Slavery In Jamestown

At the beginning of the 17th century the settlers that were establish in Jamestown had a very rough start, since one third of the settlers were gentlemen and the need for agricultural labor forces increased especially after the introduction of the tobacco in the colony. The colonists needed a system to attract work forces, so they promised 50 acres of land to anybody who can afford to pay his fare to travel to America, according to Keene, Cornell and O’Donnell (2011.) Owning land in England was very difficult, since most of the land was owned by aristocrats, and many Englishman were tempted by the idea that they will have an opportunity to advance economically. That was the start of the indentured servants for the individuals who could not afford to pay the fare, and as a result was paid by the landowners. In return they have to repay by working for them for a number of years. After paying off their time, the indentured servants were free.
Since the need for labor forces increased, the number of immigrants was not sufficient to cover the need for agricultural labor, also the price for the indentured servants increased, the colonist preferred to invest more on slaves since they were bound to work for their owners their whole life. The increased number of slaves was noticed in the late 17th and 18th century, first in the Caribbean colonies, where the need for labor to work in the sugarcane fields was desperate due to high mortality in the fields. After that the slavery was spread out to all English colonies in the Atlantic. “In the eighteen century, the slave trade was the economic cornerstone of the Atlantic economy” (Keene at al.