American Beginnings and Early Colonization

1

Early America Civilizations

• 22,000 years ago, the first Americans may have arrived in North America via Beringia—a land bridge between Asia and Alaska.

• Today, the Bering Strait separates Alaska and Siberia (55 miles wide).

2

3

• These explorers were probably following their food supply

• The Ice Age ended between 12,000-10,000 years ago

• Large game animals became extinct and natives turned to hunting smaller animals and gathering

4

Neolithic Revolution• Between 10,000-5,000 years ago an

agricultural revolution took place• Maize may have been the first domestic

crop (gourds, peppers, beans, pumpkins, etc)

• Surplus of crops allowed some natives to develop permanent settlements and complex cultures. Other groups continued their nomadic lifestyle

• Around 3,000 years ago, civilizations begin to develop in the Americas

5

Three Sister Farming

• Corn grew in a stalk providing a trellis for beans, beans grew up the stalk, squash’s broad leaves kept the sun off the ground and thus kept the moisture in the soil.

6

7

Olmec• 1200 BC• Present day Mexico

8

Other Meso American Civilizations

• Maya (250-900 AD)• Aztec (1200’s AD)• Inca (S. America 1200 AD)

9

Desert natives• Present day SW part of the US• Hohokam• Anasazi (cliff dwellers)

10

Mound Builders• Adena• Hopewell• Mississippian (Etowah burial mounds)

11

• Northwest-Kwakiutl• Eastern Woodlands- Iroquois

12

Native American cultural

beliefs and structure• Land was considered to be a shared resource

(source of life) & could not be owned, bought, or sold

• Believed the natural world was filled with spirits• Families were the center of society (kinship)• Social order established by the division of labor• Matrilineal society

13

Cultures Collide• Renaissance & Reformation

prompted an era of European exploration

• Crusades introduced luxury items (silk and spices) to Europe. This led to a desire for a more direct trade to Asia

• Nationalism sparked competition for overseas colonies (wealth)

14

Portugal• Exploration sponsored by Prince Henry (the

Navigator)• New inventions and boat design make sailing

safer and more efficient• Vasco de Gama and Bartholomew Diaz discover a

way to get to India by going around Africa

15

Spanish Colonies in the New World

• “God, Gold and Glory”• Columbus’ voyage was funded by Monarchs of

Spain (Ferdinand and Isabella)• He would travel west instead of sailing around

Africa• October 12, 1492—sighted land (San Salvador;

inhabited by Taino) later explored Bahamas, Cuba and Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic)

16

• Returned to Spain January 1493

• By September 1493, Columbus was returning to the new world with supplies, an army, priests and colonists with full intentions of establishing a Spanish Empire

• Ominous fate for the natives (los indios) living in those areas

17

The Encomienda System

• Indians were “commended” or given over to Spanish landlords.

• The idea of the encomienda was that Indians would work and be converted to Christianity, but it was basically just slavery on a sugar plantation guised as missionary work.

18

• Europeans use plantation system and forced labor in their colonies

• Natives tried to resist European domination but were no match against the superior weapons

• Disease also wiped out much of the native population

• Europeans had to find new sources of labor for the plantations since so many natives were dying from disease

• By the 1800’s, more than 12 millions Africans were transported to the Americas through the Atlantic slave trade

19

Colonies offer opportunities for many• Merchants—expand business• Monarch—expand power (wealth and influence)• Commoners—hope for a better social and economic future• Europe would provide the market, capital, technology.• Africa would provide the labor.• The New World would provide the raw materials (gold, soil,

lumber).

20

Columbian Exchange• Transfer of crops, plants, animals, disease

across the Atlantic Ocean

21

Treaty of Tordesillas

• In 1493, Pope Alexander VI created an agreement between Spain and Portugal dividing up their rights to the land in the New World

• Portugal—Brazil• Spain—most of the Americas

22

23

The Spanish Empire

• Conquistadors • Cortez 1519• New Spain (capital Mexico City)• Spanish churches, cities, cathedrals, university

spread out from there• At first the Spanish used the encomienda

(forced labor of natives) but later the Spanish monarchs outlawed this practice. The Spanish still needed labor—turn to African slaves

24

Spain’s Competition• A threat came from neighbors… • England – John Cabot (an Italian who sailed

for England) touched the coast of the current day U.S.

• Italy – Giovanni de Verrazano also touched on the North American seaboard.

• France – Jacques Cartier went into mouth of St. Lawrence River (Canada).

25

• Robert de LaSalle sailed down the Mississippi River for France claiming the whole region for their King Louis and naming the area “Louisiana” after his king.

26

Securing the Land

• Spain was still looking for gold and protecting their new empire

• Ponce de Leon 1513 –Florida• French pirates (Buccaneers) set up in

Jacksonville and start robbing Spanish treasure ships sailing from the Gulf of Mexico—so Spain set up a fort in St. Augustine (oldest European city in US)

27

28

Spanish Expansion

• Francisco Coronado—explored American southwest

• Set up northern capital at Santa Fe—northern Spanish territory (New Mexico)

• Catholic missionaries convert the remaining natives

• El Camino Real (Royal Road) connected Mexico City and Santa Fe

29

30

• In an attempt to force the natives to accept Catholicism and Spanish culture, soldiers destroyed sacred native objects and forbid traditional ceremonies

• Natives were also forced to pay tribute or perform forced labor. Those who refused were beaten

• Don Juan de Onate followed Coronado’s old path into present day New Mexico. He conquered the Indians ruthlessly, maiming them by cutting off one foot of survivors

31

Pope’s rebellion• Pueblo leader was

beaten for his worship practices (witchcraft??)

• In 1680, he led an organized revolt (17,000) against the Spanish. They destroyed Spanish churches, executed priests, drove the Spanish back to New Spain

32

The Black Legend

• The Black Legend was the notion that Spaniards only brought bad things (murder, disease, slavery)

• Though true, they also brought good things such as law systems, architecture, Christianity, language, civilization

• The Black Legend is partly, but not entirely, accurate.

33

• The Spanish did encourage their colonists to marry native women, resulting in a mestizo culture

• The Spanish grafted their culture onto the natives instead of shunning and isolating the natives

34

England starts an Empire• The English victory over the of the

Invincible Spanish Armada gave the nation the confidence to begin establishing colonies in the New World

• England had a popular and strong monarchy, nationalism, and some religious unity which gave the nation the confidence to begin colonization

35

England claims a colony in the New World

• 1st attempt—Roanoke (1585 and 1587) failed---embarrassment to England

• Wealthy English formed by Joint-stock companies—investors would pool their money to support the new colony/settlement.

• People living in the colony would work to create a profit for the investors.

• In 1606, King James I granted a charter to The Virginia Company giving them permission to start a colony in Virginia

• Stock holders would receive 4/5 of the gold and silver found by the colonists. The king would get 1/5.

36

The Virginia Company Charter

• Guaranteed to colonists the same rights as Guaranteed to colonists the same rights as Englishmen as if they had stayed in EnglandEnglishmen as if they had stayed in England..

• This provision was incorporated into future This provision was incorporated into future colonists’ documents.colonists’ documents.

• Colonists felt that, even in the Americas, they Colonists felt that, even in the Americas, they had the rights of Englishmenhad the rights of Englishmen

37

38

The Jamestown colony

• 3 ships (Susan Constant, Discovery, and Godspeed) with 150 passengers reached Virginia in April,1607

• Off to a rocky start (Poor location, disease, not practical)

• Colonists more concerned with looking for gold rather than establishing a stable settlement or planting food

• Most colonists were from privileged background and not used to manual labor

39

• By winter of 1607, only 38 of the original 150 settlers remain

• John Smith had warned of disaster, but only now were the colonists willing to listen

• “You must now obey this law…he that will not work shall not eat.”

• Forced colonists to farm• Persuaded the Powhatan

natives to provide food• Injured when gun powder bag

exploded—sailed back to England

40

• In the Spring of 1609, 600 new colonists arrive at Jamestown

• Powhatan become alarmed and realize that the English are in the New World to stay so they sabotage colonists’ crops and livestock

• Winter 1609• Colonists facing the “starving time” resort to

eating roots, rats, snakes, shoe leather (each other??)

• Of the new 600 colonists only 60 survived 41

Life in the American wilderness was harsh

• Diseases like malaria, dysentery, and typhoid killed many.

• Few people lived to 40 or 50 years.• In the early days of colonies, women were so

scarce that men fought over them.• Few people knew any grandparents.• Virginia, with 59,000 people, became the

most populous colony.

42

Widowarchy

• High mortality among High mortality among husbands and fathers husbands and fathers left many women left many women in the Chesapeake in the Chesapeake colonies with unusual colonies with unusual autonomy and wealth!autonomy and wealth!Adult life expectancy: 40 Adult life expectancy: 40

yearsyears

Death of children before Death of children before age 5: 80%age 5: 80%

43

Just in the Nick of Time• By June 1610, the colonists ready to pack it in

and return to England but are met by a ship sailing to Jamestown and are convinced to turn around.

• It was only the arrival of the new governor, Lord De La Ware, and his supply ships that brought the colonists back to the fort and the colony back on its feet.

• Tough leadership stabilized the colony• A new type of “gold” created financial profits

44

Tobacco—“brown gold”

• 1612—John Rolfe had experimented with different strains of tobacco until he developed a high quality tobacco that thrived in the Virginia climate

• By the late 1620’s Jamestown was exporting 1.5 million pounds of tobacco to England

• Tobacco was very labor intensive and depleted the soil of nutrients

45

46

• Chesapeake Bay exported 1.5 million pounds of tobacco yearly in the 1630s, and by 1700, that number had risen to 40 million pounds a year.

• More availability led to falling prices, and farmers still grew more

47

• The Virginia Colony used the headright system to lure immigrants to the colony

• Anyone who paid for his own passage or paid for another’s passage received 50 acres of land.

• This system attracted both the wealthy who got large amounts of free land (plantations) and indentured servants who agreed to work for 4-7 years in exchange for their passage to Jamestown and food and board

48

Primogeniture

• According to custom, the oldest born son inherited the family wealth and estate

• Younger sons often were left to find their own money, careers, and land

• The headright system provided an opportunity for many of England’s younger sons to own land

49

Enclosure• English land owners wanted to capitalize on the

growing wool industry• The open field farming system on large estates

was replaced with smaller enclosed areas of land

• Common farmers, villagers and workers were no longer needed to grow crops

• Unemployment made the idea of indentured servitude in the New World more appealing

50

Jamestown Settlement Pattern

51

Slavery in America• 1619—20 Africans were brought to Jamestown

by Dutch traders and were sold to the colonists in exchange for food supplies. These Africans worked as indentured servants. They were granted their freedom after their term of servitude was over.

• Slavery would not take hold for many more years. Why??

• An indentured servant might cost 1,000 pounds of tobacco, a slave might cost triple that amount. As plantation owners became more wealthy and as indentured servitude declined by the late 1600’s, slavery increased 52

Conflict with American Natives

• As the need for land increased, so did the conflict between colonists and natives

• The English used “Irish tactics” when dealing with the natives (when England confiscated land from the Catholics of Ireland in the 1570’s, troops raided villages, burned houses, torched cornfields, and stole provisions)

• English brought this contempt for “savage” natives with them to the New World and applied it to Native Americans

53

• The English had no desire to live among or intermarry the natives (unlike the Spanish)

• Leaders of Jamestown demand tribute from the Powhatans (retribution for the natives’ sabotage during the starving time)

• Demands for tribute were reinforced by setting native villages on fire and kidnapping natives (children)

54

Chief Powhatan

• Powhatan dominated a few dozen small tribes Powhatan dominated a few dozen small tribes

in the James River area when the English in the James River area when the English arrived.arrived.

• The English called all indians in the areaThe English called all indians in the areaPowhatans.Powhatans.

• Chief Powhatan Chief Powhatan probably initially saw the probably initially saw the English as allies in his struggles to control English as allies in his struggles to control other Indian tribes in the region.other Indian tribes in the region.

55

The Powhatan Confederacy

56

The First Powhatan War

• 1610-16141610-1614• Governor De La Ware had orders to make war Governor De La Ware had orders to make war

on the Indians.on the Indians.• The English colonists raided villages, burned The English colonists raided villages, burned

houses, took supplies, burned cornfields.houses, took supplies, burned cornfields.

57

• Marriage between John Rolfe and Pocahontas created a temporary peace lasting until 1622

• Powhatans get fed up and attack Jamestown. The Virginia Company has to send more troops to protect the colony (costly)

58

• 1622-1644 : periodic 1622-1644 : periodic attacks between attacks between Indians and settlers.Indians and settlers.

• Virginia Co. called for a Virginia Co. called for a “perpetual war” “perpetual war” against the Native against the Native Americans.Americans.

• Raids reduced native Raids reduced native population and drove population and drove them further them further westward.westward.

59

The Second Powhatan War

• 1644-16461644-1646• Last effort of natives to defeat EnglishLast effort of natives to defeat English• Indians defeated againIndians defeated again• Peace Treaty of 1646Peace Treaty of 1646

• Removed the Powhatans from their original Removed the Powhatans from their original landland

• Formally separated Indian and English Formally separated Indian and English settlement areassettlement areas

60

Colonial government

• On July 30, 1619, the 1st representative government in the colonies met and formed The House of Burgesses.

• Each of the 11 districts sent 2 citizens (burgesses) to the meeting.

• The House could raise taxes and make laws, but the governor had the right to veto legislation the House passed.

• It only represented a small segment of the colonial population as only land owners could vote.

61

The House of Burgesses, the first legislative assembly in the American colonies, held its first meeting in the choir at Jamestown Church in the summer of 1619. Its first order of business: setting a minimum price for the sale of tobacco.

62

Making a Royal Colony

• King James I never liked tobacco and the conflicts with the natives pushed him to revoke the Virginia Company’s charter and made it a royal colony—Jamestown was now under the direct control of the king (not the joint stock company) 1624

• By 1644 the population of Virginia had grown to 10,000 and the Powhatan were rapidly losing power in the Chesapeake region

63

Conflict between Colonists• Freed indentured servants could not buy land

(no $) and lived on the frontier areas of Virginia (outskirts of society) where they fought with Native Americans for land

• Only land owners could vote (plantation aristocracy). These poor free men did not have many rights in the colony.

64

• The Governor of Virginia, Sir William Berkeley forced the poor frontier settlers to pay most of the taxes he levied.

• This angered the settlers because most often the money only benefitted the wealthy landowning class (along the east coast).

65

• The western settlers wanted the taxes to be used to build forts that would protect them from the natives.

• In 1675, a bloody conflict erupted between the western settlers and several Native American groups.

• The governor refused to finance a war that would help the frontier farmers (not in the best interest of the landowners)

66

Bacon’s rebellion

• In 1676, Nathaniel Bacon raised an army of frontier farmers to fight the Indians. It’s not as if he empathized with the plight of the western settlers, he just despised the Native Americans.

• Governor Berkley declared the army illegal.

67

• In response, Bacon’s army marched into Jamestown to talk to the colonial leaders about several grievances (being taxed without consent).

• The conflict turned violent and the rebels set the town on fire. (Berkley escapes, but returned when Bacon died a month later)

68

Significance of Bacon’s Rebellion

• King Charles started to investigate Berkley’s colonial government

• It also exposed the growing powers of the small farmers and indentured servants.

• Plantation owners start to re-evaluate the use of indentured servants and start looking for a less troublesome labor force

69

Southern Society• A social gap between the land owners and

the yeoman farmers began to widen.• The First Families of Virginia (FFV’s) owned

large tracts of land and dominated the House of Burgesses (Fitzhughs, the Lees, and the Washingtons).

• Few cities sprouted in the South, so schools and churches were slow to develop

70

The West Indies

• As the British were colonizing Virginia, they were also settling in the West Indies (Spain’s declining power opened the door).

• By mid-1600s, England had secured claim to several West Indies islands, including Jamaica in 1655.

• Sugar became the profitable crop of the West Indies and thousands of African slaves were needed to operate sugar plantations

71

1. New Foundland 2.Nova Scotia3.13 colonies4.Bermuda5.Bahamas6.British Honduras7.Jamaica8.Lesser Antilles

British colonies in North America around 1750

72

Slavery Becomes an Institution• Slave Codes began in 1662 Slave Codes began in 1662 • These laws made slaves [and These laws made slaves [and

their children] property, or their children] property, or chattel, for lifechattel, for life

• In some colonies, it was a crime In some colonies, it was a crime to teach a slave to read or write.to teach a slave to read or write.

• Conversion to Christianity did not Conversion to Christianity did not qualify the slave for freedom.qualify the slave for freedom.

73

• By the mid 1680s, for the first time, black slaves outnumbered white servants among the plantation colonies’ new arrivals.

• After 1700, more and more slaves were imported, and in 1750, Blacks accounted for nearly half of the Virginian population.

• Most of the slaves were from West Africa, from places like Senegal and Angola.

74

• Some of the earliest Black slaves gained their freedom and some became slaveholders themselves.

• Eventually, to clear up issues on slave ownership, it was made so that slaves and their children would remain slaves to their masters for life, unless they were voluntarily freed.

75

0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

1607 1630 1650 1670 1690

White

Black

Population in the Chesapeake Area in the 17th century

76

Impact of Slavery on Culture• New blended languages—combination of

their native language with English.• Music--banjo and bongo drum.• Woven baskets

77

• Many African dances led to modern dances (the Charleston).

• Christian songs could also be “code” for slaves on neighboring plantations

• Jazz is the most famous example of slave music entering mainstream culture.

78

Slave Revolts• In 1712, slave revolt in New

York City cost the lives of a dozen Whites and 21 Blacks were executed.

• In 1739, South Carolina slaves along the Stono River (Stono Rebellion) revolted and tried to march to Spanish Florida, but failed.

79

The Settlement of Maryland (Another Chesapeake Colony)

• A A royal charter royal charter was granted to George Calvert, Lord was granted to George Calvert, Lord Baltimore, Baltimore, in 1632in 1632..

• A A proprietary (privately owned) colony proprietary (privately owned) colony created in created in 1634.1634.

• A healthier location than JamestownA healthier location than Jamestown• Tobacco Tobacco would be their main cropwould be their main crop• His plan was to govern as an absentee Lord His plan was to govern as an absentee Lord

Proprietor (in a feudal relationship).Proprietor (in a feudal relationship).• Granted huge tracts of land to his Catholic relativesGranted huge tracts of land to his Catholic relatives..

80

81

A Haven for Catholics• Colonists only willing to come to MD if they Colonists only willing to come to MD if they

received land. received land. They received modest farms They received modest farms dispersed around the Chesapeake area.dispersed around the Chesapeake area.

• Catholic land barons surrounded by mostly Catholic land barons surrounded by mostly Protestant small farmers.Protestant small farmers.

• Conflict between barons and farmers led to Conflict between barons and farmers led to Baltimore losing proprietary rights at the end Baltimore losing proprietary rights at the end of the 17of the 17thth century. century.

82

Protecting the Catholic Minority• Lord Baltimore permitted a high degree of Lord Baltimore permitted a high degree of

freedom of worship in order to prevent repeat of freedom of worship in order to prevent repeat of persecution of Catholics by Protestants.persecution of Catholics by Protestants.

• Act of Toleration 1649Act of Toleration 1649

• Supported by the Catholics in MD.Supported by the Catholics in MD.

• Guaranteed toleration to all CHRISTIANS.Guaranteed toleration to all CHRISTIANS.

• Decreed death to those who denied the divinity Decreed death to those who denied the divinity of Jesusof Jesus [like Jews, atheists, etc.]. [like Jews, atheists, etc.].

83

Act of Toleration 1649

• In one way, it was less tolerant than before In one way, it was less tolerant than before the law was passed!!the law was passed!!

84

Colonizing the Carolinas• In England, King Charles I had been beheaded

in 1649.• Political turmoil (Oliver Cromwell) interrupted

colonization until a new monarch was restored to the throne.

• With more political stability, English colonization resumed

• Carolina (named after King Charles II) was created in 1670 as a proprietor colony with 8 owners

85

Carolina’s Economy

• Carolina flourished by developing close economic ties (sugar) with the West Indies.

• Many original Carolina settlers had come from Barbados.

• Despite violence with Spanish and Indians, Carolina proved to be too strong to be wiped out.

86

• Rice emerged as the principle crop in Carolina.

• Indigo was also a valuable crop• African slaves were hired to work on rice

fields, due to their immunity to malaria and their familiarity with rice.

87

The Emergence of North Carolina• Many newcomers to Carolina were “squatters,”

people who owned no land.• North Carolinians developed a strong resistance

to authority (geographically trapped between planter aristocracy of Virginia and Carolina)

• In 1712, North and South Carolina were officially separated.

• NC was more democratic and open minded (similar to RI)

88

89

Georgia: The Buffer Colony

• Georgia was intended to be a buffer between the British colonies and the hostile Spanish settlements in Florida and the enemy French in Louisiana.

• Founded in 1733 by a high-minded group of philanthropists, it was the last colony founded.

• Named after King George II of England, Georgia was also meant to be a haven for Englishmen in debt.

90

• James Oglethorpe saved the “Charity Colony” with his energetic leadership and by using his own fortune to help with the colony.

• Religious toleration except for Catholics

• Many missionaries came to try to convert the Indians.

• Georgia grew very slowly.

91

The Plantation Colonies• Maryland, Virginia, N & S Carolinas, GA• Slavery was established in all the plantation colonies.• Few cities (stunted by forests)• Few schools and churches (why?) • Cash Crops: tobacco and rice.• All the plantation colonies permitted some religious

toleration.• Need for land led to frequent confrontations with

Native Americans

92

The New England Colonies

93

Conflict Over Religion Formed a New Colony

• The Puritans wanted to purify the Anglican Church of England because they believed it had too many Catholic rituals and traditions.

• Separatists (Pilgrims) were Puritans who felt the only way to eliminate the Catholic features of the church was to break away completely.

94

• All believed that only “visible saints” should be admitted to church membership.

• Separatists vowed to break away from the Church of England because the “saints” would have to sit with the “damned.”

• King James I, father of the beheaded Charles I, harassed the Separatists out of England because he thought that if people could defy him as their spiritual leader, they might defy him as their political ruler.

95

Plymouth Colony is Formed• Pilgrims formed their own

congregations with their own ministers. They fled to Holland to avoid being prosecuted, but were afraid their children were becoming too “Dutchified”.

• In 1620, some Pilgrims sailed to America to guarantee freedom of worship-- the Plymouth Colony.

96

Mayflower Compact

• Their original charter only allowed for them to settle in Virginia. However, their ship ended up north around Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

• The Pilgrim men on board signed the Mayflower Compact:

• loyalty to the king • majority-based government to create laws

97

• The Pilgrims became squatters, people without legal right to land and without specific authority to establish government

98

Strong Leadership Helped to Establish the Colony

• William Bradford--elected governor, 30 years

• His leadership helped Plymouth to stabilize and create a thriving trade in fur, fish, and lumber

99

Massachusetts Bay Colony is Formed

• Meanwhile other Puritans started to feel persecuted and unwelcome in England

• In 1629, the joint stock company, the Massachusetts Bay Company, was granted a charter allowing the company to trade and colonize in New England

• Omitted from the charter was the usual clause requiring the company to hold its business meetings in England

100

• Puritan stockholders used this omission to transfer control of the colony to America and create a theocracy

• In September, 1630 the Puritans aboard the Arabella established the Massachusetts Bay Colony. The capital was Boston.

101

• 1st governor—John Winthrop was elected governor or deputy governor for 19 years

• His leadership helped Massachusetts prosper in fur trading, fishing, and shipbuilding.

• Within the 1st year, 17 ships brought 1,000 settlers (Puritan and non Puritan)

102

• Eventually in 1691, Massachusetts Bay Colony incorporated the Plymouth Colony

103

A Role Model for Others to Follow• Governor Winthrop envisioned Mass Bay to be a City

Upon a Hill in his 1630 sermon “A Model of Christian Charity”

• “For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken... we shall be made a story and a by-word throughout the world. We shall open the mouths of enemies to speak evil of the ways of God... We shall shame the faces of many of God's worthy servants, and cause their prayers to be turned into curses upon us til we be consumed out of the good land whither we are a-going.”

104

• Puritans believed in predestination. This doctrine holds that God is all-powerful and all-knowing; therefore, the fate of each individual soul is known to God at birth. Nothing an individual can do or say could change their ultimate fate.

105

•Puritans believed that those chosen by God to be saved — the elect — would experience "conversion.“

• In this process, God would reveal to the individual His grace, and the person would know he was saved.

• Puritans would then live by example--a life of holy behavior as a “living saint” Puritan church with pulpit,

pews, and, significantly, no altar. Old Ship Meeting House, Hingham, Mass., built in 1681.

106

The Chosen Few• Only the elect could serve as Church

members. If a person were truly saved, he would only be capable of behavior endorsed by God. These "living saints" would serve as an example to the rest of the world.

• During the early years, ministers such as John Cotton carefully screened individuals claiming to have experienced conversion.

107

The Great Migration

108

The Puritan Government• All adult men who belonged to

the Puritan church could vote (in addition to the Mass Bay Company stock holders) about 40% of the male pop.

• Laws were made by the General Court who chose the governor (self-government)

109

• Governor Winthrop feared and distrusted the common people, calling democracy the “meanest and worst” of all forms of government

110

The Town Meeting• The first town meeting

was held, October 8, 1633 in Dorchester, Massachusetts by citizens who wanted to address issues that affected the "common good.“

• This style of local democratic self government is still used in New England towns today to vote on local laws and budgets 111

Town Organization

• New towns were legally chartered by colonial authorities.

• A town usually had a meetinghouse surrounded by houses and a village green.

• Towns of more than 50 families had to provide primary education.

• Towns of more than 100 had to provide secondary education.

112

Higher Education

• In 1636, Massachusetts Puritans established Harvard College to train boys to become ministers.

• In 1693, Virginia established their first college, William and Mary. Why the delay?

113

Puritan Society

• Laws in the colony reflected religious morals• Drunkenness, swearing, theft, idleness• Puritans came to the New World with their

families (more incentive to make the colonies a success)

• The community would not hesitate to step in and provide marriage counseling or remove a child from a home to be placed with a more “God-fearing” family

114

Puritan Society• There were celebrations and

festivals. People sang and told stories. Children were allowed to play games with their parents' permission. Wine and beer drinking were common place. Puritans did not all dress in black as many believe. The fundamental rule was to follow God's law.

Mrs John Freake and Baby Mary 1674

115

The New England Quality of Life

• In New England, there was clean water and cool temperatures—not as much disease (as the Southern colonies) led to an average life expectancy of 70 years.

• In contrast to the Chesapeake, the New Englanders tended to migrate as a family, instead of individually.

116

• Women usually married in their early twenties and gave birth every two years until menopause.

• A typical woman could expect to have ten babies and raise about eight of them.

117

• In the South, women usually had more power, since the Southern men typically died young and women could inherit the money, but in New England, the opposite was true.

• In New England men didn’t have absolute power over their wives (as evidenced by the punishments of unruly husbands) but they did have much power over women.

118

Religious Dissent

• Not all Puritan colonists agreed with the control the Church had over the colony (malcontents)

• Those that outwardly disagreed with the social order of the colony were called dissenters

119

Roger Williams’ Beliefs• Colonists had no rightful claim to

the land unless they paid the natives for it

• Government officials had no right to punish the colonists for their religious beliefs (a person should be free to worship according to his conscience)

•The General Assembly ordered Williams to be arrested and be sent back to England

120

• Williams left Mass Bay and formed his own colony—Providence (later Rhode Island) from land he purchased from the Narragansett tribe

• In his colony there was a separation of church and state and freedom of religion

121

The Rhode Island “Sewer”

• Land of the Outcasts “Rogue’s Island”• People who went to Rhode Island weren’t

necessarily similar; they were just unwanted everywhere else.

• “Little Rhody” was later known as “the traditional home of the otherwise minded.”

• It finally secured a charter in 1644

122

Anne Hutchinson

• Anne Hutchinson, another dissenter, claimed that a holy life was no sure sign of salvation and that the truly saved need not bother to obey the law of either God or man.

• She promoted the idea that worshippers did not need the Puritan church nor its ministers to interpret the Bible (antinomianism)

123

• Brought to trial in 1638, Anne boasted that her beliefs were directly from God.

• She was banished from the colony in 1638 and eventually made her way to Rhode Island.

• She died in New York after an attack by Indians.

124

Puritans vs. Indians• Before the Puritans had arrived in 1620, an

epidemic had swept through the Indians, killing over three quarters of them.

• At first, Indians tried to befriend the Whites.• Squanto, a Wampanoag, helped keep relative

peace.

125

Pequot War• In 1637, mounting tensions exploded, between

English settlers powerful Pequot tribe • The English set fire to a Pequot village,

annihilating the Indians and bringing about forty years of tentative peace.

• In an attempt to save face, the Puritans did try to convert some of the Indians, though with less zeal than that of the Spanish and French.

126

The New England Confederation• Political and military alliance of the English

colonies of Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connecticut, and New Haven

• It was established May 29, 1643• The New England Confederation excluded

Rhode Island (anarchistic and more sympathetic to Native Americans)

• Its primary purpose was to unite the Puritan colonies against the Native Americans

127

128

• The New England Confederation was highly successful in terms of bonding the colonies together, and provided a basis for the further collaboration of Colonies

• The Confederation addressed inter-colonial issues such as:

slavery indentured servants, expansion• Each colony had two votes, another step to

representative government

129

Downfall of the Confederation

• King Charles II revoked Massachusetts's charter in 1684 as a result of colonial insubordination with trade, tariff and navigation laws.

• This led to the Confederation's collapse• In 1686, the centralized Dominion of New

England was imposed on the colonies (more to come on this)

130

King Philip’s War

• In 1675, Metacom (called King Philip by the English) united neighboring Indians in a last-ditched attack that failed.

• Metacom was beheaded and quartered and his head was stuck on a sharp pike for all to see, his wife and son sold to slavery.

• King Philip’s War slowed the colonial western settlement

131

King Philip’s war

132

Additional Problems in Massachusetts Bay

• First-generation settlers were beginning to die out, while their children and grandchildren often expressed less religious piety and more desire for material wealth

• As Puritans began to worry about their children and whether or not they would be as loyal and faithful, and new type of sermon came about called “jeremiads.”

• Earnest preachers scolded parishioners for their waning piety in hope to improve faith.

133

A Solution• Troubled ministers announced a new formula

for church membership in 1662, calling it the “Half-Way Covenant.”

• Partial church membership was granted to the children and grandchildren of church members. They did not have to testify and prove a conversion experience

• The half-way covenant provided that the partial members could be baptized in the church.

134

• Puritan preachers hoped that this plan would maintain some of the church's influence in society

• In addition, it was hoped that these 'half-way members' would see the benefits of full membership, be exposed to teachings and piety which would lead to the "born again" experience, and eventually take the full oath of allegiance

135

Witchcraft Hysteria

• In the 1690’s, a group of Salem girls claimed to have been bewitched by certain older women.

• What followed was a hysterical witch-hunt• The main factors that started and fueled the

trials were politics, religion, family feuds, economics, and the imaginations and fears of the people.

• Those who were accused of being witches were considered to be wealthy or outspoken

136

• 19 people were hung• 1 was crushed to death by stones• 150 others were imprisoned• 2 two dogs were killed

137

Puritan Ministers

• Cotton Mather• John Cotton• Increase Mather• Thomas Hooker

138

Other New England Colonies

139

Connecticut, New Hampshire and Maine

• In 1635, Hartford, Connecticut was founded.• Reverend Thomas Hooker led an energetic

group of Puritans west.• In 1639, settlers of the new Connecticut River

colony drafted in open meeting a document called the Fundamental Orders. Basically a modern constitution.

• In 1638, New Haven was founded and eventually merged into Connecticut.

140

• In 1623, Maine was absorbed by Massachusetts and remained so for nearly a century and a half.

• In 1641, New Hampshire was absorbed into Massachusetts.

• In 1679, the king separated the two and made New Hampshire a royal colony.

141

The New England Way of Life

• Due to the hard New England soil (or lack thereof), New Englanders became great traders and relied on the fishing industry

• The climate of New England encouraged diversified agriculture and industry.

• New England was also less ethnically mixed than its neighbors.

• Black slavery was attempted but didn’t work.

142

The Middle Colonies

143

A Sanctuary for the Quakers• The Quakers (characteristics)• They “quaked” under deep religious emotion.• They addressed everyone with simple “thee”s

and “thou”s and didn’t swear oaths because Jesus had said “Swear not at all”

• They were simple, devoted, democratic people against war and violence.

144

A New Colony is Formed

• William Penn, a well-born Englishman, embraced the Quaker faith.

• In 1681, he managed to secure an large land grant from the king.

145

Pennsylvania—The “Holy Experiment”

• It was the best advertised of all the colonies.• Thousands of squatters already lived in

Pennsylvania.• Philadelphia, The City of Brotherly Love”, was

more carefully planned than most cities, with beautiful, wide streets.

• His treatment of the Indians was so gentle that Quakers could walk through Indian territory unarmed without fear of being hurt.

146

• However, as more and more non-Quakers came to Pennsylvania, they mistreated the Indians more and more.

• Freedom of worship was available to everyone except for Jews and Catholics (only because of pressure from London), and the death penalty was only for murder and treason.

• No restrictions were placed on immigration, and naturalization was made easy.

147

• The Quakers also developed a dislike toward slavery.

• Pennsylvania attracted a great variety of people from all races, class, and religion.

• By 1700, only Virginia was more populous and richer.

Anthony Benezet offering instruction at his school in Philadelphia

148

Common Traits of the Middle Colonies

• New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania• Common Traits:• All had fertile soil and broad expanse of land.• All except for Delaware exported lots of grain.• The middle colonies were the middle way between

New England and the southern plantation states.

149

• The middle colonies were more ethnically mixed than other colonies.

• A considerable amount of economic and social democracy prevailed.

• Benjamin Franklin, born in Boston, entered Philadelphia as a seventeen-year-old in 1720 and immediately found a welcoming home in the open atmosphere of the city.

• Americans began to realize that not only were they surviving, but that they were also thriving.

150

Colonial Rebellious Spirit is Formed

151

Massachusetts Became a Royal Colony

• Massachusetts merchants had not adhered to the Navigation Acts of 1651 and had continued their illegal smuggling activities

• To make an example of the rebellious colony and to punishment the disobedience, in 1684, the Massachusetts Bay colonial charter was revoked by King Charles II

• This ended self-rule and brought the Puritans under the direct control of the crown

152

Andros Promotes the First American Revolution

• Opposition to English control of the colonial economies started to grow

• In 1686, the Dominion of New England was created to bolster the colonial defense against Indians and tying the colonies closer to Britain by enforcing the hated Navigation Acts.

• The acts forbade American trade with countries other than Britain. As a result, smuggling became common.

153

Sir Edmund AndrosThe Tyrant

• Head of the Dominion of New England

• Establishing his headquarters in Boston, he openly showed his association with the locally hated Church of England.

154

• Andros responded to opposition by:

• curbing town meetings• restricting the courts

and the press• and revoking all land

titles.• taxed the people

without their consent

155

The Glorious Revolution Stops the Dominion

• At the same time, the people of England staged the Glorious Revolution, instating William and Mary to the crown

• The change in leadership led to the collapse of the Dominion of New England

• The Massachusetts charter of 1691 allowed all landowners to vote, as opposed to the previous law of voting belonging only to the church members

156

New Netherlands Becomes the Dutch Wedge

• In the 17th Century, the Netherlands revolted against Spain, and with help of Britain, gained their independence.

• The Dutch East India Company was established, with an army of 10,000 men and a fleet of 190 ships (including 40 men-of-war).

• In 1609, Henry Hudson ventured into Delaware and New York Bay and claimed the area for the Netherlands.

157

• The Dutch West India Company bought Manhattan Island for some worthless trinkets (22,000 acres of the most valuable land in the world today).

• New Amsterdam was a company town, run for the and in the interests of the Dutch West India Company stockholders.

• The Dutch gave patroonships (large areas of land) to promoters who agreed to settle at least 50 people on them.

• New Amsterdam attracted people of all types and races.

158

Friction with English and Swedish Neighbors

• Trouble for the Dutch• Indian’s attacked the Dutch for their cruelties.• New England was hostile against Dutch

growth (calling it a wedge between English territory)

• Things got so bad that the Dutch erected a wall in New Amsterdam, for which Wall Street is named today.

159

Claiming the Dutch Colony • In 1664, English King Charles II granted the

Dutch land to his brother, the Duke of York and sent troops to claim the land

• Peter Stuyvesant , the unpopular governor of New Netherland’s, called for colonists to defend the colony, but no one responded

• New Netherlands surrendered to the British without a shot being fired

• New Netherlands was renamed New York.

160

The Dutch Legacy

• Dutch names of cities remained, like Harlem, Brooklyn, and Hell Gate.

• Even their architecture left its mark on buildings.

• The Dutch also gave us Easter eggs, Santa Claus, waffles, sauerkraut, bowling, sleighing, skating, and golf

161

162