So, I was able to get one of my friends to write he take on what was going on in 1607-1754. Here it is! (Be warned, it is a little lengthy)
Early on, there were two class structures. One, the American way, was based off land and how much of it you had. The other way was the European way (no surprise there) which was based off blood ties. The whole reason this worked was because of how the 13 colonies set up their economies. The North prided itself on the lumber and shipping industries, which was to be expected because of all the fancy-schmancy ports and forests they had up there. The middle colonies were based around trading and commerce, which is partly because they were stuck in the middle (gee, I wonder how they got their name?) of everything that happened around America. In the south, societies were based around farming. To be honest, they had so much farmland, everyone would be surprised if they didn’t go into agriculture. The European class system was lavish to say the least. You name it, they had it. Big parties with expensive ballgowns and even more expensive food, mansions with 27 bedrooms and golden bathtubs, fancy family rankings that almost never changed no matter wherever you went, and, to top it off, manners. These people knew their ettiquette. They took special lessons and actually knew which fork to use for salad or beef or whatever. Apparently to these rich folk, education was a big deal. Parents either got their kids tutors or they went to special private schools with uniforms and croquet. They didn’t learn standard subjects like algebra or chemistry though. They learned about the arts, philosophy, and culture. (Where do I sign up?) This was very different from the American style, which was practically dead in the water. (The Atlantic, to be specific) Warfare was widespread, and the population was fluctuating as these wars kept on going. Land was tight, mainly because people had spread themselves out across said land. They were only able to communicate this terrible information through newspapers and slightly-drunk conversations in taverns around the colonies. Transportation was limited, as the only possible way to get around was through the many rivers that crisscrossed the area, but they were hard to get through and even harder to navigate. The crops they grew drained the soil, and once the dirt couldn’t hold on any longer, they packed up their things and went somewhere else, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. Slavery was also a weed that had taken root in America, and nobody was going to pull it up without some consequences. Because of this, money and the economy was slowly going down the drain. It was only a matter of time before someone flushed the toilet that was 17th century America. Okay, back to the actual topic at hand. The Great Awakening came around in 1730, and lasted until about 1740. I prefer to refer to this great event as “Ten Years of Religious Confusion”. You’ll see why soon. Anyway, during this time, there was a major shift in religion. Apparently during this period, religion was so widespread that even dogs could see God. They referred to this as “Dead Dogs” (Don’t ask me why, though. I really have no idea, and I don’t recommend Googling it). John Edwards wasn’t a big fan of the religious shift, as he decided that it embraced “sinners in the hand of an angry god”. Not a very nice guy, huh? Let’s move on. During this time, George Whitefield, an American Anglican cleric, becomes America’s first celebrity, goes on a cross-colony tour to meet his adoring fans and to spread the Great Awakening to each and every one of them. Many were not pleased, however. There was a whole debate on keeping the old lights of America alive, and the new ones taking root. This debate may seem serious, but in actuality, nobody cared. This was just one of the many factors sparking the American Revolution, and the philosophy of enlightenment was just fanning the flames. Putting that on the back burner, we move on to discuss Benjamin Franklin, a political and social revalent. He was one of the few during that time period who fully embodied the idea of the American Dream. Franklin was born in Boston in 1706, and died in 1790. He started out as a simple printer, working day and night, and later invented bifocals and the library. (I owe a lot to this guy, so history should appreciate him). He was the guy that proved electricity existed by going out in the middle of a storm with a kite and a key (Kentucky Fried Franklin, anybody?). He wrote a serial titled Poor Richard’s Almanack, and wrote it for over 25 years. It contained poems, weather reports, a calendar, and astronomical charts, but it was famous for the proverbs and aphorisms that came with it. He later wrote an autobiography, mainly describing his ideas on deism. It basically consisted of “when scripture contradicts science, go with science.” Deisms also believe that the world is a clock. God created the world and left it alone for humans to deal with themselves. He was also notoriously famous for trying to rid himself of sin and failing. We move on to the French and British settlements in America. The French, apparently, simply wanted to trade furs and peacefully settle with the natives, not destroy everything that stands in their way like the British did. The French settlement was also much smaller, containing only 55,000 men versus the British 1,100,000. These settlements also brought America closer to the war due to the long history of skirmishes beforehand. The Treaty of Utrecht, a treaty that had been in place since 1713, was slowly falling apart and the British were avoiding the laws that they had placed on America to keep it loyal, something later coined “salutary neglect”. Many colonists and soldiers were attempting to place land treaties in order to keep the quickly- disappearing peace. The violence, however, spilled over and splashed into the Ohio River Valley, more specifically, Fort Duquense. Another fort, this one aptly named Fort Necessity, was built when the French came back demanding some credit for the colonization and exploration of America. This entire thing launched what we know as the French and Indian War. Now we finally get into the wars (Yay for blood and violence). The Seven Years War also took place during this time, and the world escalated into global warfare. Surprisingly enough, Germany was the one doing the majority of the fighting. Tensions were rising between the American leaders, George Washington and James “Bulldock” Braddock. This also caused the Albany Congress, an idea launched by Ben Franklin, and the famous “snake cartoon” was designed. The first design of this was actually based on the French and Indian war. The colonies weren’t exactly doing well during all of this. Wars were raging all over the place, and they just wanted their land to farm. The British were okay with this, because they just wanted peace. This was settled in 1763 when the Royal Proclamation of 1763 was established. It created the dividing line between the colonies and everything west of them. Unfortunately for the peace-loving British, it backfired. It ended up becoming one of the starting points of the American Revolution. Tensions flared after this. An important part of the pre-war era was Pontiac’s Rebellion, in which settlers went to the (off-limits) new land, and ended up getting in skirmishes with the natives. Britain was challenging authority. The next problem came two years later with the Quartering Act of 1765. It forced soldiers into people’s homes without permission. This was because soldiers had less money in times of peace, and England didn’t want them (they believed in the whole “out of sight, out of mind” philosophy). England didn’t tell the colonists that, though. The colonists were told that the soldiers were a “stabilizing” force and were there to “protect” them (This lie obviously didn’t work). However bad the soldier problem was, however, England was facing a bigger problem: debt. Seven million dollars had been spent on fighting the colonies alone (the tax ratio was about 23:1). England was suffering, and what better idea to get some money than to tax the colonists? The first taxes to the US were the American Duties Act and the Sugar Act. These are pretty self-explanatory. Admiralty courts came next, basically stating that there was to be no trial for criminals, and that they were guilty until proven innocent. England only followed these rules because they were mostly settled on navy boats at the time, and it would be pretty hard to hold trial on a boat. After that, the Stamp Act was created. It required stamps on basically all paper products (legal documents, newspapers, playing cards) and was another way for Britain to suck money out of the colonies. It was a visual reminder of how tax was really, really annoying. Americans reacted very strongly to this. They decided on a creed: no taxation without representation. At the time, there were two types of representation, virtual or direct. Either the colonies did their laws themselves, or someone represented all of the colonies. To be honest though, the colonies didn’t really want representation. They wanted independence. Colonists formed the Stamp Act Congress in 1765, made up of 27 delegates from 9 of the 13 colonies. They drew up grievances and non-importation agreements. The Congress was ignored. Because of this, the Sons of Liberty, either a patriot group or a terrorist group, was formed. Their main form of “torture” was tarring and feathering their victims. The Stamp Act was repealed, but then the Declaratory Act was passed. In other words, the colonists had removed one tax to get hit with another. We’ll take a quick break to talk about the Boston Massacre. The Boston Massacre, which, I’m sure you’ve heard of, happened on March 5th, 1770. At the time, there were more soldiers than ever in Boston. They had placed a curfew, and had shot an 11-year-old boy for not following it. 60 townspeople provoked the British soldiers over the death, and someone opened fire. Everyone ended up shooting at each other. 11 people were either killed or wounded. The reason for the speculation is because the only records that history has of the Massacre have either been twisted to fit a specific story or just plain wrong. What we do know, however, is that the leader of the mob at the time, Crispus Attucks, was shot and killed, leading to even more chaos. Committees of correspondence were formed in order to deal with the incoming threat of war. Inter-colonial committees were also formed in Virginia in 1733. The colonies enforced imports harshly, and didn’t allow British tea to reach land. Except for Boston. Boston paid taxes on tea and allowed it into their ports. The reason for this is because the governor of Boston, Thomas Hutchinson, loved England and supported it. He was hated by everyone else in Boston. The Boston Tea Party came next on the timeline, (I’m sure you’ve dealt with that before) and made war inevitable. England finally snapped and passed the Intolerable Acts in 1774. England started passing laws left and right to the colonies. The biggest part of this though was that Britain shut down the Boston port until the cost of the tea lost in the Tea Party was paid for. The port was one of the major ways the colonies made money. Town meetings were restricted, and British soldiers who committed crimes were tried back in good ol’ Mother England. The Quartering Act had been reinstated, and soldiers invaded homes constantly. In neighboring Canada, however, the French were keeping customs like no trial by jury and no representative assembly. This made the colonists pretty mad, and thought a revolution was in order. Not just for themselves, but for Canada and other small nations. The first continental congress was established in September of 1774 and lasted until October that same year. Made up of 55 delegates from 12 colonies (Georgia wasn’t included), these people were determined to receive independence from Britain even if it killed them. John Adams drew up the Declaration of Rights and sent it to King George, but it was sadly rejected. The next time they met, they wrote up the Olive Branch Petition. This worked, and by the time the letter returned the the colonies, Lexington and Concord launched the war, known commonly as the “shot heard round the world”.
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We've all had questions about what happened in different time periods, whither it was about how people survived in their villages or towns, what they did for fun, or how their customs affected their lifestyles.
I was able to ask a college professor about how the culture and society was during the time period. I received answers about the time period. Some of those answers were that most people farmed during this time in the south. If you were in New England, church was very important. Political and society were based around the church. If you were in the south, a church wasn't that possible to build. Everyone was spread out due to tobacco growing. The economy also helped with the culture and society of this time. If you were in the north, then everyone was close together, and everyone was able to help each other out. If you were in the south, everyone was spread out, either you were with family or you were along. Due to these two things, the society was different in the north and south. The north was close together, and the south was far apart. That was how the society was different. It all depended on where you lived, what you did, and what other vows were placed. Their society was different because that was how those colonies were formed. They were formed differently. How does this all go with the real world? What events that happened during this time are like the events happening in today's world?
These events, although happened before we were alive, have happened in today's world, but we might have never noticed, or we noticed, and we didn't pay attention. Some events just match up like taxation in the colonies and taxation in the United States. There is a presidential election next month, and one thing that's on everyone's mind is the taxation laws. How much is too much. Who's paying what? How much should the rich pay and how much should the poor pay? The colonists had to pay taxes, no matter if you were rich or poor while today, people are expecting the poor to pay more than the rich. But, after everyone pays their share, who benefits from it. The people don't benefit, but the government does. The government benefits. When the colonists paid their taxes, they didn't benefit from it. England did. England benefited the most. The only time the colonists benefited if it was local taxes that were used for local use. Then everyone benefited and it wouldn't have been a problem. In my own eyes, if you let everyone have the same share, like placing a tax on stamps and tea in England, then nobody would freak out. Let everyone have their own share, and let everyone benefit. Not just one person or a group of people. Won't that be nice? What do you see in this picture? To me, I see people crowding a town square, a minister talking to the people, and people who are in trees, and are holding instruments. To some people, they might see something else while other people might see the same thing I saw. But why? Why is this picture important to this era? This event was called The Great Awakening. The Great Awakening happened during the 1730's-1740's to shift everyone's perspective on religion. George Whitefield (the minister in the picture) became the first person to do a cross-country tour of the colonies, and to unite the colonies with religion. This is also a factor leading up to the revolutionary war. The colonies started to unite under religion but also under the disliking of England's authority. The Enlightenment soon followed after, which also questioned authority. Both of these events were leading factors to the war because it did something that England couldn't do. Both united everyone together. Something that England couldn't do. Isn't that a little weird? How something like religion and ideas could bring people together. Can't our world be like that? So, I'm going to take a break from all this stuff, and do something fun that goes with this title.
Oh Abigail, how could you do this to us? Abigail, how can you do this to us? This song, named Abigail, is a rock song about the Salem Witch Trials and in one guy's point of view during that time. This song is also about the play/movie "The Crucible." After I listened to the song, I had a better understanding of the witch trials in 1692, how people reacted to it, and how chaotic it was (there's a little part of the song that is chaotic). Tell me what you think! (P.S. if you don't like the genre of music, or it's too loud for you, then you can lower the volume or just read the lyrics. I don't care) When you hear about colonial New England, you might think about a small town placed somewhere like Boston, Cape Cod, or any little colony that was around that area. You might think about the pilgrims coming to Plymouth and the first Thanksgiving. But, did you ever think about the culture and their society? What their religion meant to them? What was bad to them and what was good?
Well, you'll find out. The Puritan were the settlers that were God-fearing people. They believed that God watched everyone, and if you messed up, then you were going to Hell. They also believed in Predestination, and that everyone had to do good works. In other words, the Puritans were very religious. They didn't want to mess up. This article talks about what the Puritans believed in. But isn't Predestination and good works the same thing? It kinda is, but it's also different. Predestination and good works are great for going to Heaven, but what if there was something bad that could make people scared about predestination, and think differently about the Puritan culture. That's where witchcraft begins. The Puritans also believed that if someone did something bad, then everyone will suffer. They also believed about Satan too. And that Satan can do things too. That's what they thought that witchcraft was. Witchcraft in their words was Satan. That Satan was trying to come and do bad things to everyone. But, witchcraft was also different. When the Salem Witch Trials happened in 1692, it started out as a small problem, but soon developed into a massive dilemma. Almost everyone was getting accused of being a witch, or you had to be very careful about what you said or did. And if you were accused, then you had a trial, which determined if you were guilty of not. Well, your accusers wanted you to be guilty. They would do everything they can to make you guilty. That's so wrong, right? In their eyes, it was right. Beside believing that God was watching over them 24/7, they also believed that a witch shouldn't be able to live. That's just how their culture was and that was how their society worked. I personally believe that the Salem Witch Trials caused chaos, but also gave the Puritan community a little action and scare because their lives would have been boring. The Salem Witch Trials also changed how the world looked at witchcraft because it continued a little bit after the big Salem hunt. That's just what I believe. So let's go back in time to 1607 through 1754, and a lot of things were happening. Jamestown was forming and new colonies soon after, territories started to form, and soon enough, America was starting to become independent. But, other events happened too. Slaves started to come to America, Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson got banished from New England, The Salem Witch Trials in Salem Massachusetts, The Enlightenment, and The Great Awakening. All this happened just before The American Revolution.
So let's start exploring. |