MONDAY 9/21
Key concepts/Chapter 4:
• Freedom Dues: In the early years of the Virginia colony, many
Africans and poor whites -- most of the laborers came from the
English working class -- stood on the same ground. All were
indentured servants; they were fed and housed. At the end of the
contract, they would be given what were known as "freedom
dues," which usually included a piece of land and supplies,
including a gun. Black or white, they became free. (hint: things
change over time!)
•Bacon’s Rebellion: Nathaniel Bacon and other western VA
settlers were angry at VA Governor Berkley for trying to appease
the Doeg Indians after the Doegs attacked western settlements.
The frontiersmen formed an army, with Bacon as its leader,
which defeated the Indians and then marched
on the capitol
Jamestown and burned the city. The rebellion ended suddenly
when Bacon died of an illness.
Question? of the Day
The Freake Family, 1671-1674
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons
(public domain)
In colonial American society
(A) women were seen as equal to men
(B) women had absolutely no social rights and could
not even divorce their husbands
(C) almost the only opportunity for women to work was
inside the home
(D) women could usually vote
(E) women became prominent preachers in Protestant
churches following the Great Awakening
What Is the Answer?
(C) almost the only opportunity for women to work
was inside the home
Explanation:
Women in colonial America had limited opportunities
for work and property ownership and could not vote.
Yet Carl Degler points out in Out of Our Past that
the typical colonial American woman had more
rights and freedoms than any woman in western
Europe at that time.
TUESDAY 9/22
Key concepts/Chapter 4:
Navigation Acts: The English Navigation Acts were a series of laws
which restricted the use of foreign shipping for trade between
England and its colonies, which started in 1651. These laws passed
by Parliament ensured that all colonial goods would be controlled by
Great Britain and other nations would not have the opportunity to deal
directly with Britain’s colonies.
Mercantilism: Economic policy that was based upon all colonies
existing to further strengthen the mother country. The government
exercised control over industry and trade with the idea that national
strength and economic security comes from exporting more than is
imported. This theory was prevalent in the New World and caused
discontent among American businessmen and traders
Question? of the Day
Merchant’s Square, Williamsburg, Virginia
Colonial Williamburg
baskets
The major purpose of England’s mercantilist policy
was to
protect the infant industries of England’s
young colonies
(B) increase England’s prosperity
(C) discourage other European powers from
colonizing North America
(D) reduce the need for an overseas empire
(E) open the Atlantic to free trade
(A)
What Is the Answer?
(B) increase England’s prosperity
Explanation:
From the perspective of England’s mercantilist policy,
the North American colonies were established to enrich
England. While mercantilism was not focused on
discouraging other European powers from colonizing N.
America, it did expect that a large and growing British
overseas empire would be of great benefit to Britain.
England was concerned with keeping its labor force
employed and saw the advantages of overseas materials
and markets. It did not, however, protect infant
industries, but rather prohibited the development of
industries in its colonies that would compete with the
mother country. England did not want to open the
Atlantic to free trade, but wanted to become
economically self-sufficient by achieving a favorable
balance of trade.
WEDNESDAY 9/23
Vocabulary/Chapter 4:
“Salutary Neglect”: Early policy of dealing with its colonies
(1607-1763). As their first colonies were developing, Britain
did not exercise much control over them. The policy allowed
the colonies to experience freedom from the control of
England, leading them to develop the beginnings of their
own representative assemblies, trade free of restraint from
the mother country, and religious tolerance. The term comes
from a speech by Prime Minister Edmund Burke before
Parliament on March 22, 1775. He used it to speak of
Britain's former policy toward its American colonies.
Gullah: unique language of slaves, developed on the
Islands off the coast of N. Carolina which may have
Its base in the language of Angola. Blends
English with several African languages and has
Given us the words of goober, gumbo and voodoo.
Prime Minister Robert Walpole
believed that unrestricted trade
would be more profitable than
taxing the colonies.
Question? of the Day
"Arresting a Witch" by Howard Pyle, 1893
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons
(public domain)
The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692
(A)
was over quickly and resulted in imprisonments,
but no deaths
(B) began when a group of boys accused other Salem
residents of practicing witchcraft
(C) resulted in the deaths of 20 persons accused of
witchcraft
(D) took place in Connecticut
(E) set a pattern of hanging witches that became
common in New England during the 18th century
What Is the Answer?
(C) resulted in the deaths of 20 persons accused
of witchcraft
Explanation:
The Salem Witchcraft Crisis of 1692
began after several girls accused women
in the village of practicing witchcraft.
Following accusations and trials, 20 men
and women were eventually hanged or
crushed to death as witches.
THURSDAY 9/24
Vocabulary/Chapter 4:
• Anthony Johnson: An early black resident of the Virginia Colony.
He was one of the original 20 Africans brought to Jamestown in 1619
as an indentured servant. In 1623, he purchased his freedom and by
1651 he was prosperous enough to import five "servants" of his own,
for which he was granted 250 acres as "headrights". Anthony Johnson
became a slaveholder himself when he convinced a court that he was
entitled to the lifetime services of a Negro named John Casor. This
was the first judicial approval of servitude for life.
•Half Way Covenant: Puritan teaching which emphasized biblical
agreements between man and God. This new formula for church
membership now allowed unconverted children of existing members
to the church. These half-way members could not vote on issues
within the church but could participate in church activities. This
weakened the distinction between the “elect” and others. From this
point on, women became the majority in Puritan congregations.
Question? of the Day
Quaker Mary Dyer being led to the gallows
in Boston in 1660, an example of Puritan intolerance
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons (public domain)
Which of the following was an early advocate
of religious toleration in colonial America?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)
John Winthrop
Roger Williams
Cotton Mather
Nathanael Bacon
John Smith
What Is the Answer?
(B) Roger Williams
Explanation:
Roger Williams was expelled by the
Puritan authorities in Massachusetts
Bay in 1635 because of numerous
challenges made from his pulpit
regarding their authority. He
established a colony at Providence,
Rhode Island that practiced religious
toleration in a time of extreme
intolerance. He first used the phrase
"wall of separation" to describe the
ideal relationship between the
government and the church and is
credited with beginning the American
belief in separation of church and
state.
Roger Williams, a Puritan critic and
supporter
of religious freedom
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons (public
domain)
FRIDAY 9/25
Key concepts/ Chapter 4:
Harvard College: Established by Massachusetts Puritans in 1636, just
eight years after the Colony’s founding, to train boys for the ministry.
Virginia did not establish its first college, William & Mary, until 1693.
Leisler’s Rebellion: When King James II was dethroned and replaced
by King William of the Netherlands, the colonists of New York
rebelled and made Jacob Leiser, a militia officer, governor of New
York. Leisler favored Dutch laborers and artisans over the ruling elite
(merchants). When royal authority was reinstated in 1691, Leisler
refused to cede authority and English troops entered the city and armed
conflict ensued. Leisler was hanged for treason but the representative
assembly which he founded remained part of the government of New
York.
Question? of the Day
Emigration to American destinations was popular from Bristol,
England and after the Civil War more than 10,000 indentured
servants made their way to the New World.
Image source: yahoo.com/images
The system of indentured labor used during the Colonial
period has which of the following effects?
(A) It enabled England to deport most criminals
(B) It enabled poor people to seek opportunity in
America
(C) It delayed the establishment of slavery in the South
until about 1750
(D) It facilitated the cultivation of cotton in the south
(E) It instituted social equality
(B)
What Is the Answer?
It enabled poor people to seek
opportunity in America
Explanation:
Many poor English settlers paid for passage to America by signing
labor contracts, called indentures, binding them for four or five
years. Sea captains or merchants recruited migrants at the docks
and then assigned the contracts to labor-starved planters unop
reaching VA or MD, in exchange for cash or tobacco. The owners
provided food, clothing and shelter but they received all the profits
of the servants’ labor. Some indentured may have been charged
with crimes in England, but the system did not permit England to
deport “most” criminals. Indentured laborers did not delay
slavery very long; by the late 1600s, plantation owners had begun
to use large numbers of slaves. Heavy production of cotton began
after slave labor had largely replaced indentured servants.
Although indentured servant did gain opportunity, the system by
no means led to social equality.