English Roots of the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights

Introduction: English Legal Heritage and the American Founders

Fundamental to the U.S. Constitution are concepts established in Britain from the 12th century onward. Although America began as a nation in resistance to the English monarchy, this did not prevent its founders from seeking legal inspiration from the Mother Country's concepts and structure of government. The English legal tradition shaped American democracy in ways that are still visible today, from the wording of specific constitutional amendments to the broader principle of checks and balances.

The Ordinance of William I and Early Limits on Monarchical Power

The earliest example of the development of checks upon monarchical rule is perhaps the 1066 Ordinance of William I, when the Norman conqueror agreed to uphold the existing feudal laws and customs of the land rather than replacing them all outright. "The Anglo-Saxon shire courts and 'hundred' courts (which administered defense and tax, as well as justice matters) remained intact, as did regional variations and private Anglo-Saxon jurisdictions" ("William I 'The Conqueror,'" Kings and Queens of England, Royal Government of the UK). This desire to balance the rights of feudal knights with that of an absolute monarch was later, and much more significantly, codified in the Magna Carta.

The Magna Carta and Its Influence on American Law

The Magna Carta was not intended to become one of the most influential documents in democratic and American legal history. When it was first penned in 1215, America was an unknown territory to the English barons who wished to establish their rights and prevent the abuses of an "avaricious and unpopular" King John ("Magna Carta and American Law," the Baronial Order of Magna Charta, 2003). After John's death, it faded into the background until interest in the Magna Carta revived in the 1600s during a political struggle between Parliament and the English Crown.

Through a happy historical accident, this revival coincided with a period when many of the charters of the American colonies were being negotiated. The Quaker William Penn, for example, claimed rights under the Magna Carta when he was put on trial in England for an act of what we would now call religiously inspired civil disobedience. As a result, Pennsylvania included Magna Carta protections within its legal framework in 1682 ("Magna Carta and American Law," the Baronial Order of Magna Charta, 2003).

Later American colonists "claimed the right to trial by jury and no taxation without representation because Magna Carta gave them those rights," and resisted the Stamp Acts and other legislation that "shifted jurisdiction for many offenses to the Admiralty courts, where there is no jury trial" ("Magna Carta and American Law," the Baronial Order of Magna Charta, 2003). Beyond specific legal provisions, the Magna Carta—having been created to resist monarchical tyranny—also formed a source of ideological inspiration for the American Revolution. Its protections were built into many of the new state constitutions, often in the very wording of the original document.

In one notable 1819 case, the state of Maryland's inclusion of the Magna Carta's words prohibiting deprivation of life, liberty, or property except by law or trial by one's peers figured in a Supreme Court decision. The Court deemed the protection of individual rights superior to the state's right to the "arbitrary exercise of the powers of government" ("Magna Carta and American Law," the Baronial Order of Magna Charta, 2003).

The English Bill of Rights of 1689 and Its American Parallels

The U.S. Constitution also incorporated many of those Magna Carta rights from the first state constitutions. Equally important in developing the rights delineated in the Bill of Rights was another 17th-century English document: the English Bill of Rights of 1689. This landmark document limited the power of the monarch, mandated free elections, gave citizens the right to petition against laws they deemed unjust, and created the concept of a system of checks and balances by instituting Parliamentary checks on the monarch's power and authority ("Origins and Foundations of American Government," Everyday Civics, Virginia Department of Education). "The clause in the English Bill of Rights prohibiting excessive bail and cruel and unusual punishments was taken over, virtually word for word, in the Virginia Bill of Rights of 1776 and ultimately became the 8th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States" ("Bill of Rights," American Presidency, 2006).

The specific clauses of the 1689 English Bill of Rights that remain evident in American civic life also include stipulations that parliaments are to be held frequently. This meant that the king could not dismiss Parliament to enforce his own singular authority — just as Congress holds regular sessions, and just as the president's legislative acts (including appropriations) must be approved through Congress. The English Bill of Rights also protected freedom of speech and debate in Parliament and granted Parliament the crucial "power of the purse," essential to maintaining a standing army.

The definition of the succession to the crown — intended to eliminate bloody leadership struggles — parallels the U.S. Constitution's provisions defining who may run for office. The right of petition against unjust laws, prohibitions of excessive bail and cruel and unusual punishment, the reaffirmation of the right to jury trial, and the very notion of checks and balances were all important to the founders and are reflected in the words and spirit of the first ten amendments ("Bill of Rights," American Presidency, 2006).

Conclusion

These English documents continue to make their influence felt in American law through the judiciary's continual reevaluation and interpretation of the United States Constitution. From the feudal courts preserved by William I to the specific amendment language derived from the English Bill of Rights, the legal heritage of Britain remains a living presence at the heart of American constitutional democracy.

Works Cited

"Bill of Rights." American Presidency. Scholastic Library Publishing, Inc., 2006.

"Magna Carta and American Law." The Baronial Order of Magna Charta. 2 Feb. 2003.

"Origins and Foundations of American Government." Everyday Civics. Virginia Department of Education.

"William I 'The Conqueror' (r. 1066–1087)." The Normans: Kings and Queens of England to 1603. Royal Government of the UK.