1


17th and 18th Centuries


The Big Ideas
 Dominated
to a degree by a plantation economy:
tobacco & rice
 Slavery in all colonies; begins as indentured
servants, develops into African slavery
 Large land holdings in the hands of the favored few
= aristocratic atmosphere
 Sparsely populated: churches & schools too
expensive for very small towns.
 Church of England most prominent, but religious
toleration is common
4


 Founded
by Virginia Company (a joint-stock
company)
o Consisted largely of well-to-do adventurers
 Virginia
Charter
o Overseas settlers given same rights of Englishmen
in England
o Foundation for American liberties; rights extended
to other colonies.
o Colonists felt that, even in the Americas, they were
still Englishmen
6
A
group of 104 English men
and boys began the
settlement.
 Founded by the second sons
of wealthy families
 Later brought women and
children with the intention to
set up a permanent colony.
7
8
 Captain
John Smith
organized the colony
beginning in 1608:
o "He who will not work shall
not eat."
 Smith
kidnapped in Dec.
1607 by Chief Powhatan
 Smith perhaps "saved" by
Pocahantas, Powhatan's
daughter, but evidence is
shaky at best.
9





Only 40 of the original 104
survived the first year
In 1609, another ship from
England lost its leaders and
supplies in a shipwreck off the
coast of Bermuda
Only 60 out of 400 settlers
survived "starving time" of 16101611
“Gentleman” colonists would not
work.
Settlers wasted time looking for
gold instead of hunting or farming.
10

1607: 104 colonists

By spring, 1608: 38 survived

1609: 300 more immigrants
arrive

By spring, 1610: 60 survived

1610 – 1624: 10,000
immigrants arrive

1624 population: 1,200

Adult life expectancy: 40 years

Death of children before age 5:
80%
What affect might this
mortality rate have on
 Men
 Women
 Children
11



Men: The men who survived were
able to buy larger tracts of land, but
there were fewer to work it. This
increased the need for indentured
servants or Indian slaves.
Women: High mortality among
husbands and fathers left many
women in the Chesapeake colonies
with unusual autonomy and wealth
(Widowarchy)
Children: Fewer children to help on
family farms also contribute to the
need for servants.
12
13



Powhatan dominated a few
dozen small tribes in the James
River area when the English
arrived.
The English called all Indians in
the area Powhatans.
Powhatan probably saw the
English as allies in his struggles
to control other Indian tribes in
the region.
14

Relations between Indians & settlers grew worse.
o General mistrust because of different cultures & languages.
o English raided Indian food supplies during the starving times.

1610-1614  First Anglo-Powhatan War
o Lord De La Warr (Delaware) had orders to make war on the Indians.
o Raided villages, burned houses, took supplies, burned cornfields.
o Peace solidified with marriage of John Rolfe and Pocahontas

Powhatan uprising of 1622
o Hundreds of Powhatan warriors descended upon English colonists
in Virginia, burning settlements and plantations along the James
River coming perilously close to destroying Jamestown completely.
15

1644-1646  Second
Anglo-Powhatan War
o Last effort of natives to
defeat English.
o Indians defeated again.
 Peace
Treaty of 1646
o Removed the Powhatans
from their original land.
o Formally separated Indian
and English settlement
areas
16
 John
Rolfe created Jamestown’s tobacco crop
economy: "Colony built on smoke"
 Rolfe introduced new tough strain of tobacco
 Europeans became increasingly addicted to the
nicotine; Tobacco industry became cornerstone of
Virginia's economy
 Plantation system emerged
17
 The
House of Burgesses established in 1619 &
began to assume the role of the House of
Commons in England
o Control over finances, militia, etc.
 By
the end of the 17c, H of B was able to initiate
legislation.

A Council appointed by royal governor
o Mainly leading planters.
o Functions like House of Lords.
o High death rates ensured rapid turnover of members.
18
Maryland


A Refuge for Catholics
“Mary’s Land”
Maryland is Founded



King Charles I grants 10 million acres of
land to Sir George Calvert (the first Lord
Baltimore) as a proprietary colony – the
sole possession of Calvert and his heirs.
The colony was founded as a refuge for
Catholics who were being persecuted in
England.
Baltimore's plan was to govern as an
absentee proprietor in a feudal
relationship.
o Huge tracts of land granted to his Catholic
relatives.
o Smaller plots of land were given to
Protestant settlers, which later caused a
rebellion
Act for Religious Toleration



Guaranteed toleration to all Christians.
Decreed death to those who denied the divinity of Jesus
[like Jews, atheists, etc.].
In one way, it was less tolerant than before the law was
passed



1670 – a group of small
English farmers from the W.
Indies arrived in Carolina
o Carolina named for King
Charles II
o Brought a few black slaves
and the Barbados slave
system with them.

Carolina was granted by the
King to 8 Lord Proprietors
o Exported wine, silk, and olive
oil to Europe
 Also
named for Charles II
 Became the busiest port of the South
 City with an aristocratic feel
 Main
crops: rice, indigo,
and later cotton
 The primary export was
rice, still seen as exotic
in England.
o Rice grown in Africa, so
planters imported W.
African slaves
 By
1710 black slaves
were the majority in
Carolina


Catholic Spain hated the
mass of Protestant
settlers on their border
Anglo-Spanish Wars
o Spanish conducted border
raids on Carolina
o Natives drawn in to help
o Natives would later
withdraw to PA
o Would later lead to
American acquisition of
Florida

Northern part of Carolina
shared a border with VA
o VA was dominated by aristocratic
planters, generally Anglican
o Dissenters moved to northern
Carolina – poor farmers with
little need for slaves and
religious dissenters
o Created an environment that was
irreligious, resistant to
authority/aristocracy and
hospitable to pirates

1712 – NC separates from SC





Founded in 1733, last of the 13
colonies
Named after King George II
Founded by James Oglethorpe
o Created as a “buffer” between
o
o
o
o
English colonies and Spanish Florida
and French Louisiana
Received subsidies from British govt.
to offset costs of defense.
Also a haven for debtors
Determined to keep slavery out, but
brought in by 1750
All Christians except Catholics
enjoyed religious toleration.
30