England Challenges Spain

• In 1588, Spain was preparing to invade England with a huge ARMADA or fleet of ships.

• Aided by a large storm, the English were able to defeat the Spanish and protect their land.

• With England’s defeat of the Spanish Armada, other countries saw that Spain could be beaten, and some decided to challenge Spanish land claims.

The Northwest

Passage

Many explorers from several countries continued to search for a water route called the NORTHWEST PASSAGE that would take them through the American landmass toward Asia.

For many years, people had no idea how large

North America is. Many rivers

were explored hoping they would lead to the Pacific

Ocean.

A route was eventually found in the 20th Century.

Throughout the late 1500s, and into the 1600s countries like Holland, France,

and England continued their explorations, sometimes setting up

colonies. The French were successful in establishing colonies in Canada, and

the Dutch were actually the first Europeans to colonize what is now

New York. New York City’s original name was New Amsterdam.

New Amsterdam in 1660

The tip of

Manhattan

Island

(New

Amsterdam)

today.

Two Early English Colonies Fail• As early as 1585, the

English tried to establish a colony on the east coast of North America.

• It was located on an island called ROANOKE off the coast of modern-day North Carolina.

Sir Walter Raleigh, a soldier, statesman, and adventurer who served under Queen

Elizabeth I received permission to start a colony. The colonists originally relied on

Native Americans for food, but when the natives realized they were planning to stay

and use the land, the food supply was cut off. In the following year of 1586, the surviving colonists returned to

England.

Sir Walter Raleigh was a

favorite of Queen

Elizabeth I. She never

married, and was known as

the “Virgin Queen”. That is where “Virginia”

got its name.

• In 1587, an artist named John White convinced Raleigh to try again, with White as the governor.

• That year, over 100 settlers returned to Roanoke Island.

In the summer, White’s daughter Elinor gave birth

to a little girl named Virginia, the first

English child born in North America.

• In late 1587, White returned to England for some much needed supplies, promising to return the next year.

• However, England’s war with Spain and other delays prevented John White from returning until 1590.

• When he and his crew arrived, they found the settlement eerily quiet and abandoned with no sign of the more than 100 men, women, and children that had been left there.

The only clue that could be found was the word “Croatoan” carved on a post, and “Cro” carved on

a tree. Croatoan was the name of some friendly Indians located on a nearby island. John White wanted to search for the colonists, but his

crew refused, as a large storm was brewing. They were blown out to sea and lost their anchor.

Low on supplies, they headed back to England. John White was never able to return and look

for them.

The “Lost” Colony

What Might Have Happened?

There are theories that maybe they moved to another area, or that maybe the

Spanish found the colony and killed or enslaved them. Some speculated that maybe

they even tried to sail back to England themselves and didn’t make it. One of the

more accepted theories is that they joined with some natives either by choice or

force. There is possible evidence of this.

• In 1607, another colony called Sagadahoc was tried in what is now the state of Maine.

• Fights among the colonists (many of them convicts), clashes with Natives, a harsh winter, and food shortages, forced they people to go back to England.

Financing a Colony

• Sir Walter Raleigh had financed the colony at Roanoke and lost his investment.

• The English now tried forming joint-stock companies with multiple investors.

• Investors would now share both profits and losses.

• Merchants organized the Virginia Company of London and also the Virginia Company of Plymouth.

• King James I granted CHARTERS to both companies giving them permission to establish colonies.

In 1607, the Virginia Company of London

financed a colonial attempt to the Chesapeake Bay

area. More than 100 colonists sailed up the

James River to look for a place to settle. They found a

spot, and named their colony Jamestown after

the king. They picked a terrible spot for the colony.

It was swampy, and many colonists died

from malaria.

The drinking water was also unclean. Instead of spending their time building shelters and trying to

grow food, many of the men spent valuable time looking for gold, which was not to be found.

The hot, humid summers, and bitter winter cold took their toll. By January of 1608, there were only 38

colonists still alive.

Jamestown Grows• Later in 1608, a

soldier an adventurer named John Smith took control.

• Smith announced, “He that will not work shall not eat”.

• His methods began to work.

His methods may have been harsh, but something had to be done. Without strong leadership, groups and organizations often fail.

• He also persuaded the Powhatan tribe to trade corn to the colonists.

• Unfortunately, in 1609 he was injured in a gunpowder explosion and had to return to England.

• That same year more than 800 English settlers arrived in Jamestown.

• Unfortunately, tensions rose again with the Natives, and they stopped trading with the settlers and attacked them.

Famous Painting Depicting

Pocahontas Saving John Smith

During a period known as the “starving time”, the colonists ate rats, mice,

and snakes. Only 60 colonists remained when in 1610, a new governor arrived, and things began to get better. In

1612, a man named John Rolfedeveloped a high-grade tobacco that grew well in the area, and became very popular in England. Tobacco really

helped save Jamestown.

Tobacco really saved Jamestown.Later, John Rolfe’s marriage to Pocahontas tried to ease

tension between the Powhatans and Jamestown.

The colony continued to grow, and the Virginia Company began to let people own their own land, and they worked even

harder. The company offered a 50-acre land grant for each man, woman, or

child who could pay their way to the colony. The first Africans also arrived in 1619,

many of them as slaves. Jamestown’s population jumped to 2,000.

Indentured

Servants

• More workers were needed, but not everyone could afford to pay for the passage to America.

• Some became INDENTURED SERVANTS.

• These were men and women who sold their labor to the person who agreed to pay for their passage to the colony.

• After working for a set number of years, they could have their freedom and could become farmers or take up a trade of their own.

Conflicts With the Powhatan

• Cultural differences between the settlers and Powhatan continued to worsen.

• In an effort to improve relations, John Rolfe married Chief Powhatan’s daughter Pocahontas in 1614.

• Things improved somewhat but there were still tensions.

• In 1622, after settlers continued to develop land, the natives killed hundreds.

The House of

Burgesses Some of the colonists wanted to have more local control over

their affairs, eventually,

“BURGESSES” or elected

representativeswere allowed to meet

yearly, starting in 1619. This was the first

elected assembly in America.

Voyage of the Mayflower

In the early 1500s King Henry VIII

broke away from the Catholic Church and formed his own Church of England.

In the early 1600s, a group of people known as SEPARATISTS wanted to completely break with the Church of England because they thought it was “too Catholic”. The PILGRIMS were a separatist group that were especially persecuted in England.

• For awhile, the Pilgrims moved to Holland, a country that was more accepting of them.

• After awhile, the Pilgrims became dissatisfied with life there and approached the Virginia Company about settling in America.

• They were given permission, and set off on the Mayflower, but were blown off course. In November of 1620 they landed to the north of Virginia at a place called Plymouth, and decided to sign the MAYFLOWER COMPACT.

• The men who signed the agreement vowed to obey laws agreed upon for the good of all.

The Plymouth Colony• Like the settlers at

Jamestown, the Pilgrims at Plymouth endured a starving time.

• That first winter, over half of the colonists died, mainly from starvation and disease.

Things Begin to Improve• The following spring, the

colonists met an Indian named Samoset who had learned English from European fisherman.

• He introduced them to Squanto, a native who had earlier been taken captive, and had lived in England.

• Squanto helped work out differences between the Pilgrims and the Natives.

• He also helped teach them ways to hunt, fish, and plant crops.

• Trade began to grow, and the settlers were preparing goods to ship back to England.

The First ThanksgivingIt was common for both English and Native American people to have

harvest celebrations. In 1621, sometime during the Fall, a three-day feast was

held that included both the Pilgrims and some Natives. The meal helped

symbolize how the two groups were working together, and that the Pilgrims

were giving thanks to God for the harvest.

The Puritans Come to Massachusetts

• Between 1630 and 1640, another religious group known as the PURITANS left England.

• Approximately 20,000 crossed the Atlantic to America.

• Unlike the Pilgrims who just wanted to separate themselves from the Church of England, Puritans wanted to completely reform or “purify” the Church.

• They received a charter to settle north of the Plymouth Colony.

• They were better financed and better supplied than the Pilgrims were, and therefore, didn’t suffer as much.

The Puritans led a very strict life. The center of their towns was the

meetinghouse, where frequent meetings were held. By law, everyone

in a town had to attend churchwhere they stressed strong beliefs in

duty to God, hard work, and honesty. Puritans wanted everyone to read the Bible, so laws were passed that required that all children learn to read.

Some Puritans set up other colonies in

places like Connecticut and New Hampshire.

Others, who had disagreements with the church left to form their own

colonies.

• Roger Williams was a minister who didn’t believe in forced church attendance.

• He also didn’t believe in the forced taking of land from natives.

• He was forced to leave Massachusetts, and started a settlement in what is now Rhode Island.

• Anne Hutchinson believed a person could worship God without the help of a church or minister.

• She also would hold Bible study sessions in her home.

• She was eventually put on trial, and forced to move to Rhode Island.

The Quakers

The Quakers were a religious group who got their name from the way they would

tremble or shake “at the word of the Lord”. They believed that people could know

God through an “inner light”. They also believed in treating Natives fairly.

Because of these beliefs, Quakers were sometimes whipped, imprisoned, and

hanged. Some went to Rhode Island.

The Middle Colonies • The Middle Colonies

included New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania.

• Settlers included Swedes, Dutch, English, Germans, and Africans.

• Protestants, Catholics, Jews and Quakers also came for religious freedom.

• The Dutch originally colonized the land along the Hudson River.

• Because they wanted to grow, their leader attacked a Swedish settlement along the Delaware River.

• When they became a threat to England, action was taken.

England didn’t want another power between its colonies

in New England and Virginia. In 1664, the king’s brother, the Duke of York appeared in the harbor of New Amsterdam with

some warships. The colony surrendered, and was

renamed New York in honor of the Duke. The Duke also owned land that became the

colony of New Jersey after he gave some of the land to his

friends.

• Pennsylvania was founded by William Penn who was a Quaker.

• He welcomed people of different religions and ethnic groups, and also believed in treating the Natives fairly.

• In 1704, William Penn granted the three lower counties of Pennsylvania their own legislative assembly. They eventually formed their own colony of Delaware.

Does William Penn look at all familiar to

you?

The Southern Colonies included

Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South

Carolina and Georgia.

A man named Lord Baltimore founded the

colony of Maryland as a refuge for

England’s persecuted Catholics. Maryland

based its economy on tobacco which required

the use of slaves or indentured servants.

• The Carolinas were founded by English colonists who moved up from the Caribbean island of Barbados.

• They built the settlement of Charleston in 1670, and made money by cutting timber, raising cattle, and trading with the Natives.

• Slaves were imported to grow rice and indigo, a plant that can be used to make a blue dye.

• The Carolinas eventually split into two separate colonies in 1729.

Georgia was originally founded in 1732 by a man named James

Oglethorpe as a refuge for debtors.

The English were hoping it would act as a buffer between Spanish Florida

and French Louisiana.

By 1732, the English had

established 13 colonies along

the Atlantic Seaboard.