Part 2 - Looking West Flashcards
(21 cards)
1
Q
Role of the individual? John cabot and christopher colombus
A
- christopher traveled to americas in 1492 - hoped to find new routes to india and china by sea - sailed west and discovered west indies
- john cabot traveled to canada in 1496 - sailed from bristol - found no riches so returned home - marked start of british empire
2
Q
Role of the individual? John Hawkins
A
- respected english naval commander, merchant, privateer and pirate - responsible for building up royal navy
- became britains first slave trader in 1562 - set sail on first slave-trading voyage - capturing africans to sell in americas
- trip so profitable it was repeated in 1564 - partly funded by queen
3
Q
Economic reasons to go to americas?
A
- more britons willing to go to americas after first successful colony in 1607
- plenty of land for new “cash crops” grown on farms - plantations
- crops exported back to britain for great profit
4
Q
Religious reasons to go to americas?
A
- some Christian groups such as Puritans and Catholics persecuted for their beliefs
- left to americas for religious freedom
5
Q
Imperialist ideas reasons to go to americas?
A
- business men set up plantations in north america and west indies
- british inventors keen to develop trade in americas - help pay for growth of british empire elsewhere
- exporting/importing within empire made further profit
6
Q
Why did plantations replace piracy?
A
- as britains empire grew in north america + became increasingly profitable - British monarchs stopped granting privateer permissions
- by 1720s - piracy rare in americas - plantations where huge profits could be made
7
Q
Problems on plantations?
A
- hard conditions
- new diseases
- hot weather
- crop failures + food shortages
- people did not want to work on plantations for labour - british began using indentured servants for labour
- by 1619 - plantation owners realised they could make more money enslaving people
8
Q
Case study barbados?
A
- britain took over barbados in 1625 - soon developed for tobacco plantations
- by 1655 it was largest British slave colony - sugar then produces on plantations making huge profit
- by 1698 42,000 slaves from Africa lived on Barbados
9
Q
Move to slavery?
A
- enslaved people cheap source of labour
- plantation owners could buy enslaved people outright
- enslaved people had no rights - worked without payment
- children born to eslaved people became owners property
10
Q
Who was involved in slave trade?
A
- charles II partner in royal african compay - transported 60,000 africans between 1680 and 1688
10
Q
Development of slave trade?
A
- enslaved people taken to americas and caribbean as result of slave triangle
- traders profited from all parts of slave triangle - up to 800% profit
- increased slave trading meant plantations became highly profitable
10
Q
Slave trade process?
A
- traders left britain headed for africa on ships full of goods
- traders trade goods with african tribesmen in return for prisoners of other african tribes
- in americas - slaved people traded to plantation owners and farmers for goods - sugar, cotton, tobacco
11
Q
Economic impact of slave trade?
A
- jobs created in Britain - dockworkers gained jobs unloading goods made by slaves - shops owners made money selling goods from plantations
- helped make Britain one of the world’s richest countries - british slave trade industry made around £60m between 1761 and 1808
12
Q
Religious factors for setting up colonies in america?
A
- christian groups e.g. quakers and catholics - suffered persecution
- failure to attend anglican services punishable by death
- in north america different religious groups could join colonies - have religious freedom
- some people wanted to convert indigenous people to christianity
13
Q
Economic factors for setting up colonies in america?
A
- high levels of unemployment in britain
- low wages for farm hands and labourers
- failed harvests causeds starvation
- in north america - plantations growing crops gave people change to make money
13
Q
Social impact of slave trade?
A
- british port towns developed massively, especially Liverpool, Glasgow and Bristol
- wealth from slave trade spent on building grand buildings
- europeans were superior to africans
- parliament banned slave trade in 1807 - 1833 slave ownership banned
- government paid £20m in compensation to former slave owners for “loss of property”
14
Q
War factors for setting up colonies in america?
A
civil war in britain resulted in increased conflict between religious groups in britain
15
Q
Role of individual sir walter raleigh?
A
- sea captain for queen elizabeth and kings james
- set up colonies in virginia in 1584 - established roanoke
- settlers in roanoke faces numerous problems with crops - came into conflict with indigenous americans
- raleigh known as “father of american colonies”
16
Q
Virginia case study?
A
- british people tried to settle in Virginia in late 1500s - SWR played key role in this - setting up places like roanoke
- first settlers struggled to grow food, faced attacks from Native Americans - caught - quickly died - settlements failed
- 1607 - new colony set up in Virginia - Jamestown
- native americans helped settlers to find and grow food - started to grow tobacco - became very popular in england - encouraged more people to move to america
17
Q
Massachusetts case study?
A
- new plymouth founded in massachusetts in 1620
- puritans arriving on mayflower - known as pilgrim fathers
- escape religious persecution
- set up own religious colony - aims of fishing/trading with other colonies - established democratic principles and consitution to keep puritan beliefs central to colony life - foundation of modern america
18
Q
Impact of british colonies on indigenous americans?
A
- british seen as invaders
- did not treat them with respect
- many tribes whiped out by disease that settlers brought over - british settlers attacked crops and villages
- 1500 - around 560,000 indigenous americans in british territories - by 1700 fewer than 280,000
- today indigenous americans only accounts for 0.7% of population
