Colonies and Bakers Rebellion, Research Paper Example

The New England and Chesapeake and colonies were settled by two different types of settlers.  The New England colonies were made mostly of puritan Christian families who set up a class system much like the one they had left behind in Europe.  In contrast, the Chesapeake colonies were settled by single males who came to seek their fortune.  In Chesapeake, many European immigrants came as indentured servants to work the land of the rich plantation owners.  For labor in New England, many natives from Central and South America were brought in as slaves.  This is one of the main reasons for the Salem Witch Trials taking place in New England but not in Chesapeake.  The first accused witch was an Indian slave from South America who had carried new ideas about the supernatural to New England.  The Chesapeake colonies workers did not have such ideas because they were European indentured servants.

Bacon’s Rebellion occurred because of the economic depression that was occurring in Virginia at that time.  Whereas New England farmers grew food, southern farmers grew cash crops like tobacco.  The politics of the depression were blamed on Lord Berkley whose government ran the colonies for the crown.  Bacon’s rebellion was a war against the Indians, but it was really against the government of Lord Berkley, who was allied with the Indians in the fur trade.  The Indians were making raids against the colonist’s plantations and Bacon led a group of black and white servant’s into battle against the Indians even though Lord Berkley did not condone the actions.

New England was made up of religious farmers who were not so easily led into war.  Since they were not suffering financially from the low market value of cash crops, they were not seeking vengeance and thus maintained a healthier relationship with the natives in New England.  They were also neither of the underclass or the upper class, but maintained a middle ground and accepted noble rule without question, something the Chesapeake colonists did not.

References

Divine, Robert A., Breen, T.H., Fredrickson, Geroge M., Williams, R. Hal, Gross, Ariel J., Brands, H.W. America Past and Present.  Revised 7^th Edition.   Chapter 3 Summery from http://wps.ablongman.com/long_divine_appap_7/23/5926/1517283.cw/content/index.html

Mintz, S. (2007). A Boisterous Sea of Liberty Educator’s Guide. Digital History. Retrieved March 21, 2010 from http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/bsol/BSOL_educators_guide.pdf

Grymes, Charles A.  Bacon’s Rebellion.  Retrieved on March 31, 2010 from http://www.virginiaplaces.org/military/bacon.html

Bacon’s Rebellion 1675 – 1676 retrieved on March 31, 2010 from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part1/1p274.html