13 Colonies

* Black Death – devastated England * 1400s-1500s – rebirth * Growth of cities, population, trade * Printing press – spread of ideas

* Settlers from England founded colonies * religious tolerance and political representation * Diversity increased * Puritans – English dissenters; wanted to reform church * Hard work, rep. government, education (Bible) * Mayflower Compact – first expression of self-rule * Representative government * Economy – fishing, lumber, shipbuilding and trading

* Religious tolerance and ethnic diversity * Good rivers, fertile soil, mild winters * Quakers – religious freedom and equality * Men rule themselves * Only white males could vote in Rep. Assemblies * Farming-wheat, barley, and oats (Bread Basket)

* Jamestown (1607) – first permanent English Colony * Fortune seekers, African slaves, religious refugees, the poor * Act of Tolerance – forbade religious persecution * Further south – cheaper land * Virginia House of Burgesses – first representative govt. * Economy – Plantations – large farms, self sufficient; relied on slave labor * Tobacco, rice, indigo