1. Summer Assignment Powerpoint Guide, Chapter 3: Understanding the Big Picture

2. England’s Colonial Empire
Mercantilism and
England’s Colonial Empire

3. Mercantilism
Mercantilism : view of economic world as collection of nation states who compete for shares of finite wealth.
– Each nation should regulate trade and
production in order to become economically self-
sufficient.
– The colonies’ role in this process was strictly to provide
raw materials to the “mother country” to fuel that
country’s industry. (Seeking “balance of trade” in mother country’s favor)
England had adopted this theory in the 1650s And began enforcing it once political upheaval had subsided.

5. The Navigation Acts, 1650s—1670s
Motivation: London merchants convinced Parliament to
protect them from (Dutch) competition and
keep colonial wealth within the English realm.
--Exports/imports between England and her colonies had to use English ships with majority English crews.
--Allowed trade of enumerated items with England only (ex. wool, tobacco, sugar, fur)
--Demanded most imports into colonies come exclusively from England OR pass through English ports for tax purposes.
England then sent English government customs officials (for the first time) directly to the colonial ports to enforce these additional laws.

6. Colonial Response
– First Charles II, then James II, expanded upon—and began to enforce—the Navigation Acts.
Response: Colonists wanted option to use cheaper non-
English shipping (Colonial/Dutch)options . . .
Mostly ignored or, at best, only partially obeyed as England struggled for internal stability.

7. The Dominion of New England
• New Englanders in particular paid little attention to the new Navigation Acts. So upon coming to power James II (1685) sought to keep the colonies in line 
The Dominion of New England (1686)
– the New England colonies were combined with New York and New Jersey into one entity, the Dominion of New England (MA Bay charter was revoked).
-- Sir Edmund Andros was put in charge of the Dominion
– The representative assemblies of each of the colonies were dissolved
– Andros also created new taxes and increased existing ones

8. The Glorious Revolution (1688)
-- The Dominion was a disaster and was a contributing factor in James II losing power in 1688 
In England
– Protestant William and Mary overthrew James II (who practiced Catholicism!)
Constitutional Monarchy reaffirmed
Created Board of Trade (1696) to oversee trade relations

9. The Glorious Revolution in the Colonies
Rebellion against Governor Andros and the dissolution of the Dominion of New England
Old colonial charters restored
Parliament pushed for all colonies to be “royal”/have governorPlymouth and MA Bay combined in 1691
Legislative assemblies still held considerable powers—but Royal governors reported back to England . . .
Sir Edmond Andros

10. Salutary Neglect Moving Towards Self-Rule
Beginning around 1700, England’s attention shifted away from the colonies (and toward imperial wars with Spain and France)
an era of “Salutary Neglect”
(Salutary=“beneficial”/ “healthy”)
Navigation Acts again went unenforced.
At this point, England didn’t care as long as the colonies still made money for the “mother” country.
Citizens thus became more attached to/protective of their colonial legislatures—if England wasn’t going to protect/guide them then they would have to fend for themselves . . .

11. The Rise of Colonial Assemblies
In the absence of direct leadership, colonial legislatures took control of local taxation and appointments.
At times, legislatures refused to pay salary of royal governor.
10 legislatures established “land banks” to print paper currency when hard money (gold and silver) were in short supply against Parliament’s wishes.