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 Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 9:54 pm
But I might make a fake thread to scare you. emotion_dowant =P ^____^
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 10:52 pm
Kay9214 But I might make a fake thread to scare you. emotion_dowant =P ^____^ Damnit Kay, I thought I was going to learn something today. stare
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 10:56 pm
girffrommars Kay9214 But I might make a fake thread to scare you. emotion_dowant =P ^____^ Damnit Kay, I thought I was going to learn something today. stare Quote: THE FIRST NORTH AMERICAN COLONIES
The first Europeans to establish colonies in North America were the Spanish. In 1526 a Spaniard called Lucas Vazquez de Ayllon attempted to found a colony in Carolina. (He also brought the first black slaves to North America). However the attempt failed. Many Spaniards died of disease and the survivors abandoned the colony.
In 1565 Pedro Menendez de Aviles founded a settlement at St Augustine, Florida, the first permanent European settlement in what is now the USA.
The first English attempt to colonize North America was made by a man named Sir Humphrey Gilbert. In 1578 Queen Elizabeth granted him permission to establish a colony there. In 1583 Gilbert sailed with a small fleet of ships to Newfoundland. However Gilbert soon abandoned the venture. Gilbert was lost on the voyage home.
However his half-brother, Walter Raleigh made another attempt to found a colony. In 1584 he sent two ships to explore the coast. They found what they thought was a suitable place for a colony. In January 1585 Queen Elizabeth the 'Virgin Queen' allowed him to call the place Virginia, after her. In April 1585 an expedition was sent led by Richard Grenville. They arrived in July 1585. Grenville left men on Roanoke Island then left for England to obtain more men and supplies. However while he was gone the colonists ran very short of supplies. In 1586 the colonists abandoned Virginia and returned to England.
In 1587 another attempt to found a colony was made by a man named John White. He led an expedition of men, women and children to Virginia. However White returned to England to seek more support for the colony. Because of a war between England and Spain he was unable to return to Virginia until 1590. When he did he found the colony deserted. The fate of the colonists is unknown.
JAMESTOWN AND VIRGINIA
The first attempts to found a colony in North America were made by gentlemen adventurers. Success came only when a group of men joined together and pooled their resources to found a colony. The Virginia Company was founded in 1606. They sent two expeditions to North America. Raleigh Gilbert (Sir Humphrey Gilbert's son) led one of them. They landed in Maine but soon gave up. They returned to England in 1609. The second expedition founded Jamestown on 14 May 1607.
More settlers arrived in 1609. However shortage of food, disease and conflict with the natives caused many deaths among the colonists. In 1610 the survivors were on the verge of leaving. They were dissuaded from doing so only when more ships from England arrived. In 1611 Sir Thomas Dale became the Governor of the colony. He introduced strict discipline with a code of laws called 'Laws, Divine, Moral and Martial'. Penalties for disobedience were severe.
In 1612 a man named John Rolfe began growing tobacco. In 1614 the first Virginian tobacco was sold in England. Exports of tobacco soon became the mainstay of the Virginian economy.
Gradually the colony expanded. In 1618 the Company offered 50 acres of land to anyone who could pay for the cost of their voyage across the Atlantic. If they could not pay they could become indentured servants. When they arrived they were not free. They had to work for the company for several years to pay back the cost of their passage. In 1619 19 black indentured servants arrived in Virginia.
Also in 1619 the first representative government in North America was created when the House of Burgesses met. (Burgess is an old English word. A burgage was a plot of land in a town on which a house was built. A burgess was the owner of a burgage).
In 1624 the Virginia Company was dissolved and the Crown took over the colony. By 1660 the population of Virginia was 27,000. By 1710 it had risen to 78,000. However in 1699 the seat of government of Virginia was moved from Jamestown to Middle Plantation (Williamsburg). Afterwards Jamestown went into decline.
THE PILGRIM FATHERS AND NEW ENGLAND
Another English colony was founded 1620 by a group of people fleeing religious persecution. They disagreed with the teachings of the Church of England and wished to separate themselves from it not to reform it. However they did not actually call themselves 'pilgrims'. The colonists set out in a ship called the Mayflower and they arrived on 11 December 1620. Half of the colonists did not survive the first year in North America. The Natives who taught them how to grow crops saved the survivors. Another colony was founded at Salem in 1628.
The Massachusetts Bay Company was formed in 1629. From 1630 large numbers of settlers were transported to New England and its population swelled. Furthermore English colonists spread over the coast of North America. In 1634 people from Massachusetts founded the town of Wethersfield in Connecticut.
In 1636 a group of people left the Massachusetts Bay colony and settled on Rhode Island. The first settlement was at Providence.
Meanwhile a fishing settlement was founded in New Hampshire in 1623. In 1629 the area between the Merrimack River and the Piscataqua River was granted to a man named Mason. It was named New Hampshire. Portsmouth, New Hampshire was founded in 1630. Officially New Hampshire was part of Massachusetts until 1679.
Unlike the southern states, which were overwhelmingly agricultural New England developed a partly mercantile economy. Fishing was an important industry. Exports of timber and barrels were also important. There was also a ship building industry in New England.
The Europeans introduced many diseases to which the natives had little or no resistance. As a result many natives died and their number declined sharply. As the British colonies grew they inevitably came into conflict with the natives. The Pequot War was fought in 1637-1638 and it ended in the destruction of the Pequot tribe. Another desperate struggle took place in 1675-1676. the colonists heavy-handed treatment of the natives led to King Philip's War. King Philip was actually a native called Metacom and the war ended with his death. Although great damage was done on both sides the defeat of the natives effectively meant that the colonists now had mastery of New England.
In 1692 twenty people died as a result of the Salem Witch Trials
NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY
In 1624 the Dutch West India Company founded a colony called New Netherland. The first settlement was at Fort Orange (Albany). In 1638 Swedes formed a colony at Fort Christina (Wilmington). The Dutch captured this colony in 1655 and made it part of New Netherland. The British captured New Netherland in 1664 and renamed it New York in honor of the king's brother the Duke of York. King Charles II granted the colony to his brother. He in turn granted the land between the Delaware and the Hudson to two men, Lord John Berkeley (1607-167 cool and Sir George Carteret (1615-1680). Carteret came from the island of Jersey in the English Channel and he named the area New Jersey after his home. In 1676 the colony was divided into East and West Jersey. Carteret took East Jersey. In 1681 his widow sold it to William Penn and 11 other Quakers. Penn hoped to turn this new colony into a haven of religious tolerance for Quakers and others. In 1682 the area now called Delaware was ceded to William Penn. In 1704 it was allowed its own assembly. However until the revolution Delaware and Pennsylvania shared a governor. Meanwhile East and West Jersey were reunited in 1702.
MARYLAND
Maryland was founded as a haven for Catholics (though by no means all the early colonists were Catholic, some were Protestant). A man named Cecil Calvert was granted territory north of the Potomac River. His brother Leonard led 200 settlers there to found a colony in 1634. It was named Maryland after the king's wife, Henrietta Maria. By 1640 there were about 500 people in Maryland. It soon became another tobacco growing colony.
CAROLINA AND GEORGIA
The Carolinas were settled after 1663 when Charles II granted them to 8 proprietors. Settlers came from islands in the Caribbean as well as from Virginia and New England. Charleston was founded in 1670. Carolina soon became a slave state. From the end of the 17th century many African slaves were transported to work on the plantations. In the early 18th century the African slave population in North America increased rapidly. In 1701 Carolina was divided into North and South Carolina.
Georgia was founded in 1732 when George II gave it a charter. It was named after him. The first settlement in Georgia was Savannah, which was founded in 1733.
THE GREAT AWAKENING
In the early 18th century there was a great religious revival in the North American colonies. (Later it was given the name 'The Great Awakening'). Leading figures in the revival were William Tennent 1673-1745, a Scottish-Presbyterian preacher, Jonathan Edwards 1703-1758. The English preacher George Whitefield 1714-1770 also visited the colonies and won many converts.
CONFLICT WITH BRITAIN
As the North American colonies grew tension with Britain was inevitable. The British felt that the colonies existed for the benefit of the mother country and this attitude was bound to cause resentment. As early as 1651 the British Parliament passed a navigation act. It stated that any goods grown or made outside Europe must be transported to England in English ships. Other Navigation Acts followed it. The 1660 Navigation Act stated that certain goods (cotton, indigo, sugar and tobacco) could only be exported from the colonies to England or to other colonies. It was followed by acts in 1670 and 1673. However the British made little attempt to enforce these acts and they were widely ignored by the colonists. (After 1763 the British tried to enforce them more rigorously, causing great resentment among the colonists).
In the early 18th century the population of the North American colonies grew rapidly. It was probably about 300,000 at the end of the 17th century but by 1760 it was over 1 million. By 1780 it had doubled. In the early 18th century the population was boosted by immigrants from Northern Ireland (most of them descended from Scottish Presbyterians). There were also many immigrants from Scotland itself. Also in the early 18th century there were many German immigrants. Land was cheap in North America and it attracted many people hoping for a better life.
THE GREAT PROCLAMATION
However relations between the colonists and the mother country turned sour after 1763. The British had just finished fighting the Seven Years War against France. They had won Canada but the war was very expensive. The British were keen to prevent any wars with the Native Americans, which might prove expensive. In 1763 a royal proclamation known as the Great Proclamation sought to ban any further westward expansion. It forbade people to settle in 'any lands beyond the heads or sources of any of the rivers which fall into the Atlantic Ocean from the West or Northwest'. This proclamation was ignored by the colonists but it also caused great resentment. The colonists objected to being told by the British government that they could not expand westwards.
NO TAXATION WITHOUT RESPRESENTATION
Furthermore in 1763 Americans paid few taxes, certainly less than the British. The British felt that the Americans should pay a greater contribution towards the cost of their defense. In 1764 the British Prime Minister, George Grenville, passed the Sugar Act. (So called because it affected imports of molasses from the West Indies. Its proper name was the American Revenue Act.) The act actually reduced duty on molasses but steps were taken to make sure it was collected! (Smuggling was widespread). The Sugar Act infuriated the Americans and they were alienated further by the Currency Act of 1764. The colonies were printing their own money because of a shortage of currency but the act banned the issue of paper money in the American colonies (and so hindered trade).
However most offence was caused by the Stamp Act of 1765, which imposed duty on legal documents, newspapers and playing cards. It was not just that the Americans hated paying the tax but that they felt a constitutional issue was involved. They believed that since they were not represented in the British parliament it had no right to impose taxes on them. In the immortal phrase 'no taxation without representation'. The Stamp Act soon proved to be unenforceable. Colonial assemblies denounced it and in October 1765 a number of colonies sent delegates to a 'Stamp act Congress' to organize resistance. Imports of British goods were boycotted and debts to British merchants were suspended. Rioters attacked tax collectors and their property. Eventually in March 1766 the British were forced to repeal the Stamp Act. However at the same time they passed the Declaratory Act, which said that parliament was sovereign over all American colonies. This stupid act simply annoyed the colonists.
Moreover the British had learned nothing. In 1767 the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Charles Townshend, imposed duties on lead, glass, paint, oil and tea. Once again the colonists boycotted imports of British goods and once again the British government was forced to back down. By March 1770 all duties except those on tea were removed.
THE BOSTON MASSACRE AND THE BOSTON TEA PARTY
However American public opinion was galvanized by the 'Boston massacre' of March 1770. A group of people in Boston threw snowballs at British soldiers. The soldiers opened fire, killing 5 people and wounding 6 of them. Worse all 6 of the 8 soldiers put on trial for the deaths were acquitted. Two were found guilty of manslaughter and branded on the thumbs. The British failure to execute anybody for the massacre outraged American opinion.
Then in 1773 the British East India Company sent tea to the American colonies to sell. Three ships were sent to Boston with 298 chests of tea. However Boston was a center of resistance to the British. On 16 December 1773 men dressed as Indians boarded the ships and threw the tea into the sea.
The British Prime Minister, Lord North, behaved very unwisely. In 1774 a series of laws were passed called the Coercive or Intolerable Acts. The port of Boston was closed and the seat of government was moved to Salem. The charter of Massachusetts was changed to give the royal governor more power.
The Americans were also annoyed by the Quebec Act of 1774. This was an attempt by the British parliament to make the French Catholics loyal to the British Crown. The Act extended the boundaries of Quebec southward and westward. The Americans feared the king intended to settle loyal French speaking Catholics in the West to increase his own power in the region.
THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS
Finally in September 1774 a Continental Congress met to decide policy. They demanded the repeal of the Coercive Acts and of the Quebec Act. The Congress also denounced British interference in American affairs and asserted the right of colonial assemblies to pass laws and raise taxes as they saw fit.
In September 1774 a man named Joseph Galloway put forward a compromise plan. The king would be allowed to appoint president-general and the colonial assemblies would elect a grand council. However the Congress rejected his plan.
Furthermore the British refused to compromise with the Americans. On 5 February 1775 they declared that Massachusetts was in a state of rebellion. British troops were given a free hand to deal with it.
However the American colonies had militias made up of civilians and they resisted the British. Fighting began on 19 April 1775 when British soldiers attempted to seize a colonial arms dump near Concord. The militia were warned that the British were coming. At Lexington the British were met by the militia. The British opened fire killing 8 Americans. Meanwhile the Americans had removed the weapons. The British advanced to Concord and fired upon the militia but then withdrew. They retreated back to Boston with the Americans firing at them along the way. During the march the British lost 73 dead and 200 wounded or missing. The American Revolution had begun.
From April 1775 to March 1776 the British army was besieged in Boston. They could be supplied by sea by the British navy. Nevertheless they soon ran short of supplies. On May 25 the British were reinforced but they were unable to break out. Eventually they were evacuated by sea to Canada.
The Continental Congress met again in May 1775 and agreed to raise an army. George Washington was made its commander in chief. Congress hoped they could force the British to negotiate but George III refused to compromise. Instead in August 1775 he declared that all the American colonies were in a state of rebellion.
Meanwhile rule by royal governor broke down and the people demanded government without royal interference. In May 1776 Congress decided that royal government should cease and government should be 'under the authority of the people'. Subsequently the colonies drew up state constitutions to replace their charters.
Meanwhile the fire was stoked by Tom Paine (1737-1809). In 1776 he published a pamphlet called Common Sense, which rejected all talk of negotiation with the British and demanded complete independence. Common Sense became a best seller.
On 7 June 1776 Richard Henry Lee of the Virginia Assembly presented Congress with resolutions declaring the independence of the colonies, calling for a confederation and expressed the need to find foreign allies for a war against Britain. On 11 June Congress appointed a committee to write a declaration of independence. It was signed on 4 July 1776.
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 11:03 pm
Much better. I even read the first few paragraphs. Well till Jamestown. Everyone dies there right? They drink some arsenic kool-aid, very sad.
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 11:14 pm
girffrommars Much better. I even read the first few paragraphs. Well till Jamestown. Everyone dies there right? They drink some arsenic kool-aid, very sad. No, Jamestown makes it, sort of. A bunch of people starve and get sick and die, but they just keep sending more people to replace them.
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 11:21 pm
Kay9214 girffrommars Much better. I even read the first few paragraphs. Well till Jamestown. Everyone dies there right? They drink some arsenic kool-aid, very sad. No, Jamestown makes it, sort of. A bunch of people starve and get sick and die, but they just keep sending more people to replace them. Your right. I was thinking of Jonestown.
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 11:27 pm
girffrommars Kay9214 girffrommars Much better. I even read the first few paragraphs. Well till Jamestown. Everyone dies there right? They drink some arsenic kool-aid, very sad. No, Jamestown makes it, sort of. A bunch of people starve and get sick and die, but they just keep sending more people to replace them. Your right. I was thinking of Jonestown. Oh. eek I thought you were thinking of colonial Roanoke, that mysteriously vanished without a trace. o.o But yeah, the Kool-aid thing was Jonestown, even if that was only a couple decades back. .-.
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 11:37 pm
Kay9214 girffrommars Kay9214 girffrommars Much better. I even read the first few paragraphs. Well till Jamestown. Everyone dies there right? They drink some arsenic kool-aid, very sad. No, Jamestown makes it, sort of. A bunch of people starve and get sick and die, but they just keep sending more people to replace them. Your right. I was thinking of Jonestown. Oh. eek I thought you were thinking of colonial Roanoke, that mysteriously vanished without a trace. o.o But yeah, the Kool-aid thing was Jonestown, even if that was only a couple decades back. .-. I know right, that was the joke. You have an odd amount of recall on the early american colonies, do you study this or something?
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 11:40 pm
girffrommars Kay9214 girffrommars Kay9214 girffrommars Much better. I even read the first few paragraphs. Well till Jamestown. Everyone dies there right? They drink some arsenic kool-aid, very sad. No, Jamestown makes it, sort of. A bunch of people starve and get sick and die, but they just keep sending more people to replace them. Your right. I was thinking of Jonestown. Oh. eek I thought you were thinking of colonial Roanoke, that mysteriously vanished without a trace. o.o But yeah, the Kool-aid thing was Jonestown, even if that was only a couple decades back. .-. I know right, that was the joke. You have an odd amount of recall on the early american colonies, do you study this or something? Odd amount of recall? How so? o.o
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 11:49 pm
I'm just saying, you seem to have a lot of knowledge about colonial American in ...awww never-mind. Side note: (this might be because I do a lot of editing in Target Practice) Do you every go to quote someone in this guild but accidentally hit edit instead?
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 11:52 pm
girffrommars I'm just saying, you seem to have a lot of knowledge about colonial American in ...awww never-mind. Side note: (this might be because I do a lot of editing in Target Practice) Do you every go to quote someone in this guild but accidentally hit edit instead? I like history, yeah. o.o I'm familiar with Roanoke and Jamestown, but as you probably know, that big paragraph is from a website. Posted by floral somewhere. .-. Yes, all the time. emotion_facepalm Even submit a few edits by accident. xP
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 11:54 pm
Kay9214 girffrommars I'm just saying, you seem to have a lot of knowledge about colonial American in ...awww never-mind. Side note: (this might be because I do a lot of editing in Target Practice) Do you every go to quote someone in this guild but accidentally hit edit instead? I like history, yeah. o.o I'm familiar with Roanoke and Jamestown, but as you probably know, that big paragraph is from a website. Posted by floral somewhere. .-. Yes, all the time. emotion_facepalm Even submit a few edits by accident. xP Well I am glad I am not alone. xp
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Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2013 11:56 pm
girffrommars Kay9214 girffrommars I'm just saying, you seem to have a lot of knowledge about colonial American in ...awww never-mind. Side note: (this might be because I do a lot of editing in Target Practice) Do you every go to quote someone in this guild but accidentally hit edit instead? I like history, yeah. o.o I'm familiar with Roanoke and Jamestown, but as you probably know, that big paragraph is from a website. Posted by floral somewhere. .-. Yes, all the time. emotion_facepalm Even submit a few edits by accident. xP Well I am glad I am not alone. xp Ha ha. I spend more time than I care to admit fixing and hiding my screwups around here. ninja sweatdrop
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Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2013 7:31 am
Kay9214 But I might make a fake thread to scare you. emotion_dowant =P ^____^
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Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2013 12:19 pm
floralsnow Kay9214 But I might make a fake thread to scare you. emotion_dowant =P ^____^ Ha ha, hope this wasn't too mean. xd The real thing wouldn't have said 'in guild' and would have came with a second 'your thread has replies' message. Five hours to go! I wont be around to see it, but I'm pretty sure you're safe now. Good luck!
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