1.1 Developments in colonial society (British America)

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  • Created by: ASOFIARB
  • Created on: 23-01-20 08:30
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  • Developments in colonial society.
    • British America in 1713
      • Britain controlled a ***** of land: Canada and United States
      • the settlers were: wealthy land owners,poor servants and slaves
      • The British settlers were surrounded by enemies: the French from the North and West and Spanish from the south.
    • Pattern of settlement in the colonies in 1713
      • New England colonies  (middle-class     families)
        • Farmers,fisherman,woodcutters,shipbuilder
        • There were lots of towns but the colonists didn't welcome different religious groups
      • Southern        colonies      (rich land owners,poor servants and slaves)
        • Worked on plantations run by rich planters,growing tobacco and rice
        • land was too expensive for those trying to escape poverty
    • Immigration and tensions among social groups.
      • Tensions between descendants of English settlers and new settlers from mainland Europe
        • Some feared that foreigners might swamp their colony, immigrants were made to swear an oath of loyalty to the colony
      • Tensions among other social groups
        • Rich landowners vs small planters and planters vs servants and laborers. Around 50% of white men owned no land. Innequality created tension between the different ranks of society
        • Rich merchants vs Rich landowners       the elites who ran out the colonial government, were divided between two interests: the town (trading and commerce) and the countryside (farming)
    • Economic developments
      • Trade with Britain
        • About 10% of the the goods produced by colonists sold to other countries,one of the biggest markets was Britain , they controlled what the the colonists could trade and the countries the could trade with,it helped the economy to grow
          • Britain            provided:
            • A market for colonial goods:it wanted wheat,fish,fur, tobacco and rice.
            • Consumer goods: the colonists could buy goods like tea, spices and manufactures clothing
            • Cheap manufactured goods:Britain sold tools that colonists needed to grow crops
    • Trade with the West Indies
      • Another consequence of being part of the British Empire was that the North American colonies were encouraged to trade with other British Colonies
        • In 1733 the British America introduced the Molasses Act,which strengthened trade with the West Indies and bought molasses in return.Molasses could be returned into rum,which became a valuable consumer product in the colonies
          • The importance of tobacco
            • Tobacco was grown in some of the southern colonies and was very important to their economies
            • It made up about 45% of everything British America sold to other countries.There was a high demand of it in Britain, which meant the colonists could charge high prices
            • However, there were negative effective of relying so much.The colonists put them selves ask risk if there was a drop in demand, or too mush was produced,because the sale price would drop. When this happened in the 1720 and early 1730, the income of tobacco planters fell
          • The introduction of tea
            • In the 1700s,coffee was replaced by tea as the most fashionable drink
              • It was bought into Britain from India,which was also as a part of the British Empire, and some of it was then resold to British America
              • Tea made up around 12% of the products that went through Britain on their way to the colonies.This helped to spread the social habits of the mother country to its colonies
              • At first, tea became very important in sophisticated female society in the colonies.However, y the middle of the 18th century,it was popular with everyone from rich to poor
  • Middle  colonies (farmers,  traders,servants, slaves)
    • Worked on small farms and traded furs.
    • Easier to get land,people from different religious groups were welcomed
  • Tensions between religious groups
    • Many of the Scot-Irish were Presbyterians. This upset the people of New England who were Congregationalists, and let them pass an anti-migration law
    • Immigration and tensions among social groups.
      • Tensions between descendants of English settlers and new settlers from mainland Europe
        • Some feared that foreigners might swamp their colony, immigrants were made to swear an oath of loyalty to the colony
      • Tensions among other social groups
        • Rich landowners vs small planters and planters vs servants and laborers. Around 50% of white men owned no land. Innequality created tension between the different ranks of society
        • Rich merchants vs Rich landowners       the elites who ran out the colonial government, were divided between two interests: the town (trading and commerce) and the countryside (farming)
  • The colonists received help to improve production:
    • Laws to help industry in the colonies: Britain passed laws to encourage the colonist build ships to transport their goods
    • Finance:British colonies provided insurance and loans to the colonists
    • Subsides:The British needed certain raw materials, such as indigo and gave money to assist productuion
    • About 10% of the the goods produced by colonists sold to other countries,one of the biggest markets was Britain , they controlled what the the colonists could trade and the countries the could trade with,it helped the economy to grow
      • Britain            provided:
        • A market for colonial goods:it wanted wheat,fish,fur, tobacco and rice.
        • Consumer goods: the colonists could buy goods like tea, spices and manufactures clothing
        • Cheap manufactured goods:Britain sold tools that colonists needed to grow crops

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