The Settlement of the Chesapeake & other Southern Colonies

1. The Settlement of the Chesapeake & other Southern Colonies Susan Pojer / Pamela K. Montague

2. English – John Cabot, 1497 Newfoundland, NE coast N.Am. French Verrazano, 1524, Carolina up to Nova Scotia Cartier, 1534 – St. Lawrence River BUT, neither French or English are serious rivals in beginning, why? Too much internal conflict; Protestant Reformation Intense rivalry soon develops though between Catholic Spain and Protestant England By 17th century, each power has major outpost in North America Spanish – Santa Fe, 1610 French – Quebec, 1608 English – Jamestown, 1607 The Planting of English America Spain’s European Rivals:

3. English Colonization Elizabeth I • Takes the throne in 1588 & rivalry with Spain intensifies • Crushes the Irish mercilessly – Protestant landlords • Too weak to break Spanish monopoly in New World so… • Encourages plunder of Spanish ships and raiding of Spanish settlements; DRAKE • Attempts a settlement at Newfoundland – Sir Humphrey Gilbert / unsuccessful • How did the laws of primogeniture encourage English exploration?

4. English Colonization Virginia • Sir Walter Raleigh to VA in 1585 • Establishes Roanoke – known as the “Lost Colony” – WHY? Who is Virginia Dare? • What delayed the English supply ship headed to Roanoke in 1588? • attack of the Spanish Armada • England defeats Spain & finally breaks SP monopoly in New World • Effects of Defeat of the SP Armada: • Strong sense of nationalism…Shakespeare • Gov’t support of colonization • Strong, popular monarch & religious unity • Set England on path to world dominance

5. English Colonization Virginia • The Charter of the Virginia Company of London, 1606: • Guaranteed to colonists the same rights as Englishmenas if they had stayed in England – will be incorporated into future colonial documents. • Colonists felt that, even in the Americas, they had the rights of Englishmen!

6. England Plants the Jamestown “Seedling” • Late 1606 VA Co. sends out 3 ships • Purpose of expedition? • Spring 1607 land at mouth of Chesapeake Bay. • Attacked by Indians and move on up the bay. • May 24, 1607approx. 144 colonists [all men] land at Jamestown, along banks of James River • Easily defended, but swarming with disease-causing mosquitoes.

7. Jamestown Settlement, 1607 The Godspeed, Discovery, and Susan Constant

8. Chesapeake Bay Geographic/environmental problems??

9. Jamestown Fort & Settlement Map

10. Jamestown Fort & Settlement

11. Jamestown Housing

12. Jamestown Settlement

13. Jamestown Chapel, 1611

14. Continuing Discovery at Jamestown

15. The Jamestown Nightmare • 1606-1607 - 40 people died on the voyage to the New World. • 1609 - another ship from England lost its leaders and supplies in a shipwreck off Bermuda. • Settlers died from disease, malnutrition, starvation – only 60 of 400 survive “starving time” winter 1609-1610 …why? • Early“Gentlemen” colonists would not work • Game in forests & fish in river uncaught. • Wasted time looking for gold instead • Merchant directors – ineffective guidance

16. Becomes expert forager & Indian trader Asks London Co. for farmers, carpenters, masons, etc. Stays in colony only 2 years, but it would have perished without him Took over in 1608 Captain John Smith:The Right Man for the Job?? There was no talk…but dig gold, wash gold, refine gold, load gold…

17. Pocahontas Pocahontas “saves” Captain John Smith What actually happened? Four Faces of Pocahontas

18. Chief Powhatan • Powhatan Confederacy • Powhatan dominated a few dozen small tribes in the James River area when the English arrived. • The English called allIndians in the areaPowhatans. • Powhatan probably sawthe English as allies in his struggles to control other Indian tribes in the region.

19. Powhatan Confederacy

20. PowhatanIndian Village

21. Indian Foods

22. Smith’s Portrayal of Native Americans Interpretation?

23. Culture Clash in the Chesapeake • Relations between Indians & settlers grew worse – why? • General mistrust because of different cultures & languages. • English raided Indian food supplies during the starving times. • 1610-1614  First Anglo-Powhatan War • De La Warr (came in 1610) had orders to make war on the Indians. • Raided villages, burned houses, took supplies, burned cornfields.

24. Culture Clash in the Chesapeake • 1614-1622  peace between Powhatans and the English. • 1614 peace sealed by the marriage of Pocahontas to Englishman John Rolfe.

25. Powhatan Uprising of 1622 • 1622-1644  periodic attacks between Indians and settlers. • 1622  Indians attacked the English, killing 347 [including John Rolfe]. • Virginia Co. called for a “perpetual war” against the Native Americans. • Raids reduced native population and drove them further westward.

26. Culture Clash in the Chesapeake • 1644-1646  Second Anglo-Powhatan War • Last effort of natives to defeat English. • Indians defeated again. • Powhatans suffered from 3 D’s – meaning? • Peace Treaty of 1646 • Removed the Powhatans from their original land. • Formally separated Indian and English settlement areas (origins of reservations).

27. John Rolfe What finally made the colony prosperous??

28. Tobacco Plant Virginia’s gold and silver. -- John Rolfe, 1612

29. Early Colonial Tobacco 1618 — Virginia produces 20,000 pounds of tobacco. 1622 — Despite losing nearly one-third of its colonists in an Indian attack, Virginia produces 60,000 pounds of tobacco. 1627 — Virginia produces 500,000 pounds of tobacco. 1629 — Virginia produces 1,500,000 pounds of tobacco.

30. Virginia: “Child of Tobacco” • Tobacco’s effect on Virginia’s economy: • Vital role in putting VA on a firm economic footing. • Ruinous to soil when continuously planted – leads to continuous desire for LAND! • Chained VA’s economy to a single crop. • Promoted headright system • Tobacco promoted the use of the plantation system. • Need for cheap, abundant labor.

31. Why was 1619 a pivotal year for the Chesapeake settlement? • First Africans arrived in Jamestown in 1619. • Their status was not clear  perhaps slaves, perhaps indentured servants. • Slavery not that important until the end of the 17c. • And…

32. VirginiaHouse of Burgesses

33. Growing Political Power • The House of Burgesses established in 1619 – 1st representative form of gov’tin America • began to assume the role of the House of Commons in England • 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 • Mainly leading planters. • Functions like House of Lords. • High death rates ensured rapid turnover of members.

34. Virginia Becomes a Royal Colony • James I grew hostile to Virginia • He hated tobacco. • He distrusted the House of Burgesses which he called a seminary of sedition. What is “sedition?” • 1624  he revoked the charter of the bankrupt VA Company. • Thus, VA became a royal colony, under the King’s direct control.

35. Indentured Servitude Origins Indenture Marks The term indentured servant derives its name from the indenture, or mark on two copies of the contract the master and the servant signed. To prevent one of the parties from trying to alter the contract, the two copies of the contract were laid on top of one other, and identical marks were made. If anyone questioned the contract, the two pieces of paper would be placed on top of one other to try match the marks. This contract has been indentured. This contract has been marked, but not yet indentured.

36. Indentured Servitude • HeadrightSystem – who benefitted? • Each Virginian got 50 acres for each laborer whose passage he paid. System used in MD also. • 100,000 in VA/MD by 1700 – cheaper than slaves • Indenture Contract – general terms? • Mostly young men, 15-25 • 4 years (skilled) -7 years (unskilled) • Promised “freedom dues” [land, £, clothing, two hoes, three barrels of corn, and fifty acres of land] • Forbidden to marry; no travel without permission. • 1610-1614: only 1 in 10 outlived their indentured contracts!

37. Frustrated Freemen • Majority of VA settlers came as indentured servants • By late 1600s  large numbers of young, poor, discontented men in the Chesapeake area. • Little access to land or women for marriage. • 1670  The Virginia Assembly disenfranchised most landless men. Meaning?

38. Nathaniel Bacon’s Rebellion: 1676 • Led 1,000 Virginians in a rebellion against Governor Berkeley • Rebels resented Berkeley’s close relations with Indians. • Berkeley monopolized the fur trade with the Indians in the area. • Berkley refused to retaliate for Indian attacks on frontier settlements. Nathaniel Bacon GovernorWilliam Berkeley

39. Bacon’s Rebellion: 1676

40. Bacon’s Rebellion • Rebels attacked Indians, whether they were friendly or not to whites. • Governor Berkeley driven from Jamestown. • Rebels burned the capital and then went on a rampage of plundering. • Bacon died suddenly of fever. • Berkeley brutally crushed the rebellion and hanged 20 rebels.

41. Results of Bacon’s Rebellion • It exposed resentments between inland frontiersmen and landless former servants against gentry on coastal plantations. (East-West Conflict) • Socio-economic class differences/clashes between rural and urban communities which will continue throughout American history. • Upper class planters searched for laborers less likely to rebel  BLACK SLAVES!!

42. Colonial Slavery • Beginning in 1662  “Slave Codes” • Made blacks [and their children] chattel(property) for the lifetime of white masters. • In some colonies, it was a crime to teach a slave to read or write. • Conversion to Christianity did not qualify the slave for freedom.

43. Reasons for switch from Servants to Slaves: Bacon’s rebellion – planters fearful of mutinous former servants Rising wages in England led to less willing to gamble on indentured servitude Royal African Company loses monopoly on carrying slaves to colonies (RI becomes big slave trader). Servants wanted land – no one would want to give land to black slaves.

44. The Atlantic Slave Trade

45. The “Middle Passage” Barbaric conditions, at least 20% died during this passage.

46. Colonial Slavery • As the number of slaves increased, white colonists reacted to put down a perceived racial threat. • Slavery transformed from economic to economic and racial institution. • Early 1600s  differences between slave and servant were unclear. • By the mid-1680s, black slaves outnumbered white indentured servants and slave codes are entrenched.

47. Slave Revolts • Stono Revolt– 1730, SC • Over 50 slaves meet at Stono River & begin march to Spanish Florida. • Stole guns & ammo from store at Stono Bridge & killed 2 storekeepers • Burned 7 plantations & killed 20 whites – number grows to 80 slaves • Militia comes after them – 44 slaves, 20 whites killed in putting down rebellion • Captured slaves decapitated – heads spiked on mile posts to Charleston. • BUT, no slave rebellion ever equals the scale of the rebellion of former servants such as those in Bacon’s Rebellion.

48. The Settlement of Maryland • A royal charter wasgranted to GeorgeCalvert, Lord Baltimore,in 1632. • A proprietarycolony created in 1634. • A healthier locationthan Jamestown. • Tobacco would be the main crop. Why a “poor man’s crop?” • His plan was to govern as an absentee proprietor in a feudal relationship. • Huge tracts of land granted to his Catholic relatives.

49. Colonization of Maryland St Mary’s City (1634)

50. A Haven for Catholics • Supposed to be a haven for Catholics but, the irony is ….? • Colonists were only willing to come to MD if they received land. • Colonists who did come received modest farms dispersed around the Chesapeake area. • Catholic land barons surrounded by mostly Protestant small farmers. • Conflict between barons and farmers led to Baltimore losing proprietary rights at the end of the 17c. • In the late 1600s, black slaves began to be imported.