Introduction to the British Empire in North America

Vocabulary flashcards covering the rise of English privateers, the defeat of the Spanish Armada, and the key factors driving English colonial expansion in North America.

Privateers

State-sponsored pilots or sailors hired unofficially by the English crown to attack Spanish and Portuguese gold and silver shipments in the New World.

Sir Francis Drake

An English privateer who raided Spanish silver shipments, circumnavigated the globe between 1578 and 1580 to escape a chasing Spanish fleet, and led the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588.

Spanish Armada

A fleet sent by Spain in 1588 containing over 200 warships, thousands of soldiers, cannons, and horses to launch an all-out invasion of England.

Protestant wind

The term used by the English to describe the massive storm in the English Channel in 1588 that destroyed hundreds of ships in the attacking Spanish Armada.

Joint stock companies

Colonial and business ventures in England created by pooling investment money from multiple lords rather than relying on a single monarch for funding.

Free enterprise

The system of economic freedom in England that allowed individuals to make business deals and launch colonial ventures without needing direct permission from the king or queen.

Willing population

A major factor in English colonial success characterized by groups of settlers, such as the Puritans, who migrated with the intention of staying in the New World permanently.

John Winthrop

The leader of the Puritan church in England who encouraged his followers to migrate to the New World to escape persecution and build a purified Christian society.

Puritans

A Protestant group facing persecution in England who believed they were God's select favorites and sought to establish a purified form of Christianity in North America.

City on the hill

A famous sermon delivered by John Winthrop framing America as a new civilization built around a purified church that would serve as a beacon to save humanity and Christianity.