13 British Colonies - Economics

13 British Colonies - Economic Viewpoint

Hey P2G Chelsea, 
I just wanted to give you some quick economic background information on the early american colonial experience. You never know what might be on the TASC, but we do know that American history is a big focus. Good luck to anyone taking exams and remember to stay positive in your pursuit of education.


European nations wanted colonies in the New World so they could pursue an economic system called mercantilism. Mercantilism is based on the idea that a mother country, a nation that controlled colonies,  should try and maintain a favorable balance of trade between itself  and their colonies in order to maximize profits. As a mother country, England, adopted mercantilism as an economic system and benefited from its North American colonies in two ways. The colonies supplied England with raw materials—lumber, furs, grain, and tobacco. In turn, colonists bought furniture, iron utensils, books, and china (porcelain or ceramic plates)  made in England. Tariffs or taxes that are placed on imported goods could also be used to increase the cost of competing items that came from countries not approved by the mother country. 

       

What is a tariff and how could it be used to help mercantilism?

How did Europeans apply the economic theory of mercantilism to control its colonies?

         Relations improved between Great Britain and its colonies during the Glorious Revolution, when Parliament chose a new king and queen to rule England in 1688, (the Parliament established power over the crown). The new English government restored the colony’s charter but passed tough trade laws. These laws moved smuggling trials to English-controlled courts and created a Board of Trade. Although, on paper it seemed that England had tightened its control over the colonies with regards to trade, the opposite would prove to be true since they did not enforce these laws. Therefore the 13 British Colonies enjoyed great economic autonomy (freedom) during the Royal period of Salutary Neglect (lack of formal government involvement).

          To control colonial trade, the English Parliament passed the Navigation Acts. These laws barred the colonies from sending some goods to other nations. They also required that all colonial trade had to travel on English or colonial ships and first be unloaded at English ports. Some colonial merchants continued to smuggle—trade illegally—with other countries. In 1684 the English king tried to force merchants of Massachusetts to obey the laws. When they refused, the king revoked the colony’s charter and appointed a new royal governor, Sir Edmund Andros. Andros angered colonists by outlawing local government and imposing new taxes.

Predict how the policy of salutary neglect might impact future relations between the British colonies and their mother country?

A. Colonies might become resistant to demands placed on them by the mother country, thereby seeking to break away.

B. Colonies might feel like they aren't receiving enough attention from the mother country, thereby seeking to break away.

C. Colonies might decide to earn respect from the mother countries by offering even more favorable terms for trade

D. Colonies might decide that it is necessary to find a new mother country 

Economics in the New England and Middle Colonies

The economies of the northern colonies were diverse. In New England, towns were mostly located along the coast, initially because the interior was controlled by Native Americans, however these cities thrived as they took advantage of seafaring trade routes and the resources of the ocean. The colonists made their living fishing, whaling, and shipbuilding. The fish included cod, mackerel, herring, halibut, hake, bass and sturgeon. 

In the Middle Colonies there were many different professions taken up in order to earn money. For instance farming was important, especially in the fertile wheat- and corn growing regions of Pennsylvania and New York. Other industries included grinding wheat, fishing, trade, and shipbuilding. Many middle colonies also sought to model Great Britain's pattern of industrialization, attempting to bring some level of factory production to America. By the 1770's, the colonists built a third of all British ships and made more iron than Great Britain. Boston and New York City grew to be thriving areas of commerce. Whereas, Philadelphia became the second largest port in the British Empire.

      
The middle colonies were also known for ethnic diversity that was fueled by a constant influx of immigrants . Pennsylvania became home to large numbers of Germans fleeing poverty or seeking religious freedom. New ethnic groups that arrived in the area were the Irish, Scots, the Dutch, Scandinavians, and Jews. Cultural diversity in the northern colonies lead to various economic opportunities. Northern colonies also participated in the slave trade but had far fewer than in the South. Slaves in the north also suffered harsh treatment. Women in New England and the Middle colonies contributed to the household by farming, attending to children, and maintaining the home, but overall they had few rights. 

Why were slaves not a central focus of the economies of New England and the Middle colonies?

Southern Colonies

Colonists from Maryland to Georgia specialized in raising a single cash crop—a farm product raised for sale rather than for the farmer’s own use. Cash crops included tobacco, rice, and indigo. Later on cotton would be added to the list of cash crops that Southern states cultivated. These planters raised their crops on large farms, called plantations, along the region’s rivers. Owning a plantation meant that you had a lot of responsibility in the supervision of both your family and of the plantation itself. The owner would have to travel around the plantation throughout the day to ensure that the work was being done. Southern society was mostly rural. Charles Town (later called Charleston), in South Carolina, was the only major city of the South. Small farmers were in the majority in the South, but the planters dominated economic and political life. Southern women could not vote, attend school, or own property. They worked long hours on farm and household duties (cook, clean, make clothes, slaughter animals, take care of the children).

Southern Labor Needs

The Southern colonies employed many indentured servants in order to maintain their large plantations. Once their term was done, these mostly European indentured servants struggled to survive since they could not carve out a living among the land owning, almost aristocratic southerners and the now mistrusting Native American's who occupied lands nearby. By the late 1600's few indentured servants came to southern colonies instead many individuals saved their money in order to arrive as immigrants in the New England and Middle colonies. 

The Triangular Trade

To supply the labor they needed, the planters imported and enslaved hundreds of thousands of Africans. The slave trade was brutal. The trade route known as the triangular trade developed among the American colonies, Africa, and the West Indies. Over a period of 200 years, the middle passage of the triangular trade brought millions of Africans to work as slaves in the Americas.The vast majority of slaves brought to North America was bound for plantations in the Southern colonies. However, the Northern colonies also played a major part in this pattern. Manufacturers in the North turned West Indian sugar and molasses into rum. Some of this rum then was sent to Africa as the first leg of the triangular trade and was used to buy slaves.

Africans were branded with red-hot irons, crammed into the holds of ships, and transported across the Atlantic Ocean. About 20 percent died from cruel treatment or disease in transit. Those who survived became slaves. Up to 90 percent of enslaved people worked in the fields at various levels of the cash crop economy. The rest worked in planters’ houses as domestic servants. Some learned skills such as carpentry or blacksmithing. Children traditionally began working at the age 12, but slaves were always expected to do what the master wanted. In many cases slaves resisted their conditions, sometimes by pretending to be ill or by working slowly. During the Stono Rebellion of 1739, a group of slaves fought for freedom, but all were killed. Brutal treatment of slaves in order to discourage rebellion was a normal part of life in the Southern colonies. In the rare chances when slaves managed to escape they sometimes found a new home in Native American tribes out west or by traveling as far north as modern day Canada.

What was the triangular trade and the middle passage? What were the things that were traded in this triangle?

Below is relevant vocabulary on the subject along with a Flash card study technique:

Using Flashcards the Right Way

When designing a flash card there is a right and wrong way. For a example, let’s look at U.S. History concerning President Harry Truman. A limited design or use for a flashcard would be one that says “On what date was President Harry Truman born?” The answer to that question, is close ended and does not make your brain think. A better thought provoking question on your flash card might be: “Describe the historical significance of the time and place Harry Truman was born”, where the back of the flashcard is a series of very clean, concise bullets summarizing the important concept. Make your flashcards as complex or simple as you like, but remember that the average human brain is comfortable managing information in 4 to 8 chunks of information (think phone numbers i.e 4 chunks: Susan's #718 555 5501.)

Vocabulary

Cash Crops- crops that are raised for sale in order to make a profit instead of for sustenance. 

Indentured servants - Servants who signed a contract to work four to seven years for those who paid for their journey to America.

Immigrants - People who have left the country of their birth to live in another country.

Staple crops - Crops that are always needed, like wheat, barley, and oats.

Triangular trade - A system in which goods and slaves were traded among the Americas, Britain, and Africa.

Puritans - A Protestant group that wanted to purify, or reform, the Anglican Church. They were led by John Winthrop.

Pilgrims - A Separatist group that left England in the early 1600's to escape persecution. They first moved to the Netherlands in 1608 and then later moved to North America and settled in Virginia.

Quakers - A religious group led by Willian Penn that settled in Pennsylvania, who believed in the equality of men and women before God, nonviolence, and religious tolerance for all people.

Jamestown - The first permanent English settlement in North America set up in the colony of Virginia on May 14, 1607.

Bacon's Rebellion - Nathaniel Bacon and his followers attacked and burned Jamestown in this uprising against the governor of Virginia's policies promoting trade with Native Americans.

Mayflower Compact - A legal contract that was signed by 41 of the male passengers of the Mayflower on November 21, 1620. In it the Pilgrims agreed to have fair laws to protect the general good in the colony that they would found.

English Bill of Rights - An act passed by the English Parliament in 1689 that reduced the powers of the English monarch and increased the Parliament's power.

Middle Passage - The voyage across the Atlantic Ocean from Africa to the Americas that enslaved Africans had to endure.

Great Awakening - A religious movement that swept through the colonies in the 1730s and 1740s.

Enlightenment - This movement, that took place during the 1700s, spread the idea that reason and logic could improve society

New England – Originally a group of 6 colonies near Chesapeake Bay on the North Eastern coast of the United States.