Notes on Early European Colonization, the Protestant Reformation, and New World English Settlements

Spanish Imperial Expansion and New World Wealth

• The Papal Grant of 1493 and Spanish Imperial Claims:

  • In 1493, a grant made by the Pope assigned territorial claim over North America to the Spanish monarchy.
  • By the mid-1500s, Spain claimed ownership of North America based on this 1493 papal grant.

• Establishment of Saint Augustine (1565):

  • Saint Augustine was established in Florida in 1565 as the first permanent European settlement in North America.
  • Served as a critical strategic outpost to protect Spanish treasure ships from pirates and privateers patrolling the Southern Atlantic Ocean.
  • These privateers targeted Spanish galleons returning to Spain with holds filled with looted gold and silver.

• Territorial Expansion in the 1500s:

  • Spanish outposts and settlements were extended throughout Florida, present-day South Carolina, Northern Mexico, and Southern New Mexico (including Santa Fe).
  • Expansion into Northern Mexico represented a direct extension of the Spanish mining frontier, which ultimately pushed into modern-day Texas.
  • Spanish officials continually pursued rumors of fabulous undiscovered riches awaiting anyone who could find them over the next horizon.

• The Potosí Silver Mine:

  • Potosí, located in Bolivia, was the greatest mine in the New World.
  • The mining settlement boomed to a population of 120,000 people, consisting primarily of Indigenous Indian laborers.
  • Indian workers extracted silver in grueling shifts lasting 14 hours.
  • Processing silver required deadly mercury, which routinely poisoned the Indian workers and caused short lifespans.
  • Silver was shipped by galleon to Spain, causing runaway inflation across Europe due to dumping massive amounts of silver onto the European market.

• Spain's 16th-Century Golden Age and Demographics:

  • The 1500s marked Spain's economic and political "Golden Age."
  • By 1600, more than 200 Europeans (mostly Spanish) had immigrated to the New World.
  • Over 125,000 enslaved Africans had been forcibly brought to the Caribbean to work for Spanish and Portuguese plantation owners.

• Dynastic Rule of King Charles I (Holy Roman Emperor Charles V):

  • King Charles I of Spain pursued a massive dynastic empire.
  • Through judicious bribes, Charles I secured his election as Holy Roman Emperor over most of Europe, making him Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.
  • Despite his global ambitions, Charles V confronted an unexpected challenge: the Protestant Reformation.

The Protestant Reformation and Luther's 95 Theses

• Dominance of the 16th-Century Catholic Church:

  • The Roman Catholic Church dominated Europe's spiritual landscape and was the official state religion of every European country.
  • The word "Catholic" means "universal church," with the Pope serving as the supreme religious leader on Earth.
  • The Church grew wealthy from New World gold and silver and from practices such as the sale of indulgences.
  • Indulgences were defined as dispensations from punishments due for sins in life and purgatory, effectively selling salvation for money paid to the Catholic Church.

• Martin Luther and the 95 Theses (1517):

  • German monk Martin Luther initiated the Protestant Reformation in 1517 by publishing his 95 Theses.
  • The document criticized systemic abuses within Catholicism, specifically condemning priests selling the forgiveness of sins for money or goods through indulgences.
  • Luther introduced the doctrine of Justification by Faith, rejecting the concept of a vengeful God.
  • Luther claimed that believers could be saved solely through faith—not through indulgences, good works, tithing, or church rituals.
  • Luther encouraged the masses to turn to the Bible in their native language as the true source of authority for God's will, rather than relying on Catholic priests to interpret Latin scripture.
  • Luther hoped to reform the Catholic Church, but instead split Western Christianity permanently into Roman Catholicism and Protestantism.

The Spread of Protestantism and European Religious Conflict

• Emergence of Protestant Denominations:

  • Followers of Martin Luther became known as Protestants.
  • Protestantism organized into several key denominations tracing their roots to the reform tradition: Lutheranism, Calvinism, Presbyterianism, Anabaptism (anti-baptism), and Anglicanism.

• Catholic Counter-Resistance and Religious Warfare:

  • The Pope and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V promised to destroy every Protestant.
  • King Philip II of Spain, successor and son to Charles V, made destroying Protestantism his life's mission.
  • Philip II ruled from El Escorial, his royal home located just outside Madrid, Spain.
  • State-sponsored persecution ignited violent religious wars across Spain, France, and the entire European continent over the next century.
  • Persecution unintentionally caused Protestantism to gain ground and grow stronger.

• John Calvin and Calvinist Doctrine:

  • John Calvin fled persecution in France for the Swiss Alps in tolerant Switzerland, where he constructed a model Protestant community.
  • Calvin expanded Luther's ideas by developing the doctrine of Predestination.
  • Predestination asserted that God had already chosen the "elect" for salvation and left all others for damnation.
  • Followers looked for signs of being among the elect by living strict, upright, and pious lives.
  • Calvinists valued hard work and sobriety while detesting immoral behavior (drunkenness, gambling, womanizing) as definitive signs of being unsaved.
  • This ideology birthed the concept of the "Protestant work ethic."

The English Reformation and the Church of England

• King Henry VIII's Severance from Rome:

  • England had been Catholic until King Henry VIII sought an annulment from his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, who failed to produce a surviving male heir.
  • Under normal circumstances, the Pope might have granted the annulment, but the Pope was under siege by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, who was Catherine's relative (cousin).
  • To avoid angering the Holy Roman Emperor, the Pope refused the annulment.
  • Henry VIII wanted to marry Anne Boleyn, who was pregnant, so her child could be his legitimate heir.
  • Henry VIII severed ties with Rome and forced the English clergy to recognize him as supreme head of the newly created Church of England (Anglican Church).
  • Henry appointed a new Archbishop of Canterbury who granted the annulment from Catherine of Aragon, enabling his marriage to Anne Boleyn.
  • Henry VIII eventually had Anne Boleyn beheaded and married four more times (six wives total).

• Features of the New Anglican Church:

  • Queen Elizabeth I, daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, expanded the power of the Church of England.
  • While Protestant, the Anglican Church retained Catholic hierarchical structures, including clergy composed of bishops and archbishops.
  • Distinctive changes made by the Anglican Church:
  • Converted Latin liturgy into the native language via the English Book of Common Prayer.
  • Eliminated the veneration of saints (criticized by English reformers as the "cult of saints").
  • Allowed Anglican clergy and bishops to marry, unlike celibate Catholic priests.

Puritanism, Separatism, and the Flight to Holland

• Emergence of Puritans:

  • Many English Protestants felt the Anglican Church retained too many Catholic elements and had not gone far enough in purifying itself (e.g., failing to denounce the rituals of the mass).
  • Because the King of England was the supreme head of both church and state, criticizing the Church of England put reformers in direct conflict with the monarchy.
  • An economic crisis in England caused dispossessed artisans and landless farmers to join the ranks of the Puritans.

• Separatists vs. Non-Separating Puritans:

  • Most Puritans preferred to work within the Anglican Church for reform.
  • Radical Puritans called Separatists chose to break away from the Church of England entirely.

• Puritan Theology and Society:

  • Separatists fled persecution in England to tolerant European enclaves such as Frankfurt, Geneva, Strasbourg, and locations in The Netherlands.
  • Puritans sought to clean society of corrupt practices through civil government regulating culture and prohibiting vices (gambling, drunkenness, swearing, and Sabbath non-attendance).
  • Services were long, austere affairs composed of direct biblical sermons.
  • Church membership was restricted exclusively to the "visibly godly" (men and women who led upright, pious lives).

• The Pilgrims in Holland (1607):

  • The Pilgrims belonged to an uncompromising Separatist sect that formed their own church covenant, an act deemed treasonous under English law.
  • To escape imprisonment and persecution, the Pilgrims fled to Holland (The Netherlands) in 1607.
  • Although the Dutch tolerated their religious practices, the Pilgrims were restricted to poor, low-wage, high-exertion manual labor and lived in poverty.
  • Fearing their children were assimilating into Dutch culture, the Pilgrims resolved to leave Europe and found a colony in the New World.

The Mayflower Voyage and Plymouth Plantation

• Authorization and Joint-Stock Financing:

  • King James I of England permitted the Pilgrims to settle within English territorial claims in Virginia.
  • The Pilgrims obtained a land patent from the Virginia Company and formed a joint-stock company to share financial risk.

• The Mayflower Voyage (1620):

  • In 1620, 101 men, women, and children set sail aboard the Mayflower.
  • Passengers consisted of two groups:
  • Saints: Puritans recognized as chosen by God for salvation.
  • Strangers: Non-Separatist passengers without the gift of grace, who were critical to community survival.
  • Key "Strangers":
  • John Alden: A cooper (barrel maker), providing vital trade skills.
  • Miles Standish: A professional soldier hired to organize colonial defense and security.

• Settlement at Plymouth:

  • Rough Atlantic seas blew the Mayflower off course north to Cape Cod in modern-day Massachusetts.
  • Unable to head south to Virginia due to rough seas, the Pilgrims settled at Plymouth (Plymouth Plantation).
  • The settlement featured cleared fields and fresh running water, occupying a site previously cleared by an Indian village that had been vacated or decimated by disease.

• The Winter of 1620–1621:

  • The Mayflower anchored in the harbor through the first winter to offer support and shelter.
  • Exposure, malnutrition, and illness killed more than 50% (half) of the Pilgrims during the winter of 1620–1621.

Native American Relations: Wampanoags, Squanto, and Conflict

• The Wampanoag Alliance:

  • The surviving 50% of Pilgrims survived due to help from the Wampanoag Indians and their leader, Massasoit.
  • Massasoit and his warriors taught the Pilgrims how to grow maize (corn) and provided food.
  • In return, the Pilgrims allied with the Wampanoag and traded firearms to them.
  • Massasoit sought firearms to defend the Wampanoag against their stronger traditional enemies, the Narragansett tribe.

• The Role of Squanto (Tisquantum / Desquantum):

  • Squanto was a Wampanoag native who spoke both English and Spanish.
  • He had been captured by Spanish slavers, taken to Spain, freed upon his master's death, sold to a British slaver where he learned English, and eventually returned to North America.
  • Squanto acted as a vital interpreter and instructor, guiding the Pilgrims to produce a bumper crop of corn by autumn 1621.

• Emergence of Racial Conflict and Violence:

  • Governor William Bradford viewed Native Americans as "savage brutish men" despite their lifesaving assistance.
  • Miles Standish armed all colonial men and barred Native Americans from entering Plymouth Plantation, confusing the allied Wampanoag.
  • English settlers let cattle, horses, and pigs roam freely without fencing, destroying unfenced Wampanoag crop gardens.
  • Settlers took over seasonal Indian villages emptied by European smallpox and typhus epidemics.
  • Miles Standish conducted violent raids on Native villages and mounted the severed head of a Narragansett Indian on a stake in Plymouth as a warning to local tribes.

Colonial Charters, Mayflower Compact, and Massachusetts Bay

• English Colonial Territorial Jurisdictions:

  • Settling in America without a royal patent or license was illegal under English law.
  • The English monarchy divided North American territorial claims between two corporate entities:
  • London Virginia Company: Jurisdiction from modern North Carolina north to New Jersey.
  • Plymouth Virginia Company: Jurisdiction from modern New York north to Maine.
  • Plymouth sat outside the legal jurisdiction of both companies.

• The Mayflower Compact:

  • Because they landed outside established legal jurisdiction, the Pilgrims created their own government framework.
  • Signed aboard ship by 41 adult male passengers (excluding women).
  • Signatories agreed to abide by laws established by leaders of their own choosing.
  • The Mayflower Compact established that civil government is a covenant deriving legitimate authority strictly from the consent of the governed.

• Founding of the Massachusetts Bay Colony (1629):

  • In 1629, a group of Puritan merchants and country gentlemen obtained a royal charter to establish the Massachusetts Bay Colony, located directly north of Plymouth Plantation.
  • Stockholders elected John Winthrop, a prosperous lawyer and landowner, as governor.
  • Self-Rule Charter Provision: Unlike prior charters managed from England, the Massachusetts Bay charter explicitly allowed the government of the colony to be located directly within the colony itself.
  • Massachusetts Bay Colony grew rapidly, eventually overshadowing the smaller Plymouth Plantation settlement.