British Colonies in America

European Colonization In 1492, Christopher Columbus made a

voyage across the Atlantic Ocean in search of the West Indies.

Instead, Columbus landed in the Bahamas (not India). The Bahamas had never before been claimed by European countries.

The effect of Columbus’ voyage to the “New World” was that other Europeans began settling America too, and allowed it to become what it is today.

“The Lost Colony” In 1587, Sir Walter Raleigh of England sent

about 91 men, 17 women, and 9 children to an island in North Carolina.

The governor of Roanoke returned back to England for supplies. He returned 3 years later and the people had vanished.

There were no bodies, only empty houses with the letters “CRO” carved on a post.

What happened to the colonists is still a mystery today.

Jamestown Colony Jamestown was the first SUCCESSFUL

colony in the 13 colonies. The first people came to Jamestown in 1607.

But, Jamestown had many problems at the beginning of the colony. The colony was in a swampy area with disease-carrying mosquitoes.

Many of the men who came to Jamestown thought they were going to get rich from gold mining, so they refused to do any farming or manual labor.

Jamestown Problems Captain John Smith was one of the early leaders

of the colony. Smith began trading with the Powhatan Indians,

and this trade helped the colony get through its first two winters.

John Smith was injured and returned to England. Without a leader, the colony took a turn for the worst.

The Winter of 1609 and 1610 became known as the “starving time.”

The people of Jamestown ate “dogs, rats, snakes, toads, and horses.”

They even dug up dead bodies and ate them.

Tobacco Saves Jamestown John Rolfe came to Jamestown and introduced

tobacco. The people began growing it at a rapid pace and

making profits. The colonists had enough money to import food,

so tobacco saved the colony.

Protestant Reformation

Reform: to change

Roman CatholicChurch

ProtestantsBaptists

Presbyterians

Episcopalians

Lutherans

Church ofEngland

(Anglican Church)

Puritans Separatists (Pilgrims)

The Pilgrims The Pilgrims were separatists from Holland,

meaning they broke away from the Anglican Church.

They were punished and persecuted for breaking away from the Church.

So the Pilgrims escaped Holland on the Mayflower ship and landed at Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1620.

When they arrived, they signed a document called The Mayflower Compact. This document established a government that would be ruled by the majority.

Massachusetts and the Puritans

The Puritans, like the Pilgrims, did not agree with the Anglican Church.

The Puritans wanted to “purify” the Anglican Church of everything that was left from the Catholic Church.

So, a group of Puritans led by John Winthrop left for America and arrived in 1630.

Winthrop said that the Puritans’ colony would be a “city upon a hill.”

Winthrop meant that the Puritans’ colony would be a godly example to the world of how a community should live.

Massachusetts and the Puritans This community would be called the Massachusetts

Bay Colony. If someone challenged the Puritan ideas, he could be

banished from the colony. The Puritans did NOT allow drinking, reading other

books besides the Bible, or even dancing. The Pilgrims and Puritans did NOT come to America to

set up “religious freedom,” because they were not accepting of other religions.

They did not want people living with them who did not follow the “godly example.”

The Puritans were NOT tolerant. They did not accept people from other religions or people who did not agree with them.

Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson

Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson were both banished from Massachusetts for challenging Puritan beliefs.

Anne Hutchinson was banished for saying that God could speak to people directly and not just through the Bible.

Rhode Island was where people who were banished from the Puritans went. There was a total separation of church and state there.

Economy of New England Colonies

The economy of New England depended on the geography of the land.

Because the soil was very rocky, it made it impossible to have large farms (plantations) like in the South.

In New England, people relied on subsistence farming. This means that they only grew enough food to survive.

Also, the location of the New England colonies close to the water allowed people in New England to make money through shipbuilding and trading.

There were thick forests that allowed people to use the timber to build ships and use the water for trading products with other colonies.

This also allowed people in New England to make money through fishing.

Mid-Atlantic Colonies: Pennsylvania

The greatest example of a Mid-Atlantic/Middle colony was Pennsylvania.

Middle Colonies: Pennsylvania

In 1680, the King of England granted William Penn a colony which would be called Pennsylvania.

William Penn was a Quaker. Quakers believed that every person had an “inner light” from God.

Because of this, Quakers were accepting of all Christians in Pennsylvania.

So, Pennsylvania (and the Middle Colonies) were the MOST religiously tolerant of all the colonies.

This was very different than the New England colonies, where people were banished for having different beliefs.

Economy of Mid-Atlantic Colonies

The Mid-Atlantic Colonies’ economy was also based on geography. They had very fertile soil.

People in the Mid-Atlantic Colonies also lived longer than the people in the Southern and New England Colonies.

This allowed the Mid-Atlantic Colonies to have large families that could be used to grow better farms.

So, they used their large families and fertile soil to grow food that they exported to other countries.

The Middle Colonies did not have to depend on slaves for their farms since they had large families.

Southern Colonies: South Carolina

The best examples of Southern colonies were Virginia and South Carolina

Economy of the Southern Colonies

The economy of the Southern colonies was based on the geography, because the soil is not rocky and the temperatures were warmer.

The economy of the Southern Colonies, especially South Carolina, was based on slavery and large plantations.

Plantations are very large farms that require lots of labor. These plantations grew “cash crops.” Cash crops are crops grown to make large profits.

This is unlike subsistence farming, which is farming just to grow enough to survive.

The three main cash crops in the Southern colonies were tobacco, rice, and indigo.

Cotton was NOT a main crop of the south during the 18th century.

Society of the Southern Colonies

The Southern colonies developed a strict hierarchical structure because of the plantation system.

This meant that there were very rich people who owned the plantations, while the rest of society was poor or slaves.

South Carolina’s system of slavery came from Barbados.

These large plantations in the South hurt the growth of towns and cities because they took up all the space.

Furthermore, the established church in the South was the Anglican Church.

Magna Carta & English Bill of Rights

For centuries, the government of England was ruled by a monarch – a King or Queen. The King or Queen had unlimited power.

But then, in 1215 in England, a group of nobles forced King John I to sign the Magna Carta which gave the nobles rights.

The Magna Carta limited the powers of the King. It required the King to get the approval of the people

(Parliament) before he raised any taxes. Later, during the 1600s, King James of England was

overthrown. He was replaced by William and Mary, who agreed to abide by the English Bill of Rights.

The English Bill of Rights also re-stated that the King must get approval from Parliament before raising taxes.

The English Bill of Rights also gave individuals rights, such as religious freedom.

Magna Carta & English Bill of Rights

The major effect of the Magna Carta and English Bill of Rights was that it laid the foundation for America’s idea of a limited government, meaning a government based on a set of laws.

“Salutary Neglect” The King of England appointed governors for each

colony, but the colonial legislatures had more power. For the most part, the King left the colonies alone and

let the colonial legislatures handle their own affairs. This period of time was called “salutary neglect.”

During salutary neglect, the colonists elected legislators who made decisions for them. The colonial legislatures were the ones who made laws raised taxes.

The colonists enjoyed the time period of salutary neglect because they were able to make their own decisions without the King of England or Parliament interfering.

During salutary neglect, the colonists developed an attitude of self-governing, meaning that they could run their own affairs and make their own laws.

New England ColoniesReligion

•Puritan•NO religious tolerance

Society•Was “egalitarian” at first, but social classes came later.•Education was important because of Puritans wanted everyone to read the Bible.•Had many towns.

Government•Controlled by the Church•Town meetings made decisions

Economy•Only subsistence farming (no plantations) because of rocky soil.•Used forests to build ships.•Used the sea to be merchants and fishermen.

Middle ColoniesReligion

•Most religious tolerance and diversity of all 3 regions.

Society•Was egalitarian at first, but social classes came later.

Government Economy•Used fertile soil and large families to export foodstuffs. (wheat, rye, etc)•Did not have to use slaves.

Southern ColoniesReligion

•Religion did not play a huge role because people were more concerned with making money.•The main church was the Anglican Church (Church of England).

Society•Hierarchical social structure because of plantations.•At first, Georgia outlawed slavery, but later accepted it.

Government•Coastal planters had the political power.

Economy•Cash crops: tobacco, rice, and indigo•Used New England’s ships to export crops to Europe.•NO COTTON! (yet)