Jamestown Characteristics

1021 Words3 Pages

One of the first major English settlements in North America was the colony of Jamestown. Jamestown was located in the Chesapeake region of Virginia and was established under the Virginia Company, which was chartered by James I in 1606. Jamestown was the first colony of London and was established in May 1607. They were a settlement of about 100 men and were led by John Smith. Jamestown was a stock colony, meaning they were founded as a business venture by investors, and sought after gold and silver, as well as products like citrus, pitch, tar, and lumber. They were members of the Church of England, which was a form of Protestant Christianity. One of the goals James I had for the Jamestown people was to spread the Christian religion much like …show more content…

The colony was led by John Winthrop and was established in 1630. They were also Puritans who settled under the Massachusetts Bay Company, who dealt in trade. The colony settled in the Massachusetts Bay, with Boston becoming their largest city and capital. Unlike the Pilgrims of Plymouth they were non-separating Congregationalists for the simple fact that they believed the Church of England could be reformed. Their charter was unique because authority rested with a genral court of freeman, who were Puritan stock or property owners and later church members. They elected their governor and his assistants and later gained the power to pass their own laws and levy taxes. The freeman eventually became so large that it formed into a two-house legislature known as the House of Assistants, who were Lords, or of Royal descent, and the House of Deputies, who were Commons, or normal people not of Royal descent. Their government was a union of church and state and looked to make Puritanism the official religion with the Bible as the basis for the law. Much like the Pilgrims, they were very self-sufficient and did not have to rely on Native American help because they were able to grow many different crops of their own. This was very helpful because it ensured if one crop died, they had others they could rely on for survival. This was a very successful colony, arguably one of the most successful overall …show more content…

They formed many colonies that became very successful and were able to provide for themselves as well. Spain, France, and Great Britain all colonized North America seeking money and trade. Spain differed in their strategy to colonize because it was more religiously motivated than France and Great Britain. France’s colonial strategy was to create trade, and tried to avoid cultural centers, or large populations, which made it very hard to enforce what they wanted done. Many of France’s colonies were either dispersed from wars or were sold. Great Britain’s colonial strategy was to create colonies that were able to thrive, to create trade, and extend their empire. Many of the colonies were able to thrive and sustain life without the need for much help. They were able to create trade through their colonies producing goods and shipping them back overseas to them. Also, the number of colonies Great Britain had made it easy to extend their empire in North

Open Document