OS

Lecture 2: The Formation of the 13 Colonies pt. 1

The French in Canada

  • Goals: Northwest Passage; fur trade; establishing Quebec (1608) and a northern empire hub.

  • Key concept: Middle Ground with Indigenous peoples where alliances and trade shaped relations.

  • Territorial shifts: Treaty of Utrecht (1713) ceded territories from France to Great Britain (Canada region, Newfoundland, Acadia, Hudson Bay area).

The Dutch

  • Year: 1609 — Henry Hudson searches for Northwest Passage; claims New Netherland.

  • Key locations: New Amsterdam (later New York); presence in the region with slaves and a polyglot, multi-ethnic settlement.

  • Significance: Early Dutch footprint in North America, shaping trade networks and cosmopolitan settlement patterns.

The English

  • Drivers: Religious and economic competition with Spain; privateering (Sea Dogs).

  • Early failed colony: Roanoke (1585).

  • Model: Irish experience in colonization influenced English approach to frontier settlement.

Virginia (early settlement and growth)

  • Jamestown established: 1607

  • Powhatan Confederation: about 10000 strong; complex relations with colonists.

  • Hard realities: Disease, starvation, and leadership challenges (John Smith’s leadership).

  • Economic shift: Tobacco becomes a cash crop; lays groundwork for plantation economy.

  • Labor system: Emergence of indentured servitude to address labor shortages.

  • Headright system: Incentive grants of land to new arrivals and sponsors.

Virginia (1619–1622) and the beginnings of slavery

  • 1619: First House of Burgesses established; first Africans arrive (about 20 Africans).

  • 1622: Powhatan attack on settlements underscores ongoing conflicts and the precarious nature of frontier colonization.

  • Settler justification of racial hierarchy begins to emerge as slavery becomes more entrenched.

Massachusetts

  • Origins: Pilgrims and Puritans arriving in 1620/1630; disease and environment influence settlement.

  • Cultural ethos: Puritan characteristics; “City upon a Hill” vision; influence on social and political norms.

  • Dissent and governance: Religious conformity enforced; exile leads to Roger Williams and the founding of Rhode Island.

Geographic context (summary)

  • New England geography shaped by coastal settlement, rivers, and port towns (e.g., Boston, Plymouth, New Haven, Providence).

  • Region served as a springboard for English colonial expansion and shaped regional identities.

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