American Colonization Thesis

Britain’s colonies in North America went from a society with slaves to a slave society. Owning slaves became a key part of everyday life for many plantation owners by the end of the period. Throughout the period, the focus shifted from indentured servitude to slavery because slaves proved to be more profitable. Slavery in the colonies stayed so popular because it was based on racial, social, and economic values. It changed the way that plantation owners did things, and they wanted to keep their own profits

Finally, there were slaves, and they had no rights whatsoever. These people were taken from their home country and forced into slavery. At first slaves were treated more like servants and could buy or earn their freedom. However, by the late 1600s African slavery was permanent. If a slave had a child, the child was born a slave too. Eventually there were laws to prevent them from getting an education, owning weapons and meeting in large groups. For them there was very little hope of social

In the time period between 1775 and 1830, African Americans start to gain more freedom in the North while the institution of slavery expanded in the South. These changes occurred due to the existence of different point of views. The North did not need slavery and acknowledge the cons of slavery while the South’s want for slavery quickly became a need.

The origins and development of slavery within Britain’s North American colonies in the period 1607 to 1776 was majorly in part by the English need for economic power. England had just arose as the strongest naval of the North Atlantic had they had to keep their high standing in the world. Bacon’s Rebellion, the profit received by cash crops, and the ability to easily purchase slaves through trade highly boosted Britain’s economy. The colonists within the British colony kept through economic standing and power by making themselves higher than any other through slavery.

Then change in the 1730’s a religious group called the Quakers would inspire the Great Awakening which abolished slavery and demanded that slave holders across the colonies to do the same. That they would start to happen after the American Revolution by 1820’s and the north was on a path to end slavery for good and allowed blacks to live free in the north for the first time in American history, but that did not change for the south. The south offering liberties to white plantation owners have offered a few rights to blacks they would develop the ⅗ compromise that would determine how slaves would be counted as far as tax and legislative representation. While slavery started to get essentially worse in the southern states. It seems that the American Revolution did not do anything for the Africans for “freedom” besides what they did in the northern states by 1804. Every northern state either abolished slavery or passed a law to eliminate it

The war had greatly enlarged Britain's debt so the government decided to implement taxes on the colonists. While the colonists were resentful of these taxes, the British felt the colonists should pay for their own defense. George Greenville's Program contained a series of acts including the Stamp Act which said any document must have a stamp on it. This action enraged many colonists. The outrage over the taxes was justified by the British government as necessary because of the amount of land they now had. (Document 5) That the huge increase in territory and population drove them to regulate trade. The British also saw the taxes as fair because the British were “protecting” the colonists. Many colonists such as Benjamin Franklin wanted the Stamp Act repealed because of its unfair taxing. (Document 6) Franklin called for an immediate repeal of the act in a letter to a friend. The taxation of the colonists was a significant change that cause the shift between the British and the

Slaves in the antebellum period were treated with the utmost brutality as they were beaten, killed, raped, and starved as well as denied basic education and could not obtain freedom without the owner giving them their freedom however even as free blacks they still had limited rights.

Initially, the war modified how Britain taxed and enforced laws against its colonies. This came about because after the war, England found itself in enormous debt, and began to search for a way to start paying it back and restore the economy. One way to earn money, as explained by the British treasury, was to fix the situation in the colonies, where the money being spent to collect taxes was greater than the actual income. The new round of taxes began with the Sugar Act, Britain’s attempt to pay for the upkeep of the British army in America. The colonies response to this, especially in Boston, was to boycott the tax. They reacted as such because they argued that the tax wasn’t justified due to their belief that they didn’t have representation in parliament, however, Britain countered the argument with the idea of “virtual representation” and

From the introduction of the African slave trade, the legislation and social construct regarding the slaves’ place in society changed drastically, in order to create division among the indentured servants/ farmers who were freed from servitude. The African slaves enjoyed more or less the same legal representation as indentured servants, in the respect of allotted time of service, and there was no distinct definition of how to treat a slave nor civil liberties granted to the slave. However, as time progressed and labor needs grew, rules regarding treatment and legal rights of the slaves worsened.

Once Slavery was introduced into the new colonies it changed the direction that the colonies were heading in. there are many theory’s and ideas linked with the importation of africans to america. Although some may consider racism a major role of the african enslavement, the need for Labor, Low Cost Price ,and Availability played a major role on the enslavement of africans in the new colonies.

From the beginning of American colonization we were a mainly farming people. The basis of our society was built upon agriculture, and little else. The rise to corporate capitalism has had such a profound impact on American society, it is impossible to study any aspect of United States history post Civil War without a direct relation, on any level, to the industrial revolution. America would not be the superpower it is today had we not made the change from an agricultural society to an industrial one long ago. The rise of corporate capitalism radically changed the way Americans lived forever.

Prior to English colonization of North America, slavery in Europe was a common institution that created a social class in the societies of various nations. When the colonization of the New World in North America began, along with English settlers came the institution of slavery. In the dawn of English colonization, the practice of indentured servitude was utilized to provide labor necessary to produce crops in exchange for transportation to the New World, and a opportunity for new beginnings. As trade in the Atlantic World progressed, slavery replaced indentured servitude in order for African Chiefdoms to gain profit, and colonial farmers to gain free labor. As the method for obtaining labor for producing cash crops transitioned from indentured servitude to slavery, specifically African chattel slavery, slavery itself developed into a staple institution for colonial economies, and set-up for tensions between the small but influential population of slaveowners and African slaves that caused slavery to become difficult to overcome in future years.

The Africans that arrived first in the colonies had a great amount of freedom. Their men and women could marry white men and white women. Those that were baptized could petition for their freedom, they could even own land. Starting in the mid-century, Virginia began to pass laws that codified slavery, forcing Africans into

Prior to the terrible transformation, the first slaves arrived in America along side Spanish explorers. Mainly used as a labor force, these slaves helped explore Spanish Florida. Making their way up the coast, slaves help construct St. Augustine, the first non-Indian town in North America. With Spanish explorers finding success, countries such as the Netherlands and England found interest in the new world. Motivated by religious and political rivalries, these colonies competed to influence the lives across the Atlantic. Initial settlements by these countries called for an increased need of slaves. However, early slaves did not live a life so different from the other colonist, “some were granted half freedom, they lived individually but continued to pay an annual tax, while others were manumitted, or freed, by their owners and possessed their own land and labor.”(19) Others could earn their freedom by converting to

Funding the war was extremely expensive and it lead to a large amount of national debt, more than 122 million pounds. Since the war was fought on American soil, Britain felt it was only right that the colonists help to pay for the war that was fought to protect them. Parliament started imposing new taxes on the colonists such as the Sugar Act and the Currency Act. The Sugar Act increased taxes on molasses and the Currency Act prohibited the printing of money. One particular act, the Stamp Act especially enraged the colonists. It required them to pay a tax on every piece of paper they used for anything, newspapers, playing cards etc. The colonists thought the taxation unfair especially since they had no elected representative in the British Parliament in London. The British government was making new laws and adding taxes and the colonists had no say. This lead to the popular slogan of that time,“No taxation without representation”.