ENGLISH SETTLEMENT OF AMERICA

The English in Virginia

The Main Idea

After several failures, the English established a permanent settlement at Jamestown, Virginia.

Reading Focus

• Why were the first English colonies established?

• What helped the Jamestown colony survive?

• How did Virginia grow and change during the 1600s?

Roanoke – The Lost Colony

• 1587 – Sir Walter Raleigh settled area off North Carolina

• 100 settlers, mostly families• He went back to England for supplies• War kept him away for 3 years• When he returned, colony had vanished • Only clue was “Croatan” carved on a

post. • What happened to them??

The First English Colonies

Reasons English settlers came to AmericaEconomic reasons – to make moneyFarmers strugglingLand was scarce in EnglandYoung men looking for adventure

charter – permission to settle an area Joint-stock companies – were to govern and

maintain colonies, profits from went back to investors and king

The Jamestown Colony

The First Settlers - 1607

Three ships and over 100 men went to Virginia,

100 survived the crossing, landing in Jamestown

Problems: natives (Powhatan), unsafe water; malaria, dysentery, people weak, lazy, looked for treasure, not food

Only 38 were alive when more English colonists arrived

The Jamestown Colony

Captain John Smith helped trade for food with the natives, built houses, explored,

Captured by natives, chief’s daughter, Pocahontas, saved him, helped keep peace

Smith became leader in 1608Stole food from the Indians If a man wanted to eat, he had to work

starving time – winter 1609, natives angry, killed livestock and prevented them from hunting.

Headrights - 50-acre land grants to people who paid for voyage to colony

Skilled artisans brought in to help the economy

Indentured servants would work for a certain number of years, then freed

The Jamestown Colony

John Rolfe –grew tobacco (brown gold), made colony profitable.

Rolfe married Pocahontas, securing peace between colonists and natives

1622, after Pocahontas & Powhatan died, conflicts arose.

Natives killed many settlers including Rolfe.

1619 – Big Changes at Jamestown 100 women arrived to marry

colonists and help colony first African slaves arrived on a

Dutch ship America’s first legislature, the

House of Burgesses Members were white male landowners. Had power to raise taxes and make laws.

Bacon’s Rebellion Former indentured servants on frontier clashed with

natives, Gov. Berkeley wouldn’t help b/c they couldn’t vote

1676 – Nathaniel Bacon formed an army, Berkeley declares army unconstitutional

Bacon’s army upset about “taxation without representation”, set fire to town

Berkeley returns to England, revoked charter & made VA a royal colony

Rebellion draws attention to growing power of former indentured servants

Pocahontas Questions: 1)What is the true story about Pocahontas and Smith? 2)Why was she captured and how did her life change?3)Who did she marry and why?4)What was her fate?5)If she were to write a story about her life, how would she summarize her role?

Jamestown Video Clip

http://www.history.com/topics/jamestown

http://www.history.com/topics/jamestown/videos/the-value-of-tobacco

Jamestown Game

http://www.historyglobe.com/jamestown/