APUSH Unit 2: European Colonization, Colonial Society, and Revolution

Who were the first Europeans to colonize the Americas?

The Spanish were the first to colonize the Americas.

What was the primary means by which the Spanish sought wealth in the Americas?

The Spanish sought wealth primarily through agriculture and mining gold and silver.

What system did the Spanish use to subjugate Native Americans for labor?

The encomienda system.

What did the Spanish replace the encomienda system with when it failed?

Forced labor from Africa.

What social structure did the Spanish introduce in their colonies?

A caste system that created hierarchical levels in society.

What was one of the goals of the Spanish in their colonies besides wealth extraction?

To convert Native Americans to Christianity through the mission system.

What year did Samuel de Champlain establish Quebec?

1608

What was the primary focus of French colonization compared to the Spanish?

The French had a greater interest in trade, particularly in fish and fur, rather than conquest.

How did the French establish kinship ties with Native Americans?

Some French traders married Native women to strengthen trading networks.

Which Native American group did the French foster alliances with?

The Ojibwe people.

What year did the Dutch establish New Netherland?

1624

What was the primary motivation for Dutch colonialism?

Economic gain, focusing on trade.

What was the significance of New Amsterdam in Dutch colonialism?

It became a trading hub that attracted traders, fishermen, and farmers.

What were the main motivations for British colonization?

Economic opportunities, religious freedom, and improving living conditions.

What economic changes influenced the British to seek new colonies?

The Columbian Exchange and the diminishing wealth of the nobles after wars with France.

What was a significant challenge faced by the British in establishing colonies?

There was no large empire of natives to coerce into labor.

What was the first North American settlement established by the British?

Jamestown.

What company financed the founding of Jamestown?

The Virginia Company, a Joint-Stock Company.

What was the primary purpose of the Jamestown colony?

To generate profit.

What initial struggles did the Jamestown colonists face?

They neglected farming while searching for gold, leading to famine and disease.

What extreme measure did Jamestown colonists resort to due to famine?

Cannibalism.

What was the outcome of the focus on gold and silver in Jamestown?

They found little gold, resulting in a struggling economy.

What crop saved Jamestown and became its primary cash crop?

Tobacco

In what year was tobacco discovered in Jamestown?

1612

What was the impact of the increased demand for tobacco on Native Americans?

Farmers needed more land, leading to encroachment on Native American land and violent retaliation from Native Americans.

Who was the governor of the Jamestown colony during the conflicts with Native Americans?

William Berkeley

What was Bacon's Rebellion and when did it occur?

A rebellion in 1676-1677 led by angry farmers and indentured servants against Native Americans and Governor Berkeley's plantations.

What were the consequences of Bacon's Rebellion for landowners?

Landowners began to fear uprisings from indentured servants and sought a new source of labor: enslaved people from Africa.

Who primarily performed labor in the early Jamestown colony?

Indentured servants.

What was the typical labor contract for indentured servants?

They signed a 7-year labor contract to pay off their settlement fees and then gained their freedom.

Who settled New England and in what year?

Pilgrims settled New England in 1620.

What were the primary reasons for the Pilgrims' settlement in America?

While seeking religious freedom, economic reasons were also significant, as they struggled to make a living in urban Holland.

What was the main religious group among the settlers of New England?

Puritans, who were Protestants unhappy with the Church of England.

Why did the Pilgrims leave Holland before coming to America?

They faced difficulties making a living as farmers in an urban area.

What motivated Jamestown colonists to migrate compared to New England colonists?

Jamestown colonists migrated for profit without familial connections, while New England colonists migrated with familial connections to establish a society and create family economies as farmers.

What challenges did the Jamestown settlers face in their early years?

Fever and disease killed nearly half of the original settlers.

What economic activities characterized the early society of Jamestown after its establishment?

They established a thriving society and economy centered on agriculture and commerce.

When did the British establish their first colonies in the Caribbean?

1620

What was the primary cash crop in the British West Indies until the 1630s?

Tobacco.

What crop replaced tobacco as the primary cash crop in the British West Indies?

Sugarcane.

Why did the demand for African enslaved people spike in the British West Indies?

Sugarcane cultivation was very labor-intensive.

What significant demographic change occurred in Barbados by 1660?

The majority of the population on Barbados was Black.

What legal measures did planter elites enact regarding enslaved people in the British West Indies?

They enacted harsh slave codes that formally defined enslaved people as property (chattel).

How did Southern Carolina's society relate to the British West Indies?

Southern Carolina was inspired by the British West Indies colonies and tried to replicate such a society on the mainland.

What type of economy developed in New York and New Jersey?

An export economy based on cereal crops (grains used for food).

What social structure emerged in the Middle Colonies?

It included urban merchants, artisans, shopkeepers, unskilled laborers, orphans, widows, unemployed, and enslaved Africans.

Who founded Pennsylvania and what were his values?

William Penn founded Pennsylvania as a Quaker and Pacifist, promoting religious freedom for all and negotiating with Native Americans during land expansion.

What commonality existed across all the colonies regarding governance?

Britain could not govern the colonies effectively, leading to the establishment of their own democratic systems of governance.

What was the Virginia House of Burgesses?

A representative assembly that could levy taxes and pass laws.

What was the New England Mayflower Compact?

An agreement that organized their government based on a self-governing church congregation, concentrating power into participatory town meetings.

What was the nature of representative bodies in the Middle Colonies?

They were dominated by elite merchants.

What characterized the representative bodies in the Southern Colonies?

They were dominated by elite planters.

What was the Triangular Trade?

A three-part journey followed by merchant ships, involving trade between Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

What was the Middle Passage?

The journey of enslaved people from Africa to the Americas, marked by awful conditions.

What economic principle drove the trade during the late 17th and early 18th centuries?

Mercantilism.

What is the main goal of mercantilism?

To maintain a favorable balance of trade, meaning more exports than imports.

What did the 1650 Navigation Acts require?

Merchants had to engage in trade with English colonies exclusively in English ships, and valuable trade items had to pass exclusively through British ports.

What were the impacts of trans-Atlantic trade on colonial society?

It generated massive wealth for elites, transformed sea ports into thriving urban centers, and contributed to a consumer revolution.

How did the consumer revolution change societal structure in colonial America?

Affluent families began to buy more goods, changing the way society was shaped, moving away from a structure strongly tied to family lineage.

What was the caste system implemented by the Spanish in the Americas?

It reordered people based on their racial ancestry, placing Native Americans at the bottom.

What coercive measures did the Spanish use to convert the Pueblo to Christianity?

They employed abusive measures, leading to the Pueblo Revolt.

What labor system forced conquered peoples into servitude under the Spanish?

The encomienda system.

How did the English colonists' settlement patterns differ from those of the Spanish?

The English settled in areas without large empires or labor forces to enslave, often traveling as family groups.

What was the initial relationship between the English colonists and Native Americans?

They coexisted peacefully, borrowing cultural practices from each other.

What led to the encroachment of Native lands by English settlers?

The growing population in New England increased the demand for land.

What was Metacom's War, and who was involved?

Metacom's War (1675-1678) involved Chief Metacom of the Wampanoag and other Native groups resisting British encroachment.

What tactics did the Natives use during Metacom's War?

They burned fields, killed men, and captured women and children.

What happened to Metacom at the end of the war?

He was ambushed and killed by British allies, leading to the squashing of Native resistance.

How did the French approach their interactions with Native Americans?

They viewed them as trade partners and military allies, often marrying into Native groups.

What was the nature of French settlements compared to the Spanish and English?

The French did not establish colonial societies but created trading posts for the fur trade.

Why did Europeans rarely see Native Americans as equals?

Due to the diverse and often warring nature of Native groups, Europeans faced little unified resistance.

What strategies did Native Americans adopt in response to European colonization?

They allied with certain European groups or relocated to areas not yet settled by Europeans.

What was the role of indentured servants in the British colonies?

They worked under contract for a specified period in exchange for passage, room, and board.

What was the Headright System in Virginia?

It offered 50 acres of land to immigrants who paid for their own passage and to plantation owners who paid for an immigrant's passage.

What significant change occurred in the late 1660s regarding slavery in Virginia?

Laws were enacted that kept Africans and their offspring in permanent bondage.

How did the number of enslaved people and related laws change in the early 18th century?

They greatly expanded, particularly in the southern colonies.

Which British colonies had the highest number of enslaved people?

The West Indian sugar islands.

What factors contributed to the increasing importance of slavery in the southern colonies?

Reduced migration due to increased wages in England and the need for low-cost labor as tobacco prices fell.

What crops became the most profitable in the southern colonies during the early 18th century?

Rice and indigo.

What was a significant consequence of Bacon's Rebellion regarding labor in the colonies?

Landowners wanted to rely more on African slaves than indentured servants, fearing another uprising.

What is chattel slavery?

Race-based slavery where slaves are seen as property.

What were slave laws adopted by white colonists intended to ensure?

That slaves would be held in bondage for life and that slave status would be inherited.

What was the significance of Massachusetts in 1641 regarding slavery?

It became the first colony to recognize the enslavement of 'lawful' captives.

What did Virginia's 1661 legislation establish about children of enslaved mothers?

Children automatically inherited their mother's enslaved status for life.

What did the 1664 legislation overturn regarding English law?

It overturned the law that people baptized as Christians could not be enslaved.

What are some forms of covert resistance to slavery?

Practicing cultural customs, maintaining belief systems, speaking native languages, keeping naming practices from home, and slowing work pace by breaking tools and damaging crops.

What was the Stono Rebellion of 1739?

A small group of enslaved men stole weapons, killed white storeowners, and burned plantations, challenging the notion that African Americans were lesser beings.

What factors contributed to the exceptional population growth in the 18th century colonies?

Immigration of almost 1 million people and a high birthrate among colonial families.

What attracted thousands of Europeans to the colonies?

Abundance of fertile land and a dependable food supply.

What characterized the structure of colonial society in terms of liberty and opportunity?

Colonies offered more self-determination, religious toleration, no hereditary aristocracy, and easier social mobility.

How did geography influence the economy of the New England colonies?

Rocky soil and long winters led families to engage in subsistence farming.

What was the economic focus of the Middle colonies?

Rich soil allowed for an abundance of crops to export to Europe and the West Indies.

What was the agricultural diversity in the Southern Colonies attributed to?

Diverse geography and climate.

How did the British control the colonial economy?

By requiring the use of limited gold and silver rather than paper money.

What law banned paper money in 1764?

The Currency Act

Who were some key political writers during the colonial period?

Ben Franklin, John Adams, James Otis, John Dickinson, Thomas Paine, and Thomas Jefferson.

What significant work did Phillis Wheatley publish in 1773?

Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral.

What was the Zenger Case of 1735?

A trial where John Peter Zenger was charged with libel for criticizing New York's royal governor, leading to a jury dismissal that encouraged criticism of the government.

What intellectual movement emphasized rational thinking over tradition and religious revelation from 1685 to 1815?

The Enlightenment.

What did John Locke argue in his Two Treatises of Government?

He argued that government is bound to follow natural laws and that people have the right to revolt against a government that fails to protect their rights.