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AP/IB American History Mr. Blackmon Colonial Period Number 3 The Theory and Practice of Empire I. II. Theory of Mercantilism A. Term coined by Adam Smith, who attacked it, and advocated free trade/ laissez faire (cf Wealth of Nations, 1776) B. Chief features 1. State directs all economic activities within its borders a. Private gain subordinated (at least theoretically) to public good 2. Government seeks to increase national wealth a. discouraging imports b. encouraging exports 3. Reserves of gold or silver the barometer of national wealth a. favorable balance of trade b. in effect, a nation should import gold C. Values of Colonies 1. England wanted a market a. for woolen cloth b. manufactures c. a source for raw materials not produced at home 2. Colonies wanted a. a ready market for raw materials b. cheap manufactured goods c. protection from rapacious neighbors D. Direction of the economy 1. Some products encouraged, others discouraged 2. Attempt to direct, not stunt, economic growth E. Navigation Acts fundamental to the nurture of commerce F. Compatibility of interests 1. Control is necessary to block Dutch, Spanish, or French 2. Supervision and controls developed slowly due to political distraction at home The Navigation Acts A. Acts applied throughout the empire, not just North America B. Foreign vessels barred from English colonies (1650) 1. Aimed at Dutch C. Forbade exportation of goods to England except on English ships (1651) D. First of three trade wars with the Dutch, who the principal target of early Navigation Acts is 1652 1. Note: Mercantilism, which is accepted throughout Europe, logically leads to wars E. Navigation Act of 1660: reserved all trade to and from the colonies and England AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire III. Mr. Blackmon Page 2 to English built and manned (3/4s) ships 1. Created a list of "enumerated goods" which can be transported only to England or to another colony 2. Enumerated list a. sugar (1660) b. cotton (1660) c. indigo (1660) d. dyewoods (1660) e. ginger (1660) f. tobacco (1660) g. rice (1704) h. naval stores (1705) i. copper (1721) j. furs (1721) 3. Products enter England through designated area: entrepot system F. Navigation Act of 1663 1. forbade transportation to colonies of European or Asiatic goods except via England first (through the entrepot) 2. English middlemen take a cut in both directions G. Restrictions on manufacturing 1. Wool Act 1699 forbade export of textiles (but not manufacture for local sale) a. little effect on North America, but destroyed the economy of northern Ireland and leads to exodus of Scotch Irish immigrants to the New World 2. Hat Act 1732 forbade export of hats 3. Iron Act 1750 encouraged colonial export of iron but forbade new iron mills 4. Modern studies tend to show that the effect of these acts on the overall economy was negligible H. Grand design: an imperial unit--England specializes in manufacturing and the colonies in raw materials 1. Most valuable colonies were West Indies with sugar 2. Next most valuable colonies were south of the Chesapeake with tropical and semi-tropical products that England did not produce herself 3. Least valuable colonies were in New England The Effects of Mercantilism A. England was the colonies' chief trading partner 1. would have been anyway B. Chronic shortage of specie 1. in effect, England was investing capital in America 2. difficulties with currency flow, and tendency for hard currency to flow AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire C. D. E. F. Mr. Blackmon Page 3 toward England. Non-enumerated goods flowed directly to foreign ports 1. direct trade in grain and fish with West Indies 2. the New England (rum) / Africa (slaves) / West Indies (molasses) Triangular Trade route never touched by regulation 3. There is one caveat to the above statement. The Molasses Act (1733), which attempted to protect West Indian sugar planters by placing a very heavy 6 p./gallon tax on foreign (ie. French) molasses. The colonists wanted French molasses for two reasons: the British planters could not begin to supply the demand and French molasses was a lot cheaper. The colonists converted molasses into rum--a lot of rum (4,000,000 gallons in 1771, of which some went into the African trade, 234,000 gallons, some into trade with the Indians (I don't have a figure, but it seems to have been a lot), and the rest consumed domestically. a. Rum was such a large part of the colonial economy (at least the economy that generated economic surpluses, like money, as opposed to subsistence farming) that the Molasses Act was potentially a real problem. The colonists avoided that by bribery. The standard bribe was ½ to 1 pence / gallon (instead of the 6 pence duty). (Morgan 42) When John Robinson arrived in Rhode Island in 1765 to take up his post of Customs Collector, the merchants of Newport offered him a salary of £70,000 (colonial) per year in exchange for looking the other way. Some industries flourished 1. Shipbuilding 2. Naval stores Pro-British bias 1. When conflicts did arise between mother country and the colony, the mother country always prevailed 2. Re-export trade by 1700 was 30% of all England's exports 3. complementary interests reduced conflicts 4. As American economy became more complex, the colonies' growth would have been more seriously affected British inefficiency 1. English government colossally corrupt and inefficient 2. Smuggling became a respected profession (cf John Hancock) 3. Bribery of customs officials became commonplace a. duty on French molasses rarely collected 4. Continuous prosperity from 1650; colonies possessed the highest average material standard of living in the world in 1775 5. England benefitted as well from colonial prosperity 6. "salutary neglect": Sir Robert Walpole AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire 7. IV. Mr. Blackmon Page 4 American economy, up to at least 1763, developed as it would have without the Navigation Acts 8. Robert Paul Thomas (cf Grob and Billias) has computed the cost of the mercantile system and the new regulations for Americans as .5% of per capita income from 1763-1772 a. Such a figure, even if underestimated by 100% make the thesis that the American Revolution was caused by economic restrictions virtually untenable. Imperial Government and Control A. English common, representative assemblies, private property, and local administration present in all colonies B. Initiative in local matters gives to colonies with veto in London C. Governor 1. usually appointed by King or proprietor 2. powers to execute laws, appoint officials, summon assemblies, and propose legislation 3. financially dependent upon the assemblies D. Assembly 1. bicameral, except Penn 2. lower house, elected with general legislative powers included power of the purse 3. upper house was appointed by the king (except Mass.) and functioned as advisers; usually chosen from local leaders E. Judges appointed by the king 1. usually chosen from local leaders F. Dominance of the Assembly 1. financial power and public sentiment very important in this respect 2. Legislators were pragmatists, ignoring any political theory while pursuing their interests 3. gained power by slow accretion 4. governors had little patronage to offer against assemblies, and what little they had tended to be taken away by the king (so he could use the patronage) 5. Judges hampered since juries had the final say a. cf Zenger case 1735 cf Degler pp. 70-72 G. King's Privy Council 1. responsible of establishing colonial policy 2. treated each case judicially and on an ad hoc basis H. English administration decentralized 1. no central committee I. Proprietary to Royal trend 1. policy to make colonies royal by late 17th cent. AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire J. K. L. M. N. Mr. Blackmon Page 5 Lords of Trade with great influence Dominion of New England 1. apparently planned same for South new Board of Trade 1696 1. nominated governor 2. reviewed colonial laws and vetoed some (about 5%) ie. veto power exercised with restraint 3. Board acted as an intermediary for colonies Failure of the British to establish a centralized government helps explain our federal government, with states having wide and independent powers. Dominion of New England: A failed attempt at centralization 1. A long complicated struggle with Charles I, chiefly over New England smuggling and refusal to enforce the Navigation Acts, and a refusal to conform New England laws to English laws 2. Recommendation in 1664 to annul Massachusetts charter 3. Charles tries to prove Massachusetts had violated its charter (a long legal process) 4. Mass. used every trick to delay (they had, in fact, violated the charter, and were very stubborn) 5. Charles finally revokes charter in 1684 6. combines New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Plymouth, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine into Dominion of New England 7. No assembly granted this new political entity! a. Remember that James II hated Parliament and all representative assemblies, and had only allowed one in New York very grudgingly. 8. Royal governor: Sir Edmund Andros a. misjudged the Puritans! (to say the least!) b. levied taxes without consent, and informed protesters they had no rights c. invalidated all land titles (so he could sell them again and impose quitrents) d. enforced Navigation Acts e. asked to revoke long-held rights and privileges without an army or police, and to rule arbitrarily a people who ruled themselves for 50 years. f. His rule would have led to rebellion in 1688 had James II not been deposed. 9. Glorious Revolution of 1688\: deposed James, and Andros kicked out a. Massachusetts finally becomes a royal colony in 1691 b. Plymouth, Rhode Island, Connecticut resumed old government AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire 10. V. Mr. Blackmon Page 6 The failure of this attempt at centralized control is rather significant. By 1765, it is too late to impose central authority. a. James' successors, William and Mary, not only owed the throne to Parliament (and therefore were unlikely to challenge the right of representation) but were also concerned first with consolidation of their position and then with a series of wars, mostly with France and partly over the deposition of James, which effectively diverted attention from any reorganization of the colonies. b. Much of the answer to how the colonies' developed such relative freedom in their own governance lies in British internal history (a civil war) and foreign difficulties. American history is therefore intertwined with European history from the very start. Imperialism and Conflict A. Dynastic struggles and mercantilism led to a series of wars throughout 17th and 18th century B. England, France, and Spain clashed in North America and elsewhere C. North American fisheries 1. strife between England and France over Maine, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland D. Fur trade 1. serious trouble arose from a competition on the fur trade with the Indians. This is a lucrative business that was very important to the metropolis, whether London, Paris, or Amsterdam. 2. French pierced down St. Lawrence into Great Lakes, and down Mississippi and Ohio valleys 3. French allied with Algonquin tribes and Hurons 4. Conflict with the Iroquois Confederacy 5. French blended in with Indians; English completely expelled them; English way of life a deadly threat 6. Indians too independent, too split to form a united front or conduct sustained operations a. The English were disciplined, systematic, and better armed (1) Don't let anyone tell you that the bow was better than a musket. The Indians demanded firearms and powder as major trade items. An Indian tribe with firearms always defeated a tribe that was not armed with firearms. This is why the Sioux ended up on the Great Plains. This large and brave tribe was driven there by the Ojibwa (or Chippewa) Indians from their traditional home along the upper Great Lakes. 7. Some important colonial Indian wars: a. 1622 Powhatan Confederacy (Virginia) AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire b. c. E. Mr. Blackmon Page 7 1637 Pequot War (Massachusetts Bay) 1675 King Philip's War (Massachusetts Bay's existence actually threatened; bloodiest of all Indian wars, based on % casualties) d. The first and last in particular were very costly to the colonists (the Powhatans killed about 25% of Virginia's white population on the first day, including Pocahontas' husband, John Rolfe). However, the end result was the same: virtual annihilation of the Indians. 8. Coureurs de bois penetrated rivers a. Louis Jolliet down Mississippi River b. Sieur de la Salle 1682 to Mississippi delta 9. String of French forts a. Louisbourg--Cape Breton Island: controls mouth of the St. Lawrence; single most strategic fort b. Quebec--1608--on St. Lawrence c. Sault Ste. Marie--at linkage of Lakes Superior, Huron, and Ontario d. Detroit--at Lakes Huron and Erie e. Kaskaskia, Cahokia, Vincennes between St. Lawrence and Mississippi in Illinois f. New Orleans--1718--at mouth of the Mississippi g. Biloxi--1699--and Mobile--1702--to hold flank vs. Spain 10. French misfortune a. Samuel de Champlain assisted Hurons vs. Iroquois, and created general animosity--tended to block penetration into Hudson Valley b. aided Chippewa vs. Sioux, blocked the upper Mississippi and Great Plains c. (The Spanish were blocked upward from Mexico by the Comanche) The Iroquois 1. Confederation, not a single tribe; the Five (later Six) Nations a. Mohawk b. Seneca c. Cayuga d. Onondaga e. Oneida f. Tuscarora 2. Crucial role in colonial history due to a. unity (1) federal government (2) the outstanding political organization north of the Aztecs b. ferocity (1) smashed Huron confederation March 1649 AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire (2) (3) F. Mr. Blackmon Page 8 smashed the Erie 1653-5 destroyed the Susquehanna 1670s (a) Significantly, this campaign was much longer and costlier since the Susquehanna had access to firearms from the Iroquois' trading rivals (4) drove off repeated French-Indian assaults 1680s-1690s c. The purpose of these campaigns was to control a complex of trading routes up the Hudson, through to the Great Lakes, along the Chesapeake, and up the Susquehanna River. The Iroquois consciously created a trading empire. 3. Strategic location athwart the only water level route to interior, covering St. Lawrence, Ottawa rivers, lower Great Lakes, Ohio, and wilderness of New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia 4. attempted to play off French and English a. Their foreign policy was quite sophisticated, difficult to execute, and ultimately a failure through reasons beyond their control. 5. Sir William Johnson obtained an Iroquois alliance for England Earliest Wars with France 1. King William's War / War of League of Augsburg (1689-97) a. Note that this is the year after King William took the throne from James II. b. French burn Schenectady, Deerfield, English take Port Royal, Nova Scotia. c. Treaty of Ryswick 2. Queen Anne's War / War of Spanish Succession (1702-13) a. French burn Deerfield; South Carolina burns St. Augustine; England takes Nova Scotia b. Treaty of Utrecht (1) England gets Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Hudson's Bay, French retain Cape Breton Isle (2) Great Britain obtained the asiento with this treaty, which greatly increased its participation in the slave trade, and greatly increased the flow of slaves to the North American colonies as well as the Caribbean. 3. War of Jenkin's Ear (1739-42) with Spain a. Associated with war vs. Creek Confederacy 1715 b. Savannah founded as a block, later sends expedition to St. Augustine 4. King George's War / War of Austrian Succession (1745-48) a. Colonists capture Louisburg b. Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1) gives Louisburg back AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire VI. Mr. Blackmon Page 9 The French and Indian War A. English penetration into Ohio Valley leads to a direct confrontation rather than through proxies 1. George Croghan 1740s 2. Virginia land speculators form Ohio Company 3. Direct French/British contact 4. French burn Croghan out in 1752 5. French build a string of forts along Pennsylvania line on land claimed (rather speciously) by the British B. Virginia's response 1. Gov. Dinwiddie sends George Washington to warn them to leave in 1753; he is rebuffed 2. Washington returns with an expedition in 1754 to build a fort at the junction of the Monongahela, Allegheny, and Ohio rivers C. Fort Duquesne 1. French build fort at that point first 2. Washington withdrew and built Ft. Necessity nearby. 3. The fort is very badly designed and not really defensible. The French promptly attack Washington. 4. Washington surrenders July 3, 1754 5. French and Indian War has begun D. Braddock's Defeat 1. General . Edward Braddock arrives 1755 2. Cuts road to Duquesne with 1500 regulars and 1200 colonials (please understand that he is moving through primeval forest) 3. Ambushed 7 miles short of Duquesne by Indians and coureurs de bois 4. Forces engaged: 1459 British/colonial vs 637 Indians, 146 Canadians (783). a. Pontiac led the Ottawa 5. British lost 976 men (66% casualties) amid horrible carnage 7/9/1755 6. Washington's courage prevents complete collapse 7. The frontier torn apart by war, with no effective defense. It was a period of terror for settlers. Indian raids following the battle spread death, terror and suffering. 8. Frontier warfare was brutal. Men who fought the Indians (who lived by very different codes of ethics) often became embittered and brutal themselves. And of course, the frontier tended to attract the roughest sorts of men anyway. Great cruelty on both sides is commonplace. A man might return home to see his wife and children butchered and scalped. Adult male prisoners were tortured ritually (the Iroquois were considered to be particularly good at it) and burned at the stake. I will not describe the tortures or other atrocities in any detail. If you are interested, the AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire E. F. G. Mr. Blackmon Page 10 books of Alan W. Eckert are excellent. Eckert attempts to narrate a tale of passion, heroism, nobility, cruelty, greed, malice, brutality, desperation, of alternately human triumph and human tragedy. There are hideous atrocities on both sides; it is foolish to try to keep score. The Indians at least had the excuse that they fought as they had always fought. That was no comfort, however, to grieving settlers. Violence begat violence; blood cried out for blood; the cycle was perpetuated. 9. It should also be borne in mind that the real, fundamental driving force between conflict between English settlers and the Indians was the insatiable demand of the whites to seize Indian land and to drive the Indians off or wipe them out. Whatever the circumstances of a particular incident, the underlying Indian motive is defensive. Seven Years' War 1756-1763 1. Note that the war began in the New World 2. England joins Prussia vs Austria, France, Spain and Russia 3. Serious British defeats in early stages Sir William Pitt 1. Becomes Prime Minister: "I can save the country." 2. Abandoned traditional European war 3. Subsidized Prussia to fight in Europe, tie up France a. Prussia was led by Europe's greatest soldier, Frederick the Great, and possessed Europe's best army. b. Furthermore, Prussia was surrounded by enemies, couldn't avoid fighting, and needed the British a lot more than the British needed them. c. Spent heavily 82 million pounds 4. Aggressively seized overseas colonies a. Utilized British naval superiority brilliantly 5. Subsidizes colonial assemblies to raise troops a. Implies semi-autonomy of colonial assemblies 6. Promoted good young soldiers over heads of generals with more seniority-a sharp break from European practice, where generals usually in 60s a. Geoffrey Amherst b. James Wolfe Victories 1. Louisburg--Amherst in 1758, cuts communications with France; probably the decisive battle of the war 2. British / Iroquois capture Ft. Duquesne (renamed Fort Pitt) and cut line from St. Lawrence to Mississippi a. Iroquois led by Sir William Johnson ( or Warrahiyagay, his Mohawk name; he was a Scotch-Irish immigrant who was adopted into the Mohawk tribe) AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire 3. 4. VII. Mr. Blackmon Page 11 Ft. Niagara and Crown Point--Amherst seizes these key points Quebec (9/12/1759), generally regarded as the decisive battle of the war-Wolfe defeats the Marquis de Montcalm on the Plains of Abraham. a. Both commanders killed 5. Montreal surrenders 9/8/1760 6. Elsewhere a. British capture Manila; Cuba; French West Indies; and eliminate France from India H. King George III ascends throne 1760 1. very stupid 2. insecure 3. passionate reverence for concept of kingship 4. hated Whigs a. power lay in a group of families b. politically skillful if corrupt c. represented greater Parliamentary power vis a vis king d. Traditional view of constitution at the time was 3 balanced interests (1) monarchy (king) / aristocracy (Lords) / people (Commons) e. At this time, king appointed his own ministers (1) Loses this power as result of Revolutionary War 5. Quarrels with Parliament resulted in 10 years of chaotic colonial policies 6. Pitt resigns in 1761 over war policy Treaty of Paris of 1763 A. Earl of Bute negotiates Treaty of Paris of 1763 1. Maintain balance of power in Europe a. Primary concern is Europe, not colonies 2. England gets all of North America east of Mississippi except New Orleans 3. Louisiana goes to Spain 4. French retains Martinique and Guadalupe a. One of the issues over which Pitt resigned; he wanted to keep everything 5. Spain gets Philippines and Cuba back a. Another issue over which Pitt resigned AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire Mr. Blackmon Page 12 Works Cited Degler, Carl. Out of Our Past: The Forces That Shaped Modern America. 3rd ed. New York: Harper and Row, 1984. Eckert, Allan W. Wilderness Empire. New York: Bantam, 1969 [A note on books by Allan W. Eckert. You will see them sold as fiction. They are not. They are written as if they were a fictional narrative, but every incident and conversation is based on documentary evidence, and they are heavily footnoted.] Garraty, John A. The American Nation: A History of the United Harper and Row, 1983. States. 5th ed. New York: Jennings, Francis. The Ambiguous Iroquois Empire. New York: W.W. Norton, 1984. Morgan, Edmund S. and Morgan, Helen M. The Stamp Act Crisis: Prologue to Revolution. New York: Collier, 1962. AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire Mr. Blackmon Page 13 Works Consulted Bailey, Thomas A., Kennedy, David M. The American Pageant. 7th Ed. Lexington, Massachusetts: D.C. Heath, 1983. Bailyn, Bernard, Dallek, Robert, Davis, David Brion, Donald, David Herbert, Thomas, John L., Wood, Gordon S. The Great Republic: A History of the American People. 4th Ed. Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath and Co., 1992. Blum, John M., Morgan, Edmund S., McFeely, William S., Schlesinger, Jr., Arthur M., Stampp, Kenneth M., and Woodward,C. Vann. The National Experience: A History of the United States. 6th ed. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1985. Boyer, Paul S.; Clark, Clifford Jr.; Kett, Joseph F.; Purvis, Thomas; Sitkoff, Harvard; Woloch, Nancy. The Enduring Vision: A History of the American People. New York: D.C. Heath. 1990. Current, Richard N., Williams, T. Harry, Freidel, Frank, and Brinkley, Alan. American History: A Survey. 6th Ed. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1983. Tindall, George Brown and Shi, David E. America: A Narrative History. 3rd Ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 1992. AP/IB American History Mr. Blackmon The Theory and Practice of Empire Quiz # 1 I-V D Form A Briefly identify and explain the significance of each of the following in two or three sentences. 1 mercantilism 2 enumerated goods 3 Dominion of New England 4 King Philip's War 5 Wool Act AP/IB American History Mr. Blackmon The Theory and Practice of Empire Quiz # 1 I-V D Form B Briefly identify and explain the significance of each of the following in two or three sentences. 1 Adam Smith 2 Navigation Act of 1660 3 salutary neglect 4 King Philip's War 5 Sir Edmund Andros AP/IB American History Mr. Blackmon The Theory and Practice of Empire Quiz # 1 I-V D Form C Briefly identify and explain the significance of each of the following in two or three sentences. 1 The Wealth of Nations 2 enumerated goods 3 Dominion of New England 4 coureurs de bois 5 favorable balance of trade AP/IB American History Mr. Blackmon The Theory and Practice of Empire Quiz # 1 I-V D Form D Briefly identify and explain the significance of each of the following in two or three sentences. 1 mercantilism 2 Navigation Act of 1660 3 Sir Edmund Andros 4 Board of Trade 5 Quebec AP/IB American History Mr. Blackmon The Theory and Practice of Empire Quiz # 2 I-V D Form A Briefly identify and explain the significance of each of the following in two or three sentences. 1 Iroquois 2 Queen Anne's War 3 Fort Duquesne 4 Sir William Pitt 5 Treaty of Paris of 1763 AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire AP/IB American History Mr. Blackmon Page 19 Mr. Blackmon The Theory and Practice of Empire Quiz # 2 I-V D Form B Briefly identify and explain the significance of each of the following in two or three sentences. 1 Treaty of Paris of 1763 2 James Wolfe 3 Sir William Johnson 4 Braddock's Defeat 5 french and Indian War AP/IB American History Mr. Blackmon The Theory and Practice of Empire Quiz # 2 I-V D Form C Briefly identify and explain the significance of each of the following in two or three sentences. 1 King George's War 2 Edward Braddock 3 Geoffrey Amherst 4 Treaty of Paris of 1763 5 Sir William Pitt AP/IB American History The Theory and Practice of Empire AP/IB American History Mr. Blackmon Page 21 Mr. Blackmon The Theory and Practice of Empire Quiz # 2 I-V D Form D Briefly identify and explain the significance of each of the following in two or three sentences. 1 Seven Years' War 2 Marquis de Montcalm 3 Iroquois 4 Treaty of Paris of 1763 5 Fort Duquesne