Democratic Characteristics Of The First English Colonies: Virginia And Massachusetts

HISTORY 23 American History I

The Beginning of Democracy in the English Colonies

The English colonies such as Virginia and Massachusetts had democratic characteristics from the beginning. Virginia and Massachusetts were the first colonies to be formed under the English rule. The English had 13 colonies in America, and each over the thirteen colonies practised democracy differently. Even though Britain practised a monarchical government at the time of colonisation, the colonial states practised democracy. Virginia House of Burgesses had almost complete democracy to that of the current United States of America.  The democratic practice was also evident in Virginia Massachusetts where there was the rule of assembly and majority rule. The content of this paper based on historical evidence of Virginia and Massachusetts validates the statement which claims that “from the beginning, the English colonies had democratic characteristics.”

The English colonies had democratic characteristics where each of the 13 colonies before the revolution practised varieties of democracy. According to historians, the current democratic system of government originated from the colonial states.  Even though the English did not practice democracy, it existed from the first colonies the Plymouth and Jamestown known as Virginia and Massachusetts respectively. Even though democratic practices then were different from the current democracy based on limited suffrage, slave trade and varying levels of freedom, they had democratic characteristics.

Virginia which was the first English colony practised democracy where the people of the colony were represented by the legislature.  The colony had the first democratic model known as the Jamestown compact model. The colonial state of Virginia held the primary election ever and elected the house of representative called the House of Burgesses. The house of Burgess was also called the house of representatives of assembly. Just as in the current democratic practices the members of the assembly were elected after a given period. The election was held on a yearly basis by propertied citizens. The election held in the English colonies such as Virginia to elect members of the assembly indicates the existence of democracy in the then colonies. However, Virginia was still under the king of England who appointed the governor of Virginia. The governor had powers to reconvene assembly session as well as close the assembly a role which has been given to the speaker of the house in the current democracy but not to the president nor the state governors.

 The same case was evident in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, but the practice was more advanced compared to Virginia. The democracy of representatives increased and improved with the arrival of the Pilgrims at the Plymouth (Massachusetts) located at the northern part of Virginia. Since the pilgrims were freemen out of the royal authorities purview, these Pilgrims came up with more democratic and stronger self-government under a democratic model which was known as Mayflower compact. The sense of democracy in Plymouth was a fully democratic state with both the governors and councils elected by the members of the colony.  However, the state did not last for long and was joined to Massachusetts Bay colony where the top position of the governorship was occupied by a royal governor elected by the King. The existence of election of governors and councils in Plymouth indicates the presence of democracy in the English colonies from the beginning.

Elections and the Right to Vote

Another characteristic of democracy in the English colonies that existed from the beginning was the right to vote.  Virginia and Massachusetts had structures as mentioned above which allowed self-governance through elections. The election for members of the assembly or representatives were held locally, and members of the public were allowed to participate. The main characteristic of democracy in the current world and then is the majority rule subjected through elections. In colonial Virginia, voters gained the right to vote through ownership of land or by gaining authority for the permanent leasing of property. However, the voting right was only given to men but not women or slaves.

. In Massachusetts, the voting right was a little different as their democracy was combined with the religious oligarchy based on the company stakeholders and the church elders’ authority.  The church elders after their arrival took over the government control and the voting requirement was based on church membership. To take part as a voter in Massachusetts Bay Colony elections from the year 1630, one had to belong to a congregational church. The right to vote therefore came as a result of congregational church membership. In as much as not every member of the public were allowed to take part in the local elections, the right to vote was still observed, and this was a sense of democracy.

Also, the English colonies from the beginning have a rule of law which were formulated by the legislators or the members of the houses of Burgess. The legislature of Virginia made laws regarding taxation, the salary of the governor but they were loyal to the agreement and rules of the king. The House of Burgesses came with various such as the fundamental orders of Connecticut which were a clear practice of democracy. The election laws were also formulated for instance the laws that forbid the candidates buying voters with alcohol.  In Massachusetts, the first constitution was formulated. The constitution had various democratic aspect further validating the existence of democracy in the English colonies from the beginning until the revolution time and fight for independence.

In as much as there were various democratic practices in the English colonies from the beginning, there are various other historical scholars who argue against such existence. These group of scholars claim that the reality of slavery in the English colonies shows lack of democracy. The English men who came and settled in the colonies had only one purpose which was to acquire wealth and take it back to England. The existence of the slave trade, therefore, shows that the government structures in the England colonies were not democratic since they allowed slavery. In both colonies of Virginia and Massachusetts where elections were held, only a few groups of people were allowed to take part in the elections of members of the assembly. In Virginia, as an English colony, only men who owned properties were allowed to take part in elections. Moreover, only men were allowed to vote with salves and women denied the essential factor of democracy, which is the right to vote.

In the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the right to vote was linked to congregational church membership. The rule in Massachusetts only allowed people with congregational church membership to take part in the voting as anyone who was not a member of any church congregation denied the voting right. Besides, the existing evidence indicates that elections held in the English colonies were subjects to mass manipulation by the rich and wealthy members of the public. Since the right to vote was allowed for the people with properties and more so, an individual was mandated to take part in part of the colony where he had property, the wealthy manipulated elections by voting in different voting centres. Democracy as a system of government is based on fair and free elections with one man one vote, therefore, in cases where an individual manipulates election process then it was no longer democracy.

Moreover, the scholars who argue against the existence of democracy in the English colonies from the beginning also claim that the king had the total power of the colonies where he came up with laws and also appointed the governors. The governors in the states such as Virginia, for instance, had full authority of the House of Burgesses and would convene or close and ongoing session which indicates lack of democracy in the English colonies from the beginning. Since the people of the English colonies had sworn loyalty to the king and would not object such appointments and laws makes the existence of the English colonies were purely undemocratic.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it can be agreed that from the beginning the English colonies had characteristics of democracy. In as much as the level of democracy in the colonies does not much the current level of democracy in the modern world, the people of the colonies lived under some liberations which came as a result of democracy. Existing evidence indicates the existence of elected legislators in almost every English colony from the beginning. There was also public participation in town hall meeting where the members were able to practice direct democracy by consulting on all aspects of the law. English colonies also allowed members of the public the freedom to participate in the elections of the members of the assemblies. Even though the right to vote was not for everyone in the colonies, it was a sense of democracy. Just as the modern legislators, the members of the assemblies and the councils took part in lawmaking and also showed a spirit of democracy by supporting the colony against unworthy laws from the king. The English colonies existence indeed showed characteristics of democracy.

 De Tocqueville, Alexis. Democracy in america. Vol. 10. Regnery Publishing, 2013.

Kammen, Michael G. Politics and society in colonial America: democracy or deference?. Krieger Publishing Company, 2008.