Colonial Beginnings (Continued) Flashcards
What was the Virginia House of Burgesses?
The Virginia House of Burgesses was the first English lawmaking body in the New World.
Twelve years after the founding of the Jamestown Colony, the Virginia Company sought to encourage colonization in Virginia by establishing a lawmaking body, which allowed the populace to govern itself.
The current lower house of Virginia’s General Assembly is a direct descendant of the original House of Burgesses.
How did tobacco influence the Chesapeake colonies?
John Rolfe introduced tobacco to Virginia, which created a virtual boom economy in the Chesapeake region. The labor-intensive cultivation of tobacco led to the growth of slavery in the Chesapeake colonies.
A tobacco blend developed by John Rolfe and his wife, Pocahontas, proved particularly popular in England.
Who founded the Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay colonies?
The Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay colonies were founded by Puritan Separatists. The English allowed the troublemaking Puritan Separatists to settle in the New World as an easy means of getting them out of the way.
As the second governor of the Plymouth Bay Colony, _____ _____ guided the colony through its early years.
William Bradford
Bradford led the Plymouth Bay Colony as its governor for a period of almost thirty years. Bradford composed a history of the colony, Of Plymouth Plantation.
Who were the Puritans?
The Puritans sought to “purify” Christian religious practices, and constituted a threat to the Church of England. A subset of these Puritans, known as Separatists, sought to leave the Church of England entirely.
The Church of England had been founded by English monarch Henry VIII, so that he could divorce his wife, free from papal interference. As the religious embodiment of the King, any threat to the Church of England was a threat to the King himself.
What was the governing document of the Plymouth Colony?
Aboard the Mayflower, the Puritan Separatists signed the Mayflower Compact (1620), which established majority rule and self-government for the Plymouth Colony.
Historians typically refer to these Puritan Separatists as “Pilgrims,” because their trip was religiously motivated, and thus was a pilgrimage.
What was the Great Migration?
The Great Migration was the first large-scale influx of settlers to the New World. Fleeing a civil war in England, Puritans under John Winthrop established numerous settlements in Massachusetts, including Boston.
The influx of new settlers led to an expanded government for what was now the colony of Massachusetts.
What was John Winthrop’s vision for the Puritan colonies of Massachusetts?
Winthrop viewed the new community “city upon a hill,” watched by the world and blessed by God for living in godly manner.
Winthrop’s sermon gave rise to the widespread belief that the United States of America is God’s country, an early example of American exceptionalism.
After the Great Migration, how did democracy function in Massachusetts?
All male members of the Puritan church had the right to elect the governor, the governor’s assistants, and a representative assembly.
Describe relations between the English settlers and the Indians.
Initially, the English settlers and Indians coexisted peacefully. The Indians taught the English farming methods and introduced them to new crops, and the English traded tools and weapons with the Indians for furs.
However, as the English sought more land, they began to view the Indians as primitive. Many believed that God had destined them to take territory from the Indians.
How were royal colonies governed?
Royal colonies were governed directly by the King of England.
New Hampshire was a royal colony. Virginia too became a royal colony after the Virginia Company (a joint-stock company) declared bankruptcy.
What were corporate colonies?
Corporate colonies were colonies operated by joint-stock companies under a charter from the King of England.
Prior to the bankruptcy of its joint-stock company, Jamestown was a corporate colony.
How were proprietary colonies administered?
Proprietary colonies were privately administered by individuals who received a charter from the King.
Maryland was a proprietary colony of Lord Baltimore, who received a charter from King James I. Pennsylvania was William Penn’s proprietary colony.
What was the headright system?
Under the headright system, Virginia provided 50 acres of land to any landowner who paid an immigrant’s passage, or to any immigrants who paid their own passage.
The headright system was designed to offset a severe labor shortage in colonial Virginia, but was not entirely successful. Many Virginia farmers turned to slavery to provide the needed labor.
What was Bacon’s Rebellion?
After Virginia’s governor, William Berkeley, failed to respond to Indian attacks on the frontier, impoverished farmer Nathaniel Bacon led a group of former indentured servants and blacks in an attack on Jamestown in 1676, burning it to the ground.
Bacon and his followers were aggrieved that political power in the colonial government was in the hands of a few wealthy landowners. The rebellion collapsed when Bacon died of dysentery.
