Stock Company
But Elizabeth was not persuaded to
invest the public treasury in a venture
that was likely to fail. She was not
opposed to private investors taking such
a chance, however. Raleigh had tried
and failed. When it became clear that
the wealth of an individual was not
enough, the joint-stock company arose.
Primogeniture
Who led these English COLONIAL
EXPEDITIONS? Often, these leaders
were second sons from noble families.
Under English law, only the first-born
male could inherit property. As such, Sir
Francis Drake, Sir Walter Raleigh, and
Sir Humphrey Gilbert were all second
sons with a thirst to find their own
riches.
Poor Timing!
A reconstruction of the severe seven year
drought (1606-1612) in Jamestown,
accounted from documented historical
records, likely played a part in the high death
rate in the colony. Only 38 of the original 104
colonists survived the first year (1607) at
Jamestown and of the 6000 people that came
to the settlement between the years of 16081624, only 3400 survived. Most reportedly
died of malnutrition.
Brackish Water
Work!
Local Indians
Distinguished Couple!
Saved Jamestown!
1619 Jamestown
Emperor of the
Powhatan
Wahunsonacock Supreme
Ruler
The undisputed ruler
of Tidewater Virginia
was
Wahunsonacock,
usually referred to
by the title
"Powhatan."
John Smith’s Journals
." John Smith
describes Powhatan
as "a tall well
proportioned man,
with a sower look, his
head somewhat gray,
his beard so thinne,
that it seemeth none
at all, his age (as of
1608) neare sixtie, of
a very able and hardy
Elimate Rivals
Powhatan had inherited
six tribes located not far
from present-day
Richmond. By 1607, he
had added considerably
to his domain which, at
its peak, numbered over
30 tribes. Each tribe was
governed by a
werowance, a chief who
owed allegiance and
tribute to Powhatan.
Strong Survive
Powhatan also had an
extensive family. Because
of the large amounts of
tribute collected (estimated
by one settler as eight
parts out of ten of all that
his people produced),
Powhatan could support
over a hundred wives and
the resulting offspring, the
most famous of whom was
Matoaka, better known by
her nickname
An Uneasy World
[The Powhatans] have
many enemies, namely, all
their westernly Countries
beyond the mountains, and
the heads of the rivers.
Upon the head of the
Powhatans are the
Monacans, whose chief
habitation is at
Rasauweak, unto whom
the Mowhemenchugehes,
the Massinnacacks, the
Monahassanughs, the
Monasickapanoughs, and
other nations pay tributes.
What was life Like?
Was life in America really that different?
Were the Native Americans a free
people?
Who was the emperor really protecting?
Who were the traditional enemies of the
Powhatan?
What did the English have that could
aid the Powhatan?
Matchlock
English Lock
Earlier Contact
ca.1560
A Spanish ship visited the Virginia/Carolina area and
captured a young Virginia Algonquian named
Paquinquineo who was away from his homeland (the
mouth of the Chickahominy) visiting to the south. The
boy, possibly a Paspahegh, was taken to the Spanish
controlled Caribbean, Mexico, and Spain, baptized
and given the Christian name Don Luis de Velasco.
Later, Don Luis returned to the Chesapeake as a
guide for a group of Spanish missionaries.
ca. 1565-1600
European diseases ravaged the coastal region of
Virginia and Carolina. Populations of Algonquian
speakers were weakened. Groups moved to
accommodate lost population and to strengthen their
communities.
English Perspective
English Settlers
The first settlers to come
to Jamestown arrived on
the ships Godspeed,
Discovery, and the Susan
Constant. The colonists
were learning about the
new world through false
propaganda. They had
heard that it was a
fantastic place to live and
that it wouldn't be that
much of a challenge.
Dreams of the First
Wave
The first joint-stock
company to launch a
lasting venture to the
New World was the
VIRGINIA COMPANY
OF LONDON. The
investors had one goal in
mind: gold. They hoped
to repeat the success of
Spaniards who found
gold in South America.
High Hopes
Virginia, Earth's only
Paradise!" So declared
Michael Drayton, poet
laureate of England, in a
merry ballad marking the
departure of three ships
crammed with men
anticipating fast fortunes in
the New World. The
prospective colonists set
sail from London just before
Christmas of 1606, bound
for the Chesapeake Bay. It
was the last Christmas most
of them would ever know.
The First Years Were
Tough!
Smith, for instance,
described his fellow
colonists as "ten
times more fit to
spoil a
commonwealth than
... to begin one."
Misguided
They set about building
a fortress and clearing
land for the commercial
outpost they had been
sent to establish and
which they called
“James Cittie.” They
were eager to get down
to the business of
extracting gold, timber
and other commodities
to ship back to London.
Time to rethink what we
are doing.
Jamestown proved to be neither
paradise nor gold mine. In the
heat of that first summer at the
mosquito-infested settlement,
46 of the colonists died of fever,
starvation or Indian arrows. By
year’s end, only 38 remained.
Were it not for the timely arrival
of British supply ships in
January 1608, and again the
following October, Jamestown,
like Roanoke a few years before,
almost certainly would have
vanished.
Motivated
English agricultural had
once been dominated by
farm types growing grain
on land owned by
others. The landowners
discovered they could
make more money by
enclosing their land and
devoting it raising
sheep. But this was less
labor intensive, and there
was no longer a living on
the farm for many, many
Englishmen.
Brillant
The England of James I
and his predecessor,
Elizabeth I, suffered from
overpopulation and
poverty. Pushing people
into other lands could
solve both problems and
even have a side benefit.
Restructuring
The London Co. had
reorganized itself as the
Virginia Co. of London in
1609, and over the next
dozen years settlers and
backers alike realized the
colony could not be run as
an overseas mining
company or an armed
camp. Success would
depend on large numbers
of people and the steady
production of exportable
goods (tobacco).
See Ya!!
The year was 1610. The settlement
of Jamestown in Virginia was now
a failure and had been abandoned.
What was left of its population had
packed up and sailed for home,
England. But they did not get very
far, just a few miles down the
James River they met a supply
ship making its way towards
Jamestown. Aboard was a man of
importance. The gentleman was
Lord Thomas West De la Warr and
he was to be the new governor.
Help Wanted!!
The England of James I
and his predecessor,
Elizabeth I, suffered from
overpopulation and
poverty. Pushing people
into other lands could
solve both problems and
even have a side benefit.
A new Life for many!
Own your land,
determine your own
future, that was
pretty neat stuff!!
Native Americans
didn’t have this
prospect, and those
coming from African
saw such a future
disappear.
Tsunami
Change of Fortune
The English population
advantage back home
began to take effect after
1610, when a reorganized
Jamestown colony with
better supply lines began
to establish satellite
settlements on Powhatan
farmland. The squatters, as
the Powhatan saw them,
became so numerous that
they could not be repelled.
Even all-out war, which
raged twice, did not stop
the flow of invaders.
Fateful Day
The first Africans
arrived in
Jamestown in 1619
on a Dutch ship and
were traded for
supplies. Within
sixty years the
institution of slavery
was firmly
established.
English exploit slavery
Spain and Portugal
had already brought
200,000 African
slaves to the
Americas--and the
colony was slow to
exploit the practice.
Long Trip
The first documented
Africans in Virginia
arrived in 1619. They
were from the kingdom
of Ndongo in Angola,
West Central Africa, and
had been captured
during war with the
Portuguese.
Unexpected
It is late summer. Out of
a violent storm appears
a Dutch ship. The ship's
cargo hold is empty
except for twenty or so
Africans whom the
captain and his crew
have recently robbed
from a Spanish ship. The
captain exchanges the
Africans for food, then
sets sail.
No Distinction
One of the places we
have the clearest
views of that "terrible
transformation" is the
colony of Virginia. In
the early years of the
colony, many Africans
and poor whites -most of the laborers
came from the
English working class
-- stood on the same
ground.
Freedom Dues
All were indentured
servants. During their
time as servants, they
were fed and housed.
Afterwards, they would
be given what were
known as "freedom
dues," which usually
included a piece of land
and supplies, including a
gun. Black-skinned or
white-skinned, they
became free.
Social Class
The first Virginia
colonists did not even
think of themselves
as "white" or use that
word to describe
themselves. They
saw themselves as
Christians or
Englishmen, or in
terms of their social
class. They were
nobility, gentry,
artisans, or servants.
Antonio Johnson
(indentured servant 1621)
The status of blacks
in Virginia slowly
changed over the
last half of the 17th
century. The black
indentured servant,
with his hope of
freedom, was
increasingly being
replaced by the
black slave
1705… Things Changed
In 1705, the Virginia
General Assembly
removed any lingering
uncertainty about this
terrible
transformation; it
made a declaration
that would seal the
fate of African
Americans for
generations to
come...
New Rules
"All servants imported and
brought into the
Country...who were not
Christians in their native
Country...shall be accounted
and be slaves. All Negro,
mulatto and Indian slaves
within this dominion...shall be
held to be real estate. If any
slave resist his
master...correcting such
slave, and shall happen to be
killed in such correction...the
master shall be free of all
punishment...as if such
accident never happened."
Prisoners
It stated that slaves needed
written permission to leave
their plantation, that slaves
found guilty of murder or
rape would be hanged, that
for robbing or any other
major offence, the slave
would receive sixty lashes
and be placed in stocks,
where his or her ears would
be cut off, and that for minor
offences, such as
associating with whites,
slaves would be whipped,
branded, or maimed.
Justice?
For the 17th century slave
in Virginia, disputes with a
master could be brought
before a court for
judgement. With the slave
codes of 1705, this no
longer was the case. A
slave owner who sought to
break the most rebellious
of slaves could now do so,
knowing any punishment
he inflicted, including
death, would not result in
even the slightest
reprimand.