Raleigh and Virginia

• Raleigh


  A noblemen and a courtier, he became an explorer during Elizabeth's reign
• Sir Walter Raleigh organised, but did not participate in, a failed expedition to colonise Virginia on the east coast of North America


  1584-85
• Sir Walter Raleigh


  • He raised funds for the project and persuaded people to leave England and settle in Virginia
• In 1584, Elizabeth gave Raleigh grant to explore and settle lands in North America</b>
• Raleigh needed to raise huge amounts of money and encourage potential English colonists to leave their homes and settle in a land many knew little about
• Raleigh did not lead the colonists, but he was significant because he raised funds for the project and persuaded people to leave England and settle in Virginia
• The colonisation of Virginia

  1. 1585 - English colonisation of Virginia begins, 107 men set out for Roanoke, Virginia

  2. 1587 - New English colony attempts to return to Virginia and finds the colony at Roanoke abandoned

  3. 1594 - Raleigh plans new colonisation of North America and sends a team to explore Virginia and report back

  4. 1586 - The surviving colonists abandon the colony at Roanoke, unable to feed themselves and facing hostile Native Americans, and go back to England
• Reasons for colonising Virginia

  • Trade - Explorers and colonists could barter for animal skins, gold and other commodities
  • Less dependent on Spain, France and Italy for imported goods
  • Welcoming and friendly natives encouraged the English to go there
  • Raleigh was able to persuade investors that the trip would be profitable
  • Colonising Virginia would provide a base to attack Spanish settlements and colonies
  • A successful colony in Virginia would make it easier to fund other ventures, opening up the New World to English settlement
• The colonists who went to Virginia in 1585 were mostly soldiers and sailors, although there were some craftsmen, landowners, merchants and farmers
• What the colonists took to Virginia

  • Food and salt for preserving it
  • Fresh water
  • Tools and equipment, including ploughs and seeds
  • Weapons to protect themselves from attack
• The Virginia colony failed due to lack of food, poor leadership, and conflict with Native Americans