Chapter 3:Colonies Take Root

(1587-1752)

Ch. 3.1:The First English

Settlements

Section Focus Question

How did the English set up their first colonies?

The First English Colonies

► Roanoke, NC (1587)… ???

Founding Jamestown (1606)

► The Virginia Company of London received a charter from King James I giving them the right to settle land in the area of the Chesapeake Bay

► This charter guaranteed colonists the same rights as English citizens

Virginia Company Seal

► Jamestown was founded along the James River in Virginia

► After a rough start, tobacco saves Virginia’s economy (a popular export to Europe by 1620)

House of Burgesses

► (1619) A governor was sent by the Virginia Company to consult settlers on all important matters…

► The House of Burgesses was formed. It was the first representative government in the English colonies.

► Together with the governor, they made laws for the colony.

House of Burgesses

The Plymouth Colony

► (1620) The Pilgrims left England for the Americas… seeking religious freedom

► In England, the Pilgrims were known as Separatists because they wanted to separate from the official church, the Church of England

Mayflower Compact

► The Pilgrims drafted rules for their new home in Massachusetts

► The 41 men agreed to consult one another about laws for the colony and promised to work for the common good

► The colony was named Plymouth

Section Focus Question

How did the English set up their first colonies?