Thought Provokers
2. What caused Bacon’s Rebellion? Were the Baconites justified in revolting? In what ways did their rebellion foreshadow the American Revolutionary War?
Bacon’s Rebellion was a result of many different factors. It started with the fact that land was becoming scarce in Virginia because much of it was owned by the rich tidewater planters. When an indentured servant was freed, he was usually given freedom dues by his master, which usually included a small plot of land. As land became less and less available, this practice disappeared. Most of the Baconites were frustrated freemen who had not been given land when they were freed and so had to push west into the frontiers of Virginia. This inevitably led to conflict with the Native Americans. Native American attacks on the frontier settlements led to a petition by the frontiersmen for a commission from the governor to protect them. The governor refused because he made money trading with the Native Americans, infuriating the colonists. All of these frustrations led these frontiersmen to rebel. The governor’s actions justified the Baconites revolt against him. He refused to protect the Baconites from the Indians because he did not want to ruin his trade with them. Even though this was what was really going on, he told the Virginians that the Native Americans had only been nice to the colonists, which was false. Because the government was unwilling to protect the governed, it was the right of the Baconites to rebel. This rebellion foreshadowed the American Revolutionary War in that it was a revolt against an unpopular government. In both of these situations, the ruling body that was rebelled against was seen as incapable of performing its office correctly by those that it governed.
5. What caused the Salem witchcraft hysteria, and why did the Puritan rulers respond as they did? Was their reaction justified?
The Salem witchcraft hysteria began as a result of