th
17
Life in
Century
English Colonies
The Economic, Social, &
Political Culture of the
English Colonies
Colonial Society
th
in the 17 Century:
New England
Possibly
the 1stin
society
history
Families
NewinEngland
to reasonably expect to live long
■New
England
society
was much
enough
to see their
grandchildren
more stable
other colonies:
New than
England
“invented”
grandparents
–New
England
Puritans migrated
to America as families
–Marriage was easy as most
people shared common values
–Colonists lived longer due to
Towns
became networks
more
a dispersed
population,
of intermarried families
purer water, & a cooler climate
Education in New England
■NE towns regarded education as
fundamental family responsibility;
towns began to create elementary
schools funded with local taxes:
–NE had, by far, the highest
literacy rate in America
–In 1638, Harvard
became
America’s first
college
Women in New England
■ Was the colonial era the “golden
age” for women?
–Women contributed to society as
wives & mothers, devout church
members, & ran small-scale farms
■ But were not equals with men:
–Women could not legally own or
sell property; divorce was difficult
–Women did what “God ordained”
Colonial Society
th
in the 17 Century:
The Chesapeake
Families in the Chesapeake
■“Normal, English” family life was
impossible in Virginia:
– 70-85% of immigrants were
young male indentured servants
– High death rate (average age
was 10-20 years lower than NE)
– One married spouse often died
within a decade
– Children often never knew their
parents (let alone grandparents)
Women in Chesapeake Society
■Scarcity gave some women
bargaining power in the marriage
market; allowed some women to
improve their social status
■But women were vulnerable:
–sexual exploitation
–Childbearing was dangerous
–Chesapeake women died 20
years earlier than women in NE
Chesapeake Culture
■By 1680, social mobility in the
Chesapeake was limited:
–An American-born elite class
had emerged (this social
aristocracy was absent earlier)
–The plantation economy &
ownership of slaves allowed the
gentry to produce more tobacco
–High death rates halted the
development of schools & towns
Colonial Society
th
in the 17 Century:
African Slaves
The Roots of Slavery
■The importation of African slaves
was based on a “need” for labor:
–Native Americans made poor
slaves because they were
decimated by European disease
–Indentured servant-pool waned
after 1660
■An estimated 11 million slaves
(mostly males) were brought to
the English American colonies
The Roots of Slavery
■Slaves were originally treated as
indentured servants but the
growing black population in VA by
1672 prompted stricter slave laws:
–Africans were defined as slaves
for life; permanent slave status
was passed on to slave children
–By 1700, slavery was based
exclusively on skin color
Free & enslaved
blacks
were
much
less
40%
in
VA
60%
in
SC
The
Slave
Population
numerous in NE & Middle colonies
■In the Chesapeake & Southern
colonies with large black
populations, slaves found it easier
to maintain their African culture
■By 1720, the African population
became self-sustaining:
–Fertility rates exceeded
immigration rates for the 1st time
–Did not occur in the Caribbean
or in South America
150The
blacks
rose Population
up & seized a
Slave
munitions hold & killed
■Widespread
several resentment
white planters of their
slave status led to resistance in
the 18th Century:
–Armed resistance such as the
Stono Rebellion of 1739 (SC)
–In 1741, 106 slaves were hung
or deported due to a rumor that
slaves planned to burn NYC
–Runaway slaves were common
The Colonial Economy
in the 17th Century:
Commercial Empire
Economic
Diversity of the
English Colonies
Rise of a Commercial Empire
■English gov’t largely ignored the
colonies until the 1650s (salutary
neglect); The colonies were not
state-funded nor state protected
■But…Charles II initiated colonial
intervention in 1660 to maximize
exports, decrease imports, &
generate more gov’t revenue
Response to Economic Competition
“Enumerated goods”
■“Mercantilism” became
thesugar,
(tobacco,
blueprint for England’s
cotton,empire:
rice, rosin,
No ship could trade in
tar) could only be
–Wanted
&
a
colonies
unless itmore
was money
sent
to
English
ports
Goods
shipped
to English
colonies
madefavorable
in England
balance
of trade
must pass through England (Increased
–Wanted
to by
eliminate
Dutch rivals
the price paid
colonial consumers)
–Wanted a stronger navy
■Began to restrict colonial trade:
–Navigation Act of 1660
–Navigation Act of 1663
Implementing the Acts
■NE merchants found loopholes to
avoid paying taxes so the English
made more restrictions:
–In 1696, created a Board of
Trade to oversee colonial trade
–Created maritime courts to
mediate disputes
■The Navigation Acts eventually
benefited the colonial merchants
& smuggling virtually ended
Colonial Factions
Spark Political Revolt,
1676-1691
Bacon's Rebellion in Virginia
■Former indentured servants living
in the VA frontier suffered due to:
–Poor tobacco prices in 1660s
–Indian attacks in 1675
■These farmers blamed VA’s royal
governor Berkeley who did little to
help; Nathaniel Bacon led a
rebellion in 1676 against Berkeley
& was joined by small farmers,
blacks, & women
King Philip’s War
■In 1675, Metacom (“King Philip”)
led the Wampanoag Indians
against NE colonists:
–1,000+ Indians & colonists died
–Large war debt led James II to
annul the Mass Bay charter &
create the “Dominion of New
England” by combining Mass,
Conn, RI, Plymouth, NY, NJ, &
NH under a new royal charter
King Philip’s War
Dominion of New England
■Edmund Andros was hated by
Puritans, moderates, & merchants
■In 1689, Andros was deposed
when William & Mary began reign
■Massachusetts was given a new
charter that incorporated
Plymouth but shifted power from
the “elect" to those with property
Witchcraft in New England
■Charges of witchcraft were
common in New England
■But the “Salem panic” of 1691 led
to 20 public executions before the
trials were halted in 1692
■Possible causes:
–argument over church ministers
–poor farmers accusing rich
farmers to gain land
–reactions to independent women
Salem Witch Trials
Conclusions
■By 1700:
–England’s attitude toward the
colonies had changed
dramatically
–Sectional differences within the
colonies were profound
–All the colonies were all part of
Great Britain but had little to do
with each other
Experience of Empire:
th
18 Century America
American Colonial Culture:
1700-1780
Growth & Diversity in
th
18 Century America
Growth & Diversity in British America
■By 1770, the English colonies
became much more different from
New Spain & New France:
–Population boomed 1,000% due
to increased birth rates, falling
death rates, & a huge wave of
non-English immigration
–Surging economic growth
–New political & religious ideas
Distribution of
European &
African
Immigrants
in British
North America
by 1770
18th Century Immigrants
■1790 census showed less than
50% of American colonists were
English; 18th Century immigration
brought unprecedented diversity:
–African slaves were largest
group to immigrate
–The Transportation Act (1718)
allowed English judges to send
convicted felons to the colonies
(50,000 forcibly immigrated)
18th Century Immigrants
■The Scotch-Irish were the largest
European group to immigrate:
–Initially welcomed as a frontier
barrier between Indians & PA
–Challenged authority wherever
they settled
■Germans were the 2nd largest
European group to immigrate:
–Seen as hard-working farmers
–Clung to German traditions
rather than “Anglicizing”
th
18
Century
American Commerce
Economic Transformation
■ In the 1700s, Spanish & French
colonial economies stagnated but
English colonial economies grew:
–Led to an increased standard of
living & affluence for Americans
–The colonial economy kept pace
with its expanding population
–English mercantilism increased
a desire for American products
(esp. tobacco & sugar)
Birth of a Consumer Society
■The availability of cheap English
mass-produced goods led to a
rise in colonial consumption
–Colonists grew an insatiable
desire for goods from “home”
–The increase in inter-colonial &
Caribbean trade gave colonists
the money they needed to buy
British manufactured goods
–But, many colonists fell heavily
in debt to English merchants
American Urban Life
■Few colonists lived in cities:
–Boston, Newport, New York,
Philadelphia, & Charles Town
contained only 5% of total
colonial population
–Cities were geared toward
intermediary trade but…
–Cities began to attract colonists
seeking opportunities
th
18
Century
American Politics
Contrasting Colonial Politics
■Unlike state-controlled Spanish &
French colonies, the English
colonies were decentralized:
–All colonies (except CT & RI)
had royal governors
Thecolonial
legacy of
–But all had
assemblies
“Salutarylocal
Neglect”
that controlled
finances
–Colonies were not democratic;
Power was centralized with the
wealthy, landed elite
English Control over America
■In the 18th century, England
maintained a unique political &
economic relationship with America:
Economic relationship
was defined by
mercantilism
Political relationship
was defined by
salutary neglect
■As long as the colonies were profitable
few British regulations were enforced &
colonists could do as they pleased
The Great Awakening
Decline in Religious Devotion
■The 1700s
saw a decline
in(1662)
The Half-Way
Covenant
religiouswas
devotion:
a way for NE churches to
increase
membership
to
the
–Outside of
NE,
1
in
15
people
“unconverted” children
was a member of a church
–NE suffered a decline in church
attendance (1:5 were members)
–Church sermons were seen by
many as “cold” & impersonal
■Led to a rise in Arminianism
(free will, not predestination)
The Great Awakening
■The
Awakening
was
a as
WasGreat
not really
“American”
either
similar of
phenomena
series
revivalsoccurred
amongin Europe
Protestants
in which
of people
The Great
Awakening
hit
New England
in the 1730s
&
experienced
religious
conversion
in
Virginia
in
1750s
&
1760s
in response to gifted preaching
■It was not a unified movement;
Great Awakenings occurred in
many denominations in different
places at different times
The Great Awakening
■The 1st stirrings of the Great
Awakening began with Jonathan
Edwards in Northhampton, MA:
–Used “fire & passion” to reach
the discontent youth of NE
–Encouraged people to examine
their eternal destiny
A reading from “Sinners in the
Hands of an Angry God” (1741)
The Great Awakening
■George Whitefield became the
most popular of the evangelists of
the Great Awakening
–He preached outdoor sermons
to 1,000s in nearly every colony
–As a result, itinerants disrupted
their established churches
claiming ministers were not
taught to see the “New Light”
From Authority to
Individualism Activity:
Comparing Puritanism,
the Great Awakening, &
the Enlightenment
The Great Awakening
■The impact of the Great Awakening
–New universities such as
Princeton, Dartmouth, Brown, &
Rutgers were formed to educate
“New Light” preachers
–1st “national” event; Encouraged
Including
women
&
contactAfrican-Americans
among scattered
colonists in different regions
–Empowered non-elites to
challenge their social superiors