Lesson 2.01: English Exploration and Early Settlement

• Introduction
• Roanoke
• Jamestown
• Practice
• Summary & Tasks

Following successful completion of this lesson, students will be able to: Identify the economic and religious motivations for England to colonize in North America. Discuss the first attempt at colonization at Roanoke. Discuss the founding of Jamestown, the hardships, and the reasons for success. Identify the foundations of self-government in the colonies. The above objectives correspond with the following Alabama Course of Study Objectives: IB4Describing conflicts among Europeans that occurred regarding the colonies, IB5Explaining how mercantilism was a motive for colonization, IICompare various early English settlements and colonies on the basis of economics, geography, culture, government, and Native American relations., IIB1Identifying tensions that developed between the colonists and their local governments and between the colonists and Great Britain, and IIB3• Explaining the role of the House of Burgesses and New England town meetings on colonial society

Overview

The Discovery of the Americas by the Spanish in the late 1400s was the beginning of Europe's fascination with the New World. In Unit 1, the Spanish and French explored parts of North and South America and established settlements. England's attempts at colonization came in the late 1500s and early 1600s, after the Protestant Reformation, the defeat of the Spanish Armada, and changes in the English economy, solidified their position as a power in the world.

Sir Walter Raleigh claimed land off the east coast of North America in 1585 and named it Virginia after Queen Elizabeth I, who was known as the "Virgin Queen." Raleigh attempted a settlement there, but a year later the colonist gave up and returned to England. Raleigh's second attempt was in 1587 at Roanoke, Virginia (today this is the outer banks of North Carolina). Three years later when supply ships landed in Roanoke, the entire colony had disappeared.

In 1606, James I granted a charter to a joint-stock company, called the Virginia Company of London, to colonize Virginia. In 1607, 100 male settlers founded Jamestown on the banks of the James River. Jamestown was the first permanent English settlement in North America. The Jamestown colonists endured many hardships, but under the leadership of Captain John Smith, and with the Powhatan Indian's help, the colony survived.

The turning point for Jamestown was when a settler named John Rolfe discovered that tobacco could be grown in Virginia and that it was profitable. Farms were then established and the English settlement was considered permanent. The negative consequence was that a large labor supply was needed, so slavery was introduced in North America. The positive outcome was that the large numbers that were settling in Virginia supported the principles of self-government, which later led them to create the first colonial legislature; called the House of Burgesses.