Building the Jamestown Colony Chapter Three Section Four

The First English Colony During this time Spain was the riches of the countries, and England envied them. Several wealth Englishmen proposed that the English should establish settlements in the Americas as well. Sir Walter Raleigh raised money to start a colony in North America with the permission of Queen Elizabeth.

The First English Colony In 1585, 100 men set sail across the Atlantic to the new land. These sailors landed in Roanoke an island off of North Carolina. Within a year they ran out of food and were fighting with Indians. An English ship came and many of the settlers left back to England.

The First English Colony In 1587 Raleigh sent John White, back to Roanoke with new settlers including women and children. Supplies again ran low and White returned to England leaving 117 colonist behind. He had originally planned to return in a few months but when he arrived in England the country was at war with Spain.

The First English Colony It took 3 years before he could return with supplies. When he arrived back to Roanoke he saw that he colony was empty. There was one word carved into a tree, “CROATOAN” the name of a nearby island. White was going to investigate but a storm was coming and the crew refused to go to the island. No one knows what happened to the colony

Challenge and Survival in Jamestown It took 20 years before England attempted to make another colony in the Americas. In 1606, the Virginia Company of London received a charter from King James I. What is a charter? This charter gave the company the right to settle lands between the lands of North Carolina and the Potomac River. It guaranteed what?

Challenge and Survival in Jamestown In 1607, a group of 105 colonists arrived in Virginia. They sailed into ______ and began building homes along the James River. Their outpost was called______ after who___? What was wrong with the outpost? There was a council of 13 men that were chosen by the Virginia Company to rule the outpost. The council fought all the time and did little for the outpost.

Challenge and Survival in Jamestown The colonist only wanted to dig for gold as opposed to planting crops. This caused the colony to begin to starve. Captain John Smith saved the colony by setting up rules that forced the colonists to work if they wanted to eat. He also visited nearby Indian villages to make amends.

Challenge and Survival in Jamestown Powhatan was what and agreed to what? Were the relations between the colonists and the Indians always peaceful? What did the colonists do to the Indians? What did Smith do to Powhatan’s brother? Peace resumed briefly when colonist John Rolfe married Pocahontas the daughter of Powhatan.

Challenge and Survival in Jamestown

Challenge and Survival in Jamestown The colony faced terrible times. The often had to cook their dogs, cats, snakes, toadstools to survive. To keep warm they broke down homes and burned the wood. It wasn’t until 1612 that the colony began to improve when the colonist began to grow what? King James called the pip smoking ____? By 1620, England was importing more than 30,000 pounds of tobacco a year.

Representative Government The colony for a long time was run like a military post. Every morning a drumbeat summoned settlers to work at their assigned tasks. Harsh laws imposed the death penalty for small offenses like stealing corn. Not many wanted to move to the colony to live under those conditions.

Representative Government To attract more settlers the Virginia Company allowed male settlers to elect burgesses or representative to their government. Where did the burgesses assemble? Together with the council the burgesses made laws for the colony. Their first meeting was in July and August of 1619 in a church. This marked the beginning of what?

Representative Government Define Representative Government. Were does the idea of political rights come from? What did the document say? Eventually the rights won by the nobles were extended to other people. Later the Great Council grew into ______.

Representative Government How is Parliament divided? Who were the few that had the right to vote? The English had established the principle that even monarchs had to obey the laws.

Representative Government At first Virginia’s had more rights than those in the mother land, England. They did not have to own property to vote. In 1670, the colony restricted the right to vote to free, white males who owned property. Even though many were excluded from voting the idea that colonist had a say in the affairs of the colony became very important. Colonist came to refer to the Virginia Company’s 1619 frame of government as their own “Great Charter.”

New Arrivals During the beginning few women and workers came to the colony. The first women to arrive came in 1608 “Mistress Forrest” and her maid Anne Burras. In 1619, the Virginia Company sent out about 100 women to help “make the men more settled.” Many married and the company profited from the marriages, because it charged each man who found a wife 150 pounds of tobacco.

New Arrivals Women survived the hardships of the colony better than the men. Men were twice as likely to die than women. Women had to make everything from scratch- food, clothing, even medicines. Many died young from hard work or from childbirth. In 1624, there were fewer than 300 women in Jamestown compared to over a thousand men.

New Arrivals Africans also came to Virginia. Research shows that 15 men and 17 women were living in Jamestown by 1619. In 1619, the Dutch shipped 20 more Africans. They sold them to the Virginias who needed laborers to grow tobacco. The colonist valued the agricultural skills the Africans brought.

New Arrivals In 1644, there were about 300 Africans living in Virginia. Some were slaves for life. Other were servants and given one day to work their own fields. Some became free planters. Anthony Johnson a colonist, owned 250 acres of land and employed five servants to help him work it. For a time, the free Africans in Virginia could vote.

New Arrivals In the late 1600’s, Virginia set up a system of laws that allowed white colonist to enslave Africans for life. Slavery expanded and the Africans lost their rights. By the 1700’s, the free African property owners could not vote.