Alternate American Constitutions (Albany/Galloway Plan)

What if either Benjamin Franklin's or Joseph Galloway's Plan of Union were agreed to by the several Colonies?

I venture that the President-General, appointed by the Crown, would soon face heavy resistance by the Grand Council, which is elected by the lower Houses of each Colony. The President-General would soon yield to the demands for responsible government; that is, officials serving only with the confidence of the Grand Council.

Apportionment of the Grand Council would be proportional to the revenue given to the Union government, but with each Colony being guaranteed at least two seats. The Grand Council would serve a term not longer than three years.

In essence, the Grand Council would become a unicameral American Parliament with a figurehead President-General. The real power would lie with the Treasurers, in effect the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister.

There are still some unresolved issues, such as slavery and the admission of the new colonies to the West, as well as America's ever-expanding role in the British Empire. How long will it take for the King of Great Britain to be forced to appoint Presidents-General from America rather than Britain? or better yet, allow a cadet branch of the House of Hanover to be King and Emperor of North America, obviating the need for a President-General? How will the Colonies/Provinces/Dominions form their legislatures later on?

All interesting questions. What do you think?
 
Albany Plan of Union 1754

It is proposed that humble application be made for an act of Parliament of Great Britain, by virtue of which one general government may be formed in America, including all the said colonies, within and under which government each colony may retain its present constitution, except in the particulars wherein a change may be directed by the said act, as hereafter follows.

1. That the said general government be administered by a President-General, to be appointed and supported by the crown; and a Grand Council, to be chosen by the representatives of the people of the several Colonies met in their respective assemblies.

2. That within -- months after the passing such act, the House of Representatives that happen to be sitting within that time, or that shall especially for that purpose convened, may and shall choose members for the Grand Council, in the following proportion, that is to say,





  • Massachusetts Bay 7
  • New Hampshire 2
  • Connecticut 5
  • Rhode Island 2
  • New York 4
  • New Jersey 3
  • Pennsylvania 6
  • Maryland 4
  • Virginia 7
  • North Carolina 4
  • South Carolina 4
------
48 MCs

3. -- who shall meet for the first time at the city of Philadelphia, being called by the President-General as soon as conveniently may be after his appointment.

4. That there shall be a new election of the members of the Grand Council every three years; and, on the death or resignation of any member, his place should be supplied by a new choice at the next sitting of the Assembly of the Colony he represented.

5. That after the first three years, when the proportion of money arising out of each Colony to the general treasury can be known, the number of members to be chosen for each Colony shall, from time to time, in all ensuing elections, be regulated by that proportion, yet so as that the number to be chosen by any one Province be not more than seven, nor less than two.

6. That the Grand Council shall meet once in every year, and oftener if occasion require, at such time and place as they shall adjourn to at the last preceding meeting, or as they shall be called to meet at by the President-General on any emergency; he having first obtained in writing the consent of seven of the members to such call, and sent duly and timely notice to the whole.

7. That the Grand Council have power to choose their speaker; and shall neither be dissolved, prorogued, nor continued sitting longer than six weeks at one time, without their own consent or the special command of the crown.

8. That the members of the Grand Council shall be allowed for their service ten shillings sterling per diem, during their session and journey to and from the place of meeting; twenty miles to be reckoned a day's journey.

9. That the assent of the President-General be requisite to all acts of the Grand Council, and that it be his office and duty to cause them to be carried into execution.

10. That the President-General, with the advice of the Grand Council, hold or direct all Indian treaties, in which the general interest of the Colonies may be concerned; and make peace or declare war with Indian nations.

11. That they make such laws as they judge necessary for regulating all Indian trade.

12. That they make all purchases from Indians, for the crown, of lands not now within the bounds of particular Colonies, or that shall not be within their bounds when some of them are reduced to more convenient dimensions.

13. That they make new settlements on such purchases, by granting lands in the King's name, reserving a quitrent to the crown for the use of the general treasury.

14. That they make laws for regulating and governing such new settlements, till the crown shall think fit to form them into particular governments.

15. That they raise and pay soldiers and build forts for the defence of any of the Colonies, and equip vessels of force to guard the coasts and protect the trade on the ocean, lakes, or great rivers; but they shall not impress men in any Colony, without the consent of the Legislature.

16. That for these purposes they have power to make laws, and lay and levy such general duties, imposts, or taxes, as to them shall appear most equal and just (considering the ability and other circumstances of the inhabitants in the several Colonies), and such as may be collected with the least inconvenience to the people; rather discouraging luxury, than loading industry with unnecessary burdens.

17. That they may appoint a General Treasurer and Particular Treasurer in each government when necessary; and, from time to time, may order the sums in the treasuries of each government into the general treasury; or draw on them for special payments, as they find most convenient.

18. Yet no money to issue but by joint orders of the President-General and Grand Council; except where sums have been appropriated to particular purposes, and the President-General is previously empowered by an act to draw such sums.

19. That the general accounts shall be yearly settled and reported to the several Assemblies.

20. That a quorum of the Grand Council, empowered to act with the President-General, do consist of twenty-five members; among whom there shall be one or more from a majority of the Colonies.

21. That the laws made by them for the purposes aforesaid shall not be repugnant, but, as near as may be, agreeable to the laws of England, and shall be transmitted to the King in Council for approbation, as soon as may be after their passing; and if not disapproved within three years after presentation, to remain in force.

22. That, in case of the death of the President-General, the Speaker of the Grand Council for the time being shall succeed, and be vested with the same powers and authorities, to continue till the King's pleasure be known.

23. That all military commission officers, whether for land or sea service, to act under this general constitution, shall be nominated by the President-General; but the approbation of the Grand Council is to be obtained, before they receive their commissions. And all civil officers are to be nominated by the Grand Council, and to receive the President-General's approbation before they officiate.

24. But, in case of vacancy by death or removal of any officer, civil or military, under this constitution, the Governor of the Province in which such vacancy happens may appoint, till the pleasure of the President-General and Grand Council can be known.

25. That the particular military as well as civil establishments in each Colony remain in their present state, the general constitution notwithstanding; and that on sudden emergencies any Colony may defend itself, and lay the accounts of expense thence arising before the President-General and General Council, who may allow and order payment of the same, as far as they judge such accounts just and reasonable.
 
Who, then, are going to be the Presidents-General of the British Union of North America? Almost certainly, at first it will be Peers from the British House of Lords; my bet is that the first Presidents-General of the Colonies would be none other than
  • His Excellency the Rt. Hon. William Pitt, (the Elder) MP PC. (1756-1766)
  • His Excellency the Rt. Hon. Duke of Grafton, KG PC (1766-1776)
  • His Excellency the Rt. Hon. Marquess of Rockingham (1776-1782)
  • His Excellency the Rt. Hon. Charles Fox, PC (1782-1805)

A more complete list of Presidents-General will follow...
 
Yeah, sorry about bumping my own threads. :eek:

Nineteenth-Century Presidents-General of North America to 1865:
  • His Excellency and Grace the Rt. Hon. the Duke of Portland PC, FRS, FSA (1805-1810)
  • His Excellency the Rt. Hon. the Lord Grenville (1810-1821)
  • His Excellency the Rt. Hon. the Viscount Sidmouth (1821-1835)
  • His Excellency the Rt. Hon. the Marquess Camden (1835-1840)
  • His Excellency the Rt. Hon. the Earl of Derby (1840-1855)
  • His Excellency the Rt. Hon. the Earl of Aberdeen (1855-1859)
  • His Excellency the Rt. Hon. the Viscount Palmerston, KG GCB PC (1859-1865)

After the Viscount Palmerston's assassination in New York by an Irish anarchist, the Grand Council passed the Act of Settlement 1865, which abolished the rule of male primogeniture, and therefore invited King William IV's eldest child Constance, as well as her son William V Wettin, to reign in America as its President-General, independent of Britain and its Parliament. William V himself was under-aged, and so Princess Constance became First Lady and Regent over her son until he reached the age of majority.

The American Branch of the House of Wettin-Hanover
  • Her Serene Highness Constance I Hanover, First Lady and Regent . (1865-1876)
  • His Serene Majesty William V Wettin, King-Emperor and President-General of North America. (1876-1901)
  • Her Serene Majesty Alexandra I Wettin, Queen-Empress and President-General of North America. (1901-1949)

Having been barren, and not able to produce an heir to the American throne, the Queen-Empress in Council promulgated the Act of Succession 1945, where upon the demise of the President-General, that his or her successor must be elected by the Grand Council using lists given to it by the several Legislatures, by a majority Approval vote of the Council and the assent of the Speaker of the Council.

The Presidents-General under the New Order post 1949:
  • His Excellency Maddox Willoughby (1949-1957) (Massachusetts)
  • His Excellency John Whitehorse (1957-1963) (Kentucky)
  • His Excellency Edwin St. Leger (1963-1969) (Florida)
  • His Excellency Gordon Beauchamp (1969-1973) (Quebec)
  • His Excellency Alistair MacKenzie (1973-1987) (Oregon)
  • His Excellency Christopher Ducas (1987-1995) (New York)
  • His Excellency Philip Thunderbird (1995-1999) (Iroquois)
  • Her Excellency Elena Orlova (1999-2005) (Alaska)
  • His Excellency Anthony Jackson (2005-present) (Virginia)
 
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Apportionment of the Grand Council, 1760-2010

It's been awhile since I bumped this thread. Since the original Albany Plan of Union uses revenue rather than population for apportionment of the (unicameral) Grand Council, I need to find the amount of money given to the Union government by each Colony. For now, I shall use estimates...

Apportionment of the 1770 Council:

  • Massachusetts Bay 9
  • New Hampshire 2
  • Connecticut 5
  • Rhode Island 2
  • New York 5
  • New Jersey 4
  • Pennsylvania 8
  • Maryland 4
  • Virginia 9
  • North Carolina 5
  • South Carolina 5
  • Georgia 3
--61 MCs
 
Apportionment of the Great Council, 1800:

  • Nova Scotia 2
  • New Brunswick 2
  • New Hampshire 4
  • Massachusetts 8
  • Connecticut 5
  • Rhode Island 1
  • New York 12
  • Iroquois 2
  • New Jersey 4
  • Pennsylvania 12
  • Maryland 7
  • Virginia 16
  • Kentucky 4
  • North Carolina 9
  • South Carolina 7
  • Georgia 3
  • Florida 2
--101 MCs
 

Eurofed

Banned
I find it quite unplausible that if the Albany/Galloway Plan does get implemented and stabilizes British North America, *all* of BNA shall not be swifly united under the system, including Canada and the West Indies.
 
I find it quite unplausible that if the Albany/Galloway Plan does get implemented and stabilizes British North America, *all* of BNA shall not be swifly united under the system, including Canada and the West Indies.

I haven't included Canada, Quebec and the West Indies---yet. Give it some time. :)
 
I'll post some more Council apportionments later

It's important that I write on who shall be the General and Particular Treasurers:

  • Lord Fairfax/William Allen (Tory 1756-1763)
  • Samuel Adams/Richard Stockton (Whig 1763-1773)
  • John Randolph/Sir Robert Eden (Tory 1773-1776)
  • John Adams/Robert Morris (Whig 1776-1782)
  • Sir Robert Eden/Joseph Galloway (Tory 1782-1783)
  • Thomas Jefferson/Robert Morris (Whig 1783-1792)
  • Richard Clarke/George Steuart (Tory 1792-1799)
  • George Washington Parke Custis/Robert Morris (Whig 1799-1805)

This list will go on in another post.
 
I thought that this thread would pick up a little more interest...

General and Particular Treasurers from 1805-1865:
  • William Franklin/Benjamin Thompson (Tory 1805-1813)
  • Thomas Jefferson/John Jay (Whig 1813)
  • Gideon Adams/Sampson Salter Blowers (Tory 1813-1820)
  • James Madison/Gabriel Ludlow (Coalition 1820-1823)
  • James Madison/John Quincy Adams (Whig 1823-1830)
  • William Mackenzie/Henry Watkins (Tory 1830-1839)
  • Abraham Vanburen/Hubert Johnson (Whig 1839-1845)
  • Basil Forsyth/George Ludlow (Tory 1845-1851)
  • George DeWitt Clinton/James Calhoun (Whig 1851-1860)
  • Alexander Macdonald/Andrew Davis (Tory 1860-1865)

After the 1865 assassination of President-General Palmerston, Speaker Albert Lee convened an interregnum session of the Grand Council, which promulgated the Act of Settlement whereby the first-born child, Princess Constance Hanover-Wettin, rather than the first-born male child (Edward, Prince of Wales,) of King William IV of Britain would be the American Monarch.

With the advent of the telegraph, the bill was transmitted to the British Parliament and, by a narrow and acrimonious vote, passed and was given royal assent. The Americans gained their independence at last.

Her Highness declined ruling directly, rather becoming a regent, so that her son William V Wettin became sovereign, granted the title King-Emperor and President-General of North America. Furthermore, the Grand Council restyled itself as the (Imperial) Congress.

 
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