British Coloniza

tion

British Coloniza

tionJamestownJamestown

Learning Targets

I can interpret the long-term effects of social class conflict in the colonies.• I can describe British motives for colonizing the Americas.• I can compare and contrast the ways in which Jamestown settlers

and the Quakers interacted with Native Americans.• I can discuss the hardships that were faced in Jamestown,

including labor issues and social class conflict.• I can relate social class conflict in the colonies to social class issues

today.• I can predict how British settlers’ actions will impact future

colonization in the Americas.

I can assess the role that economic forces had on shaping our social history.• I can explain why Africans were enslaved and brought to the

Americas.

Jamestown (Virginia)

• First permanent British settlement – 1607 • Funded by corporations, so colonists were too

focused on finding gold to plant food.– Thought they were “too good” to plant their own food.

• People began dying of hunger.• John Smith took control.

– Good leader!– Forced everyone to work

Definitely not!

Alliance with Native Americans

• Smith got support from Native Americans.– Traded with each other– Natives let many colonists live with them and share

food.

Alliance Turns to War

• Colonists viewed Native Americans as savages and “devil-worshippers”.

• Wars raged on and off for almost 40 years.

• Colonists burned villages, executed women and children, took prisoners.

• Native Americans tried sneak attacks, and using the land to their advantage.

The Quakers

• Colony started by William Penn, a Quaker from England.

• Did not care about wealth.• Were pacifists (did not like war and refused to

serve in military).• Treated Native Americans fairly.

– Paid them for their land.– Had a court system for settlers and Native Americans.

This is a side note about

another colony that was totally different than Jamestown! …

You know, so you don’t get too depressed.

Why They Stayed

• Settlers were about to abandon Jamestown, because they weren’t getting rich.

• BUT then they discovered tobacco.• Within a decade, colonists were exporting 1.5

million pounds of tobacco to England per year!

These days, over

6 million people die each year because of

tobacco. Thanks,

Jamestown!

Now, recall that the English colonists didn’t want to work to

plant food for themselves to eat…

Do you think they wanted to do the work required to export 1.5 million

pounds of tobacco each year?

What did they do?

Indentured Servants

• Africans came to the colonies in 1619 and were indentured servants—not slaves.

• Lower class people from England came to work as indentured servants.– Work for 4 – 7 yrs. for no pay, but food, clothing, shelter– Race didn’t matter—could be black or white

What problem do you see with indentured servitude?

Social Class Struggles

• Indentured servants were becoming free.– Had no money to buy land = no political rights– About 25% of the population!

• Lower class got larger, while the upper class got wealthier.

• Former indentured servants (frontiersmen) lived in the frontier.– Only place they could afford– BUT the Native Americans lived there

Bacon’s Rebellion

• Frontiersmen wanted the Virginia governor to finance the war.

• He refused, because it only affected the “poor people”.

• Nathaniel Bacon = leader of the frontier people– Had an unsuccessful rebellion against the governor.– His rebellion united poor blacks and whites for a

common cause—this scared the rich.– This fear sped up the transition to slavery and racism.

Let’s Talk About Bacon’s Rebellion

1. How did social class differences lead to the rebellion?

2. How does social class impact society, in general?

3. Has social class conflict in our society changed? Is it better? Is it worse? For whom?

4. Do you think that people in the lower/middle classes are turned against one another today?

5. What can be done to alleviate problems caused by social class?

Learning Targets

I can interpret the long-term effects of social class conflict in the colonies. I can describe British motives for colonizing the Americas. I can compare and contrast the ways in which Jamestown settlers

and the Quakers interacted with Native Americans. I can discuss the hardships that were faced in Jamestown,

including labor issues and social class conflict. I can relate social class conflict in the colonies to social class issues

today. I can predict how British settlers’ actions will impact future

colonization in the Americas.

I can assess the role that economic forces had on shaping our social history. I can explain why Africans were enslaved and brought to the

Americas.