AP U.

S History//Chapter 2: The Plating of English America (1500 - 1733)

. . . For I shall yet lie to see it [Virginia] an Inglishe nation. Sir Walter Raleigh 1602

Englands Imperial Stirrings

1500s:
o Englands efforts to compete with the Spanish were futile
o England was Spanishs ally in the first 50 years
o England had little interest in erecting colonies overseas
o Protestant Reformation movement to reform the Catholic Church launched in
Germany by Martin Luther, reformers questioned the authority of the Pope,
sought to eliminate the selling of indulgences, and encouraged the translation of
the Bible from Latin, which few at the time could read. The reformation was
launched in England in the 1530s when King Henry VIII broke with the Roman
Catholic Church
o The Protestant Reformation launched by King Henry VIII disrupted England in
midcentury
o Catholics vs. Protestants religious power was uneven during times
o Protestant Queen Elizabeth I rose to the throne and Protestant became dominant in
England
o The rivalry between Protestant England and Catholic Spain developed
Ireland Uprising:
o Ireland was under rule of England since the 12th Century
o Catholic Irish wanted help from Catholic Spain to overthrow Protestant Queen
o Spanish did not provide enough support
o 1570s and 1580s Englands troops obliterated the Irish uprising with brutal force
o England removed the Catholic Irish lands and replaced them with Protestant land-
lords from
o This planted the seeds for centuries worth of religious conflict that is still
persistent today
o English soldiers developed a disdainful disapproval for savage natives from in
Ireland which they brought along with them to the New World
Elizabeth Energizes England
Encouraged by the determined Elizabeth I the English spread out upon the shipping lanes
Their goals were to spread Protestantism and plunder by attacking Spanish treasure ships
and raiding Spanish settlements
Sir Francis Drake: Sea Dog
Looted all around the world
Came home with his ship full of Spanish treasure
Knighted by Queen Elizabeth I
 Englands First Attempt at Colonization:
o Newfoundland was the site
o Project failed when the leader, Sir Humphrey Gilbert, died at sea in 1583
Englands Reattempt at Colonization:
o Gilberts younger Half-Brother, Sir Walter Raleigh, was inspired by his brother
Led an expedition that first landed on North Carolinas Roanoke Island in
1585
Roanoke Island - Sir Walter Raleighs failed colonial settlement off the
coast of North Carolina
They landed again in Virginianamed after the Virgin Queen
England vs. Spain:
o Englands failed attempts at colonization were an embarrassment compared to the
Spanish Empires glories which made them lots of money
o Phillip II of Spain, enemy of the Protestant Reformation, used some of his profits
to accumulate an Invincible Armada/Spanish Armada of ships to invade
England
o 1588: The Showdown
The Spanish came into the English Channel with 130 ships
The English used faster ships to quickly destroy the Spanish
The Protestant Wind aka a deadly storm that crippled the Spanish fleet
The End of the Spain Reign:
o The destruction of the Spanish Armada marked the beginning of the end of the
Spanish
o Spanishs New World Empire didnt fully die for 300 more years
o In the next few decades the Spanish Netherlands secured its independence
o Much of the Spanish Caribbean would slip away from Spains reign
Englands Victory:
o Englands Victory guaranteed its seafaring supremacy in the North Atlantic
o Helped England on the path to becoming the master of the oceans
o England was called many of the adjectives that Spain was once called
o National spirit was running high
o Golden age of literature had begun with Shakespeare leading it and making
comments about Colonial America
o In 1604 England signed a peace treaty with Spain
o Planting of their own colonial empire in the New World was one of Englands
main goals
England on the Eve of Empire
England had gone under a significant period of social and economic change
o Englands population increased from 3 to 4 million from 1550 1600 (50 years)
o Enclosure Movement:
Small farmers had to combine their land plots with neighboring farmers to
form one unified large farm
 In the late 1500s an economic depression hit England causing large
unemployment of farmers of which many became panhandlers
Led to the assumption of a surplus population in England
o Laws of Primogeniture:
Primogeniture legal principle that the oldest son inherits all family
property or land, landowners younger son is forced to seek fortunes
elsewhere, pioneered early exploration and settlement of the Americas
Examples Gilbert, Drake, Raleigh
Bad luck crushed their chances of success
o The model of a Joint Stock Company was finalized in the 1600s, and was the
forerunner of the contemporary Corporation
Allowed investors to pool their money into a significant number that could
kickstart an international business
Set that stage for colonization of the New World/North America
England Plants the Jamestown Seedling
1606: Virginia Settlement
o Virginia Company - A joint stock company that received a charter from King
James I that allowed it to find the Virginia colony
o The charter of the Virginia Company is a significant document in American
History
o Landed in the Chesapeake Region in 1607
o Colonists were attacked by Indians at the mouth of the Bay
o They pushed farther inland and settled on a marshy area of land that they named
Jamestown, which was along the James River, both named after James I
o Their environment was not suited to them, as there were too many mosquitoes
which carried disease
o Many colonists died of disease, malnutrition, and starvation
The woods were full of game and the rivers had many fish
o Instead of preparing for the winter, most of the men set out for gold which was
nonexistent in the area
Captain John Smith:
o Took over in 1608 and whipped the colonists into shape
o His Rule: He who shall not work shall not eat
o Kidnapped in December 1607 by Powhatan for execution, Pocahontas saves his
life by putting her head between Powhatans blade and Smith
o Pocahontas became the ambassador between Native Americans and the Colonists
o Some of the colonists resorted to cannibalism as a food source
o Of the 400 colonists who made it to Virginia only 60 survived the starving time
Winter of 1609 1610
 Lord De la Warr: 1610
o The remaining 60 colonists got on their ships and started home in the Spring of
1610 and were met by a relief party at the mouth of the James River led by the
new governor Lord De La Warr
o He ordered the colonists back to Jamestown
o Imposed a harsh military regime
o Undertook aggressive military action against the Indians
1625:
o Disease took a harsh toll on the Virginians
o Only 1,200 remained of the 8000 who had tried to settle

Culture Clashes in the Chesapeake

1607: Chieftain Powhatan
o He conquered the James River area and proclaimed his reign over a few dozen
tribes
o This was called Powhatans Confederacy
o He considered the English potential allies in his fight to extend his power
o Relations were tense particularly when the famished colonists took raid to Indian
food supplies
First AngloPowhatan War: 1610 1614
o Series of clashes between the Powhatan Confederacy and the English settlers in
Virginia, English colonists torched and pillaged Indian villages, applying tactics
used in Englands campaign against the Irish
o Peace settlement ended the War in 1614 with the marriage of Pocahontas to John
Rolfe, the 1st interracial marriage in Virginia
1622: Native Americans Strike Back
o Native American population had been declining due to war and disease attacked
the English
o Sequences of Indian attacks killed 347 colonists, one of them John Rolfe
o The English fought back reducing the Native American population by a lot and
the remaining survivors withdrew west
Second AngloPowhatan War: 1644
o A last-ditch effort by the Indians to dislodge the Virginia settlements, the resulting
peace treaty formally separated white and Indian areas of settlement
o By 1685 the English considered the Powhatan people extinct
o Powhatan Confederacy fell victim to the 3 Ds: Disease, Disorganization,
Disposability
o The Smallpox virus as well as the Measles virus were spreading fast and killing
entire Native American villages
o The Indians had no economic use to the Virginians
o The only thing the Europeans wanted was land
The Indians New World
The Native Americans were not outsiders to change, adaptation, and calamities
o Ex. Mississippians and Anasazis
The arrival of large-scale European colonization disrupted Native American life on a
massive scale, causing profound demographic and cultural alterations
Virginia: Child of Tobacco
John Rolfe:
o Husband of Pocahontas, Father of Tobacco, Economic Savior of Virginia
o Perfected methods of raising tobacco
A tobacco craze started in the Americas and Europe
Farmers were making lots of money from this cash crop
Problems with Tobacco:
o After continuously plating tobacco is began to ruin the soil
o Demanded fresh work because of its need for endless care
o Plantations began popping up everywhere taking all the land and then ruining it
African Slaves became the main caretakers of the tobacco plants after the Pilgrims sold
the Virginians 20 African slaves
In 1650 there were 300 black salves, by 1700 14% of the population was just slaves
House of Burgesses:
o Representative parliamentary assembly created to govern Virginia, establishing a
precedent for government in the English colonies
o James I started to dislike tobacco and did not trust the House of Burgesses
o He annulled the charter of the now penniless Virginia Company, now making
Virginia a Royal Colony - a colony that is under direct rule of the British Crown
Maryland: Catholic Heaven
Founded by Lord Baltimore in 1634, who came from a well-known Catholic family
Settlement was established on the Chesapeake Bay, at St. Marys
o Colony was originally constructed to escape the religious persecution of Catholics
in England
Maryland was a proprietary colony which means that the ruler has all the land and he will
distribute it to the colonists
Colonists were only willing to come to the Colony if they were given land to farm
The land owners were Catholic and the farmers were Protestants so there was bound to be
some tension
o Hate toward the Baltimore family led to a revolt, briefly losing its proprietary
rights
The colony itself gained most of its economic success through its tobacco farming
o The colony relied on white indentured servants before switching to a much more
cheaper method, slavery
Indentured Servants people whose passage to the New World was paid
by a landowner, and would have to work to pay off their debt, to be free
 Maryland Act of Toleration:
o Passed in Maryland, it guaranteed toleration to all Christians but decreed the
death penalty for those, like Jews and atheists, who denied the divinity Jesus
Christ. Ensured that Maryland would continue to attract a high proportion of
Catholic migrants throughout the colonial period
The West Indies: Way Station to Mainland America
The West Indies were being colonized along with the Chesapeake
o Sugar Cane was the Tobacco of the West Indies
o Sugar had to be planted extensively to be able to produce any profitable worth
o In the 50 years after 1640 the English brought 250,000 Slaves
o By 1700 African Slaves outnumbered the white English at a ratio of 4:1
Barbados Slave Code:
o First formal governing the treatment of slaves, which provided the for harsh
punishments against offending slaves but lacked penalties for the mistreatment of
slaves by master. Similar statues were adopted by southern plantations societies
on the North American mainland in the 17th and 18th centuries
o Brought to the Carolinas in 1670
Colonizing the Carolinas
English Civil War (1640s):
o King Charles I dismissed Parliament in 1629, but reunited themselves in 1640
when the members grew rebellious
Charles I was beheaded in 1649 and his son Charles II took over in 1660
Oliver Cromwell Ruled England for a decade Lord Protector
Carolinas:
o Many of the settlers emigrated from the Barbados
o A vigorous salve trade was established which the Savannah Indians helped with
The Savannah Indians helped capture other Indians
10,000 Indians were sentenced into lifelong slavery
Savannah Indians ended their Alliance with the Carolinas in 1707
o Rice became the main export to Europe as it was highly desired
o Rice was widely grown in Africa so Carolinas were willing to pay top price for
slaves who were experienced in rice cultivation
o Charles Town became the busiest seaport down south
The Emergence of North Carolina
North Carolinians were called the quintessence of Virginias discontent
Newcomers were dubbed as squatters

o Squatters frontier farmers who illegally occupied land owned by others or not
yet officially opened for settlement. Many of North Carolinas early settlers were
squatters, who contributed to the colonys reputation as being more independent-
minded and democratic that its neighbors
 Tuscarora War: (1711 1713)
o Began with an Indian attack on New Bern, North Carolina. After the Tuscarora
were defeated, remaining Indian survivors migrated northward, eventually joining
the Iroquois Confederacy as its 6th nation
o The South Carolinians helped North Carolina beat the Indians
Yamasee Indians
o Defeated by the South Carolinians in the wat of 1715-1716. The Yamasee defeat
devastated the last of the coastal Indian tribes in the southern colonies
Late-Coming Georgia: The Buffer Colony
Formally Founded in 1733 and named after George II
Last of the 13 Colonies to be established
Buffer Colony:
o In politics, a territory between two antagonistic powers, intended to minimize the
possibility of conflict between them. In British North America, Georgia was
established as a buffer colony between British and Spanish territory
Founded by James Oglethorpe who led a group of philanthropists
o Repelled Spanish attacks on the Carolinas
The Plantation Colonies

Slavery was found in all the plantation system colonies

The growth of cities was often stunted by forests
In the South, the crops were tobacco and rice were grown and sold back to Europe
making huge profits for the farmers and economy
Makers of America: The Iroquois
The Iroquois Confederacy was a Native American military alliance in upstate New York
It was a military alliance that included 5 Native American nations
o Mohawk, the Oneida, the Onondaga, the Cayuga, and the Seneca
Weaker and smaller tribes joined as well due to European settlement
The confederacy was obliterated during the Revolutionary War
The Indians in the confederacy either lived in reservations or fled to Canada