Chesapeake Colonies: Powhatan, Jamestown, and Tobacco Economy

Powhatan

most powerful man Chesapeake (Virginia), head of Indian confederacy w/9,000 people w/ peace and stability, stronger than the English and remained stable in 1617.

Jamestown, Captain John Smith

first English colony in 1607 run by John Smith, Swampy, lacked order, weak, filled with disease.

Pocahontas, John Rolfe

married English settler and native to secure relationship, began Tobacco farming.

Mercantilism

mode of production to have nation state into an economy, not capitalism, needs to be served, headed by strong politic, wealth is limited (finite, must explore and send needed goods back.

Virginia Company of London

charter of merchants in 1606 which sells Chesapeake as stock, land for people to settle adv. to poor, unemployed/craftsman, indenture (fails Kinda).

Headright system (1618)

new settlers receive 50 acres of land for free, extra 50 if paying for poor traveler, attracts labour/bodies, creates class of those rewarded.

House of Burgesses

1619, local representative assembly that establishes tradition of rep. gov., first step to dem. rep. and participation.

Indentured servants

main group of colonists coming in, make it through indenture then buy land and grav sell to tobacco.

Maryland (the Calverts, 'proprietary' colony)

Catholic, King doesn't like success w/ tobacco, indentured servants buy land and too much tobacco grown, Spirals, moves into Native Americans creating tensions.

Oliver Cromwell (1649-1660)

King who rejects independence to Chesapeake, first dictator of England, struggles.

William Berkeley, Nathanial Bacon

Bacon rejected by Berkeley and became a leader to small farmers who had tension w/ crown, William Berkeley was royal governor against small farmers.

Bacon's Rebellion 1676

14 of Virg. w/men landless and run out of options, civil war in Virginia starts, rattled English royalty who elite became a single class.

Durante vita

permanent slavery for life, mainly black servants instead of temp. for whites.

Presumption of servitude

if black, you are a slave person and will be for rest of life, treated differently, turn to West African slaves.