AMERICAN C

OLONIE

S

KA

RE

E A

NN

KL E

I N

GLORIOUS REVOLUTIONS

• King James I favored the Catholics• This alarmed the Protestants• King James had a son, which promised a Catholic dynasty

• The Protestants contacted Prince William of Orange• They asked him to bring an army to overthrow the king on behalf of

the Protestants• William invaded England• James fled to France• Found sanctuary in the court of Louis XIV

• William took the crown• Promised religious freedom to the Protestants• His political party became known as the Whigs

MEN AND MONEY

• England was at war with France• William overthrew James II

• England had to build a better army than France to compete• Increased taxes on the people• At one time they were the lightest taxed people in all of Europe, and

now they were up there with the highest

• English fought the Nine Years War• To uphold Protestant regime• Maintain England’s hold over Ireland• Preserve the American Colonies• Defend their new allies the Dutch

• Parliament created a permanent funded national debt that paid annual interest to private financiers• To manage the debt, they created the Bank of England

WAR OF THE SPANISH SUCCESSION

• There was peace for five years starting in 1697• By 1702, Louis XIV had rebuilt his military and made plans

to expand• Louis claimed the throne of Spain for his grandson, Philip

de Bourbon• This threatened to reunite the Spanish and French and

throw off the balance of power in Europe

• England revived the alliance against Louis XIV• King William and Queen Mary of England had died• Queen Anne, Mary’s younger sister, resumed the throne

• England was succesful in Europe, but the English colonies were not• The Carolina attacked the capital of Florida and failed

• For fear of loss, Queen Anne cashed in her victories before their luck ran out

PIRATES

• England used piracy to attack the Spanish• Queen Elizabeth I protected and invested in pirate enterprises

• Pirates were called “privateers”• Hired to loot enemy ships during wartime• New York, South Carolina, and Jamaica hosted pirates

• British reassessed their support of piracy at the end of the 17th century• Pirates began looting ships from their own country• Pirates became a liability

• Pirates became countercultural outlaws• “A merry life and a short one” became their motto• Crews codified their own rules• Crew members divided the loot among themselves• Operated as a democracy

NEWS

• Colonists were concerned about hearing news from Europe• “We are here at the end of the World, and Europe may be turned

topsy turvy ere we can hear a word of it” – William Byrd• Colonists felt isolated

• By the 1730’s ships came more frequently• Ships brought letters, pamphlets, and newspapers from England• They were able to learn more about the wars at home

• Newspapers became popular in the Colonies• Boston News-Letter appeared in 1704 as the first enduring

colonial newspaper• Copied official items from the London press• Very little local stories

ENGLISH EMIGRANTS

• British ships brought many emigrants• Most of them were not English

• Emigration increased during times of peace• Many soldiers and sailors were demobilized

• Work was difficult to find• Many emigrants became indentured servants• Crime surged• People stole to live• Government imposed the death penalty for “grand larceny”• Stealing anything that cost more than a shilling

• Many criminals were transported to America

• Planters employed the convicts as field hands, equal to a slave

GROWTH AND LIMITS

• A vast array of churches developed in the colonies• At least 2/3 of colonial adults attended church

• Denominations• Congregationalists ranked largest with 450 churches• Anglicans ranked second with 300 parishes• Quakers ranked third with 250 churches• Presbyterian were fourth with 160• Hosted some Catholic churches• Hosted a few Jewish synagogues as well

• Churches fought over beliefs

DEPENDENCE• Paris felt that French America was a disappointment• New France and Louisiana annually cost the crown more

money than what they sent back to France from the fur trades• Heavy cost to maintain forts• Expensive gifts to appease the Indians

• Indians needed the French• They had become dependent on metalware, firearms, and

gun powder• “Every necessary thing in life we must have from the white

people” – Skiagunsta, Cherokee chief

• French tried to get Indians to trade with only them• They discouraged trade with the British• Found that the French needed the Indians more than the

Indians needed their trade