The Virginia Colony

Why did English settlers come to North America, and where did they settle first?

Objectives:Learn how the Virginia Colony was settled. Describe the relations between English settlers and Native Americans.

Vocabularyraw materialstockcash cropprofitindentured servantlegislaturerepresentroyal colony

PeopleQueen Elizabeth IWalter Raleigh John WhiteJohn SmithPocahontasJohn Rolfe

Places Roanoke IslandJamestown

Dates1585 – the first colonists arrive at Roanoke1607 – the Jamestown settlement is started1610 – the first Africans arrive in Virginia

England Attempts a ColonyIt was in 1587, when 116 English colonists arrived on an island off the coast of present day North Carolina.

England saw that Spain had grown rich from its colonies. Now England wanted their own colonies. They knew they would benefit from the lumber and other raw materials, or resources that can be used to make a product Wood, lumber

Queen Elizabeth sends Walter Raleigh to set up a colony., in 1584

One year later, Raleigh sends John White and 100 other colonists to Roanoke.

The colonists did not stay long. They ran low on food and returned to Eanland.

John White led another group of settlers to Roanoke Island in 1587.White sailed back after a time, and returned three years later. When he returned with supplies all the settlers were gone.

What happened is still a mystery.

The Spanish Armada prevented White from returning sooner. And he could not find a captain to sail.

There are many theories concerning what happened to these colonists. They could have left due to weather, food shortage or threat of attack by local tribes. One thing is for sure, nothing is certain. Future settlers and explorers would claim to have spotted natives with light hair and eyes or natives that spoke perfect English. These claims may explain where the settlers went. It is highly likely that they integrated into the Croatoan tribe, but there is no concrete evidence of this.

Roanoke, The Lost Colony

John WhiteWas an artist and mapmaker

JamestownIn 1607, three ships sent by the Virginia Company sailed into the Chesapeake. 105 colonists cleared land and built a settlement. They named the river James, in honor of their new king, James I.

Jamestown was a poor choice for settlement. The land was swampy. No one wanted to work, more than half the colonists died the first year. Without Captain John Smith the settlement would have failed. He made an important rule – anyone who did not work did not eat.

The Powhatan Confederacy

Most native Americans living at this time belonged to the Powhatan Confederacy, and their chief was Powhatan.

There was trouble from the start at Jamestown.

Pocahontas brought about a short period of peace between the two groups. During this time the groups cooperated and traded goods.

Growth and GovernmentJohn Rolfe comes to Jamestown on the third voyage. Brought tobacco from the West Indies to the Colony. The colonists were soon growing this as a cash crop – a crop people grow to sell. The Virginia Company made huge profits, from tobacco.

Tobacco is known as the first cash crop.

This crop required people to work the fields, not gentlemen.

Newcomers Arrive

Growing tobacco required many workers. The Virginia Company paid people’s passages to Virginia.

They brought indentured servants. These people agreed to work for a period of time without pay. – usually, for four to seven years. After that, they were freed.

In 1619, the first Africans were brought to Jamestown. No one knows if they were treated as indentured servants or slaves.

Over time more Africans were brought to Virginia. They came as enslaved workers. Their hard work helped Virginia proper. They were never freed.

The House of Burgesses

More than 1,000 people were living in the Virginia Colony. The Virginia Company said colonists could have the same rights as people in England. So colonists set up a legislature.

Virginia’s legislature was known as the House of Burgesses.

•It was the first representative assembly in the English colonies. •Colonists could elect members to represent or speak for them in government. •Only men who owned property could vote in the House of Burgesses.

The Powhatan Wars

As more colonists came to Virginia, they took more Powhatan land.

In 1622, the Powhatan fought back , which started years of fighting.

These wars led to King James I to make Virginia a royal colony in 1624.

The king now owned the colony. He picks a governor who shared power with the House of Burgesses.