The English Colonies

The English Colonies Settling the British Colonies (1585-1650)

Sir Walter Raleigh • Instrumental in the establishment of the Roanoke colony in the 1580s • First settled in 1585 as a base for pirate ships • Poor relations with the native population • Found abandoned in 1590

Jamestown Colony • Settled in 1607 • First “successful” English colony • Organized by the Virginia Company of London

Jamestown Colony • Many settlers fell ill from disease • “Gentlemen” refused to do work • Not prepared to survive on their own • Relied on the local Powhatan Indians for food

Jamestown Colony John Smith • Captured by Chief Powhatan & may have been saved by his daughter, Pocahontas • Negotiated with the Powhatan to obtain access to more food • Implemented a “no work, no food” policy in the colony • Returned to England in 1609

Jamestown Colony • Tobacco saved the colony from financial disaster • John Rolfe developed a new strain of tobacco that flourished in Virginia • Created a labor shortage • Resulted in the introduction of the Headright System: • Gave land to anyone who would pay the transportation costs of an indentured servant • Led to the arrival of the first African slaves

The Plymouth Colony The Mayflower • Passengers included 102 men, women, & children • Made up of both “saints” & “strangers” • Arrived in New England in November 1620 • First landed in Cape Cod, then Provincetown, & finally Plymouth near the site of an abandoned Indian village • While on board, 41 Pilgrim leaders signed the Mayflower Compact

The Plymouth Colony The Mayflower Compact • Declared their support for King James I • Created a government to establish rules for the colony • Was an important step in colonial self-government

The Plymouth Colony • Nearly half died of exposure & disease during their first Winter • Survived for a number of reasons: • Strong leadership – William Bradford • Help of Native Americans • Squanto– served as an interpreter, taught the Pilgrims to grow corn & squash • Massasoit– Wampanoag leader who signed a treaty of friendship with the Pilgrims

Massachusetts Bay Colony • Founded in 1630 • Elected John Winthrop as governor • Advocated that the Puritans establish a “city upon a hill” as an example to all people of what a godly community could be

Massachusetts Bay Colony • Governed by theGeneral Court who then elected the governor • Voting was restricted to church members • Led to laws to protect authority & family values • Required church attendance & prohibited drunkenness, card playing, public kissing, etc. • Often punished with public shame & humiliation

Dissention in the Colony Roger Williams • Called for the separation of church & state • Declared that the colonists had no legal right to own land • Banished in 1635 • Moved to “Providence” & started his own colony • Purchased the land from the native populations & returned to England & received a charter from the Crown • Rhode Island became the 1st colony to practice religious toleration

Dissention in the Colony Anne Hutchinson • Challenged the authority of the ministers • Put on trial in 1637 • One critic commented “You have stepped out of your place; you [would] have rather been a husband than a wife, a preacher than a hearer, & a magistrate than a subject.” • Banished in 1638 • Went with her family & followers to an island south of Providence near present-day Portsmouth, RI

Connecticut • In 1633, a group from Plymouth settled in the Connecticut River Valley • Then in 1636, Thomas Hooker led about 100 Puritans from Massachusetts Bay to Connecticut • In 1639, he helped to draft the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, a series of laws that provided for a government like that of Massachusetts • Key feature: Gave all free men the right to vote for their leaders

Pequot War (1636-37) • Tension developed between Pequots & the colonists as the English expanded into Connecticut • Pequotsattacked English town of Wethersfield following a raid on one of their villages • Colonists from MA & CT attacked the Pequot Village in Mystic • About 400 died as the village was burned • Ended Pequot resistance to English expansion

A Changing Landscape • Native populations drop dramatically • From about 125,000 in 1625 to 10,000 in 1675 • English settlement continued to expand • Wild animals were replaced by domesticated ones • Led to another series of conflicts in the 1670s

King Phillip’s War (1675-76) • Named after Metacom, son of Massasoit • Formed an alliance against the English • Attacked more than 50 English settlements • Led to English retaliation

King Phillip’s War (1675-76) • English burned native villages & destroyed stores of food • Helped by their own native alliances with groups such as the Mohawks • One of the bloodiest & costliest wars in American history • 1.5% of the colonists, as well as 15% of the Native American population died • Effectively ended Native American resistance in New England

South Carolina • Charles II granted land south of Virginia to 8 supporters in 1663 • Given the title of Lord Proprietors • Able to exercise their authority with virtual independence

South Carolina Background • Settlement in the area began in 1670 • Many of its early settlers came from colonies in the Caribbean • Learned to grow rice

South Carolina Search for a Labor Force • Indentured Servants • African Slaves • Slaves for life • Had knowledge of rice cultivation • Immune to malaria & yellow fever • Led to a black majority in South Carolina by the 1710s

Georgia • Founded in 1732 & named for King George II • Created as a buffer between South Carolina & Spanish Florida

Georgia Background • A group of trustees was charged with ruling the colony in its early years • One trustee, James Oglethorpe, was key to the colony’s early history • Hoped the colony could serve as a haven for debtors who could leave jail if they agreed to relocate in Georgia • Prohibited slavery & alcohol • Limited landholdings to 500 acres

Georgia Early History • Ultimately, the population remained small & early goals were not reached • By 1750, slavery had been legalized & size limits for landholdings were lifted • Life began to resemble that in South Carolina with the rise of an elite planters who relied on slave labor

The English Colonies