MOD 5 - RACE AND SLAVERY IN ENGLISH NORTH AMERICA

Jamestown

Founded in 1607 — It was England's first permanent settlement in North America.

Tobacco cultivation

Saved the Jamestown colony from failure and became Virginia's main cash crop.

Labor demand in Virginia

The booming tobacco economy created a huge demand for workers.

Early labor force in Virginia and Maryland

Made up mostly of white indentured servants who worked 4-7 years to pay for passage.

First Africans in the Chesapeake

Arrived in small groups, sometimes worked with whites, and had chances for freedom or intermarriage.

John Punch case (1640)

Significant because John Punch, an African man, was sentenced to lifetime servitude — marking the beginning of legal racial slavery.

1662 Virginia law

Established that children inherited the condition of their mother (free or enslaved) → made slavery hereditary.

Chattel slavery

A system where enslaved Africans were treated as personal property with no legal rights.

Virginia law on interracial marriage (1691)

Outlawed marriages between whites and "Negroes, mulattoes, or Indians," banishing offenders from the colony.

Conversion to Christianity and slavery

Did not grant freedom to enslaved Africans — laws declared baptism did not change a person's enslaved status.

Shift from white servants to enslaved Africans

Caused by the decline in indentured servants and access to the transatlantic slave trade making African slavery more attractive.

Bacon's Rebellion (1676)

Influenced slavery by leading elites to emphasize racial divisions to prevent unity among poor whites and blacks.

Black population in Virginia (1650-1750)

Increased from a few hundred in 1650 to 4,000 by 1680, then 44% of the population by 1750.

New Negroes

Africans brought after 1680 — newly enslaved, from Africa's interior, with high death rates after arrival.

Language development among enslaved Africans

A creole language combining English and African elements emerged.

Dismal Swamp revolt (1730)

300 enslaved Africans fled plantations and formed a camp before being captured by colonists and Indian allies.

Treatment of free Blacks and mulattoes in the 1720s

Laws disarmed and disfranchised them, viewing them as dangerous.

Carolina colony founding

Founded in 1663 — slavery was central to its founding vision.

Connection between Barbados and the Carolinas

Half of Carolina settlers came from Barbados, bringing enslaved people and a plantation slave system.

Wealth of South Carolina

Derived from rice — enslaved Africans used their expertise from West Africa to cultivate it.

Christian conversion among slaves in Carolina

Discouraged by planters who feared religious gatherings would lead enslaved people to realize their strength and rebel.

Cultural preservation by enslaved Africans in the Carolinas

Included building homes, cooking, speaking creole languages, and practicing African religious traditions and "country marks."

Country marks

Facial scars or teeth patterns identifying an enslaved person's African origin.

Key features of African religion in the Carolinas

Belief in one supreme God, lesser gods, spirits, and conjurers who could heal or harm.

Mortality rates among enslaved Africans in Carolina

High due to overwork, disease, and brutal living conditions — deaths outnumbered births.

Barbadian Slave Code (1690)

Harsh law allowing brutal punishments for runaways (branding, mutilation, castration).

Entrenchment of slavery by late 18th century

Most entrenched in Chesapeake (Virginia & Maryland) and Low Country (South Carolina & Georgia).

Contradiction of the American Revolution

Colonists fought for liberty and natural rights while continuing to enslave Africans.

African Americans during the American Revolution

Used Revolutionary ideals to demand freedom, fled, or fought on both sides (Patriot and British) seeking emancipation.

Contribution of slavery to white colonial society

Created enormous wealth, a political ruling class, and enabled white notions of liberty built on enslaved labor.