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Patrick Henry before the House of Burgesses in an 1851 painting by Peter F.

The House of Burgesses was the first elected legislative assembly in the New World established in the Colony of Virginia in 1619. Over time, the name came to represent the entire official legislative body of the Colony of Virginia, and later, after the American Revolution, the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Image File history File links Broom_icon. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (580x750, 116 KB) [edit] Summary From: http://cgfa. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (580x750, 116 KB) [edit] Summary From: http://cgfa. ... A legislatureis a type of representative deliberative assembly with the power to ratify laws. ... Frontispiece of Peter Martyr dAnghieras De orbe novo (On the New World). Carte dAmérique, Guillaume Delisle, 1722. ... A map of the Colony of Virginia. ... A map of the Colony of Virginia. ... John Trumbulls Declaration of Independence, showing the five-man committee in charge of drafting the Declaration in 1776 as it presents its work to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia The American Revolution refers to the period during the last half of the 18th century in which the Thirteen... The Virginia General Assembly is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Virginia, a U.S. state. ... State nickname: Old Dominion Other U.S. States Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Governor Mark R. Warner Official languages English Area 110,862 km² (35th)  - Land 102,642 km²  - Water 8,220 km² (7. ...

In Britain, the term "burgess" had referred to a Parliamentary representative, as of a borough.^{[citation needed]}

History

The English settlement off the Virginia Colony which was established at Jamestown in 1607 was a big proprietary venture authorized by King James I. The colony struggled to survive for its first few years. Finally, a strain of tobacco was introduced by sailor John Rolfe around 1612, and as a profitable export commodity, it led to increasing expansion, primarily along the James River. In 1619, the officers of the Virginia Company in London embarked upon a series of reforms designed to attract more people to the troubled settlement. They began by ending the company monopoly on land ownership, believing that the colonists would display greater initiative if they had an ownership position in the venture. The changes encouraged private investment from the colony's settlers which allowed them to own their own land rather than simply being sharecroppers. Four large corporations, termed citties [sic], were designated to encompass the developed portion of the colony. Company officials also made justice in Virginia more predictable by adopting English Common Law as the basis of their system, which replaced the whims of the governor as the final voice on legal matters. In 1620, in an effort to create a more stable society, the company dispatched a boatload of marriageable women to the colony; the going rate was 120 pounds of tobacco for each bride. At Jamestown Settlement, replicas of Christopher Newports 3 ships are docked in the harbour. ... James VI and I (19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scots as James VI, and King of England and King of Ireland as James I. He ruled in Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567, when he was only one year old, succeeding his mother Mary... Shredded tobacco leaf for pipe smoking Tobacco can also be pressed into plugs and sliced into flakes Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the fresh leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. ... This article is about the Virginia colonist. ... The James River at Cartersville The James River in the U.S. state of Virginia is 660 km (410 miles) long including its Jackson River source and drains a watershed comprising 27,019 km² (10,432 square miles). ... Sharecropping is a system of farming in which employee farmers work a parcel of land in return for a fraction of the parcels crops. ... This article concerns the common-law legal system, as contrasted with the civil law legal system; for other meanings of the term, within the field of law, see common law (disambiguation). ...

The changes in 1620 also created a legislative body to be selected by the colonists called the House of Burgesses, similar to the British Parliament, that would meet once annually. The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative institution in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories (it alone has parliamentary sovereignty). ...

Prompted by the Virginia Company, colonial governor Sir George Yeardley helped facilitate elections of representatives, called "burgesses", to this new legislative body that would come from eleven Virginia boroughs adjacent to the James River, along with eleven additional burgesses. Early Life and Military Career Sir George Yeardley was baptized 28 July 1588 in St. ... The James River at Cartersville The James River in the U.S. state of Virginia is 660 km (410 miles) long including its Jackson River source and drains a watershed comprising 27,019 km² (10,432 square miles). ...

The first meeting of the House of Burgesses occurred on Sep 30, 1619 at Jamestown. It was the first such assembly in the Americas. The initial session accomplished little, however; it was cut short by an outbreak of malaria. The assembly comprised 22 members who represented the following constituencies: September 30 is the 273rd day of the year (274th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 92 days remaining. ... Events May 13 - Dutch statesman Johan van Oldenbarnevelt is executed in The Hague after having been accused of treason. ...

• The governor, who was appointed to his position by the company officials in London
• The governor’s council, six prominent citizens selected by the governor
• The burgesses (representatives) from various locales, initially the larger plantations and later in Virginia history from the counties.

The Lower House

The House of Burgesses was empowered to enact legislation for the colony, but its actions were subject to veto by the governor, council and ultimately by the directors in London. Nevertheless, such a legislative body would have been unthinkable in the Spanish or French colonies of that day, which highlights the degree to which the concept of a limited monarchy had become accepted by the English people.

Voting for the burgesses was limited to landowning males over 17 years of age.

The initial cites [sic] (corporations) and the plantations and their representatives in the House of Burgesses in 1619 were: Plantation was an early method of colonization in which settlers were planted abroad in order to establish a permanent or semi-permanent colonial base. ...

• Cites
  • for James Cittie: Ensign William Spense and Captain William Powell
  • for Charles Cittie: Samuel Sharpe and Samuel Jordan
  • for the Cittie of Henricus: Thomas Dowse and John Plentine
  • for Elizabeth Cittie (remamed from Kiccowtan: Captain William Tucker and William Capps
• Plantations
  • for Martin's Brandon, Captain John Martin's Plantation: Thomas Davis and Robert Stacy
  • for Smythe's Hundred: Captain Thomas Graves and Walter Shelley
  • for Martin's Hundred (also known as Wolstenholme Towne): John Boys and John Jackson
  • for Argall's Gift: Thomas Pawlett and Edward Gourgainy
  • for Flowerdew Hundred: Ensign Edmund Rossingham and John Jefferson
  • for Captain Lawne's Plantation: Captain Christopher Lawne and Ensign Washer
  • for Captain Warde's Plantation: Captain John Warde and Lieutenant John Gibbes
  • for Westover Plantation: William Byrd and his son, also named William Byrd→←

James City (or citiie as it was then called) was one of four incorporations established in the Virginia Colony in 1619 by the proprietor, the Virginia Company. ... Charles City (or citiie as it was then called) was one of four incorporations established in the Virginia Colony in 1619 by the proprietor, the Virginia Company. ... Henrico City (or citiie as it was then called) was one of four incorporations established in the Virginia Colony in 1619 by the proprietor, the Virginia Company. ... Elizabeth City (or citiie as it was then called) was one of four incorporations established in the Virginia Colony in 1619 by the proprietor, the Virginia Company. ... Kecoughtan in Virginia was originally named Kikotan (also spelled Kecoughtan and Kikowtan), presumably a word for the native americans living there when the English colonists arrived in the Hampton Roads area in 1607. ... William Capps (occasionally spelled Capp or Cappes) was born in Norfolk, England in or around 1575. ... Lower Brandon Plantation (or simply Brandon Plantation and initially known as Martins Brandon) is located on the south shore of the James River in present-day Prince George County, Virginia. ... Capt. ... This article, image, template or category should belong in one or more categories. ... Martins Hundred was an early 17th century plantation located along about ten miles of the north shore of the James River in the Virginia Colony east of Jamestown in present-day James City County, Virginia. ... Wolstenholme Towne was a fortified settlement in the Virginia Colony with a population of about 40 settlers of the Virginia Company of London which was located about 9 miles downstream from Jamestown. ... Flowerdew Hundred plantation dates to 1618 with the patent of 1000 acres on the south side of the James River in Virginia. ... Christopher Lawne was an English merchant and Puritan of note, who emigrated to Jamestown in 1619 and died shortly thereafter. ... John Ward [Warde], also known as Jack Ward and under his Muslim name Yusuf Reis, was a notorious English pirate around the turn of the 17th century who later became a Barbary Corsair operating out of Tunis during the early 1600s. ... Westover Plantation is located on the north bank of the James River in Charles City County, Virginia. ...

Effect

After 1619, The King of England took much more control of things in Virginia, restricting the powers of the House of Burgesses. They could make laws, which could be vetoed by the governor or the directors of the Virginia.

Royal colony

In 1624, the Virginia Company lost its charter, and Virginia became a royal colony. As a Royal Colony, the House of Burgesses consisted of two members from every county in Virginia and one member from each of the following: the City of Williamsburg, the City of Jamestown, the City of Norfolk, and the College of William and Mary. The House of Burgesses continued to meet, but its influence was severely restricted. Despite limitations on its actions, the assembly listed within its later ranks such notables as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry, and would assume a major leadership role in the movement toward independence. A royal colony is one that is under direct control of the king. ... Williamsburg is a city located on the Virginia Peninsula in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. ... Jamestown was a village on an island in the James River in Virginia, about 45 miles southeast of where Richmond, Virginia, is now. ... Norfolk, Virginia, viewed from Portsmouth, across the Elizabeth River Norfolk is a city in the U.S. state of Virginia in the United States of America. ... The College of William and Mary (also known as William & Mary, W&M or The College) is a small, selective, coeducational public university located in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. ... George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799)[1] led Americas Continental Army to victory over Britain in the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), and in 1789 was elected the first President of the United States of America. ... Thomas Jefferson (13 April 1743 N.S.–4 July 1826) was the third President of the United States (1801–09), the principal author of the Declaration of Independence (1776), and one of the most influential Founding Fathers for his promotion of the ideals of Republicanism in the United States. ... Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 – June 6, 1799) was a prominent figure in the American Revolution, known and remembered primarily for his stirring oratory. ...

End of the House of Burgesses

In 1769, the House of Burgesses was speaking on the distresses of the British Taxation with no representation in which Patrick Henry and Richard Henry Lee were leading the committee. The committee then moved on to private petitions concerning fish traps but then one of Lord Botetourt's aids entered declaring that, "Mr. Speaker, The Governor commands the immediate Attendance of your House in the Council Chamber". Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 – June 6, 1799) was a prominent figure in the American Revolution, known and remembered primarily for his stirring oratory. ... Richard Henry Lee (January 20, 1732–June 19, 1794) was an American who served as the sixth President of the United States in Congress assembled under the Articles of Confederation, holding office from November 30, 1784 to November 22, 1785. ... Norborne Berkeley, Baron de Botetourt, more commonly known as Lord Botetourt, (1718-1770) was governor of the Virginia Colony from 1768 to 1770. ...

Peyton Randolph the speaker of the house led the men into the chamber. Botetourt then commanded, "I have heard of your resolves, and auger ill of their Effect: You have made it my Duty to dissolve you; and you are dissolved accordingly." For a later governor of Virginia see Peyton Randolph (governor). ...

The House then met in the Raleigh Tavern and planned the early stages of recourse which in that moment were just resolves and no act of revolution. This is when George Washington and Patrick Henry started to speak privately about their ideas on revolution. Raleigh Tavern in Williamsburg, Virginia gained some fame in the pre-Revolutionary War Colony of Virginia as a gathering place for the Burgesses after several Royal Governors officially dissolved the House of Burgesses, the elected legislative body, when their actions did not suit the Crown. ... George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799)[1] led Americas Continental Army to victory over Britain in the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), and in 1789 was elected the first President of the United States of America. ... Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 – June 6, 1799) was a prominent figure in the American Revolution, known and remembered primarily for his stirring oratory. ... For other uses, see Revolution (disambiguation). ...

In 1770 the House of Burgesses reformed but it was not long until the outbreak of the Revolutionary War and the body's transformation into the Virginia House of Delegates. The American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), also known as the American War of Independence, was a war fought primarily between Great Britain and revolutionaries within thirteen of her North American colonies. ... The Virginia House of Delegates is the lower house of the Virginia General Assembly. ...

Locations

In 1699, the seat of the House of Burgesses was moved to Middle Plantation, soon renamed Williamsburg in honor of King William III. The Burgesses met there in two consecutive Capitol buildings (the first use of the word in the British Colonies) until December 1779, when they moved the capital city to Richmond for safety reasons during the American Revolutionary War. The present Capitol at Colonial Williamsburg reproduces the earlier of the two lost buildings. Events January 26 - Treaty of Karlowitz signed March 30 - the tenth Sikh Master, Guru Gobind Singh created the Khalsa. ... Colonial Williamsburg is the historic district of the independent city of Williamsburg, Virginia. ... Location in the Commonwealth of Virginia. ... William III of England, II of Scotland and III of Orange (The Hague, 14 November 1650 – Kensington Palace, 8 March 1702) was a Dutch aristocrat, the Prince of Orange from his birth, Stadtholder of the main provinces of the Dutch Republic from 28 June 1672, King of England and King... Nickname: Motto: Sic dic Itur Ad Astra (Thus do we reach the stars) Location in the Commonwealth of Virginia Coordinates: , Country State County Independent City Government  - Mayor L. Douglas Wilder (I) Area  - City 62. ... This article is about military actions only. ... Colonial Williamsburg is the historic district of the independent city of Williamsburg, Virginia. ...

Legacy

The Assembly became the Virginia House of Delegates in 1776, forming the lower house of the Virginia General Assembly, the legislative branch of the Commonwealth (State) of Virginia. The Virginia House of Delegates is the lower house of the Virginia General Assembly. ... For other uses, see 1776 (disambiguation). ... The Virginia General Assembly is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Virginia, a U.S. state. ... State nickname: Old Dominion Other U.S. States Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Governor Mark R. Warner Official languages English Area 110,862 km² (35th)  - Land 102,642 km²  - Water 8,220 km² (7. ...

In honor of the original House of Burgesses, every other year, the Virginia General Assembly traditionally leaves the current Virginia State Capitol in Richmond, where it moved in 1780, and meets for one day in the restored Capitol at Colonial Williamsburg. The Virginia State Capitol is the seat of state government in the Commonwealth of Virginia, located in Richmond, the third State Capital of Virginia. ... Nickname: Motto: Sic dic Itur Ad Astra (Thus do we reach the stars) Location in the Commonwealth of Virginia Coordinates: , Country State County Independent City Government  - Mayor L. Douglas Wilder (I) Area  - City 62. ... Capitol Building The Capitol at Williamsburg, Virginia was the first Capitol building in America in 1705. ... Colonial Williamsburg is the historic district of the independent city of Williamsburg, Virginia. ...

In 2006, the Assembly held a special session at Jamestown to mark the 400th anniversary of its founding as part of the Jamestown 2007 celebration. The Virginia state quarter commerates Jamestons quadricentennial. ...

References

• Hatch, Charles E., Jr., (1956 rev). America's Oldest Legislative Assembly & Its Jamestown Statehouses, Appendix II. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service.

• Mayer, Henry "A Son of Thunder, Patrick Henry and the American Republic". New York: Franklin Watts, 1986.