ENGLAND AND ITS COLONIES

Many colonist benefited from the trade relationship with the home country.

Main purpose of the colonial system was to enrich Britain

WHAT IS MERCANTILISM?

1650

Policy/Theory

Economic theory that states a nation becomes stronger by keeping strict CONTROL over its trade.

A nation should have more EXPORTS than imports Colonies existed for one purpose only: to enrich the MOTHER

LAND!

English Laws Benefiting the British

Trade system Americans provide raw goods to BritainBritain used the raw goods to produce

manufactured goodsSold in European markets and back to the

colonies

• NO SHARING: only English ships and merchants were used for manufacturing and shipping goods to the colonies

Exports & Imports Exports: Goods SENT markets outside of a county

or colony.

• Imports: Goods BROUGHT into a country or colony

?Lets Think?Theory of Mercantilism, why do you want to

have more exports than imports?

Answer: If you EARN (exports) more than you SPEND (imports), then you will be left with a profit

in the end.

Increasing Control over the Colonies

As the colonies became more successful and profitable, England began to increase control over the colonies

The first major Act which was placed over the colonist was the Navigation Acts.Between 1651 and 1673Detailed series of laws that restricted colonial trade

-No country can trade with the colonies unless the goods were shipped in either

colonial or English ships

-All vessels must be operated by crews that were at least ¾ English or colonial

-Colonies can export certain products ONLY to England

-Almost all goods traded between the colonies and Europe had to pass through an

English port

Tensions EmergeThe Navigation Acts were beneficial to some colonists, and

VERY beneficial to England.However, not all are satisfied

ResentmentMany continue to smuggleTrade goods illegally

ENGLAND HAS HAD ENOUGH!

King Charles II punishes the colonist the HE believes are the most unruly: Massachusetts’ merchants and leaders.Why Massachusetts???

Loosening of the Reigns

SALUTARY NEGLECT

England has too much on their plate

As long as raw materials continued to flow through England and as long as the colonists continued to buy English produced goods, then the colonies did not need to be supervised.

….This is the start of the colonies developing a taste for self-government.

Triangular Trade & Slavery

Triangular Trade British mercantilism

manifested itself in the form of the triangular trade. Trade routes linked the colonies, West Indies, England, and Africa

TRIANGULAR TRADE CONT.

New England rum was shipped to Africa and traded for slaves

Slaves are brought to the West Indies and traded for sugar and molasses. -Middle Passage

Raw goods were shipped from the colonies to England, where they were swapped for a cargo of manufactured goods

Slave Trade When the slave trade became

illegal, vessels often discharged their human cargos rather than be caught by the Royal Navy.

Slave Laws White colonists adopted

laws to ensure that African Americans would be…

1. Held in bondage for life

2. Slave status would be inherited.

3. 1661 Virginia enacted legislation stating that children automatically inherited their mothers enslaved status for life

Growth of SlaveryAgriculture in the

South By 1750, ½ of Virginia’s and

2/3 of South Carolina’s population were enslaved.

The demand for slavery became increasingly important in the southern colonies.

Reduced migration: England reduced the supply of immigrants to the colonies.

Dependable Workforce: They thought slavery would provide a stable labor force under their control.

Cheap labor: As tobacco prices fell, rice and indigo became the most profitable crop. To grow these crops required a large piece of land, and many inexpensive, unskilled field hands.

Stono Rebellion