bam2

• British America, 1713–83: empire and revolution
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• British colonies in 1713


  Governed in the same way, but big differences in the different colonies between the types of settler and the work they did
• Government of the colonies

  • Part of the British Empire, under the authority of the British monarch
  • British Board of Trade governed the colonies for the king, controlled by British parliament
  • King appointed governors, in charge of each colony
  • Governors appointed members of a council to help govern
  • New laws passed by the council and an elected assembly
  • Assembly also raised taxes for the governor to run the colony
  • Local government run by town meetings or county courts, also elected
• New England colonies


  • Mostly settled by middle-class families, many people lived in towns, farmers or fishermen, or skilled workers, settlers originally Puritans, now nearly all Congregationalists, people with other religious beliefs not welcomed
• Middle colonies


  • Most people grew or traded food or furs, some were servants, a few were slaves, land split into small plots, people of all religions welcomed
• Southern colonies


  • Land very expensive, divided into large plantations, grew tobacco or rice, few wealthy landowners, most people slaves or servants, in some colonies over 50% of population were slaves
• Population growth in 18th century

  Led to expansion of British territory, increased tensions and Native American raids
• Immigration in 18th century

  Increased tensions due to arrival of German Lutherans, Scots-Irish indentured servants, English relatives, convicted criminals, and African slaves
• Tensions between social groups

  • Between classes (inequalities, violence)
  • Between races (racism, fear of slave rebellions)
  • Between town and countryside (merchants vs landowners)
  • Between religious groups (Congregationalists vs Presbyterians)
  • Between old and new settlers (resentment of non-English migrants)
• Mercantilism


  Britain controlled what the colonists could trade and who they could trade with, to benefit the British economy
• Most trade was with Britain itself, but also with other British colonies in America, especially the West Indies
• Tobacco


  High demand in Britain and other British colonies, 45% of exports from British America, very profitable due to slave labour
• Rice


  Even more profitable than tobacco, owners of rice plantations became incredibly wealthy
• Growth of tobacco and rice

  Massive increase in number of slaves, land expensive so only rich could afford it, difficult for servants and workers to find paid work
• 1733 Molasses Act placed high taxes on molasses imported from non-British places, increased trade between British America and the West Indies
• Only around 10% of goods produced in British America were sold abroad
• Britain provided financial help, insurance, loans and subsidies to colonists, benefiting British businesses as well as the colonists
• Tea increasingly replaced coffee, forming over a tenth of British products to the colonies and helping to spread British social habits
• Britain did not just supply goods to its American colonies. It provided financial help, such as insurance and loans to colonists, and gave subsidies to help the colonists grow certain products, such as indigo. This benefited British businesses as well as the colonists.
• In the 1700s, tea increasingly replaced coffee, forming over a tenth of British products to the colonies and helping to spread British social habits. Britain imported tea from India and sold it on.
• Piracy


  The 'Golden Age' of piracy was from about 1715 to 1725, when large numbers of pirates attacked ships around the West Indies and the coast of British America
• Impacts of piracy on British America

  • Traders lost money and goods were delayed or not supplied
  • Insurance costs rose, making trading more expensive
  • Many people on ships attacked by pirates were killed or forced to join the pirates
  • It created great fear: sailors feared for their lives and traders feared for their goods
• Methods used by the British government to end piracy

  • Offering royal pardons to those who gave up piracy
  • Offering rewards for catching pirates
  • Increasing the punishments for piracy
  • Sending the Royal Navy to capture pirates and attack pirate bases
• The British government's efforts to suppress piracy had a variety of both positive and negative effects
• By 1726, there were very few pirates left
• Asiento


  The right of Britain to have a monopoly on supplying slaves to Spanish colonies, which was given to the South Sea Company in 1713
• The asiento led to around 75,000 slaves being transported to Spanish America between 1713 and 1739, in addition to the 100,000 sent to British colonies in America
• The 'Atlantic triangle'


  The trading path whereby raw materials and other goods were shipped from North America and the West Indies to Britain and Europe, manufactured goods were shipped from Europe to Africa, and slaves were shipped from Africa to North America and the West Indies
• Slavery had a huge impact on the development of tobacco and rice plantations
• Impact of slavery on tobacco and rice plantations

  • Increased the workforce
  • Improved efficiency
  • Made profits
  • Increased population numbers
  • Brought knowledge
• Slavery was a major reason why owners of tobacco and rice plantations made profits
• Slaves provided knowledge and expertise that helped make tobacco and rice plantations successful
• In New England and the Middle colonies, slaves made up only a small proportion of the population and therefore had a small impact on colonial society
• In Chesapeake and South Carolina, where there were many more slaves, slavery had an enormous impact