The Petition of Rights

Parliament began to show … to the monarchy under the … from 1603 by using its gradually acquired weapon of … It was influenced by the gentry and began to refuse … for money. It eventually … Charles I to sign the Petition of Rights in 1628, which further … the monarch’s powers and was intended to … him from … without Parliament’s consent.

B. Translate the text below into English using the information and vocabulary from the text in part A.

Закон про права громадян звертатись до суду

Конституційне протистояння в ХVII ст. виявилось в прийнятті в 1628 році документа, який відомий як Закон про права громадян звертатись до суду. Потребуючи гроші король Карл І намагався одержати їх від своїх підлеглих без втручання Парламенту. Але в 1628 році парламент примусив короля прийняти цей закон, який дозволяв збирати податки тільки зі згоди парламенту. Цей документ гарантував англійським підлеглим і інші права.

Exercise 17. Read the text and write down Ukrainian equivalents for

the underlined words and expressions.

The Bill of Rights

The Bill of Rights (1689) is one of the basic instruments of the British constitution, the result of the long 17^th – century struggle between the Stuart kings and the English people and Parliament. The Bill of Rights provided the foundation on which the government rested after the Revolution of 1688. The Revolution settlement made monarchy clearly conditional on the will of Parliament and provided a freedom from arbitrary government of which most Englishmen were notably proud during the 18^th century.

The main purpose of the act was unequivocally to declare illegal various practices of James II. Among such practices proscribed were the royal prerogative of dispensing with the law in certain cases, the complete suspension of laws without the consent of Parliament, and the levying of taxes and the maintenance of a standing army in peacetime without specific parliamentary authorization. A number of clauses sought to eliminate royal interference in parliamentary matters, stressing that elections must be free and that members of Parliament must have complete freedom of speech. Certain forms of interference in the course of justice were also proscribed. The act also dealt with the proximate succession to the throne, provided the heirs were Protestants. It is the constitutional paper of great importance, which prevented the sovereign from abusing his authority.

Exercise 18. Answer the questions using the information from the

texts in exercises 15-17.

1. What were the two basic principles of the English system of government at the beginning of the 17 th century? How do you understand these principles?

2. What political situation necessitated the granting of the Magna Carta?

3. What provisions did the Magna Carta contain?

4. Who enjoyed the rights granted by the Magna Carta?

5. What events preceded Habeas Corpus Act?

6. What is the main idea of the Petition of Rights?

7. What events preceded the Bill of Rights?

8. Why did king James have to leave the country?

9. What document regulates succession since 1688?

10. How were the rights of the monarch limited by the Bill of Rights?

11. What civil rights were protected by this document?

12. What was the influence of the Bill of Rights on political thinking in America and in your country?

Unit II: «The Constitution of the USA»

Дата добавления: 2015-11-14