Theme7: American Colonies- France and England
- 1. American Colonial Empires: France and England History 140 By Ryan Babers
- 2. American Colonies 5- Canada and Iroquois The English, Dutch, and French mariners sought out to conduct a smuggling trade against Spain who at the time (16th century) was the leading superpower in Europe. Especially across the Atlantic in the Americas European countries needed to establish colonies to disrupt Spains flow but not be in range of any attack The French sought after weaker resources and land to colonize in North America along the St. Lawrence river but were forced to abandon the area due to the harsh climate, scurvy, and hostile Indians Along the gulf of St. Lawrence, the French set up a post There, the French, English, Basque, and Portuguese found two new commodities to profit from; Fish and furs Local Indians became more dependent on the European goods which, forced them into a bind If the traders refused to help, war would break out with the local tribes. However, European traders would rather avoid conflict and helped the locals The French had placed themselves as diplomats pledging alliances to the tribes to avoid any hostility In the region, Indian tribes were split among the Algonquian and the Iroquois The Iroquois were centralized around lake Ontario whereas the Algonquian covered much o the Eastern seaboard The French had become an early leader in the fur trade French traders established alliances with the Algonquin Rival Iroquois tribes had been supplied with metal weapons by the Dutch which in turn the Iroquois sought out to disrupt French trade and colonization
- 3. Canada The fur traders had thoughts about creating permanent posts within their territory Posts would attract Indians over seasonal ships. Were fortified and armed with a canon in an effort to scare away other traders. It had also attracted more colonists who might invest in the trade business Companies kept their posts small and inhabited exclusively by their own dependents to avoid any new competitors At the end of the 16th century, French fur traders shifted their focus to Tadoussac, on the Gulf of St. Lawrence and along the peninsula Acadia (Nova Scotia) The French created a monopoly in Acadia setting up small, all-male settlements but it had failed to deter interloping traders, and due to harsh & scurvy winters annually that killed most of the colonists The French shifted their focus to reclaim the St. Lawrence valley The region was a poor location for an agricultural colony The St. Lawrence had promised the French with a more extensive fur trade with more northern Indian people than any other river system the continent could provide
- 4. Frenchman Samuel de Champlain led to found a colony of New France on the St. Lawrence River Champlain recognized that French success in Canada depended upon building an alliance with a network of native peoples Champlain built a fortified trading post in QUEBEC Colonists relied heavily on French supply ships for food & Indian goodwill for their survival and prosperity The Five Nation Iroquois consisted mostly of Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca who all had frequently raided northward to afflict the Montagnais, Algonquin, and Huron which hurt the French trade The French needed little hand putting a little pressure on Canadas natives who had more territory than they needed after the epidemics of the 16th century The French agreed to help their native suppliers against the Five Nation Indians creating new enemies for themselves Champlain and others had joined with allied Indians against rallied Iroquois (Mohawk) where they defeated them in present day (Lake Champlain) The French introduced firearms to the natives which would revolutionize Indian warfare The Iroquois sought after their own firearms dealing with the Dutch to even the score Although previously forbidden, French and Dutch trader had profited greatly from the sale of firearms to Indians Five Nation natives feared for their own who would be killed that didnt receive a proper ceremony and would haunt them They felt compelled to replace the dead by capturing or killing a prisoner
- 5. The Iroquois were brutal to their prisoners by torturing them and the women would butcher the remains for the village to eat as act of gaining power The Five Nation Indians had been on the brink of destruction when internal wars broke out An Indian prophet and his chief disciple helped restore peace under a new Great League of Peace stopping the internal conflict and revenge killings The peace was overshadowed by a new threat of disease epidemics which afflicted much damage to many Indians The French and Iroquois had been increasingly dependent on one another despite their rivalry Jesuits & Destruction The French colony had the idea to convert the Indians to be Catholic in an effort to make them more dependant on the French who used the mission style like the Spanish The Jesuits had been trained extensively in Indian culture and would not let their ideals go to waste Indians were entitled to equality but of poor status if converted The mid 17th century saw conflict on epic proportions when the Iroquois went on a rampage which brought chaos to all sides The Great League had nearly wiped out the Huron and forced other tribe into the league There was a mixed feeling for New France who had started to think twice about their investments in Canada
- 6. American Colonies 16- French America
- 7. French America 1650-1750 The British had been colonial rivals to the Canadian French The French had the Indians to rely on to deter British expansion Louisiana, a new French colony was created in the lower Mississippi valley at the end of the 17th century Louisiana was scarcely populated much like New France in the North and also relied on native Indians for defense against the British The French colonies stretched from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the Gulf of Mexico The French crown ordered the New France company to recruit more inhabitants The colonies began to include farming families which started to grown but only at a slow-steady pace For being to slow in growth, the French crown seized control of the colony in 1663 and played for their transatlantic passages Most of the emigrants were men looking for work and food Comprised mostly of urban laborers and artisans Most were also engages or indentured servants Many of the engages had negotiated their contracts and tended to leave whereas married men mostly stayed French emigration was hindered by failing to secure a migration chain unlike rival Britain who had done so Much of New Frances increase in population was natural
- 8. Still, the growth was minimal in comparison to English colonists Cultural values and institutional obstacles obstacles blocked overseas emigration Peasants were determined to remain rooted in their land Canadas environment was also very unpleasant for potential colonies, especially for agriculture French colonies reflected a more militaristic, paternalistic, and centralized form of authority The French crown appointed three rival officials in New France: a military governor-general, a civil administrator (intendent), and a Catholic bishop All three positions were involved in a triangle which each position had power over the other in an attempt for crown favorite The French had appointed a sovereign council which included the 3 officials, 5-7 seigneurs, and an attorney general New France also lacked the town or county governments
- 9. Instead of not having town or county governments, they divided the St. Lawrence valley into parishes, which combined civil, military, and ecclesiastical functions Each town had a church, a priest, and a militia company under a captain appointed by the intendant By the 18th century, France consisted of two very different sectors: the narrow, cultivated St. Lawrence valley and the vast forest and lakes known as the Upper Country One sector was mainly colonization (St. Lawrence valley) and the other was mostly trade (interior) Much of the region saw increased reproduction, and because of peace with the Iroquois it brought greater security, prosperity, and development to the valley A mix of tribes had also come to an agreement with the priests who conformed to a more traditional custom and ritual that wasnt in opposition to Catholic Worship The Indians had become a hybrid of Indian and European horticulture and continued to hunt for meat and furs The French were obliged to respect their pact with them
- 10. The French were more concerned about expanding their trade business in Louisiana more than their religious ambitions Louisiana was given a private company, The Company of the Indies by the crown which promoted plantations to cultivate tobacco and indigo The focus was then shifted by establishing New Orleans and became the colonys largest town, principal seaport, and government headquarters The Company of the Indies had transported 5,400 European colonists (mostly French) and 6,000 African slaves to Louisiana The climate in the south proved difficult for colonists Only a 1/3 of European emigrants remained alive in Louisiana (1731) however, conditions improved during the 1740s as colonists acquired partial immunities to fevers and farming conditions improved With a failing business the Company of the Indies had eventually become bankrupt and forced to surrender the colony to the French crown in 1731 The French had been employing blacks in militias to fight the Indians fearing blacks and Indians would rebel against them Some blacks managed to seek refuge in New Mexico and other Indian tribes from harsh punishment by the French From the French crown perspective French America was a economic disappointment and cost them France could not force their way out due to the Indians desperate bind & need for their goods, had become so well adapted
- 11. American Colonies 6- Virginia 1570-1650
- 12. Virginia 1570-1650 The Spanish had established missions up to the Chesapeake Bay (Virginia) but were driven out by native resistance The English had successfully colonized Ireland and sought to continue their expansion to Virginia, named in honor of Queen Elizabeth, a supposed virgin England originally were looking for ways to get rich by searching for gold and Spanish treasure ships Tobacco was instead found and in an effort to colonize the region, the English faced resistance from Algonquian Indians England invested in subcontractors and monopolies to privatize the area The country needed to expand to prevent collapse internally The executive power was bestowed in the monarch, with a Queen instead of a king English rule included kingdoms of England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland (1603)
- 13. The English From London, England dominated over the others The Queen had to share her power with the Parliament Under her rule, England hit a series of social woes economically and crime filled Colonial plantations could improve Englands balance of trade with other nations was suggested Virginia plantations had promised to improve the nations trade by providing import substitutes It was also relief to the cloth industry England used the colonization of Ireland as a model for how to colonize overseas In 1585, one hundred male colonists under Sir Walter Raleigh set out to colonize Roanoke, a small island on the North Carolina coast The island prevented any Spanish activity and England access due to the shoals and sands Roanoke was eventually abandoned
- 14. Virginia Some surviving members in the Roanoke expedition apparently found refuge in a Indian village but were killed The English made another attempt at Chesapeake Bay which offered better harbors, navigatable rivers, and more fertile land The English named the 4 major rivers in Virginia: James, York, Rappahannocha, and Potomac The region had some 24,000 Indians who were all united under a chief named Powhatan Virginia Indians viewed Englands total war as pointless and wasteful. However natives were interested in English technology and thought of them as allies to defeat rival tribes The English though were highly distracted because of ruthless acts of killings and kidnappings They had also distrusted the English way of life England had not set up missions like the Spanish or French either In 1604 a peace treaty with Spain reduced danger of Spanish attack on any new colony
- 15. A newer interest in colonial Virginia became more popular The colony of Jamestown was established after a band of English ships sailed up the James river The town was good for defense against Spain and Indians but extremely poor on health (disease-wise) Colonists expected the Indians to feed them but did not know about the scarce resources available for the colonists Some colonists tried to parade on a village and were killed and left for their countrymen to see Captain John Smith was taken prisoner and offered a role as subordinate chief Smith was released and continued to harass Indians for corn Both the colonists and Powhatan launched brutal attacks on each other Pocahontas was captured, accepted Christian conversion, and married colonist John Rolfe Both sides made peace however, Pocahontas went to England and would die from disease
- 16. American Colonies 9- Puritans and Indians
- 17. Puritans and Indians 1600-1700 Puritans perceive the pre-colonial landscape as a hideous and desolate wilderness full of wild beasts and men. They saw the Indians as their opposite and feared that their own peoples (puritans) would turn into them Colonists had spread out mostly for better land Puritan leaders feared that profit & religion were diverging and people thought more about their economic interests The New English worked to show that they are still Christians and would not dwell into Indian culture The puritans were also working to convert and transform Indians into English Christians The New English wanted to dominate the region and its natives South New England Indians had culture, and language but lacked the political strength that the Powhatan chiefdom had The top tribes in the region were the Mohegan and Pequot of Connecticut, the Narragansett of Rhode Island, the Patuxet and Wampanoag of the Plymouth colony, and the Nipmuck, Massachusetts, and Penacook of the Massachusetts Bay Colony
- 18. The tribes were subdivided into local bands who had a common hunting & gathering territory, and shared villages Natives could leave from one band to go into another To the English, the natives had the notion that all they were is hunters The Indians also surprised the English with their superior agriculture skills and their diet had been so well balanced with nutrients Indians had been able to control forest fires rather let them burn wildly and destructively like the English had done Fires had become a staple in Indian agriculture as well Men and women in tribes had general roles where men would do male centered roles like hunting, fishing, and warfare whereas women took care of the children, maintained homes, and agriculture (gathering roles) Indian women performed roles which were less time consuming than colonial women and took pride in their work
- 19. Puritans and Indians Most Indians had to share their resources unless acquiring or stealing goods from the English Colonists had been protective of their possessions and tended to not share with natives Colonists marveled at the vast wildlife and land which they began to see it as a chance of commodity They had themselves decided to determine the portions of land to clam and what to give to the Indians by issuing deeds or contracts Once property was in colonists hands, they felt any trespassers by Indians would result in self defense The colonists were also clearing out land at a faster rate and with more claims of land, it became off limits and hostile to Indians The first major conflict between the New English and the Indians broke out in 1636 Colonial leaders had made outlandish demand of the Pequot tribe and declared war, forcing the Mohegan, and Narragansett to fight against the Pequot as allies
- 20. Puritans and Indians With the help of the Mohegan and Narragansett the New English attacked the Pequot village Both the Mohegan and Narragansett were in a state of shock as the colonists had slaughtered men, women, and children sparring no one which was originally thought England Puritans also criticized the New English for their slaughter They had nearly wiped out all the remaining Pequot Ironically the Pequot would eventually help the colonists fight the Narragansett some years later Many remaining bands began to ponder the price of fighting the colonists or being subordinate to them Some of the colonists began to attempt evangelizing the Indians where they built praying towns to attract them Smaller, weaker bands were of most concern In 1675-76, the bloody King Philipss war broke out The chaotic war had finally subdued the natives after years of massacre