Chapter 3Colonies Take Root

The First English Settlements

(Background)Their monarch’s power was limited by Parliament, which made the laws. It was composed of two groups: The House of Lords and The House of Commons.

England Seeks Colonies

We often compare their Parliament to our Congress, composed of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

• They had a document called the Magna Carta that established ideas like the right to trial by jury and “no taxation without representation.” First signed by King John in 1215, the 1297 version is in our National Archives. (Thought question: Why would their British document be in our U.S. Archives?)

England wanted to build their empire by developing colonies in North America and using their resources.

Remember Mercantilism?

The first colony attempt failed at Roanoke Island, and the second is still a mystery.

This is one of the latest theories:

http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2012/05/07/new-clue-to-mystery-lost-roanoke-colony/

© the University of South Florida; for classroom use

Founding Jamestown 1607King James I

granted a charter to the Virginia Company of London to form a colony in North America. It was England’s 1st permanent settlement here.

Problems at JamestownThey had built

inland to avoid possible attacks by the Spanish, but swampy land brought mosquitoes and malaria, which killed people.

Problems at JamestownThe men were mostly

aristocrats, who thought they were too good to farm.

The 100 settlers were expecting to find gold, but didn’t.

John Smith became the leader and he said, “He who does not work will not eat.”

Problems at JamestownAfter John Smith had

to go to England to nurse a gunpowder wound, Indians cut back on food sharing, and settlers died from starvation.

“The Starving Time”

Jamestown ProspersBy 1620, Jamestown

farmers, who had begun growing tobacco, were doing well.

There were more settlers, including women, children, and slaves.

Slavery at that time was not necessarily a permanent condition.

The House of Burgesses began a tradition of representative government in North America.

The Plymouth ColonyA group of

separatists called Pilgrims left England, went to The Netherlands, then to America.

They were headed to Virginia, but ended up in Plymouth (Massachusetts).

“The Mayflower in Plymouth Harbor”Halsall, 1882

The Plymouth ColonyBefore they even got

off the boat, leaders signed The Mayflower Compact to ensure just and equal laws.

It was the 1st document in America that claimed a right of self-government. http://avalon.law.yale.edu/17th_century/mayflower.asp

The Plymouth ColonyIn 1620, they arrived

too late in the season to plant.

Squanto and other natives helped them survive by growing native plants.

The following fall, they celebrated what we know as Thanksgiving. http://historyofmassachusetts.org/squanto-the-former-slave/