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A national representative body having supreme legislative powers within a nation-state; the national legislature of various countries, especially that of the United Kingdom, made up of the House of Lords and the House of Commons; the system of government in which the leader of the executive branch (often, a prime minister) is a member of – and is selected by – the legislature, itself, is called

The document in which British nobles placed limits on royal power by forcing King John to concede important rights to them, signed by him in the year 1215 was the

A ruling (by a judge or other public official) that is used as a model in deciding in similar cases later on is called

The plan worked out in the Constitutional Convention in 1787 that provided for a bicameral legislature in which the people would be represented in the House of Representative and the states would be represented in the Senate (suggested by delegate Roger Sherman of Connecticut, sometimes called the Connecticut Compromise) was called

The plan proposed by Ben Franklin and supported by colonists in 1754 – but never carried out – to unite the British North American colonies under a confederation for purposes of taxation and defense was called

The body of law that is based on custom, tradition, and past decisions of judges – NOT based on specific laws and/or statutes passed by lawmakers - is called

A legislature that includes two representative bodies (a two-house legislature) is called

At the Constitutional Convention, the proposal of government signed by William Paterson of New Jersey, which favored a legislature whose representation was based on population and a plural executive branch was

The term given to those who opposed the ratification of the new U.S. Constitution and the federal system of government it created; also, the original group of people who formed the second political party in the United States - was

A legal document issued by a monarch to trading companies, individuals, or groups of colonists, granting permission to use land for a colony; in the modern U.S., a document that awards official recognition as a municipality (city) given by a state to a community such as North Kansas City or Gladstone is called

The minimum number of people needed to conduct official business during a session of a legislative body (such as the U.S. Congress) is a

In the Constitutional Convention, this plan was designed by Edmund Randolph, and it favored a strong national government with three branches (legislative, executive and judicial) and a bicameral legislature

The term which refers to the final acceptance, or final approval, of an agreement, an amendment, or a constitution by lawmakers or by a vote of the people whom they represent is

The document which created the first American settlement based on a social contract; in U.S. colonial history, an agreement providing for the temporary government of Plymouth colony, signed (1620) on board the Mayflower by all of the adult members of the colony was

The name given by American patriots to five laws passed by the British Parliament in 1774, which limited the rights and freedoms of the North American colonists was

This was the original plan of unification and government of the United States of America; the first national constitution, it was in effect for only 7 years and was eventually replaced by the Constitution of 1787.

The group of people who were in favor of the creation of a federal system of government, as outlined in the Constitution written in Philadelphia in 1787, were called this; also, this is the name of the first political party in the U.S., whose members included Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison.

This was the greatest achievement of the U.S. Congress during the period of the original confederate government, this law created structures for state governments in new territories in the Ohio River Valley and upper Mississippi River area, guaranteed religious freedom, prohibited slavery, and established rules for entering new states into the Union.

A legislature, or lawmaking body, is called this if it has just one legislative body.

Britain's policy of non-interference in its North American colonies' internal affairs in order to increase the colonies' productivity and value was called

The first written constitution in British North America, this document formed a colony from Connecticut's early towns.

A group of persons gathered together for a common reason, possibly for a legislative, religious, educational, or social purpose, is called this; also, the common and very general term given to a legislature.

This 1765 revenue law, passed by the British Parliament and the first direct tax to be levied on the American colonies, required that all newspapers, pamphlets, legal documents, commercial bills, advertisements, and other papers issued in the colonies bear a official government stamp; it was vehemently denounced in the colonies by those it most affected: businessmen, merchants, journalists, lawyers, and other powerful persons.

An individual who was granted by the British monarch the legal right or exclusive title to a parcel of land in the British North American colonies was called this.

The document in which Queen Mary II and King William III recognized certain basic rights of the people of England in 1689, some of which were later included in the U.S. Constitution (especially the amendments at the end of the document), was called the

This was the name of the document written by the British Parliament in 1628 that demanded King Charles agree to further limitations on the power of the monarchy, asserted four principles: no taxes may be levied without consent of Parliament; no subject may be imprisoned without cause shown (reaffirmation of the right of habeas corpus); no soldiers may be quartered upon the citizenry; martial law may not be used in time of peace.

A constitutional list of the basic civil liberties of U.S. citizens; the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, added in 1791 to protect certain rights of citizens is called this.

A member of the House of Burgesses, the first elected representative lawmaking body in the British North American colonies, was called this.