New England Colonies Dbq

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In the 17th century, the British colonies still identified themselves as European, but as the colonies expanded and grew more populous, they developed differing geographic, social, and economic systems. This difference between New England, and Chesapeake, is caused by the motivations for settlement between the two regions. While the New England colonies were mainly settled for religious motivations, most notably by the Puritans, the Chesapeake colonies were settled for economic prosperity. Also, while the Chesapeake colonies were mainly settled by individual young men seeking a profit, the New England colonies were settled by families hoping to settle and expand. In the early 17th Century the Puritans settled in New England, forming the Massachusetts …show more content…

People’s main motives were not religious, but to “dig gold, wash gold, refine gold, load gold,”(Doc F). This resulted in competition, rather than bonding, over the settlement. The economy of the Chesapeake region made it more profitable to spread out, making the development of cities, schools, and churches more difficult. When the Joint Stock Co landed at Jamestown, they were looking for gold. Even though no gold appeared, John Rolfe’s founding of tobacco (Doc F) as a cash crop, and Virginia’s headright system, ensured people would continue to mold the Chesapeake and leave behind a mercantilist environment. The Chesapeake drew mostly single men, who came for individual profit, and indentured servants (Doc C). The economic gap between rich and poor was much larger, especially after the introduction of slaves and indentured servants, in the Chesapeake region than in New England. The Articles of Agreement shown in (Doc D) stated a common goal of “everyone’s quality and estate.” As they developed a much tighter community, they were more invested in the prosperity of everyone in their community. (Doc E) says that laborers “consider the religious end of their callings,” this shows that there was a religious motive to serve God by striving to maintain the strength of their

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