Colonial Life Flashcards
Define mercantilism.
The belief that a nations colonies should benefit the mother country.
Define free enterprise.
Economic system in which businesses are owned by private citizens who decide what to produce, how much to produce, and what prices to charge.
Define enlightenment.
Movement in Europe in the 1600s and 1700s that emphasized the use of reason.
Define colony.
A group of people who settle in a distant land but are still ruled by the government of their native land.
Define feudalism.
System of rule by lords who rule their own lands but owed loyalty and military service to the monarch.
Define middle Passage
A term that sailors came up with for the slave ships that went across the Atlantic Ocean. Below the decks of the ships, slaves were crammed tightly together.
What type of government did MOST of the 13 Colonies have?
Direct Democracy
How were colonies organized?
A governor, appointed by the monarch directed the colony and enforced the laws.
Which colonists had the right to vote?
White male Christian property owner over 21 years of age.
Define Navigation Acts.
Series of English laws in the 1650s that regulated trade between England and its colonies.
Define regulate.
To control.
What is the primary reason that England passed the Navigation Acts?
To tighten its control over colonial trade and become wealthy.
What social classes existed in the colonies?
The gentry, the middle class, indentured servants, hired farmhands, and slaves
How did the Great Awakening affect religion in the colonies?
It aroused bitter debate while forcing colonists to become more religiously tolerant. It helped spread democratic feelings in the colonies.
Why did the Puritans support public education?
So that children could read the Bible.
