Cultural Focus: Setting up Slavery

Slavery in the New World started with Columbus, who gave to the colonists the piece of land and the right to the labor of all natives, who lived on the land. Later the Spanish settlers started to use the practice of raiding smaller Caribbean islands and kidnapping their inhabitants.

The first African slaves were imported to the New World within a few years after Columbus' first trip. By 1513, King Carlos I of Spain had given his royal accent to African slave trade, giving way to black newcomers, who eventually replaced Native Americans on the sugar and tobacco plantations.

When American mainland was being settled, African slaves were brought to new plantations by Europeans, who seized them in tribes or just kidnapped. Some Africans were sold by their own tribes when they failed to give back personal debts or were in bad terms with tribe leaders.

In the 1600s, colonial governments took steps to institutionalize slavery. In 1662, Virginia passed laws that automatically made slaves of slaves children. In 1664, Maryland's assembly declared that any black person in the colony was a slave for life, whether they converted to Christianity or not. And in 1684, New York recognized slavery as a legitimate practice. Though for many people slavery in the New World became a distinguishing feature of the southern colonies, there were also slaves in the north mostly used as domestic servants. Black skinned servants and agricultural workers had no chance to escape their destiny – most were illiterate and did not know how to get to a different place, and more over, black run away slaves were easy to recognize because of their skin color.

The New England Colonies

Unlike the Chesapeake colonies based on economic motives, the colonists of New England were driven by religious beliefs. Most of them were Puritans – the followers of John Calvin, who wanted to reform the Church of England. As they were persecuted in their own country, Puritans first migrated to Holland and then received a permission from the Virginia Company to colonize the northern part of its territory.

In 1620, the group of Puritans, who called themselves Pilgrims, crossed the Atlantic Ocean on the board of the Mayflower. A storm sent them far north from where they had intended to land. They established their colony on Cape Cod naming it Plymouth after the city from which they had sailed.

As they landed outside the jurisdiction of the Virginia Company, the legal authority for the colony was established by a formal agreement about "just and equal laws" – the Mayflower Compact. It was a unique document as it was drawn by the people equal to each other and looking for a way to establish the laws under which equal people could co-exist peacefully. The Mayflower Compact became the first step in the colonies towards self-rule and future independence from England. According to the Compact the settlers elected William Bradford governor and made all decisions for the colony at town meetings.

Though the first winter in the New World proved to be very harsh and half of the Plymouth settlers died, the colony survived and took from the local Indians some planting techniques, which allowed them to plant corn. Pilgrims were lucky enough to find support among local Indians – a member of the Pawtuxet tribe called Squanto. Squanto, who had been taken to England as a slave before and escaped, spoke fluent English and a little Spanish. For a year Squanto stayed with the Pilgrims, acting as their interpreter and advisor.

New England's first settlement never got big and by 1691, it was absorbed by another Puritan settlement established by the Massachusetts Bay Company. This company promised to Puritans that they would be able to practice their religion freely in New England. Led by John Winthrop in 1630, the members of the Massachusetts Bay Company started the Boston settlements, which soon developed into the New England region.

Winthrop proclaimed the goal of new settlements – "to create a city upon a hill" – an ideal community in which each person put the good of the whole ahead of his/her private concerns. Firm religious basis attracted the Massachusetts Bay settlements disciplined men and women, who managed to establish a colony within a year. Puritan society did not reject economic prosperity, but most people believed that moral self-restrain should prevent merchants from squeezing out profits. The rich had and obligation to show charity and mercy while the poor were expected to demonstrate patience and fortitude. The founder of New England saw in the new settlements an alternative to the mother country – England, wishing to found a spiritual place where pious people could prosper.

By the 1640s, the colony had its own system of self-government composed of a governor and a two-house legislature. The judicial system of the colony, modelled on English law, was fixed in "The Laws and Liberties of Massachusetts".

The first settlere of New England experienced little resistance from Native Americans, they signed a treaty with the local Pokanoket tribe, who supplied them with food and informed about the unfamiliar environment.

The planning of New England colonies also followed the patterns of mother country – soon English-like towns and villages were established. As the settlements grew, new colonies were created – Connecticut in 1636, New Haven in 1638 and New Hampshire in 1638.

The governments of New England colonies were all controlled by Puritans – Congregationalism was the only officially recognized religion. Only church members could vote in colonial elections, all households were taxed to build meeting-houses and pay ministers salaries. Puritans, who came to the New World for the freedom of worship, did not tolerate any other religion.

Such religious practices were opposed by newcomers, who came to America seeking freedom to worship. In 1635, Roger Williams, who criticized Puritans for imposing their religious beliefs on others, banished from Massachusetts to found the town of Providence on Narragansett Bay. This town grew into the colony of Rhode Island – the only place in New England where the policy of religious toleration was adopted.

Task 1. Study the Mayflower Compact, which established the basis for written law in the New World.