Depth Study || Britain and its American Colonies - 1660-1713 Flashcards
What were the three types of colonies in British North America?
Crown colonies, proprietary colonies, and charter colonies.
How were crown colonies governed?
- governor and his council were appointed by the crown
- governor had general executive powers and was authorized to call a locally elected assembly
- assemblies were made up of representatives elected by the freeholders and planters of the province, and their role was to make all local laws and ordinances
- in practice this did not always occur - many of the provincial assemblies sought to expand their power and limit that of the governor and therefore the crown
How were proprietary colonies governed?
- proprietary colonies were governed much as royal colonies, except that lord proprietors, rather than the king, appointed the governor
- they were typically set up post-1660 (restoration) and enjoyed greater civil and religious liberty
How were charter colonies governed?
- charter governments were political corporations created by letters patent, giving the grantees control of the land and the powers of legislative government
- charters provided a fundamental constitution and divided powers among legislative, executive and judicial functions, with those powers being vested in individuals
Examples of crown colonies
New Hampshire, New York, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and eventually Massachusetts
Examples of proprietary colonies
Pennsylvania (included Delaware), New Jersey and Maryland
Examples of charter colonies
Massachusetts, Providence Plantation, Rhode Island, Warwick and Connecticut
What was the role of the British Privy Council or Board of Trade in crown colonies?
The British Privy Council or Board of Trade examined laws that were made by the assemblies of crown colonies and held veto power of legislation. This meant that the colonies had very little freedom, as any law the crown did not agree with could simply be removed
What happened to the Massachusetts charter in 1684?
The Massachusetts charter was revoked in 1684 and was replaced by a royal charter issued in 1691
What was governing of the Caribbean colonies like?
- 1627 Barbados + Leeward Islands were grouped together, this was difficult to administer however, so the Leewards often had their own governor
- 1660 Lord Willoughby, as Governor of Barbados, also governed all of the Eastern Caribbean
- After the war, England gave in to the demands of the Leewards for separate government
- 1671 - Crown assigned a governor-in-chief to manage St Kitts, Nevis, Anguilla, Montserrat, Antigua and Barbuda
- 1674 - Sir William Stapleton established the first federation in the West Indies
- Stapleton set up a General Assembly of the Leewards in St Kitts, Antigua, Montserrat and Nevis, one governor had responsibility for the Leewards and a lieutenant governor was appointed for each island
- Stapleton’s federation was active from 1674-1685, General Assembly met until 1711
What happened in 1660?
Restoration
Evidence of empire expansion during this time?
By 1670s English colonies doubled in number
What were the thoughts of the colonists living in America during this time?
- Colonists living in America felt that they should still have the same rights as if they were living in England and should not be treated as a commercial operation
- In particular, felt that the should not be taxed as if they were a foreign outstation of Britain - most were upset that their foreign policy was being run by merchant venturers rather than statesmen
What was the main priority of Charles II’s government? What did this lead to?
- Charles II’s government was concerned by trade, so in 1660s England went to war with the Netherlands
- Charles preferred pro-France, anti-Dutch policy but marriages between the Stuart house and Orange house made this more difficult
Why was there never a decisive battle during the war with the Netherlands?
Parliament never voted for enough money to be given for a naval war against the Dutch
What was the most substantial result of Charles II’s anti-Dutch policy? Why was this substantial?
- England seizing New Amsterdam in 1664
- Was the first time any substantial community outside the British Isles became an English possession - there was little resistance
- New Amsterdam was divided between serveral courtiers - largest section to Charles’ brother, James Duke of York who renamed it New York
- Two families from Jersey recieved land, some of New Jersey was sold to Quackers, which encouraged another Quacker William Penn who wanted to set up an area of toleration (like Maryland)
What did William Penn do?
- William Penn’s family were owed money by the Stuarts and as part of a financial settlement they gave him land, he called this Pennsylvania (1681)
- Settlers were welcomed to this land on relatively easy terms
- Within 12 years, Philadelphia its capital was among the top 6 largest towns in North America
- The land that Pennsylvania stood on had never been occupied by Europeans so they had to work hard in their relations with the Indians
- Quaker principles allowed them avoid warfare and they negotiated the price of land with the Indians
First Anglo Dutch War
1652-1654
- Result of tension caused by the Navigation Act 1651
- Series of naval battles saw both sides exhausted
- Treaty of Westminister 1654
Second Anglo Dutch War
- 1665-1667
- Charles II passed anti-Dutch merchantilist policies, which alongside English privateering and capture of New Amsterdam raised tensions with the Dutch
- Fighting in the Caribbean with the Dutch and French attacking Antigua and St Kitts
- War ended when the Dutch burned some of the British fleet at Chatham and towed away several ships which greatly expanded the Dutch navy
- War contributed to Charles II’s near bankruptcy and fear in London of invasion
- Treaty of New Breda allowed England to keep New Amsterdam, however England was no longer allowed to trade nutmeg and had to slightly weaken the navigation acts
Third Anglo Dutch War
- 1672-1674
- Navy was rebuilt
- Public opinion unenthusiastic about starting a new war
- Charles II was obliged to assist Louis XIV in his attack on the Dutch Republic in the Franco-Dutch War
- War ended in British defeat and parliment forced Charles to make peace (Treaty of Westminister)
What was the population of America like during this time?
America was scarcely populated and no-one would have foreseen the large scale immigration that North America would experience
What was Locke’s argument about property? Who did he advise using this?
In America the land was empty and unclaimed and should become property of the first cultivator - advised Lord Ashley (received a charter in 1665 for a colony south of Virginia, Carolina)
Why did North and South Carolina split?
- Northern section of Carolina was settled by people from Virginia rather than emigrants and the southern section by emigrants from Barbados and England
- In 1691, the Company recognised this and set up two separate administrations though they were run by the same governor until 1710
What did most schemes of settlement in North America assume?
Most schemes of settlement in North America assumed that proprietors would become great landlords of the old English type on a very large scale
What form of ownership did settlers in North America not like?
Proprietor’s form of ownership, which assumed that proprietors would become great landlords of the old English type on a very large scale
Why did Charles II find land grants convenient?
Charles II found land grants very convenient because they would not cause the same level of hostility as a monopoly did, but settlers who came to America did not like proprietor’s form of ownership
Why was it almost impossible for the proprietors to make very much out of their estates?
With so much land to dispose of, it was hard to get new arrivals to accept anything less than free tenure, which made it almost impossible for the proprietors to make very much out of their estates
Why were the proprietors replaced by royal governors in the West Indies?
control was necessary as the islands were vulnerable to attack by Dutch, French, and Spanish
What happened to the Leeward Islands during and following the second Anglo Dutch war?
- successful invasions by France on the islands
- treaty of breda returned these islands to British control
What did authorities do to prevent a shift in population balance as the number of slaves increased in the West Indies?
As the number of slaves increased in the West Indies, authorities tried to prevent a shift in population balance by bringing out political prisoners from England, kidnapping new recruits, and passing laws to make planters employ more white men
What was the slave vs. white population balance like in Barbados?
1670 - 17 slaves for every 1 indentured labourer
1700 - 50,000 enslaved blacks, 15,000 free whites
When were the two slave rebellions in Barbados?
1675
1692
What happened during the slave rebellion of 1692?
Island wide rebellion which resulted in the execution of 40 slaves
When was the Barbados Slave Code implemented?
1661
What was the Barbados Slave Code?
- Law passed by colonial legislature to provide legal basis for slavery in Barbados
- Code established that black slaves would be treated as chattel property in island’s court
- Sought to protect slaves from cruel masters and masters from unruly slaves
- In practice provided far more extensive protections for masters than slaves
- Law required masters to provide each slave with one set of clothing per year, but set no standards for slaves’ diet, housing or working conditions
- Also denied slaves basic rights guaranteed under English common law, eg. right to life
- Allowed slave owners to do as they wished to their slaves, including mutilating them and burning them alive, without fear of consequence
Why was the Barbados Slave Code significant?
Throughout British North America, slavery was prevalent before being written into law however the Barbados slave code marked beginning of legal slavery
Also served as basis for slave codes adopted in several other British colonies, including Jamaica (1664), South Carolina (1696) and Antigua (1702)
What was trade in Barbados like?
- By 1660, Barbados generated more trade than all other English colonies combined
- Remained so until it as eventually surpassed by geographically larger islands, like Jamaica in 1713
How was Barbados divided?
- Barbados was divided into large plantation estates - replaced smallholdings of early English settlers
- 1680 over half of arable land was held by 175 large planters, each of whom held at least 60 slaves
- These great planters had connections with English aristocracy and great influence on parliament
Evidence for discrepancies between sugar and tobacco plantation owners
- 1688 - West Indian sugar crop sold for £180,000 after customs of £18000, chesapeake tobacco earned £50,000 after customs of £75,000
- Sugar plantation owners were allowed to keep more of their profits than tobacco growers who were essentially working for the crown
What was the main crop grown in Barbados?
Sugar
Where was food in Barbados imported from and why was this done?
So much land was devoted to sugar production that the island had to import food from New England
Why were poorer white people moved off Barbados and where did they go?
- More economical for land owners to utilise free slave labour
- Poorer whites who were moved off of Barbados went to English Leeward Islands, or especially to Jamaica
