Bellringer: T1D18 You’re a colonist to the New World. The year is 1650. Would you rather go to New England, Virginia, or somewhere in between? Explain your thinking. P.S. Don’t forget to use the Compare / Contrast Worksheet today as you take notes, to compare the New England Colonies and the Middle Colonies

U.S. History I Ch. 3.3 Middle Colonies

Main Ideas: New Amsterdam Manhattan Island Patroons Peter Stuyvesant Duke of York Proprietary Colony New Jersey Lord John Berkeley Sir George Carteret Pennsylvania William Penn Quakers Pacifists, etc.

The Middle Colonies The area from New York down to Pennsylvania and Delaware were known as the Middle Colonies. Below them were the Southern Colonies, and above the New England Colonies. Starting in 1642, a civil war occurred in England. King Charles I was executed, and the Parliament was in charge. Eventually in 1660 a new King would be placed on the throne, but with limitations to his power. Meanwhile, the Dutch were quietly settling in the New World, starting in 1621. They created the colony of New Amsterdam, which was centered around the Hudson River, and their main colony was where the future New York City would be.

New Amsterdam Prospers That is right. Beg, peasants, and perhaps I shall treat ye well! The Dutch “bought” Manhattan Island for a good deal (some beads and other trinkets), and it became their most successful colony. To increase their presence, the Dutch West India Company (which had the Dutch Charter for the area) gave people lots of incentives, and soon families from the Netherlands, Finland, Sweden, and Germany came over to take advantage of what they offered. Wealthy land owners who brought over at least 50 settlers were given large tracts of land. These landowners (called patroons) basically ran huge plantations, with the settlers having to give a part of their crops and labor to the owners, kind of like slaves or indentured servants.

Transfer of Ownership The English were envious of how well New Amsterdam was doing. So, in 1664, they sent a large fleet to attack and capture the colony. Meanwhile, the governor, Peter Stuyvesant, was unpopular with the settlers. He was very strict, made people pay heavy taxes, etc. VID So, when the English show up, and Gov. Stuyvesant tried to rally the settlers to fight, they refused, and New Amsterdam surrendered. The colony was given to the brother of King Charles II, the Duke of York, and so it was renamed New York. It was now a proprietary colony, which meant that the owner, or proprietor, was in charge of the government and owned all the land. The Duke promised people there freedom of religion, and this was important, since the first American Jews lived in the colony. In 1664, there were 8,000 settlers there. By 1683, the colony was 12,000 in population, and the colonists wanted a representative government. By 1691, the English relented, and a legislature was elected.

New Jersey Like New York, this other English colony was proprietary in nature. The Duke of York gave a large chunk of his colony to his friends, Lord John Berkeley and Sir George Carteret, and they named it New Jersey (after Carteret’s birthplace) To attract settlers, they offered people large amounts of land and generous terms to acquire it, like freedom of religion, trial by jury, and a representative assembly. VID Just like New York, New Jersey ended up being a place of ethnic and religious diversity as a result. Although the colony didn’t bring the owners the money they hoped to make, and it was sold back to the English crown in 1702, those principles of freedom remained for the colonists there.

Pennsylvania 1680: William Penn, a wealthy English gentleman, made a proposal to King Charles: instead of repaying a large debt, would he grant Penn some land in the New World? The King readily agreed, and Pennsylvania was born. Penn was a Quaker, a group of dissidents much like the Puritans. Quakers believed that a church structure was unnecessary, and that each person was equal in the sight of God. They were also tolerant of others and their beliefs, especially in Pennsylvania. Many people didn’t like the Quakers back in England, since their ideas challenged their own (for example, they refused to doff their hat to Lords and Ladies in passing, since they thought all people were equal, and this ticked off the English elite). So, it was seen as a win-win: a place for Quakers to live their lives as they wanted, and a way to get rid of their “destructive” influence in England. VID

Penn’s Pennsylvania Penn saw Pennsylvania as a chance to practice the Quaker “holy experiment” of toleration and ideals into practice. Philadelphia, the capital of his colony, and “City of Brotherly Love”, so-named for these ideals, was organized according to his plans. Since the Native Americans were there first, he negotiated and signed treaties with them for the land, to show respect for their claims to it. He sent pamphlets back to England and throughout Europe to promote the colony and to encourage settlement. In 1701, Penn signed the Charter of Liberties, which gave the colonists the right to elect a legislative assembly. The Southernmost part of Pennsylvania was known as the Lower Three Counties. Penn allowed them the right to form their own legislature, and in 1704, they were allowed to function as a separate colony, later known as Delaware. VID

Political Cartoon Worktime Alright! Let’s finish up those political cartoons! No additional assignments; please finish your political cartoon if you have not done so already! Note: We have one more section, Ch. 3.4 The Southern Colonies on T1D19, and then we will have a review & test to wrap up the term, any make-up work, etc., T1D20-T1D21!