The English Flashcards
Why was the Ralph Lane expedition in 1585 unsuccessful? (2)
- lack of supplies, delayed shipment
- poor relations with Secotan
Describe the John White expedition of 1587. (4)
- investigated previous colony
- moved 50 miles upriver
- went back to England for supplies
- could only return to abandoned colony in 1590
Who founded the Jamestown colony in 1607?
the Virginia Company
What was significant about Jamestown?
England’s first permanent settlement in the Americas
Why did Jamestown struggle in the beginning? (3)
- Powhatan
- disease
- famine
How many of the colonists were sent between 1607-1617, and how many were left by 1617?
- 1700
- 351
What allowed the settlement to flourish in 1617?
discovery of tobacco farming
How did John Smith arrive in Jamestown?
accused of mutiny and arrived a prisoner
Describe John Smith’s relations with the Powhatans.
successful at trade with Powhatans
What was John Smith’s policy as president of the colony council?
“He who does not work, neither shall he eat”
What was the outcome of Smith’s leadership at Jamestown?
helped the fort grow, but earned him enemies
What was the outcome of John Smith’s departure from Jamestown?
left the colony with fractured leadership
What led to the “starving time” at Jamestown? (2)
- lack of supplies
- bad relations with Powhatan
What did the colonists at Jamestown eat during the winter of 1609-1610? (2)
- resorted to eating anything
- reports of cannibalism
Were reports of cannibalism at Jamestown confirmed?
confirmed by archaeology in 2012
How were reports of cannibalism at Jamestown confirmed?
portions of the butchered skull and shinbone of a 14-year-old girl from England, dubbed “Jane” by researchers, were uneartehd
What did John Rolfe bring to Jamestown in 1610?
nicotiana tabacum seeds
What kind of tobacco grew in North America?
nicotiana rustica, too bitter for European tastes
How did John Rolfe acquire N. tabacum seeds?
Spain had N. tabacum monopoly, no one knows where Rolfe got the seeds
Who was Pocahontas?
daughter of Wahunsenacaw, chief of Powhatans
What happened to Pocahontas?
kidnapped and converted to Christianity
Who did Pocahontas marry?
English tobacco grower John Rolfe
What name did Pocahontas take, and what did it mean?
Rebecca, “Mother of two peoples”
When and where did Pocahontas die?
in England, 1617 as “Civilized Savage”
When did the first Africans arrive in Jamestown?
1619
Why were the first Africans brought to Jamestown?
result of the transatlantic slave trade
When did archaeology at Jamestown take place?
1994-present
Where was Jamestown originally believed to be?
lost underwater
Who was convinced that Jamestown was not lost?
Dr. William Kelos and Dr. Ivor Noel Hume
How did Port Royal come to be a successful English colony? (8)
- Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England, launches an attack on Hispaniola to seize it from the Spanish
- the attack fails, and what is left of the English fleet heads south to Jamaica and seizes the island instead
- a sandbar extended from Kingston which allowed the English to set up a fort and defend the island
- around the fort, Kingston develops as a city of seafarers and merchants, developing a strong reputation for prostitution
- Port Royal became the most economically important port to England, especially since England legalized privateering in the 1660s
- this “Buccaneer Period” was supposed to end in the 1670s, but it was so profitable that the English turned a blind eye
- Port Royal became the mercantile center of the English in the Caribbean, but became notoriously known as the “Wickedest city in the world”
- Port Royal was the largest English city in the New World by 1692, visited by 226 ships in 1688
What happened to Port Royal during the earthquake of 1692? (3)
- some sites such as the sunken town of Port Royal are so well-known they are never lost; there is an abundance of historic documents and maps
- of course, the significant thing about Port Royal is that much of it sunk into the Kingston Harbor during an earthquake on June 7, 1692, ca. 11:40 AM
- 2,000 people were killed immediately, while 3,000 died due to subsequent injuries and disease
What was recovered from Port Royal after the earthquake?
documents and even the frozen hands of a watch reveal the details of everyday life in Port Royal in the late 17th century
Who excavated Port Royal for 10 years?
the Institute of Nautical Archaeology
How many students worked on the site?
150
How long was the Port Royal site?
18-mile-long sand spit
What is a catastrophic site?
archaeological sites that are created within a matter of minutes, preserving in situ a wide array of artifactual material
Who founded the INA?
George Bass, Father of Nautical Archaeology
What was George Bass’ first excavation?
shipwreck in Turkey dating to 1200 BC
What experts did Bass gather to create the INA?
specialists in amphora, Mediterranean trade, and ship construction
How did Bass end up at A&M?
originally pitching to a university in North Carolina, Texas A&M made Bass a great offer in 1976
Why is conservation imperative to nautical archaeology?
water-logged items have to be dried out before they can be studied
Who led conservation efforts for the INA by 1978?
Donny Hamilton
When did A&M and the INA become partners?
1980
What is unique method for conserving waterlogged wood?
sugar
Why was sugar used to conserve waterlogged wood at Port Royal?
acts as a natural preservative
What is a problem with using sugar for conservation purposes?
invites insects
How was the diving conducted at Port Royal?
shallow diving is conducted from a support barge and is done during three-hour or longer dives using HOOKA - air hose from the barge
What was used to excavate at Port Royal?
dredges - hose vacuums sediment away from the work area
What method was not effective for excavation at Port Royal?
air lifts
What size were the grids at Port Royal?
10ft square
What was one of the great abundances of well-preserved artifacts at Port Royal?
a pipe shop
How did individual buildings contribute to the excavations at Port Royal?
each building becomes a chapter in the story of the daily life of the town
What were rooms 1-2 in building one?
cobbler
What were rooms 3-4 in building one?
tavern
What were rooms 5-6 in building one?
tobacco/pipe shop
What artifacts were discovered in building five? (3)
- earthenware pot in fallen doorway
- 21 pewter plates in stairwell
- pots, pewter plate, coconut and wicker fish basket
What features were discovered in building five?
cistern, privy, and walls
What did excavations of building four and five reveal? (2)
- the building was rammed by a ship during the earthquake
- built in two stages, building four was tacked onto building five
What were some of the most interesting artifacts recovered from Port Royal? (6)
- slipware pot
- delftware vase
- Chinese imported porcelain: Blanc de Chin, Batavia
- candlesticks and lamps
- pewter, because of the presence of maker’s marks and ownership marks are particularly useful for identifying occupants of a building
- three skeletons of children in building five
