• Examining the Constitution chart

• DOI vs Constitution chart

• Checks and balances chart

• Federalist vs Anti-Federalist papers

• Bill of Rights illustrations

• Bill of Rights in Action examples (1st, 4th and 8th Amendments)

• Origins of Democracy in the USA