How True Is this Statement? Why did the English start the colonies? This can be a very controversial topic to discuss. Some say for power, some say for religious freedom, and some say otherwise. Was it to escape oppression in England? Was there even oppression going on at this time? Let us find out.
Let me start by saying that during this time there was a race between the countries in Europe for power. As a result, Spain, France and England are trying to dominate the “new world”. France had what is now Canada, Spain had South America, and English had a strong presence in the east coast of present day United States. To be specific the first English colony founded was in 1607 and it was Jamestown. Now Although the English arrived into this
Thanks to men like Christopher Columbus the world became an explorer's oyster. The findings of new created much curiosity in Europe to explore and conquer new lands in order to expand their empire. In the early 1600’s a surge of motivation to explore and settle new colonies came over England. The Result of this was the New England and Chesapeake colonies, who were both settled by immigrants from England. Many people decided they needed to escape England due to religious persecution and poverty. Hundreds of families, men, women, and their children, came in search of a New World where they could have a new start. Despite the striking similarities between the two colonies they grew
So he did so in 1608, he established the first French settlement in north America called Quebec later followed by two more Trios- Rivieres (founded 1634) and Montreal (1642). why'll he was building Quebec they encountered native Americans called the Huron Indians. They helped the French get up on their feet by trading them furs for their European goods. This then established a peace treaty an a steady income for the slowly growing settlements. However, with this steady fur income the new settlements really never grew their society in the 1660's, the three settlements combined only had around 3'200 people. In the begin of the development of the settlements they were runned by the Company of New France. This later changed when King Louis XIV disbanded it for not showing any progress towards the settlements. He then took direct control over the colonies and established a more military secure region among the colonies. So France build multiple colonies in the western hemisphere that had great economies and political power, but the French really had a hard time establishing societies and growing their population. This would result in lower income from the west, but the French knew it was there so they didn't give up on
There were various reasons why the American Colonies were established. The three most important themes of English colonization of America were religion, economics, and government. The most important reasons for colonization were to seek refuge, religious freedom, and economic opportunity. To a lesser degree, the colonists sought to establish a stable and progressive government.
During the 17th and 18th century, English residents felt that England was over-crowded and intolerable. They wanted to lessen these problems that rose up because of the large population increase and to establish more religious freedom (Horn). The English believed that the best way to go about this was to colonize the New World. Subsequently, many colonies began to develop, and of these colonies, Massachusetts Bay and Virginia were the most well-known. The early settlements of Massachusetts and Virginia were both established by similar groups of people at the same time; furthermore, their contrasting beginnings as a colony, views on religion, and method of economic stability all contributed to our American heritage today.
During colonial times, European nations quickly colonized the New World years after Columbus’ so called discovery. England in particular sent out a number of groups to the east coast of the New World to two regions. These areas were the New England and the Chesapeake regions. Later in the late 1700s, these two regions would go though many conflicts to come together as one nation. Yet, way before that would occur; these two areas developed into two distinct societies. These differences affected the colonies socially, economically, and politically.
There were many reasons the New World was the most wanted to explore. The Spanish, French, and English came about the New World the same way but for different reasons. The Spanish came in search for God, Gold, and Glory. The French, for money and religious conversions of Native Americans; and the English, to find religious freedom. Each of these empires expected to come and establish a powerful empire in the New World but came across difficulties along the way, their values dictating how they run their colonies.
1). The Nations of Europe sought to expand their empire because they were on the verge of overpopulation.Between 1550 and 1600 the population grew from three million to four million people. Also, England and Spain were at a war for power. The Spanish attempts at colonizing the New World had been extremely successful, for they had gained both wealth and power. The English did not see such success, as their ships would crash, be lost to the seas, or their colonization efforts would cease to be useful. Through the Spaniards control over the Americas they had gained a massive naval army, noted as the Spanish Armada. The Spanish attempt to invade England in 1588 failed which lead to the beginning of the fall of the Spanish empire in the New World.
During the mid-1500’s when Queen Elizabeth I was ruling there was a power struggle over the England as to what religion was going to be recognized nationally (Schultz, 2009). While England’s foundation was Catholicism, there had been a large-scale transition to Protestant style beliefs, including Queen Elizabeth I. Furthermore, with Spain still staunchly Catholic the upheaval in England was a chance for them to attempt a political coup in the name of religious fervor which ultimately failed. Consequently, after this attempt at a coup, the Queen realizing Spain’s attempt to colonize the New World tasked Sir Walter Raleigh to also start English colonies in the New World. Additionally, one reason for this was the fact that Queen Elizabeth I did not want the Spanish to convert the natives of the New World to Catholicism, and instead chose to attempt the advancement of Protestantism among other reasons (Schultz, 2009).
The history of North America centers around the struggle of England, France, and Spain to gain control of the continent. Settlers and their governments used different approaches on their efforts to colonization. These differences lead to advantages and disadvantages that resulted in the New World’s fate. France and Spain were governed by sovereigns whose rule was absolute. The English colonists were able to govern themselves and had plenty of freedom as long as they followed English law and were loyal to the king. England strengthened immigration from other nations, unlike France and Spain. By 1763, the English have defeated France and Spain in the French and Indian War establishing dominance over North America.
It was the age of discovery that first provoked intrigue and curiosity of new lands, particularly the Americas, and how the Europeans could expand to fit their society within the borders of this unknown and unexplored land. By the 1580s, more had been learned about the Americas, but any colonization until this point had not even been attempted. And so it was the English, under Queen Elizabeth I's rule, that were issued to establish a colony along the east coast of North America. However, when this great accomplishment was finally made in 1587, it was not long founded until its ultimate fate ended in the disappearance of the colony three years later, instantly creating one of the greatest
Throughout the 1600's, Europe was plagued and corrupted through bloodshed during outbreaks of war amidst the country. Not only did countries seek war, but they wanted to expand their territory for their people. To be the most prominent empire in the history of the world along with housing the best military forces was the common goal of all European countries during this time . The English wanted to overpower both the Spanish and French who were both the fiercest rivals. The Spanish were the first to establish a complete territory in the new world with the settlement of Florida, this pressured England into expanding in North America as well. These countries were both superpowers, with incredibly strong militaries, the intense battle for new
When Columbus “discovered” America in 1492, it started a chain reaction for many things to happen. Once news had spread that new, inhibited land had been discovered, other countries wanted to share in the found treasure. Mainly the English, French, and Spanish were the countries that made the most of this new untapped power. The English acted quicker in that they were able to establish a set of 13 colonies before other countries, and the advantage was that all these colonies covered the entire eastern seaboard, making traveling easier for Englishmen wanting to find better opportunities.
Prior to the arrival of the English colonial settlers, there was an extensive Spanish influence in the New World. Soon after England’s first colonization efforts, several changes took place that strengthened their ability to colonize America in the early 1600s: the Protestant Reformation, the defeat of the Spanish Armada, and the changes in the English economy. In the early 1500s, England and Spain had a strong connection based on their dedication to the Roman Catholic Church and the marriage between Henry VIII of England and Catherine of Aragon.
The history of the colonies focuses primarily around the struggle between the global superpowers during that time period, Spain and Britain, to win control of North America. Prior to 1763, these entities battled over territory on the continent, eventually leading the Britain’s dominance. The economic, social, and political differences between the Spanish and British colonization efforts created the opportunity to Britain to overtake North America.
Spain and France dominated when it came to owning land and the riches. England was suffering internally as a country. England longed for the riches and power that Spain and France had. England found a way to become number one in the hierarchy of the countries and began voyages in search of new land. Once England came upon the new land, they realized useful resources such as lumber, spices and other goods were in abundance. Settlements began to surface, creating several colonies that were categorized as northern, middle, and southern colonies. The colonies were established so England to receive goods, money, power, as well as religious freedom in which led to groups such as the Puritans and Pilgrims.