English Parliamentary System

Timeline

1. 1200–1399Westminster · EnglandAfter the Magna Carta, Parliament was summoned by the king and included great nobles, clergy, and representatives of county knights and boroughs; the 1295 'Model Parliament' established a more complete representative structure, and Parliament gradually became an important forum for approving extraordinary taxes and legislating.
2. 1401–1410Westminster · EnglandHenry IV frequently summoned Parliament to deal with the Welsh rebellion, the Scottish border, and fiscal pressure; the 1401 Heresy Act and the repeated taxation debates of 1404–1406 show the Commons' growing role in finance and religious legislation, with ongoing negotiation over the legitimacy of the Lancastrian usurpation.
3. 1407–1410Westminster · EnglandIn the 1407 Parliament the customary formulation that 'legislation requires the joint consent of the king, the lords, and the commons' took shape, reinforcing the idea of Parliament's composite sovereignty; the Commons' right to present petitions independently and to make fiscal requests was further institutionalized.