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1215 BCE
The Magna Carta
The Magna Carta created the idea of consultative government. It created the rights for free citizens to own properties, be protected from excessive taxes and the churches to be free from government invasion. It was a significant agreement that stated that people in charge must obey the law and have their power limited. -
27 BCE
The Roman Empire
The Romans created key ideas about law and government in order to maintain control over their huge empire. They built the world's best army at the time and were controlled by force. They had excellent engineering skills and built streets, cities, and spectacular buildings. Provinces were created throughout the Empire, each with a governor, and civil and military assistance. Both the common law and civil law traditions in Canada have benefited greatly from Roman law. -
5 BCE
Democracy in Ancient Greece
The first to create democracy was Ancient Greece. The term democracy comes from two Greek words that mean people rule. The citizens were required to take place in the government if they did not they were punished. Free men were only considered citizens. Every year 500 citizens were chosen and had to actively participate in the government and were responsible for laws and all of the political process. For any new law, the citizens had an opportunity to vote on it. This is called direct democracy. -
1215
British Parliament
Examine and question the government's operations, create and make changes to the law, and discuss the most important problems of the day. The British North America Act, which was originally designed by colonial legislators, was passed by Parliament in March 1867; this formed Canada. -
The Divine Right of Kings
The divine right of kings was a political ideology in European history that argued that monarchs obtain their authority from God and therefore could not be held accountable for their conduct by any earthly authority such as a parliament. -
Thomas Hobbes
Hobbes argued that people agreed to construct a government in order to uphold the law and prevent the chaos of nature. This concept is established in the United States Constitution's preamble, where "We the People" form a government to "maintain domestic peace" and "advance the general good." -
John Locke
A government, according to Locke, exists to promote the common good and defend the lives, liberty, and property of its citizens, among other things. As a result, those who govern must be chosen by the people, and the people must have the power to re-establish a government if required. -
Iroquois Confederacy
The Iroquois Confederacy was a confederation of five Indian tribes in upper New York that played an important role in the war for supremacy in North America between the French and the British. It was their intention to create peace among themselves. Their government was so efficient that it influenced the framers of the Constitution. -
Revolutionary Ideas
It aimed to drastically change the relationship between rulers and the people they ruled over, as well as rethink the concept of political authority. -
Social Revolutions
During the Great Depression, the Canadian government enforced strict entrance restrictions. The Great Depression generated social welfare and populist political movements. It also prompted the government to get more engaged in the economy. When Jean Lesage became Premier of Quebec in 1960, the Quiet Revolution began. Essentially, it was a peaceful nationalist movement aimed at transforming Quebec into a modern secular state.