Transcript The English in North America

The English in North America
Before we study
• Find England on a
world map.
• Find the parts of
America that became
colonies of England.
• How did the English
people get to
America?
• How long did it take?
• In 1215,
England was
a small, weak
country with
little wealth or
food. They
were often
beaten by
other nations
and made into
a colony.
• In 1215, there was a revolution in England. The
people were very angry at the king because he
sometimes took away people’s land or put them
in jail for no good reason. They thought he had
too much power and was using his power in a
bad way.
• The people beat the King and forced him to sign
a piece of paper called the Magna Carta.
• The Magna Carta limited
the King’s power. It said
that the King could not put
anybody in jail unless they
were given a fair trial with
a judge and a jury. It also
said that the King could
not take away people’s
land or property.
The Magna Carta also
created the English
Parliament. The
Parliament is a group of
people who represent all
the people of England.
They make laws and
have the power to stop
the king when he is
doing something bad.
Comprehension check
• What was the Magna Carta?
• Why do you think the Magna Carta
important in American history?
• In 1558, England was a
weak country. It had
no colonies. Spain
was a strong country.
It was an empire. It
controlled most of the
Americas. The
Spanish had many
strong ships. They
stopped other countries
from coming to
America.
• In 1588, Elizabeth
became the new
Queen of England.
Elizabeth was different.
She didn’t want to get
married. She wanted
to control England
without a king. She
was a strong woman.
The Catholic Church ordered Elizabeth to marry
the King of Spain, so England would become
part of Spain. Elizabeth said “no”. Spain and
the Catholic Church tried to assassinate her, but
she survived. After that she kicked the Catholic
Church out of England. She made the Church of
England the main church instead of the Catholic
Church.
• Elizabeth wanted
to hurt Spain and
get more gold for
England. She told
the English people
to attack Spanish
ships and steal
their gold. The
English became
pirates!
In 1588, Spain attacked England.
England won!
• The Spanish ships were destroyed. Now
English people could come to America too.
They started settlements in North America.
Comprehension check
• How would the world be different today if
Queen Elizabeth had married the King of
Spain?
• How did Queen Elizabeth change the
history of the world?
Why did English people want to
come to America?
Some wanted religious freedom.
• Some people did not
like the Church of
England.
• They wanted to start
a new church and live
in America.
• They called
themselves Pilgrims.
Some wanted to get rich.
• They were looking for gold or fur.
Some just wanted to own land.
• They wanted to be independent. They did not
want to have a boss.
The first English settlement in
North America was started in 1587.
• They built a town in
Roanoke, Virginia.
• They came to Virginia
to find gold.
The mystery of the Roanoke colony
• They mysteriously disappeared!
• We don’t know where they went to.
• They even left food and dirty dishes on the
table.
The second English settlement was
in Jamestown, Virginia.
• They came in 1607.
• They also wanted to find gold or furs.
They didn’t know how to grow food
in America.
• They were starving.
• The Indians helped
them.
• The Indians showed
them how to grow
food and hunt.
The English learned how to grow
tobacco.
They sent it to England
and made a lot of
money!
In 1619, the colonists started the
House of Burgesses.
• The House of
Burgesses was a
representative
government.
• Colonists voted for
leaders and made
their own laws.
• It was the first elected
government in the
English colonies.
Comprehension check
• Why did the English want to come to
America?
• How did the first English settlers survive in
America?
• How did the English settlers get rich in
America?
• Where did the English settlers get the idea
of representative government from?
In 1620, settlers came to
Massachusetts on the Mayflower.
The Mayflower Compact
• Half of the people on the Mayflower were
Pilgrims.
• The other half were regular English
people.
• The Pilgrims wanted to have their religious
freedom.
• The other people didn’t want the Pilgrims
to take away their freedoms.
• Both sides agreed to
make fair laws for all
people.
• They wrote the
Mayflower Compact—
a contract promising
to respect each
other’s rights.
Life in America was difficult.
• The colonists did not know how to grow food in
America.
• They were starving.
Thanksgiving
• The Indians helped them.
• After one year, the colonists had a big party to
celebrate.
• They wanted to thank God.
• The party was the first Thanksgiving!
Thanksgiving
In 1630, the Puritans came to
Massachusetts.
• The Puritans didn’t
like the Church of
England.
• They wanted to have
a “pure” life, clean
without any sin or
vice.
The Puritans were very strict.
• They didn’t like
people who were
different.
• They did not like
sinners.
• They hurt many
people.
The Puritans were afraid of
witches.
• They killed many people in witch hunts.
In 1632, Lord Baltimore started
Maryland.
• He wanted a colony for English Catholics.
In 1644, some people left
Massachusetts.
•
•
•
•
They were not happy there.
They wanted freedom.
They went to Rhode Island.
They lived with the Indians.
In 1682, the Quakers started
Pennsylvania.
• The Quakers
were Christians
who believed in
freedom and
education.
• They believed in
God but did not
believe in
religion or
churches.
Quakers
•
•
•
•
They believed in peace and love.
They did not like war or slavery.
They believed all people were equal.
They lived in peace with the Iroquois
Indians.
• They liked the Iroquois’s democratic
government.
In 1732, the English started
Georgia.
• The King took debtors out of prison and
put them in Georgia.
• They wanted English people there to fight
against the Spanish in Florida.
The Thirteen Colonies
Comprehension check
• How was each English colony different
from the other? Compare Georgia,
Pennsylvania, Maryland, Massachusetts,
and Virginia.