Why Was The House Of Burgesses Important ?
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The House of Virginia Burgesses is an important chapter in the political history of the United States for various reasons. The primary reason is that it was a legislative body like no other the contemporary world had ever seen, even though it was based on the British administrative model.
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The House of Burgesses was formed in 1619 when America was going through a period of dramatic political transformation. Liberalization was happening regarding the expression of opinions and political views of the American common man. Thus, the decisions that were being taken at this time, the ideas that were developed in this period are mostly considered the initial phase of the modern constituency of the country as we know it.
The first session of the House of Burgesses started with twenty two members on July 30, 1619. This was the year before the famous Mayflower Compact was signed, which is also considered to be a foundation of the U.S. Constituency. The first session was held in Jamestown, which had to be called off abruptly due to an unforeseen outbreak of malaria. However, from the next year onwards, the sessions of the House of Virginia Burgesses was annually held at the same place.
The sessions with the most productive outcomes began to happen during and after the period of American Revolutionary War. New leaders began to join this House and implement new changes. One of the leaders and burgesses of the House, Patrick Henry implemented 7 resolutions against the famous Stamp Act in the year of 1765. Some of the most famous burgesses of al times are Thomas Jefferson and George Washington, both of who were the presidents of the United States.
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Before going into the list of members of the Virginia House of Burgesses, let us first see what the House of Burgesses is all about. The word, burgess, actually means freeman of a burgh or a borough. Later on it started to mean an appointed or elected official of a municipality or a borough’s representative in none other than the English House of Commons. For a list containing all the members of the House of Burgesses, you can look up the internet. In this article, you shall get an overview of some of the important members.