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English colonies were economic enterprises intended to increase the power, influence, and wealth of the British Empire, including through cash crops such as cotton, wheat, and tobacco.
The four main groups were:
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The Chesapeake Bay colonies were Virginia, established in 1607, and Maryland, established in 1634.
New England colonies included Plymouth (1620), Massachusetts Bay (1630), Connecticut (1636), Rhode Island (1636), and New Hampshire (1638).
The Middle Colonies included New York, New Jersey, and Delaware, established in 1664, and Pennsylvania, established in 1682.
The Carolinas and Georgia group included North Carolina (1653), South Carolina (1663), and Georgia (1732).
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Jamestown, established on May 14, 1607, was the first permanent and viable English colony in the New World.
In 1613, John Rolfe developed a variety of tobacco that British consumers liked, making tobacco a profitable cash crop for Virginia.
In 1619, Jamestown established the House of Burgesses, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and received the first ship transporting African slaves to the colony.
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The Virginia Company of London obtained a royal charter from King James I to establish a colony in Virginia.
Jamestown's early settlers faced starvation, cannibalism, malaria, and attacks by Powhatan Indians, and a relief expedition arrived in 1610.
John Rolfe married Pocahontas, the daughter of the Powhatan chief, who was also known as Lady Rebecca after becoming Christian.
📌 John Smith's account said Pocahontas saved him from execution and helped create friendship with the Powhatan, while historians' account says Jamestown colonists kidnapped Pocahontas at age 17 and she later married Rolfe.
Tobacco created prosperity; representation and slavery marked 1619.
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📌 Separatists had left the Church of England and founded Plymouth, whereas Non-Separatists remained in it and founded Massachusetts Bay.
The Mayflower Compact, signed in November 1620, established laws to be obeyed by all and equal rights for male settlers, and is described as the first written constitution in the New World.
John Winthrop led the Massachusetts Bay colony, whose capital was Boston from 1630, and described its intended exemplary society as a City Upon a Hill.
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Puritans saw themselves as God's Chosen People, charged with preserving the Protestant faith and establishing God's kingdom in the New World.
The Pilgrims sought a disciplined society based on biblical principles, while the Strangers primarily sought freedom from their circumstances.
Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863, observed on the fourth Thursday in November.
In 1691, Plymouth was absorbed by the Massachusetts Bay colony.
Separatists founded Plymouth; Non-Separatists founded Massachusetts Bay.
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Roger Williams opposed taking Indian land without negotiation and advocated separation of church and state and freedom of religion.
In 1636, Roger Williams fled Massachusetts Bay and founded Rhode Island and its capital, Providence; Rhode Island received a Parliamentary charter in 1644.
Rhode Island was the first colony to establish freedom of religion and became a haven for religious tolerance.
Pennsylvania was founded by William Penn in 1682, with Philadelphia as its capital, and provided a home for Quakers.
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Rhode Island paid Indians for their land and based its government on the consent of the people, described as America's first democratic government.
Maryland was founded as a Catholic colony in 1634 and was named both to celebrate the Virgin Mary and to honor Queen Henrietta Maria, the wife of King Charles I.
William Penn's Pennsylvania had liberal laws, including election of the assembly by the people, and treated Indians kindly.
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The Dutch had bought Manhattan from Indians in 1626 and made it part of New Netherland, whose capital was New Amsterdam.
James Edward Oglethorpe founded Georgia under a royal charter signed by King George II, partly to protect the English colonies from Spanish Florida and partly to offer a second chance to poor people and people with large debts.
Relations between New England colonies and Indians were initially peaceful, but the American Indian Wars are dated from 1675 to 1890, ending with the Battle of Wounded Knee.
King Philip's War took place in 1675–1676; King Philip was the British nickname for Metacom, an Indian chief who adopted English customs and clothing.
New Hampshire, Connecticut, North Carolina, and South Carolina were privately funded colonies.
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Colonists often interpreted life events as signs from God, and belief that witches allied with the Devil to cause harm contributed to witch hunts.
The Salem witch trials began in early 1692 after four young girls behaved strangely and accused three marginal members of society: Tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborne.
The Salem witch trials lasted from February 1692 to May 1693, and 30 people were convicted.
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More than 150 other people, both men and women, were arrested on accusations of witchcraft during the Salem crisis.
Of those convicted at Salem, five confessed and were released, two escaped, one was pardoned, and 20 were executed; 19 were hanged and one man was pressed to death under heavy stones.
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Colonists viewed America as a land of opportunity, while people in Britain viewed the colonies as economic enterprises and colonists as consumers of British goods.
In 1763, Parliament began imposing taxes on the colonies without consulting them, although the colonies had no representatives in the British House of Commons.
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The Sugar Act of 1764, proposed by Prime Minister George Grenville, increased taxes on British products sold in the colonies, including sugar, coffee, and wine, prompting protests and boycotts.
The Stamp Act of 1765 required printed documents in America, including publications and legal and commercial documents, to use stamped paper produced in Britain and bearing a tax stamp.
Parliamentary taxes without colonial representation fueled resistance.
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The Sons of Liberty and Daughters of Liberty organized resistance to the Stamp Act, including riots and the destruction of Governor Thomas Hutchinson's house in Boston.
The Townshend Act of 1767 imposed taxes on glass, paper, paint, and tea imported to the colonies.
In 1768, Charles Townshend sent 4,000 British troops, called Redcoats, to Boston, whose population was 16,000, increasing tensions that culminated in the Boston Massacre.
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The First Continental Congress met in Philadelphia from September 5 to October 26, 1774, with 56 delegates from 12 of the 13 colonies.
The First Continental Congress: demanded repeal of the Intolerable Acts, asserted “No taxation without representation”, pledged mutual defense if a colony were attacked, decided to boycott British products
The Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia on May 10, 1775, with 56 delegates representing all 13 colonies, and appointed George Washington commander of the American army on June 15, 1775.
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Patrick Henry declared “Give me liberty or give me death” in March 1775, expressing liberty as a central value of the Patriot cause.
James Otis, an American Patriot, argued that “Taxation without representation is tyranny.”
📌 The First Continental Congress sought to secure colonial rights while remaining loyal to Britain and did not call for independence.
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In September–October 1781 at Yorktown, 9,000 Americans and 7,000 French soldiers defeated 8,000 British troops, prompting peace negotiations.
The Treaty of Paris was signed on September 3, 1783, ending the war and recognizing the United States as an independent nation.
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📌 The British had 50,000 troops, the world's most powerful navy, and could hire foreign soldiers, including 30,000 German Hessians; they also lacked local terrain knowledge, faced an unpopular war and other conflicts, and had no clear victory plan.
About one third of colonists were Patriots, one third were Loyalists or Tories, and the remainder were neutral.
American advantages included fighting on home soil and the ideal of liberty, while George Washington helped maintain soldiers' morale despite losses, hunger, and unpaid service.
The Patriots won the Battle of Saratoga in October 1777, a turning point in the war; the Marquis de la Fayette had joined the American army in July 1777.
France declared war against Great Britain in July 1778 and sent a fleet to the United States.
Take a 35-question practice quiz on English Colonies and American Independence, with every answer explained.
1. How did Manhattan become part of New Netherland?
2. What sequence describes Roger Williams’s founding of Rhode Island and its early charter?
Memorize the key concepts of English Colonies and American Independence with 83 flashcards.
What was the economic purpose of English colonies?
To increase the British Empire’s power, influence, and wealth.
Which four groups comprised the main English colonies?
The Chesapeake Bay colonies, New England, the Middle Colonies, and the Carolinas and Georgia.
On what date was Jamestown established?
May 14, 1607.
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