Migration, Empire's and people - Looking west Flashcards
(69 cards)
Why was the Tudor and Stuart era one of momentous change?
England and Wales united, parts of Ireland under control
Tudors and Stuarts united through marriage → later a single monarch for England & Scotland
Growth in farming, industry, and overseas trade
Set stage for the British Empire
What new global opportunities emerged in the late 1400s?
New ships + better navigation → longer, safer journeys
1492: Columbus, sailing for Spain, “discovered” the Caribbean (West Indies)
Triggered a rush to colonise the Americas
How did Spain benefit from early exploration?
First major power to colonise the Americas
Found gold in South America → became rich and powerful
Inspired England to join the age of exploration
What was John Cabot’s role in English exploration?
1496: Sent by Henry VII to find new lands
Sailed from Bristol and landed in modern Canada (Newfoundland)
No gold/silks, but planted a British flag that led to future colonisation
Why is John Cabot significant despite not finding wealth?
His voyage marked the beginning of the British Empire
Newfoundland became a base for later explorers
Inspired British adventurers like Raleigh and Hawkins
Why did religion play a role in overseas expansion?
Spain = Catholic, England = Protestant
Exploration = way to spread religion, weaken rivals, and build power
Religious rivalry fuelled the race for empire
Who was Sir John Hawkins and why is he important?
Early Elizabethan naval commander and explorer
Britain’s first slave trader (voyages in 1562, 1564)
Built up the Royal Navy, fought in the Spanish Armada (1588)
Knighted by Queen Elizabeth I
Related to Sir Francis Drake
Why did England rely on piracy instead of gold mines?
Found no gold of its own in early exploration
Used privateering and piracy to seize Spanish riches
Helped fund exploration and strengthen the monarchy
How did piracy and privateering benefit Britain?
Privateers = legal pirates with royal permission
Could attack enemy ships and keep some treasure
Pirates = acted without permission and kept it all
10–15% of Spanish treasure ships were captured by rivals
What was the long-term impact of Tudor/Stuart exploration?
Established early overseas bases like Newfoundland
Created rivalries and power struggles with Spain
Set the stage for British colonisation and empire-building
Why did Britain shift from piracy to plantations in the late 1500s–1600s?
Pirates like Drake, Hawkins, Morgan made money stealing from Spanish/Portuguese ships
But colonies and plantations offered long-term profit
By the 1600s, crops like sugar, cotton, and tobacco were grown and sold
Colonies replaced piracy as Britain’s main way of profiting from the New World
What religious reasons led people to move to the Americas?
Groups like Puritans and Catholics faced religious persecution in Britain
The New World offered freedom to worship in their own way
Religion was a push factor for migration and colonisation
What economic factors encouraged colonisation?
First successful colony in 1607 (under James I) encouraged settlers
Cash crops like tobacco and sugar brought wealth
Despite disease, hunger, and conflict with Native Americans, the profits lured more settlers
Why was Barbados so important to Britain?
Acquired from Spain in 1625, switched to sugar by 1655
By 1655, became largest British slave colony
Seen as a profit-only colony, unlike mainland America which was for settlement
Where were the British plantations set up in the Caribbean?
Barbados (1625) and Cayman Islands (1670) became major plantation colonies
Barbados originally grew tobacco, later switched to sugar
By the 1690s, Barbados was almost fully covered in sugar plantations
Why did piracy decline by the 1720s?
Britain’s empire and trade became more profitable than piracy
Monarchs stopped granting privateer licenses
The Royal Navy cracked down on piracy – pirates lost safe havens like Nassau, Bahamas
How did global trade boost plantation farming?
Colonies exported crops like cotton and imported goods like coffee and rice
Cotton fed British fabric factories, which sold textiles back to the colonies
This circular trade grew Britain’s global profits and empire
Why was enslaved labour used on plantations?
Conditions were harsh – disease, heat, and crop failure
Few settlers wanted to work the land long-term
From 1619, enslaved Africans were used as they were cheaper than indentured servants
What were indentured servants, and why were they replaced?
Paid for their voyage by working a set number of years
After their contract ended, they were free to earn wages
Enslaved Africans replaced them as lifelong, unpaid labour → higher profits
How did the transatlantic slave trade develop?
Began in the 1560s, with British traders like John Hawkins
By 1619, the first enslaved Africans arrived in Virginia
In the 1700s, 6 million Africans were taken to the Americas
The trade formed part of the “Slave Triangle”: Europe → Africa → Americas → Europe
How did slavery increase plantation profits?
Enslaved people had no legal rights, worked for no pay, and were owned for life
Children born into slavery also became property
A large, unpaid workforce helped plantations become more profitable
How did the “slave triangle” work?
Leg 1: British ships took alcohol, guns, cloth to Africa
Leg 2: Traded goods for captured Africans or kidnapped them; crossed the Atlantic
Leg 3: Sold enslaved people in America for goods like sugar, tobacco, cotton, which were shipped back to Britain
Traders made up to 800% profit
Why was slavery so profitable for Britain?
Enslaved people worked for life without pay, increasing profits
Crops like sugar and cotton were in high demand
Backed by royal support – e.g., Queen Elizabeth I funded Hawkins’ 2nd voyage
By the 1800s, slavery brought Britain ~£60 million in profits
What role did the monarchy play in the slave trade?
Elizabeth I called slavery “detestable” but funded it anyway
King Charles II partnered in the Royal African Company
The company transported 60,000 enslaved people (1680–88)
Enslaved people were branded DY (James, Duke of York)
