Southern Colonies

Angelica , Susana, Carlo, Aaron, Carolina, Viridiana, James, Alveena, Dean,

Ginelle, Marvie, Jose, Jazmin, Kemp

Period 5

9/21/11

Political

At the formation of the HOUSE OF BURGESSES, which was basically a parliament where the concerns of the settlers are to be addressed, the concept of REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT was first introduced in Virginia in 1619, which thereafter gave birth to the concept of SELF-RULE), or the governing of the consent. Hence, it became the guiding philosophy of the American government. However, as James I grew skeptical and resentful about Virginia as a whole, Virginia was placed under his control.

Politics was greatly influenced by religion, where laws and policies validated such strong religious perspectives, the ACT of TOLERATION for instance, upon its passage, guaranteed religious toleration in the society with the exception of Judaism and Atheism. 

For the most part, the foundation of the Southern colonies was an outcome of political turmoil in England. The CAROLINAS, for example were established momentarily, after the annunciation of Charles II.

On the other hand, GEORGIA was originally established by a group of missionaries led by JAMES OGLETHORPE to serve as another settling place for English men who are in a huge debt in England. Moreover, its inclusion as one of the Southern colonies was aimed to serve as a buffer zone between the colonies and England’s main rivals, the Spanish and the French. 

Intellectual

Since many belonged to a religious faith (Either to the Church of England or the Catholic Church), authorities believed the death penalty was necessary to avoid bad settlers. 

European settlers created codes of conduct for slaves in order to tame or domesticate them since they believed that Africans and Indians were primitive and uncivilized.

Carolina settlers believed they were sufficient and self-reliant for being independent within their means. 

Religious

One major reason for consistent European immigration to America was religious toleration. Those who resented the enforcement of the Church of England sailed the country to seek religious freedom, far from persecution from those in authority.

Virginia was not only a colony flourishing with tobacco, but also an undesirable environment for Catholics or anyone seeking to practice their own religious set of beliefs, since the Church of England was enforced to everyone. Meaning, there is no room for religious freedom.

 As a consequence, Lord Baltimore created Maryland to serve as a haven for persecuted Catholics. The same religious philosophy, with the exception of Catholics, was applied in Georgia upon its foundation by James Oglethorpe and a group of missionaries.

In general, the colonies aimed to provide religious toleration, but unfortunately not all guaranteed such to some religious minority groups, like the Catholics.

Arts/Cultural

Standard in dress, literature, art, architecture, and home furnishings were set by London.

Introduced art of silk weaving.

The Carolinas had strong economic and cultural ties to the Caribbean until the time of the American Revolution.

Primarily agricultural

They had slavery for cheap labor.

Women were to run the household and attend to the children.

In the Southern Colonies religious freedom was tolerated, but for the majority Catholics were an exception.

The South was agricultural which meant that they raised crops, livestock, and were farmers.

Although some Indians were persuaded to convert into Christianity and live the English way of life.

Many still despised this and sought uprisings as a necessity.

Technology

Many of the major inventions that existed during the Southern Colonies included the following: textile tools, cotton jin, flying shuttle, spinning jenny, water frames, and a spinning mule. Fortunately, these inventions eventually led to a rapid growth of industrialization. 

The Southern colonies were connected by many rivers, so that boats were capable of being a reliable source of transportation. Plantations were usually built on rivers reducing the need for cities with harbors. The horse and wagon had also been a successful method of transportation on land, but the cost and how slow the horses moved were an issue.

Economic/Environmental

All primary economic activities were agriculture.

The Southern Colonies were part od the English Empire.

They included major points of trade along the coast.

There were farmlands along the rivers.

Many rivers connected the Southern Colonies.

The economy was based on tobacco.

The Carolinas had developed a strong economic and cultural ties with the Caribbean.

The plantation economy was both the South’s greatest asset and weakness.

The climate and geography were perfect for farming.

The Southern Colonies had the warmest climate of the three colonies.

The geography included broad, coastal plains, hills, and forests.

Indentured servants worked the plantations until they were replaced for slaves.

Slaves worked to pay off the person who brought them in from Africa.

The cash crops were tobacco, cotton, indigo, and rice.

The growth of commerce began at the primary seaport in Charleston, South Carolina.

The woods grew well because there was a good climate.

The state of Maryland relied on slaves.

The Appalachian and Rocky Mountains basically shaped the 13 colonies.

The great ice age killed most of life.

As the ice melted, it left a land bridge which connected Asia and North America.

They had irrigation systems.

Social

Life in the Chesapeake was hard because of the harsh wilderness and the deadly diseases. Many did not live to see their twenties, and many man had to fight for women. There were not many families, and not many children reached adulthood. Despite the hardships, the Chesapeake colonies struggled on, and eventually prospered.

John Rolfe perfected the method of raising and curing tobacco, and soon the south became the land for tobacco. Many colonists that once looke for food, now looked for land.

In 1619 the London Company gathered an assembly of settlers to create a self-government called the House of Burgesses.

In order to run plantations successfully, many owners hired out indentured servants because they were cheap, instead of slaves.

To control the population of slaves, English authorities devised slave codes.

Quotes

John Smith

“I call them my children” he says of the American settlement, “for they have been my wife, hawks, my hounds, my cards, my dice an in total, my best content, as indifferent to my heart as my left hand to my right hand.”

King Charles II

“You had better have one king than five hundred”

James Oglethorpe

“In America there are fertile lands sufficient to support all the useless poor in England, and distressed protestants in Europe; yet thousands starve for want or more sustenance

Pictures

Southern Colonies

European Colonist navigating and exploring the vast African deserts.

Men formally dancing with a women in the middle.

Southern Colonial ways of plantation and getting money by producing tobacco, corn, indigo, etc.

Two slaves collaborating.

This is a picture of Slave Boys waiting to be told to do something by their masters.

Questions

1. What were the staple crops in the Southern Colonies?

2. What was it like to be a woman?

3. According to the whites, what were Indians and African Americans like?

4. How were the African slaves and indigenous Indian tribes like from a white man’s perspective? As an outcome, what were the consequences like for them?

5. What does the colonists’ approach towards religion (e.g. the creation of MD) upon their arrival and colonization of the New World imply?

6. What were likely the reactions of the native Indians towards the consistent arrival of European settlers in America?

7. How did technological progress in the Southern society? Consider economic wise and the disputes between the colonists and the Indians. 

8. State how the relationship was like for the following: Africans and Native Indians, Protestants vs. Catholics, Spain, France, Indians vs. England.