discovery and settlement
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Discovery and Settlement. Chapters 1-3. Brainstorm. What do you already know about the settlement of the Americas? Make a list of everything you can think of. What should you know?. Standard 1. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Discovery and Settlement
Chapters 1-3
Brainstorm – Bellringer 8/21
• What do you already know about the settlement of the Americas? Make a list of everything you can think of.
• What should you know?
Standard 1
The student will demonstrate an understanding of the conflicts between regional and national interest in the development of democracy in the United States.Democratic ideals originated in England, were
brought by English settlers, and evolved in the U.S. as a result of regional experiences and interests which culminated in conflicts.
Therefore…TSWBAT:
• Summarize the distinct characteristics of each colonial region in the settlement and development of British North America, including religion, social, political, and economic differences.
• Analyze the early development of representative government and political rights in the American colonies, including the influence of the British political system…and the conflict…over the right to tax that resulted in the American Revolutionary War.
Reasons for Exploration
• Population growth & the reawakening of commerce that created a new merchant class
• New united governments in western Europe under powerful monarchs created centralized nation-states that were eager to grow commercially.
Other factors• The Crusades were launched in 1095 by the Catholic Church (Pope Urban II) to save
the Holy Land from the Muslims. This changed Western Europe, and ignited a desire for world exploration. Europeans came into contact with both Muslim and Byzantine civilizations, and they discovered luxury goods such as spices, sugar, melons, tapestries, and silk. As the demand for these goods increased, trade increased in the eastern Mediterranean area and especially Italian cities such as Venice, Pisa, and Genoa. By 1200, Arab traders controlled much of the trade. Gold coins, from Africa, began to circulate, and the Mongol empire protected trade into and through Asia.
• Government—As trade increased and merchants grew in wealth, kings began to tax merchants, and in return, open and protect trade routes. Trade laws and common currencies were developed within kingdoms. By the 1400s, four countries began financing exploration in hopes of expanding trade and increasing their power: Portugal, Spain, England and France.
• Renaissance—1350-1600; triggered the Scientific Revolution: astrolabe-uses the position of the sun to determine direction, latitude, and time. Other inventions include the compass, lateen sails (allowed ships to sail against the wind), multiple masts, and caravel ships created by the Portuguese.
• The first to find a route to Asia was Portugal. In 1419, Prince Henry the Navigator set up a center where mapmakers, astronomers, and shipbuilders could study and plan voyages. In 1420, they began to map Africa’s coast, and in 1488, Bartolomeu Dias reached the southern tip of Africa. Nine years later, Vasco da Gama made it to India.
Columbus and the Spanish Conquistadores
In 1492, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella agreed to finance Columbus’ expedition as a result of competition between countries for power, wealth, and converts. He landed in San Salvador, and discovered Cuba and Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic). He returned in 1493 with Native Americans, gold, birds, and spices. Six months later he returned to Hispaniola with colonists. He forced Native Americans to mine for gold and plant crops. His brother, Bartholomew founded Santo Domingo which became the first capital of Spain’s empire in America. Columbus’ voyages and tails of gold spurred interest in the Americas, and by the early 1500s, the Spanish had explored the Caribbean and the American mainland, and they had established colonies on Hispaniola, Cuba, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico.
*As a result of Columbus’s initiative, Spain devoted more resources to exploration and replaced Portugal as the leading seafaring nation. By 1550, Spain was on its way to creating a Spanish empire in the New World.
Spanish Empire• Hernan Cortes-in 1511 he helped to conquer Cuba and received control of several
Native American villages. Six years later, smallpox killed much of the workforce, and Cortes was sent in search of a new workforce and to investigate rumors of a wealthy civilization. In 1518, he arrived in Mexico. The first assault on Tenochtitlan failed; however, smallpox decimated the population and made it possible for Spain to conquer the nation.
• News of wealth spread and conquistadores flocked to Mexico in search of fortune.• Francisco Pizzaro- Peru; defeated the Incas and opened South America when he
easily defeated Atahuallpa by imprisoning him and ambushing his men at a celebratory feast.
• Hernando de Soto-FL, NC, TN, AL, AR, TX (first to cross MS River)• Francisco Vasquez de Coronado- searched for the Seven Golden Cities of Cibola
(opened the southwestern US)• Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca- Texas and New Mexico• **The Spanish conquistadores subjugated and almost exterminated the native
populations for greed and the creation of an empire.
Conquistadors and Quetzalcoatl
Pizzaro’s arrival
• 3 periods: discovery and exploration, age of conquistadores, and then in 1570’s under the Ordinances of Discovery (new Spanish laws)-colonization
• Colonization was a private enterprise led by individual leaders with little help from the government. The first step was to receive a license (permission) from the crown, and then permission was therefore granted to use local “labor” and receive tribute from the natives in specific areas (Encomienda system).
• Most important in colonization-Catholic Church; most common settlement was the mission with presidios nearby. This helped establish permanent elements of European culture in the New World.
Outposts• St. Augustine, FL-first permanent European settlement in
present-day U.S.• 1598-Don Juan de Onate claimed Pueblo land for Spain and
established a colony in New Mexico. Santa Fe was established in 1609. Economy-ranches of cattle and sheep.
• 1680-Pueblo uprising led by Pope as a result of Spanish priests suppressing the religious rituals of the natives. They captured Santa Fe and the Spanish temporarily fled the region. The Spanish returned twelve years later.
• *They realized that in order to remain they must work with the native population and 1) tried to assimilate them and 2) permitted the Pueblos to own land and practice tribal rituals. In time, the Pueblos and Spanish worked together.
The Empire• One of the largest in history• The monarchy directly governed.• Spain became extremely wealthy from the gold and
silver that they acquired.• Rigid trade regulations-trade went through a single
Spanish port two times a year.• Number of Spanish Europeans remained small
compared to native population—they did not make an effort to populate the region.**They did not create a self-contained European society.
Spanish Empire
Exchanges
• AKA Columbian Exchange• ***Disease decimated the native population in addition to the
conquistadores’ policy of subjugation and extermination of the “savage” population.
• New crops in America-sugar, bananas, livestock, horse.• To Europeans-new agricultural techniques, corn, squash, pumpkins, beans,
tomatoes, sweet potatoes, and peppers.• New dialects• Hybrid of faiths• *Intermarriage created a new racial hierarchy and benefited both natives
and Europeans (1. Peninsulares, 2. criollos, 3. mestizos, 4. Native Americans, Africans, or mixed Spanish/African/Native Americans
• Importation of Africans
French and Dutch• French-first permanent settlement in Quebec in 1608. Their
population grew slowly, and their relationship with natives was much different for others because they forged close ties deep inside the continent through coureurs de bois (fur traders) who became a part of native society though living with native tribes. The fur trade opened the way for agricultural estates, alliances, and military centers that allowed the French to compete with the British.
• Henry Hudson explored what would become the Hudson River for the Dutch in 1609. The Dutch became active in trade around New York and established permanent posts in this area. They encouraged settlement by other northern Europeans. (New Netherland/New Amsterdam)
The English Incentives• 1st English contact began with John Cabot in 1497; looking for the northwest passage.• Commercial and Religious incentives for settlement began during the 16th century. • England was plagued with social and economic ills—wars, religious strife, and
unemployment, population surplus, and a restriction of food supplies due to the enclosure movement.
• Merchant capitalists/charter companies desired an expansion of markets. The policy of mercantilism (goal of increasing a nation’s total wealth) began and guided the economic policies and increased competition among nations. Richard Hakluyt argued that colonies would create new markets for English goods, would provide needed products for England such as lumber, and would help solve the economic problems of England such as unemployment and overpopulation.
• The Reformation-Luther and Calvin (Calvin greatly influenced Puritans in England). The English Reformation began with Henry VIII and the Church of England, or Anglican Church, became official under Elizabeth I. People who wanted to “purify” the Church of unwanted elements began to be known as Puritans. Radical Puritans who refused to abide by English law and chose to worship as they pleased became known as Separatists. The Puritan movement grew under James I who antagonized Puritans with his policies.
Colonization in IrelandEngland’s policies with colonization was greatly influenced by its
colonization of Ireland. In the 1560’s and 70’s English colonists captured lands in Ireland and subdued the native population. The English believed the native population to made up of “savages” who were Catholic, spoke their own language (Gaelic) and had their own culture.
1. They believed the natives could not be “tamed” and could not be assimilated so they must be suppressed and isolated. Individuals such as Sir Humphrey Gilbert, Sir Walter Raleigh, and Sir Richard Grenville took their experiences from Ireland to the New World.
2. Plantation life-English settlements should be separated from native settlements (transplantations of English society to keep English culture “pure”).
English Settlements• In the 1570s and 1580s English “sea dogs” such as Sir Francis Drake staged
raids on Spanish ships from what is now the Outer Banks, NC. This built confidence in England’s ability to challenge Spanish sea power. Once the Spanish Armada was defeated off the coast of England in 1588, England felt free to challenge Spain’s claim in the New World.
• English colonization began under Sir Humphrey Gilbert and Sir Walter Raleigh. Gilbert took control of Newfoundland in 1583, and Raleigh and Sir Richard Grenville led a group of men to establish a colony in Roanoke (1585) (Virginia) but the colony was unsuccessful and the colonists fled with Sir Francis Drake. Raleigh tried again in 1587. The governor of the expedition, John White, left after a few weeks for supplies and when he returned in 1590 not one person was found. Thus, England’s first colony became known as the “Lost Colony”.
• Under James I, efforts at colonization renewed under English merchants. In 1606, James issued a new charter that divided America between the London group (south) and the Plymouth group (north).
The “Lost Colony”
Jamestown• Agreed upon by James I, and founded by the Virginia Company, a new
settlement began in 1606. Lawlessness, sickness, and food shortages killed all but 53 by the end of the year. Captain John Smith and Chief Powhatan saved the colony by trading. However, Smith suffered a gunpowder wound and returned to England. The company offered land to entice more settlers, and 400 new arrived over the summer. The colony suffered as a result of not enough supplies, and settlers began to steal from Native Americans. The winter of 1609 and 1610 became known as the “starving time” as colonists ate “dogs, rats, snakes, toadstools, [and] horsehides,” and some robbed graves to eat corpses. By spring of 1610, 60 colonists remained and started to flee the colony. However, Lord De La Warr (the new governor) arrived and convinced them to return with the new colonists and supplies. His deputy, Thomas Dale, formed new laws requiring all settlers to work. In 1614, he allowed private cultivation; the new product to sell for profit was tobacco.
Surviving Time
Lord De La Warr and a series of harsh governors- instituted harsh military regime to restore order to Jamestown Initiated war w/ Native Americans- sought to decimate, not assimilate population New product-tobacco Personal incentives Colony expanded
John Rolfe- perfected tobacco cultivation and provided economic basis for Virginia economy– Tobacco- the “poor man’s crop”
Impact of “King tobacco”/tobacco economy: Insatiable European appetite for tobacco Tobacco ruinous to soil- “soil butchery” Desire for land led to subsequent conflict w/ natives Farming evolved into development of plantation system Headrights-a system in which new settlers who bought a share in the Virginia Company or paid for
their passage were granted 50 acres of land. 50 more acres were given for each family member over 15 and for each servant transported. encouragement of families moving together
Demanded labor force- indentured servants or African slaves?1619- VA House of Burgesses- 1st representative legislature in American history
Step towards democratic self-rule; promised full English rights1619- 1st African slaves brought to VA1624- VA evolved into Royal Colony when charter revoked by untrusting James I
Indentured Servants• TREATMENT BY THEIR MASTERS: Indentured servants had few rights. They could not vote.
Without the permission of their masters, they were not allowed to marry, to leave their houses or travel, nor buy or sell anything. Female indentured servants were often raped without legal recourse. Masters often whipped and beat their indentured servants. One man testified: "I have seen an Overseer beat a Servant with a cane about the head till the blood has followed, for a fault that is not worth the speaking of....“
• WORK IN AMERICA: In the 1600s, most indentured servants were put to work in the tobacco fields of Virginia and Maryland. This was hard manual labor under the grueling hot summer sun, under which Europeans were not accustomed to working. Overseers were often cruel, beating the servants to make them work faster and harder.
• AFTER CONTRACT WAS COMPLETED: Although many masters craftily figure out ways to extend an indentured servant's bondage (through accusing the servant of stealing, impregnating a female indenture servant, etc.), most indentured servants who survived the frrst four to seven years in America were freed. The master was required (depending upon the rules of the colony) to provide his former servant with the following: clothing, two hoes, three barrels of corn, and fifty acres of land.
Powhatan Wars• 1st Anglo-Powhatan War settled in 1614 w/ marriage of Pocahontas and
John Rolfe (Powhatan refused to pay ransom)• Hostilities continued as land hungry Europeans raided Natives and vice
versa (John Rolfe killed)• 2nd Anglo-Powhatan War of 1646 banished Chesapeake Indians from
native lands and called for separate settlements for whites and Natives- reservation system By 1685- Powhatans extinct 3 D’s- disease, disorganization, and disposability
• Migration of native peoples westward• Disease- brought destruction of native population and culture• Trade and exchange w/Europeans- especially firearms• Native tribes inland able to maintain autonomy from Europeans, or at
least control contact
Bellringer 8/21
• Describe the main motivations to colonizing the Americas.
Growth of New England
Plymouth Plantation• Separatist Puritans fled persecution in England and moved towards open-
minded Holland in 1608 Worked to secure agreement w/ Virginia Co, but missed destination upon
Mayflower Plymouth = squatter colony Great Migration of 1620’s and 30’s- large number of people migrated from
England to Americas- many to New England• Mayflower Compact (1620)- agreement towards majority rule
Step towards self-government• Plymouth Rock; cleared, former-Indian village; ½ perished during first
winter• Native American relations not hostile; survival due to Indians (alliance
with Wampanoags due to Squanto)• 1621- 1st “Thanksgiving”• Colony led by Governor William Bradford• Colony thrived on fishing trade• 1622-Miles Standish created a military regime for Pilgrims to work; poor
community; fur trade
Mayflower Compact and First Thanksgiving
Massachusetts Bay Experiment• “The Bible Commonwealth”• Secured charter from English King to settle colony in 1630• Led by Governor John Winthrop- believed that colony would
be religious experiment “A City Upon a Hill”- mandated by God through covenant to build a
holy society that would be a model for all mankind• Bible Commonwealth:
Bible- colony based on Puritan faith; religion guided lives Commonwealth= pseudo- Democracy; right to vote reserved for
“visible saints”/ freemen- males• New England Town Meeting- cradle for American democracy
(direct democracy)• Grew quickly with capital (Boston) and other towns.
Life in Massachusetts Bay• Freemen- visible saints who were enfranchised- held the right
to vote (40% of colony)• Puritan Church = Congregational Church
Established church- tax- supported by elect and commoners Responsible to own community
• Govt’s duty was to enforce religious laws (theocratic) John Cotton- Preacher; interrogated those who underwent conversion
• Protestant work ethic- calling to do God’s work on earth• Lived in fear of perpetual damnation (preaching hellfire)
Expansion• All non-conformists/dissenters were persecuted and/or exiled—they were
not Puritan “saints”• Thomas Hooker- Hartford, CT; Fundamental Orders of CT (Constitution).
Expanded voting rights to all free men• Anne Hutchinson- believed that holy life was no guarantee for salvation
Antinomianism- truly saved not need to follow man’s or God’s law Convicted for heresy after admitting to direct revelation from God Banished to Rhode Island (later moved to NY) Many followers moved to NH and ME
• Roger Williams- Providence, RI; extreme Separatist who was banished Called for clean break with Anglican Church Separation of church and state Challenged the legality of the colony’s charter Condemned govt for not compensating Indians for land Denied authority of civil govt to regulate religious behavior
Rhode Island
• “Rogues Island”- founded by Roger Williams in 1636 as refuge for religiously oppressed/outcastsComplete religious toleration- including Jews and
Catholics (for a time)No tax supported church“Home of the otherwise minded”Simple manhood suffrageAlthough began as squatter colony, received
charter from England
New Hampshire• Settled by others who left Massachusetts. • Land was granted to two men, Sir Fernando Gorges
and Captain John Mason. Mason controlled New Hampshire; Gorges’s territory was Maine. Massachusetts claimed both, but in 1677 and English court ruled against Massachusetts.
• New Hampshire became a royal colony, and Massachusetts later bought Maine (not “Maine” again until 1820).
Anne Hutchinson and Roger Williams
Puritans vs. Native Americans• Pre-Plymouth epidemic brought by English fisherman• Local Wampanoag Indians made treaty with Pilgrims and
celebrated with them in 1621** Squanto served as intermediary Crucial in assisting Puritans; trade partners Tensions develop-encroachment, overhunting
• Pequot War (1637)- CT; competition over trade with Dutch and land. Initiated period of 4 decades of warfare b/w Puritans and Native Americans Mild policy of assimilation and Christianizing followed war
• King Philip’s War- Led by Metacomet, Native Americans united for purpose of halting colonial encroachment on lands Although war impeded progress, New England Native Americans
virtually annihilated and disbanded
New EnglandGeography:A. unsuitable for large plantations and cash crops. B. New England was located near the Grand Banks, a shallow region in the Atlantic Ocean where the mixing of the warm Gulf Stream and the cold North Atlantic produced a favorable environment for plankton—an important food supply for many types of fish and whales, making fishing the main industry in New England. C. New England’s dense forests contributed to making lumbering an important industry. The fall line—the area where rivers descend from a high elevation to a lower one, causing waterfalls—was near the region’s coast. The waterfalls provided power for the sawmills. The rivers transported the lumber to the coast for shipment to other colonies and to England. The lumber was used for manufacturing goods such as furniture and barrels and for shipbuilding, which became an important industry.
New England Towns—Religion’s Impact
A. The town was at the heart of New England society. It was instrumental in determining how the people were governed and how land was settled. Local issues and problems were discussed in town meetings. Men at these meetings began to pass legislation for the town and to elect officials.B. Voting was limited to men who owned property. They elected selectmen to manage the town’s affairs. New England settlers were allowed to participate directly in their own local government, which developed in them the idea that they had the right to govern themselves.C. New England Puritans were expected to attend Sunday worship at their meetinghouse and to obey strict rules that governed most activities. Puritans felt responsible for the moral welfare of their neighbors, and watching over a neighbors’ behavior was considered a religious duty.
Rise of Cities• New England produced few goods that England wanted. However,
England produced many goods that the colonists wanted. In order for New England merchants to obtain English products, they had to sell New England’s products elsewhere in exchange for goods that England wanted.
• The Caribbean was a market for New England’s fish and lumber. In exchange for these products, New England merchants received raw sugar or bills of exchange. The bills were basically credit slips English merchants had given the planters in exchange for their sugar. New England merchants would take the bills back to New England and trade them to English merchants in exchange for English manufactured goods. This three-way trade was an example of triangular trade.
• The increase in trade in the colonies led to the development of colonial America’s first cities. A new society with distinct social classes developed in these cities. Wealthy merchants who controlled a city’s trade made up the top social class. These merchants made up a small part of a city’s population.
• Artisans—or skilled workers who knew how to manufacture goods—made up nearly half of the urban population of colonial America. They included carpenters, masons, silversmiths, and shoemakers. Innkeepers and retailers made up the same social class as artisans.
• People without skills or property made up the next-to-lowest level of urban society. At the bottom were indentured servants and enslaved Africans.
Bellringer 8/25
List the New England colonies.
Which century were they settled?
Who settled there, and for what reasons?
Restoration Colonies• With Restoration of English Monarchy
(Stuarts) in 1660, England sought to re-establish firm control on American colonies; Carolina, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania
• **Proprietary-point to increase wealth and power of private investors; no major money to be made by charter companies
Middle
New Amsterdam• Henry Hudson founded New Netherlands in 1609 in
search of NW passage to Indies• Dutch also settled in West Indies• New Amsterdam (NY) established in 1624 for trading
post for fur tradeManhattan island purchased for $24.00
• Life in New Amsterdam:No liberal freedoms- religion, speech, or pressDespotic rulers/governorsDutch Reformed ChurchHighly aristocratic w/ granting of vast estates of land up
Hudson (patroonship)
New York and New Jersey• Conflict between English and Dutch—”wedge”• Peter Stuyvesant- Dutch governor; built defensive Wall in S. Manhattan for
protection against Indians (Wall Street)• Led military expedition to uproot Swedes from colony of New Sweden
(Delaware)• 1664- Stuyvesant forced to surrender New Amsterdam to England
(Renamed New York after Duke of York)• King Charles II granted the land of New Netherland to his brother James,
the Duke of York, who seized the land from the Dutch. • Religious toleration; settlement diverse; wealth gap• James granted land to two of the king’s advisors, Sir George Carteret and
Lord John Berkeley. This area was named New Jersey; colonists moved because they were offered land grants, religious freedom, and the right to elect a legislative assembly. Berkley and Carteret later gave the charter back and it became royal. Diverse; no important class of landowners; no important cities.
Pennsylvania/Delaware• William Penn founded colony as refuge for Quakers and liberals in 1681
Quakers- pacifists; refused to support established Church of England; “Inner Light;” all achieve salvation; the most anarchistic and most democratic; women equal partnership in church
• Life in Pennsylvania: Most heavily advertised colony Settled largely by Germans and Scots-Irish Welcomed Indians; reimbursed; no major conflicts Representative assembly Philadelphia- established as commercial center Religious toleration, although Jews and Catholics could not vote initially No provisions for colonial defense or immigration Colony gradually spread to what would become New Jersey 3 counties later formed Delaware
Middle Colonies Characteristics
• Middle colony similarities (NY, NJ, PA, DE):Fertile Soil- “breadbasket” coloniesRivers promoted trade and foreshadowed industryLumbering and shipbuilding dominated economyMost diverse populationsUnusual degree of liberties and freedoms
Middle Colonies’ Society
Distinct social classes developed in the Middle Colonies. Wealthy entrepreneurs were at the top. In the middle were farmers who owned small farms. At the bottom were landless workers who rented land or who worked for wages.
Southern Colonies
Maryland-A Catholic HavenMaryland founded in 1634 by Lord Baltimore (George Calvert) as refuge for
English Catholics Actually died before he received a charter and his sun fulfilled his dream True proprietors Sought to establish large estates and perpetuate Catholic foothold in N.
America; eventually instituted headrights to encourage labor MD—actually encompassed parts of Delaware, Pennsylvania and Virginia Developed tobacco economy; experienced no starving time or Indian assaults MD also depended upon indentured servants for labor and eventually
switched to slave labor in 17th centuryMD Religious Act of Toleration (1649):
Guaranteed religious toleration to all Christians who recognized the divinity of Christ
Toleration not extended to Jews and Atheists Still plagued by religious conflicts between Protestants and Catholics. Civil war
1655.
Carolinas• Founded by Charles II during Restoration period to provision West Indies
with foodstuffs to maintain profitability and to export non-English goods- wine, silk, oil
• 8 proprietors; religious freedom; representative assembly• Charles Town-colonial capital 1690; center of trade• Many Carolina settlers originated from West Indies (Barbados)• Fostered Native American slave trade with aid of Savannah Indians
By early 1700’s, many Savannah Indians moving North to backcountry of Pennsylvania
• Rice- basis of S. Carolina economy Rice plantation dependent upon African labor and skills Charleston became economic center of trade; close trade ties with Barbados
**Southern and Northern developed socially and economically different; tensions arose and proprietors couldn’t keep control. Colonists seized it, and ten years later the Carolinas were split.
North Carolina• Settlers largely by discontented settlers and outcast- resented
aristocratic sentiment of VA to North, and S. Carolina to South• Squatter colony- no legal right to settle land
Subsistence farmers- tobacco• Emerged in 1712 as separate colony
Considered to be most democratic of Southern colonies, least aristocratic, and most independent-minded
• Conflict w/ Native Americans: Tuscarora Indians destroyed, sold into slavery, or became part of
Iroquois Confederacy Yamasee Indians defeated by S. Carolina By 1720- coastal Indians in Carolinas decimated or forced to move
Georgia
Founded in 1733 by Philanthropist James Oglethorpe• Goal: serve as buffer colony to protect Carolina’s from Spanish
Florida and serve as a refuge for the impoverished Received direct aid from England for security purposes
• Reformer colony for debtors and prison reforms• Prevented to stop slavery from developing (1750 removed
ban on slavery)• Religious toleration among Protestant sects• Slow to develop economically due to restrictions• Power returned to king and he permitted a representative
assembly
Plantation Economy• Economies devoted to agricultural export• Staple crops (except Georgia)• Slavery (Except Georgia)• Aristocratic (Except NC)• Development of plantation system• Lack of schools and churches• Lack of commercial cities due to agrarian base• Limited Religious toleration• Tax-Support Church of England/Anglican Church dominant• Soil Butchery• Conflict w/ Natives
Southern Economy and Society
• Tobacco became the South’s first successful cash crop, or crop grown primarily for market. It was the main cash crop of Virginia and Maryland. Rice and indigo were the main cash crops of South Carolina. These crops needed the right climate and techniques to be cultivated. These needs led to the growth of plantations, or large commercial estates.
• To be profitable, farmers had to grow large quantities of tobacco. Growing tobacco required intensive manual labor. As a result, farmers needed a large workforce to cultivate the crop.
• The geography of the Chesapeake Bay region (VA/MD) was well-suited for growing tobacco. Farmers used the many rivers connected to the bay to ship their crop.
• Many poor, unemployed tenant farmers in England were willing to sell their labor for a chance to acquire their own land. They arrived in America as indentured servants. American colonists paid the cost of transportation and promised to provide food, shelter, and clothing for the servants until their labor contracts expired. In exchange, the servants agreed to work for the landowners for the time specified in the contract, generally about four years.
• By the 1690s, planters in South Carolina imported enslaved Africans to cultivate rice, which rapidly became a major cash crop. In the early 1740s, Eliza Lucas discovered that indigo grew well on land unsuitable for rice. Indigo soon became another important cash crop.
Southern Society
• The plantation system created a society with distinct social classes. The wealthy landowners were referred to as the Southern gentry or planter elite. They were influential in both the politics and economy of the region.
• Plantations of the wealthy landowners functioned as self-sufficient communities. In the early 1700s, as planters switched from indentured to slave labor, the size of the plantations increased. Most of these plantations were located along the rivers.
• Most landowners in the South were small farmers who lived in the “backcountry” farther inland from the rivers. Backcountry or yeoman farmers worked small plots of land and practiced subsistence farming, or farming only enough crops to feed their own families.
• By the late 1600s, the South was a sharply divided society. At the top were the wealthy elite. At the bottom were the backcountry farmers, landless tenant farmers, and servants and enslaved Africans.
African CultureA. Africans who arrived in the colonies attempted to maintain their specific languages and traditions.B. Africans in South Carolina who cultivated rice worked in larger groups than in other Southern Colonies. Their isolation from white planters resulted in a more independent African culture, with its own language called Gullah. The language combined English and African words. Using a common language helped Africans from diverse backgrounds develop a new culture in America.C. Whites used brutal means and persuasion to maintain authority over the enslaved Africans. The Africans developed several ways to fight against slavery. Some employed passive resistance, such as work slowdowns; some managed to escape. Sometimes groups of enslaved Africans banded together to resist the slaveholders. In the Stono Rebellion in South Carolina, Africans attacked white slaveholders. The local militia ended the rebellion, killing between 30 and 40 of the Africans.
Bacon’s Rebellion
• Sir William Berkeley, the governor of Virginia, dominated Virginia’s society in the mid-1600s. He manipulated the House of Burgesses to restrict the vote to people who owned property, in effect cutting the number of voters in Virginia in half. The action angered backcountry and tenant farmers.
• Backcountry farmers wanted to expand their landholdings. However, most of the remaining land was located in territory that Native Americans claimed. The wealthy planters had little interest in the concerns of backcountry farmers and were unwilling to risk conflict with the Native Americans, so they opposed expanding the colony.
• In 1675 war erupted between backcountry settlers and the Native Americans of the region. Governor Berkeley’s refusal to sanction military action against the Native Americans angered the backcountry farmers.
• In 1676 backcountry farmers, under the leadership of a wealthy planter named Nathaniel Bacon, organized their own militia and attacked the Native Americans. Realizing the popularity of Bacon’s action, Governor Berkeley called on the House of Burgesses to address the situation. The assembly authorized Bacon to raise troops to attack the Native Americans, and it also restored the vote to all free men.
• Bacon was not satisfied with the reforms, and in 1676 he and several hundred armed followers returned to Jamestown, charged Berkeley with corruption, and seized power. Berkeley fled Jamestown and raised his own army. In September 1676, the two armies fought for control of Jamestown. Bacon’s Rebellion ended when Bacon became sick and died.
• Bacon’s Rebellion illustrated to Virginia’s wealthy planters that in order to keep Virginia society stable, backcountry farmers needed to have land available to them. It also increased the trend of purchasing enslaved Africans instead of indentured servants for working the plantations. At the same time, the English government adopted policies that encouraged slavery. In 1672 it granted a charter to the Royal African Company to engage in the slave trade.
Slavery and the South• By 1870 between 10 and 12 million Africans were forcibly taken from
West Africa and transported across the Atlantic to America on a journey that Europeans called the Middle Passage.
• The first Africans to arrive in Virginia in 1619 were treated as indentured servants. Their status began to change as the number of Africans increased. In 1638 Maryland became the first colony to recognize slavery. In 1705 Virginia enacted a slave code—a set of laws that regulated slavery and defined the relationship between enslaved Africans and free people. Other colonies followed with their own slave codes. By the early 1700s slavery became a recognized and accepted institution, particularly in the Southern colonies where the work of enslaved Africans was essential to the plantation economy.
Seeds of Colonial Unity
• New England Confederation (1643)- called for purposes of defense against Native Americans as well as inter-colonial problemsMade up by Mass. And Conn. Colonies (RI excluded)Although did not make any significant gains, was step
towards need for colonial unity and communication1640’s- Era of Benign Neglect- English Civil Wars allowed
colonies to develop democratic and independent practices free from English authority
English Restoration and Colonial Control
• With Restoration of English Monarchy in 1660, England sought to re-establish firm control on American colonies
• England created Dominion of New England in 1686 for 3 purposes:Headed by Sir Edmund AndrosRe-affirm English control over colonial mattersBolster colonial defense against possible Indian attacks Implement terms from Navigation Acts of 1651
Navigation Acts and Mercantilism
• Navigation Acts reinforced principle of mercantilism
• Mercantilism- E and P structure where colonies exist for benefit of mother countryDual purpose of colonies: provide raw materials to
mother country; serve as market for finished goods
Navigation Acts required colonists to use English ships and forbade trade with other countries (smuggling)
*Theory of Mercantilism*A. Mercantilism is a set of ideas about the world economy and how it works. Mercantilists believed that a country’s wealth was measured by the amount of gold and silver it possessed. They believed that having a greater number of exports than imports would result in more gold and silver flowing into the country.B. Mercantilists also believed that a country should establish colonies in order to be self-sufficient in raw materials. The home country would then sell its manufactured goods to the colonies.C. When King Charles II assumed the throne, he was determined to generate wealth by regulating trade in the American colonies. In 1660 Parliament passed a navigation act that required all goods imported or exported from the colonies to be transported on English ships. The act also listed specific raw materials that the colonies could sell only to England. The list included most of the products that were profitable for the colonies.D. Parliament passed another navigation act in 1663. This law required all goods imported by the colonies to come through England. Merchants who were bringing goods to the colonies had to stop in England, pay taxes, and then ship the goods out on English ships. The practice generated money for England, but increased the prices of goods in the colonies.
Impact of Dominion of New England
• Defiance of Navigation Acts by Massachusetts; charter revoked; Dominion formed (NE + NY + NJ)
• Gov. Andros curbed colonial traditions: Prevented NE town meetings Restricted freedom of press Dissolved popular assemblies
• Glorious Revolution of 1688 Colonists revolted against Andros and sent him back to England England made Mass. a royal colony- extended suffrage to property
owning males• Period of Salutary Neglect- lax enforcement of the Navigation
Laws in late 17th and early 18th centuries
The Glorious Revolution and New Political Rights
A. Many people in England opposed King James II. The king often refused the advice of Parliament and openly practiced Catholicism. Parliament leaders feared another civil war.B. James’s Protestant daughter Mary and her husband, William, were to succeed James on the throne. However, James’s second wife gave birth to a son, and he became the heir and would be raised Catholic.C. Parliament was unwilling to have a Catholic dynasty, so it asked William and Mary to assume the throne. When William arrived, James fled, and William became king. This bloodless change of power became known as the Glorious Revolution.
Ideas that Influence AmericaD. Parliament established the English Bill of Rights, which limited the powers of the king and listed the rights that Parliament and English citizens were guaranteed. The English Bill of Rights would become incorporated into the American Bill of Rights.E. After King James II was dethroned, an uprising occurred in Boston, and Governor Andros was ousted. The new monarchs reinstated Rhode Island’s and Connecticut’s previous form of government. Massachusetts received a new charter, which combined the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Plymouth Colony, and Maine into the royal colony of Massachusetts. The colonists elected an assembly, but the king appointed the colony’s governor. Those who owned property could vote, but they did not have to be members of a Puritan congregation.F. John Locke, a political philosopher, wrote a book entitled Two Treatises on Government. In the book, Locke asserted that all people were born with natural rights, including the right to life, liberty, and property. Locke believed that people created governments to protect their rights. In return, the people agreed to obey the government’s laws. Locke also asserted that if a government violated people’s rights, the people were justified in changing the government. Locke’s ideas greatly influenced the American colonists.
Enlightenment & Great AwakeningA. The Enlightenment was a European cultural movement. It challenged the authority of the church in science and philosophy and elevated the power of human reason. The emphasis on logic and reasoning was known as rationalism.B. John Locke was an influential Enlightenment writer. He argued that all people had rights, and that society can be improved. French thinker Jean Jacques Rousseau argued that a government and its laws should be created by consent of the people. Baron Montesquieu, another influential Enlightenment writer, argued that to protect people’s liberties, a government should be separated into different branches to provide checks and balances against one another.C. Many American colonists in the 1700s turned to a religious movement called pietism, which stressed an individual’s devoutness and emotional union with God. Ministers spread pietism through revivals, large public meetings for preaching and prayer. This revival of religious feelings became known as the Great Awakening. Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield were two important preachers of the Great Awakening.D. The Great Awakening led to the development of new churches in New England. It had a great impact on the Southern Colonies, and was especially appealing to backcountry and tenant farmers and to enslaved Africans.