Helping the Poor Whites in the Book, American Slavery, American Freedom by Edmund S. Morgan

Soon this need for cheap labor was replaced with a need for even cheaper labor. Slavery filled this need, but when Africans arrived to America in 1619, the colonists initially treated them as indentured servants. It was not until 1641 that the first slave codes were passed in the colony of Massachusetts and 20 years later in Virginia, marking the

Slavery was created in pre-revolutionary America at the start of the seventeenth century. By the time of the Revolution, slavery had undergone drastic changes and was nothing at all what it was like when it was started. In fact the beginning of slavery did not even start with the enslavement of African Americans. Not only did the people who were enslaved change, but the treatment of slaves and the culture that each generation lived in, changed as well.

The relationship between the English and the Native Americans in 1600 to 1700 is one of the most fluctuating and the most profound relationships in American history. On the one side of the picture, the harmony between Wampanoag and Puritans even inspires them to celebrate “first Thanksgiving”; while, by contrast, the conflicts between the Pequots and the English urge them to antagonize each other, and even wage a war. In addition, the mystery of why the European settlers, including English, become the dominant power in American world, instead of the indigenous people, or Indians, can be solved from the examination of the relationship. In a variety of ways, the relationship drastically alters how people think about and relate to the aborigines. Politically, the relationship changes to establish the supremacy of the English; the English intends to obtain the land and rules over it. Socially, the relationship changes to present the majority of the English settlers; the dominating population is mostly the English settlers. Economically, the relationship changes to obtain the benefit of the English settlers; they gain profit from the massive resource in America. Therefore, the relationship does, in fact, change to foreshadow the discordance of the two groups of people.

Prior to the Revolutionary War, the Native Americans were considered to be an essential part to learning and living on the North American landscape. However, after the relationship between the Colonists and British tensed, the Native Americans found themselves in the middle of a war that would divide the Native American people. However, during the course of the war, the Native Americans had to consider who they should fight with/for. While both sides, the British and the Colonists, professed the benefits of fighting with/for them, the Native Americans’ decision would determine the fate of many Indian generations during the course of expansion in North America. On one side, the British offered diplomacy, land, and economic expansion; on the other, the Colonists promoted freedom, equality, and the promise of land. The struggle of the tribes to decide which side to fight for would prove to be the true battle that many of them would face. However, the relationships of the Native Americans and the English people did not start with the Revolution; it began almost two-hundred years prior in the settlement of Jamestown.

The government as well as the Americans’ attitude toward the Indians at the beginning of the Revolution was pretty much the same as Thomas Jefferson’s, which was that giving time the Indians could possible change their ways and conform to white society’s way

Bacons’ Rebellion of 1676 was a rebellion by the Virginia settlers led by Nathaniel Bacon against Governor William Berkeley.There was a large amount of impoverished freemen, who were frustrated by their lack of land, drifting about the Chesapeake region at the end of the 17th century. In 1670, the Virginia assembly denied most of the landless the right to vote because they did not have interest in the country and were chaotic at the elections, which displeased Governor Berkeley. The Virginians were bitter against Berkeley for his friendliness towards Indians, and for monopolizing their thriving fur trade. When Berkeley refused to retaliate against Indian attacks on frontier settlements, about a thousand Virginians retaliated, lead by Bacon.

The first sign of slavery in North America began in August, of 1619. This was seen when twenty black men were sold to residents of Jamestown, Virginia by a dutch ship. With this being the case, Edmund S Morgan 's article “The Paradox of Slavery and Freedom” supports the idea that slavery was

As Jamestown became more self-sustaining community, indentured servants began to live longer. As a result, the number of free servants increased. Even though, they still had some difficulties planting tobacco. "By the 1660s, freemen who wished to plant found themselves facing a difficult choice. They could move to the frontier, where it was often impossible to ship tobacco to market and the danger of Indian attack was ever present"(Hollitz, Contending Voices, 22). American Indian began to cause problems in freemen's lives. In addition, Bacon believed that the American Indians were enemies the government should not trade with them as he states in his manifesto," they have been for these many years enemies to the King and country, robbers and thieves and invaders of his Majesty's right and our interest and estes, but yet have by persons in authority been defended and protected even against his

Because of the squabble between a white planter and native people (that lead to the murder of the planter's herdsmen and the retaliation by frontier vigilantes, killing about 24 Indians), scattered attacks resulted in the killing of Nathaniel Banach's farm manager. Bacon went to the governor (William Berkeley) because he wanted to take action against the Indians. When Berkeley refused, Bacon decided to take matters into his own hands. His rebellion consisted of landless servants, small farmers and slaves. By developing this type of "army" he set forth an example that African American if slaves could be used to as servants of war, they could also be used as servants, which is a form of indentured servitude.

Nathaniel Bacon, the leader of the rebellion, fought for the reduction of taxes, dismiss the Indians

According to the English, Native Americans in early seventeenth century Virginia left an imprint on the New England earth. They traditionally settled near water and in small groups, and not in a larger population. They also made little benefit of their land, being never fertile. The English settlers were very taken at the fact they didn’t use the land to the best it could be used. They were tall, brown and proportionate appearance. Also the men were fewer than the women and children. The English felt the Indians had the right to use the land, but letting them have ownership of the land and having it all to themselves was not an accepted English view. The English view also had many limitations to what the natives really were like.

During the 1800s, Virginia had been composed by a few grandees and many lower classes villagers, such as farmers, white servants and black slaves. Most of fertile land was dominated by the grandees and the poor farmers had to settle in barren and dangerous land where it is closer to Indian’s territory. Due to the poor environment, their productions did not reach the quality to deal with the heavy taxation. In addition, they had to live with the fear to be attacked by Indians all the time. Nathaniel Bacon rose up as the leader of lower class villagers to demand improving of their environment. According to Foner, he demanded “removal of all Indians from the colony, a reduction of taxes, and an end to rule by ‘grandees’” (48) as primary complains

Slavery in colonial America began when a Dutch ship brought twenty Africans to the colony of Jamestown, Virginia in 1619 to support in the production of tobacco. Colonists weren’t accustomed to the thoughts of slavery and used them as indentured servants. They were given the opportunity of land and freedom in exchange for seven years of hard labor. Because Africans were not a part of British common law, they had no rights of their own hence, Massachusetts legalized slavery in 1641. As the new colony prospered in the 1650s, many indentured servants earned their freedom leaving the colonists with few workers. Virginia soon followed Massachusetts and legalized slavery in 1661. With the legalization spreading throughout the new nation, the king of England chartered the Royal African Company to bring boatloads of slaves into the trading centers consisting of: Jamestown, Hampton, and Yorktown. From the 1660s, colonies began sanctioning laws that defined and

The labor demands grew and Europe’s desire to have trade with Africa for slave labor began the ownership of slaves of America in 1630’s. The economy improved with the English and fewer people agree to indentured servitude, making the demand for enduring slavery great. This was the end of indentured servitude, and the beginning of race dependent slavery and true ownership of slaves. Laws were passed that every African female slave that gave birth set the condition of the child. If the mother was a slave then the child would be a slave for life also and was owned by the mothers

The development of the European colonies from the beginning in 1607 to the end of the American Revolution when the Constitution was ratified in 1789 had many effects on the Native American Indians. (pg.58, 283) This period of time for the Indians was a time of rapid change and oppression. To better understand what the Indians experienced when the European colonists or settlers arrived there are key events that need to be explained. I believe that these key events where the most important and created the most conflict. The events that I will be discussing are; Jamestown, the colonists and Algonquian wars, smallpox, the Beaver wars, economic change, the industrious revolution, the Walking purchase, the Indian Awakening, losing French support, Pontiac’s rebellion, the Declaration of Independence, Indians fighting in the Revolution, and finally the Treaty of Greenville. I believe that these events highlight what cause and effect the European settlers had on the Native Americans.