Towards the end of the 16th century, the English began to think more seriously about North America as a place to colonize: as a market for English goods and a source of raw materials and commodities such as furs. The English started to realize that colonizing the new world would bring England many advantages and would help Brittan better compete with Spain, England’s economic rival at the time. The New World would also provide a place to send the English poor and put them to better use where they could contribute to the nation's wealth. England’s first attempt to settle North America came a year prior to its victory over the Spanish armada …show more content…
They were the first Englishmen in the New World who had seen widespread slavery at work. Their arrival truly marked the beginning of the slavery era in the colonies. Before their arrival labor was satisfied by indentured servants. In return for free passage indentured servants typically promised seven years of labor after which they received freedom. They also received a small piece of land. This not only allowed them to survive of their newly acquired land but now they had the ability vote since they owned land.
As more farming cash crops became more widespread more labor was needed other than indentured servants. English colonists used Native Americans as workers to maintain crops such as tobacco for export. They saw how profitable using Native Americans were for their colony, but natives easily escaped slavery since they new the land very well also many of the natives died from disease that was spread by colonists. Slowly colonists turned to using African instead. The English saw this as a favor for the African people, who were seen as people with barbarous natures and uncivilized religious beliefs. The colonists felt that by converting these Africans to Christianity they were benefiting the blacks. The first Africans that were brought to America landed in Virginia in 1619. The shipping route that carried slaves to America was called the Middle Passage because it was the middle leg of the …show more content…
This act also had similar details to the previous one. The act disallowed foreign ships trading with American colonies, unless the ship was built in either England or America and carried a crew that w as at least 75 percent English. It also said that certain goods of great value that were not produced in England such as tobacco, sugar, cotton, indigo, dyewoods, and ginger could only be transported from the colonies to an English or another colonial port. The act of 1660 was created with mercantilist values in mind. The act encouraged ship development in England and prohibited European rivals from obtaining valuable goods anywhere except in