99-588: The Tobacco Inspection Act of 1730 (popularly known as the Tobacco Inspection Act ) was a 1730 law of the Virginia General Assembly designed to improve the quality of tobacco exported from Colonial Virginia . Proposed by Virginia Lieutenant Governor Sir William Gooch , the law was far-reaching in impact in part because it gave warehouses the power to destroy substandard crops and issue bills of exchange that served as currency. The law centralized
198-562: A charter for the colonization of an area of North America which was to be called, in her honour, Virginia . This charter specified that Raleigh had seven years in which to establish a settlement, or else lose his right to do so. Raleigh and Elizabeth intended that the venture should provide riches from the New World and a base from which to send privateers on raids against the treasure fleets of Spain . Raleigh himself never visited North America, although he led expeditions in 1595 and 1617 to
297-569: A colony in North America. However, the expedition was abandoned before the Atlantic had been crossed. In 1583, Gilbert sailed to Newfoundland , where in a formal ceremony he took possession of the harbour of St John's together with all land within two hundred leagues to the north and south of it, although he left no settlers behind him. He did not survive the return journey to England. On 25 March 1584, Queen Elizabeth I granted Sir Walter Raleigh
396-568: A downturn in overseas trade which had created financial problems for the Exchequer , King James instructed his Privy Council to establish an ad hoc committee of inquiry to look into the causes of the decline. This was called The Lords of the Committee of the Privy Council appointed for the consideration of all matters relating to Trade and Foreign Plantations . Intended to be a temporary creation,
495-523: A generation before the Plantation of Ulster and occurring a little bit after the plantation of Munster. Soon there was an explosion of English colonial activity, driven by men seeking new land, by the pursuit of trade, and by the search for religious freedom. In the 17th century, the destination of most English people making a new life overseas was in the West Indies rather than in North America. Financed by
594-482: A land supposedly called Wingandacoa . "Virginia" was originally a term used to refer to England's entire North American possession and claim along the east coast from the 34th parallel (close to Cape Fear ) north to 45th parallel . This area included a large section of Canada and the shores of Acadia . The name Virginia for a region in North America may have been originally suggested by Raleigh, who named it for Queen Elizabeth I in approximately 1584. In addition,
693-561: A new sovereign state called Great Britain , provided for the subjects of the new state to "have full freedom and intercourse of trade and navigation to and from any port or place within the said united kingdom and the Dominions and Plantations thereunto belonging". While the Treaty of Union also provided for the winding up of the Scottish African and Indian Company , it made no such provision for
792-674: A proprietary charter to two competing branches of the Virginia Company, which investors supported. These were the Plymouth Company and the Virginia Company of London . By the terms of the charter, the Plymouth Company was permitted to establish a colony of 100 sq mi (260 km ) between the 38th parallel and the 45th parallel (roughly between Chesapeake Bay and the current U.S.–Canada border). The London Company
891-644: A relatively low percentage of the overall population, as opposed to the earlier massacre (the 1622 attack had wiped out a third; that of 1644 barely a tenth). This was followed by an effort by the settlers to decimate the Powhatan. In July, they marched against the Pamunkey , Chickahominy , and Powhatan proper; and south of the James, against the Appomattoc , Weyanoke , Warraskoyak, and Nansemond , as well as two Carolina tribes,
990-622: A six-mile-long palisade was completed across the Virginia Peninsula . The palisade provided some security from attacks by the Virginia Indians for colonists farming and fishing lower on the Peninsula from that point. On April 18, 1644, Opechancanough again tried to force the English to abandon the region with another series of coordinated attacks, killing almost 500 colonists. However, this was
1089-605: A smaller proportion of the growing population than had been killed in the 1622 attacks. In 1620, a successor to the Plymouth Company sent colonists to the New World aboard the Mayflower . Known as Pilgrims , they successfully established a settlement in what became Massachusetts . The portion of what had been Virginia north of the 40th parallel became known as New England , according to books written by Captain John Smith , who had made
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#17328488646771188-485: A third voyage, in 1578, he reached the shores of Greenland and also made an unsuccessful attempt at founding a settlement in Frobisher Bay. While on the coast of Greenland, he also claimed that for England. At the same time, between 1577 and 1580, Sir Francis Drake was circumnavigating the globe . He claimed Elizabeth Island off Cape Horn for his queen, and on 24 August 1578 claimed another Elizabeth Island, in
1287-419: A truce with the Powhatan and proposed a toast using liquor laced with poison. 200 Virginia Indians were killed or made ill by the poison, and 50 more were slaughtered by the colonists. For over a decade, the English settlers attacked the Powhatan, targeting their settlements as part of a scorched earth policy. The settlers systematically razed villages, captured children, and seized or destroyed crops. By 1634,
1386-567: A voyage there. In 1624, the charter of the Virginia Company was revoked by King James I, and the Virginia Colony was transferred to royal authority in the form of a crown colony . Subsequent charters for the Maryland Colony in 1632 and to the eight lords proprietors of the Province of Carolina in 1663 and 1665 further reduced the Virginia Colony to roughly the coastal borders it held until
1485-731: A voyage to find a route from the Atlantic to the Spice Islands of Asia , subsequently known as the search for the North West Passage . Cabot sailed in 1497, successfully making landfall on the coast of Newfoundland . There, he believed he had reached Asia and made no attempt to found a permanent colony . He led another voyage to the Americas the following year, but nothing was heard of him or his ships again. The Reformation had made enemies of England and Spain, and in 1562 Elizabeth sanctioned
1584-586: A well-coordinated series of surprise attacks on multiple English colonial settlements along both sides of a 50-mile (80 km) long stretch of the James River, which took place early on the morning of March 22, 1622. This event resulted in the deaths of 347 colonists (including men, women, and children) and the abduction of many others. The massacre caught most of the Virginia Colony by surprise and virtually wiped out several entire communities, including Henricus and Wolstenholme Towne at Martin's Hundred . Jamestown
1683-797: Is generally dated from the rule of Æthelstan from 927. During the rule of the House of Knýtlinga , from 1013 to 1014 and 1016 to 1042, England was part of a personal union that included domains in Scandinavia . In 1066, William the Conqueror , Duke of Normandy , conquered England , making the Duchy a Crown land of the English throne. Through the remainder of the Middle Ages the kings of England held extensive territories in France , based on their history in this Duchy. Under
1782-589: Is now Maine . Approximately three months later, the group landed on a wooded peninsula where the Kennebec River meets the Atlantic Ocean and began building Fort St. George. By the end of the year, limited resources caused half of the colonists to return to England. The remaining 45 sailed home late the next year, and the Plymouth company fell dormant. In 1609, with the abandonment of the Plymouth Company settlement,
1881-610: The Susan Constant , and two smaller ships, the Godspeed , and the Discovery , with 105 men and boys, plus 39 sailors. After an unusually long voyage of 144 days, they arrived at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay and came ashore at the point where the southern side of the bay meets the Atlantic Ocean, an event that has come to be called the "First Landing". They erected a cross and named
1980-475: The weroance Necotowance and the subtribes formerly in the confederacy each became tributaries to the King of England. At the same time, a racial frontier was delineated between Indian and English settlements, with members of each group forbidden to cross to the other side except by a special pass obtained at one of the newly erected border forts. The extent of the Virginia Colony open to patent by English colonists
2079-626: The American Revolution . (The border with North Carolina was disputed until surveyed by William Byrd II in 1728.) After twelve years of peace following the Indian Wars of 1622–1632, another Anglo–Powhatan War began on March 18, 1644, as a last effort by the remnants of the Powhatan Confederacy, still under Opechancanough, to dislodge the English settlers of the Virginia Colony. Around 500 colonists were killed, but that number represented
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#17328488646772178-717: The Angevin Empire , England formed part of a collection of lands in the British Isles and France held by the Plantagenet dynasty. The collapse of this dynasty led to the Hundred Years' War between England and France . At the outset of the war the Kings of England ruled almost all of France, but by the end of it in 1453 only the Pale of Calais remained to them. Calais was eventually lost to
2277-649: The Chowanoke and Secotan . In February–March 1645, the colony ordered the construction of four frontier forts: Fort Charles at the falls of the James, Fort James on the Chickahominy , Fort Royal at the falls of the York and Fort Henry at the falls of the Appomattox , where the modern city of Petersburg is located. In August 1645, the forces of Governor William Berkeley stormed Opechancanough's stronghold. All captured males in
2376-559: The Discovery for the colonists' use. However, death from disease and conflicts with the Native Americans took a fearsome toll on the colonists. Despite attempts at mining minerals, growing silk, and exporting the native Virginia tobacco, no profitable exports had been identified, and it was unclear whether the settlement would survive financially. The Powhatan Confederacy was a confederation of numerous linguistically related tribes in
2475-517: The East Indies , at Bantam on the island of Java , and others, beginning with Surat , on the coasts of what are now India and Bangladesh . Most of the new English colonies established in North America and the West Indies , whether successfully or otherwise, were proprietary colonies with Proprietors , appointed to found and govern settlements under Royal charters granted to individuals or to joint stock companies . Early examples of these are
2574-543: The English Civil War . Under the tenure of Crown Governor William Berkeley (1642–1652; 1660–1677), the population expanded from 8,000 in 1642 to 40,000 in 1677. Despite the resistance of the Virginia Cavaliers , Virginian Puritan Richard Bennett was made governor answering to Oliver Cromwell in 1652, followed by two more nominal "commonwealth governors". Nonetheless, the colony was rewarded for its loyalty to
2673-645: The Kingdom of Great Britain in 1775, before the Declaration of Independence was officially adopted, the Virginia Colony became the Commonwealth of Virginia , one of the original thirteen states of the United States, adopting as its official slogan "The Old Dominion". The entire modern states of West Virginia , Kentucky , Indiana , and Illinois , and portions of Ohio and Western Pennsylvania were later created from
2772-617: The Muscovy Company , Martin Frobisher set sail on 7 June 1576, from Blackwall, London , seeking the North West Passage . In August 1576, he landed at Frobisher Bay on Baffin Island and this was marked by the first Church of England service recorded on North American soil. Frobisher returned to Frobisher Bay in 1577, taking possession of the south side of it in Queen Elizabeth's name. In
2871-689: The Orinoco River basin in South America in search of the golden city of El Dorado . Instead, he sent others to found the Roanoke Colony , later known as the "Lost Colony". On 31 December 1600, Elizabeth gave a charter to the East India Company , under the name "The Governor and Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies". The Company soon established its first trading post in
2970-650: The Portuguese princess Catherine of Braganza brought him the ports of Tangier in Africa and Bombay in India as part of her dowry. Tangier proved very expensive to hold and was abandoned in 1684. After the Dutch surrender of Fort Amsterdam to English control in 1664, England took over the Dutch colony of New Netherland , including New Amsterdam . Formalized in 1667, this contributed to
3069-466: The Province of Virginia , and occasionally as the Dominion and Colony of Virginia or His Majesty's Most Ancient Colloney and Dominion of Virginia . According to tradition, in gratitude for the loyalty of Virginians to the crown during the English Civil War , Charles II gave it the title of "Old Dominion". The colony seal stated from Latin en dat virginia quintum , in English 'Behold, Virginia gives
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3168-466: The Sea Venture was the mission's Vice Admiral Christopher Newport. Hundreds of new colonists were aboard the ships. However, the weather was to affect the mission drastically. A few days out of London, the nine ships of the third supply mission encountered a hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean. They became separated during the three days the storm lasted. Admiral Somers had the Sea Venture , carrying most of
3267-540: The Second Anglo–Dutch War . In 1664, New Netherland was renamed the Province of New York . At the same time, the English also came to control the former New Sweden , in the present-day U.S. state of Delaware , which had also been a Dutch possession and later became part of Pennsylvania . In 1673, the Dutch regained New Netherland, but they gave it up again under the Treaty of Westminster of 1674. In 1621, following
3366-538: The Straits of Magellan . In 1579, he landed on the north coast of California , claiming the area for Elizabeth as " New Albion ". However, these claims were not followed up by settlements. In 1578, while Drake was away on his circumnavigation, Queen Elizabeth granted a patent for overseas exploration to his half-brother Humphrey Gilbert , and that year Gilbert sailed for the West Indies to engage in piracy and to establish
3465-643: The Virginia Company , which created the first successful English overseas settlements at Jamestown in 1607 and Bermuda , unofficially in 1609 and officially in 1612, its spin-off , the Somers Isles Company , to which Bermuda (also known as the Somers Isles) was transferred in 1615, and the Newfoundland Company which settled Cuper's Cove near St John's, Newfoundland in 1610. Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts Bay, each incorporated during
3564-718: The West Indies were the destination of more than two-thirds of English emigrants to the New World. By 1650, there were 44,000 English people in the Caribbean, compared to 12,000 on the Chesapeake and 23,000 in New England . The most substantial English settlement in that period was at Barbados . In 1660, King Charles II established the Royal African Company , essentially a trading company dealing in slaves , led by his brother James, Duke of York . In 1661, Charles's marriage to
3663-534: The West Indies , and by trading posts called " factories " in the East Indies , such as Bantam , and in the Indian subcontinent , beginning with Surat . In 1639, a series of English fortresses on the Indian coast was initiated with Fort St George . In 1661, the marriage of King Charles II to Catherine of Braganza brought him as part of her dowry new possessions which until then had been Portuguese , including Tangier in North Africa and Bombay in India. In North America, Newfoundland and Virginia were
3762-418: The plantations of Ireland . These plantations included King's County, now County Offaly , and Queen's County, now County Laois , in 1556. A joint-stock plantation was established in the late 1560s at Kerrycurrihy near Cork city , on land leased from the Earl of Desmond . In the early 17th century the Plantation of Ulster began, and thousands of Scottish and Northern English colonists were settled in
3861-446: The privateers Hawkins and Drake to attack Spanish ships off the coast of West Africa . Later, as the Anglo-Spanish Wars intensified, Elizabeth approved further raids against Spanish ports in the Americas and against shipping returning to Europe with treasure from the New World . Meanwhile, the influential writers Richard Hakluyt and John Dee were beginning to press for the establishment of England's own overseas empire. Spain
3960-467: The Crown . The Virginia Company's two settlements, Virginia and Bermuda (Bermuda's Puritans were expelled as the Eleutheran Adventurers , settling the Bahamas under William Sayle ), Antigua and Barbados were conspicuous in their loyalty to the Crown and were singled out by the Rump Parliament in An Act for prohibiting Trade with the Barbadoes, Virginia, Bermuda and Antego in October 1650. This dictated that: [D]ue punishment [be] inflicted upon
4059-542: The Crown by Charles II following the Stuart Restoration when he dubbed it the ''Old Dominion''. English colonial empire The English overseas possessions comprised a variety of overseas territories that were colonised, conquered, or otherwise acquired by the Kingdom of England before 1707. (In 1707 the Acts of Union made England part of the Kingdom of Great Britain . See British Empire .) The first English overseas settlements were established in Ireland , followed by others in North America , Bermuda , and
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4158-445: The English customs officials and a few of the large planters. Soon after the passage of this new inspection law a prominent planter wrote complainingly to a London merchant, "This Tobo hath passed the Inspection of our new law, every hogshead was cased and viewed by which means the tobacco was very much tumbled and made something less sightly than it was before and it causes a great deal of extraordinary trouble". There were complaints that
4257-425: The English either stay in their fort or leave Virginia. Enraged, De la Warr had the hand of a Paspahegh captive cut off and sent him to the paramount chief with another ultimatum: Return all English subjects and property, or the neighboring villages would be burned. This time, Powhatan did not respond. On August 9, 1610, tired of waiting for a response from the Powhatan, West sent George Percy with 70 men to attack
4356-408: The French in 1558. The Channel Islands , as the remnants of the Duchy of Normandy , retain their link to the Crown to the present day. The first English overseas expansion occurred as early as 1169, when the Norman invasion of Ireland began to establish English possessions in Ireland , with thousands of English and Welsh settlers arriving in Ireland. As a result of this the Lordship of Ireland
4455-454: The French in South Carolina ( Charlesfort , 1562–1563). Farther south, the Spanish colony of Spanish Florida , centered on St. Augustine , was established in 1565, while to the north, the French were establishing settlements in what is now Canada ( Charlesbourg-Royal briefly occupied 1541–1543; Port Royal , established in 1605). In 1583, Sir Humphrey Gilbert established a charter in Newfoundland . Once established, he and his crew abandoned
4554-405: The London Company organized another supply mission. They set sail from London on April 1, 1610. Just after the survivors of the Starving Time and those who had joined them from Bermuda had abandoned Jamestown, the ships of the new supply mission sailed up the James River with food, supplies, a doctor, and more colonists. Lord Delaware was determined that the colony was to survive, and he intercepted
4653-430: The London Company's Virginia charter was adjusted to include the territory north of the 34th parallel and south of the 40th parallel , with its original coastal grant extended "from sea to sea". Thus, according to James I's writ, the Virginia Colony in its original sense extended to the coast of the Pacific Ocean, in what is now California, with all the land in between belonging to Virginia. For practical purposes, though,
4752-476: The Netherlands all had competing claims to the region, none of these prevented the English from becoming the first European power to colonize successfully the Mid-Atlantic coastline. The Spanish had made earlier attempts in what is now Georgia ( San Miguel de Gualdape , 1526–1527; several Spanish missions in Georgia between 1568 and 1684), South Carolina ( Santa Elena , 1566–1587), North Carolina ( Joara , 1567–1568) and Virginia ( Ajacán Mission , 1570–1571); and by
4851-434: The Paspahegh capital, burning the houses and cutting down their cornfields. They killed 65 to 75 Powhatan and captured one of Wowinchopunk's wives and her children. Returning downstream, Percy's men threw the children overboard and shot out "their Braynes in the water". The queen was put to the sword in Jamestown. The Paspahegh never recovered from this attack and abandoned their town. Another small force sent with Argall against
4950-517: The Warraskoyaks found that they had already fled, and they destroyed an abandoned Warraskoyak village and the surrounding cornfields. This event triggered the first Anglo-Powhatan War . Among the individuals who had briefly abandoned Jamestown was John Rolfe , a Sea Venture survivor who had lost his wife and son in Bermuda. He was a businessman from London with some untried seeds for new, sweeter strains of tobacco he brought from Bermuda and some novel marketing ideas. It would turn out that Rolfe held
5049-423: The York (Pamunkey) river. Necotowance thus ceded the English vast tracts of still-uncolonized land, much of it between the James and Blackwater. English settlements on the peninsula north of the York and below the Poropotank were also allowed, as they had already been there since 1640. While the newer Puritan colonies, most notably Massachusetts , were dominated by Parliamentarians , the older colonies sided with
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#17328488646775148-493: The area of their rights. The London company formed Jamestown in its exclusive territory, while the Plymouth company formed the Popham Colony in its exclusive territory near what is now Phippsburg, Maine. The Popham colony quickly failed because of famine, disease, and conflicts with local Native American tribes in the first two years. The London Company hired Captain Christopher Newport to lead its expedition. On December 20, 1606, he set sail from England with his flagship ,
5247-416: The claim. The company's possession of Bermuda was made official in 1612 when the third and final charter extended the boundaries of Virginia far enough out to sea to encompass Bermuda. Upon their arrival at Jamestown, the survivors of the Sea Venture discovered that the 10-month delay had greatly aggravated other adverse conditions. Seven of the other ships had arrived carrying more colonists but little in
5346-414: The colonists rarely ventured far inland to what was known as the "Virginia Wilderness." For the third supply, the London Company had a new ship built. The Sea Venture was designed to emit additional colonists and transport supplies. It became the flagship of the admiral of the convoy, Sir George Somers . The third supply was the largest, with eight other ships joining the Sea Venture . The captain of
5445-434: The colony because of the war between England and Spain. When he finally did return in 1590, he found the colony abandoned. The houses were intact, but the colonists had disappeared. Although there are numerous theories about the fate of the colony, it remains a mystery and has come to be known as the "Lost Colony" . Two English children were born in this colony; the first was named Virginia Dare ( Dare County, North Carolina ,
5544-400: The committee, later called a 'Council', became the origin of the Board of Trade which has had an almost continuous existence since 1621. The Committee quickly took a hand in promoting the more profitable enterprises of the English possessions, and in particular the production of tobacco and sugar . The Treaty of Union of 1706, which with effect from 1707 combined England and Scotland into
5643-507: The departing ships about 10 miles (16 km) downstream of Jamestown. The colonists thanked Providence for the colony's salvation. West proved far harsher and more belligerent toward the Indians than any of his predecessors, engaging in wars of conquest against them. He first sent Thomas Gates to drive off the Kecoughtan from their village on July 9, 1610, then gave Chief Powhatan an ultimatum to either return all English subjects and property, or face war. Powhatan responded by insisting that
5742-399: The early 1600s, were charter colonies , as was Virginia for a time. They were established through land patents issued by the Crown for specified tracts of land. In a few instances the charter specified that the colony's territory extended westward to the Pacific Ocean . The charter of Connecticut, Massachusetts Bay and Virginia each contained this "sea to sea" provision. Bermuda , today
5841-438: The eastern part of Virginia. The Powhatan Confederacy controlled a territory known as Tsenacommacah, which roughly corresponded with the Tidewater region of Virginia. It was in this territory that the English established Jamestown. At the time of the English arrival, the Powhatan were led by the paramount chief Wahunsenacawh, known to the English as Chief Powhatan . On May 31, 1607, about 100 men and boys left England for what
5940-473: The era of the Protectorate and Commonwealth of England . From 1619 to 1775/1776, the colonial legislature of Virginia was the General Assembly, which governed in conjunction with a colonial governor . Jamestown remained the capital of the Virginia Colony until 1699; from 1699 until its dissolution, the capital was in Williamsburg . The colony experienced its first significant political turmoil with Bacon's Rebellion of 1676. After declaring independence from
6039-432: The fifth', with Virginia claimed as the fifth English dominion after England, France , Scotland and Ireland . The Commonwealth of Virginia maintains "Old Dominion" as its state nickname . The athletic teams of the University of Virginia are known as the " Cavaliers ", referring to supporters of Charles II, and Virginia has a public university called " Old Dominion University ". Although Spain, France, Sweden, and
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#17328488646776138-413: The first centres of English colonisation. During the 17th century, Maine , Plymouth , New Hampshire , Salem , Massachusetts Bay , Nova Scotia , Connecticut , New Haven , Maryland , and Rhode Island and Providence were settled. In 1664, New Netherland and New Sweden were taken from the Dutch, becoming New York , New Jersey , and parts of Delaware and Pennsylvania . The Kingdom of England
6237-412: The following locations: XLIII. And for settling the number of public warehouses, and appointing the places where the same shall be kept, pursuant to this act, Be it enacted and declared, That a public warehouse or warehouses shall be kept, and the same are hereby appointed to be kept at the following places, to wit: Tobacco in the American Colonies Colony of Virginia The Colony of Virginia
6336-436: The inspection of tobacco at 40 locations described in the law. The 1730 warehouse law built on prior laws. The warehouse act of 1712 provided for the regulation of public warehouses. This warehouse act was amended in 1720 giving the county courts the authority to order warehouses inconvenient to the landings discontinued. The book Tobacco in Colonial Virginia ("The Sovereign Remedy") by Melvin Herndon describes operation of
6435-488: The key to the colony's economic success. By 1612, Rolfe's strains of tobacco had been successfully cultivated and exported, establishing a first cash crop for export. Plantations and new outposts sprung up starting with Henricus , initially both upriver and downriver along the navigable portion of the James and thereafter along the other rivers and waterways of the area. The settlement at Jamestown could finally be considered permanently established. A period of peace followed
6534-448: The marriage in 1614 of colonist Rolfe to Pocahontas , the daughter of Chief Powhatan. Another colonial charter was issued in 1611. The relations with the Natives took a turn for the worse after the death of Pocahontas in England and the return of Rolfe and other colonial leaders in May 1617. Disease, poor harvests, and the growing demand for land to cultivate tobacco caused hostilities to escalate. After Chief Powhatan died in 1618, he
6633-411: The mission's supplies, deliberately driven aground onto the reefs of Bermuda to avoid sinking. However, while there was no loss of life, the ship was wrecked beyond repair, stranding its survivors on the uninhabited archipelago , to which they laid claim for England. The survivors at Bermuda eventually built two smaller ships, and most of them continued to Jamestown, leaving a few on Bermuda to secure
6732-500: The new law destroyed tobacco that used to bring good money. Still another planter complained that the planter's name and evidence on the hogshead had much more effect on the price of the tobacco than the inspector's brand. While some of the planters expressed their disapproval of the new inspection law verbally, others resorted to violence. During the first year some villains burned two inspection houses, one in Lancaster County and another in Northumberland. The inspection law passed in 1730
6831-479: The north bank of the James River and Popham Colony on the Kennebec River in modern-day Maine , both in 1607. The Popham colony quickly failed because of famine, disease, and conflicts with local Native American tribes in the first two years. Jamestown occupied land belonging to the Powhatan Confederacy ; it was also on the brink of failure before the arrival of a new group of settlers and supplies by ship in 1610. Tobacco became Virginia's first profitable export,
6930-439: The oldest-remaining British Overseas Territory , was settled and claimed by England as a result of the shipwreck there in 1609 of the Virginia Company's flagship Sea Venture . The town of St George's , founded in Bermuda in 1612, remains the oldest continuously-inhabited English settlement in the New World. Some historians state that with its formation predating the conversion of "James Fort" into "Jamestown" in 1619, St George's
7029-419: The point of land Cape Henry in honor of Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales , the eldest son of King James. They were instructed to select a location inland along a waterway where they would be less vulnerable to the Spanish or other Europeans seeking to establish colonies. They sailed westward into the Bay and reached the mouth of Hampton Roads , stopping at a location now known as Old Point Comfort . Keeping
7128-475: The production of which had a significant impact on the society and settlement patterns. In 1624, the Virginia Company's charter was revoked by King James I, and the Virginia Colony was transferred to royal authority as a crown colony . After the English Civil War in the 1640s and 1650s, the Virginia colony was nicknamed "The Old Dominion" by King Charles II for its perceived loyalty to the English monarchy during
7227-561: The province of Ulster . English control of Ireland fluctuated for centuries until Ireland was incorporated into the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801. The voyages of Christopher Columbus began in 1492, and he sighted land in the West Indies on 12 October that year. In 1496, excited by the successes in overseas exploration of the Portuguese and the Spanish , King Henry VII of England commissioned John Cabot to lead
7326-473: The public warehouses as follows: In 1730 the most comprehensive inspection bill ever introduced, passed the General Assembly. The common knowledge that the past and present inspection laws had failed to prevent the importation of unmarketable tobacco, plus a long depression, had changed the attitude of many of the influential planters and merchants. Nevertheless, the act did meet with opposition from some of
7425-637: The said Delinquents, do[es] Declare all and every the said persons in Barbada's, Antego, Bermuda's and Virginia, that have contrived, abetted, aided or assisted those horrid Rebellions, or have since willingly joyned with them, to be notorious Robbers and Traitors, and such as by the Law of Nations are not to be permitted any maner of Commerce or Traffique with any people whatsoever; and do[es] forbid to all maner of persons, Foreiners, and others, all maner of Commerce, Traffique and Correspondency whatsoever, to be used or held with
7524-629: The said Rebels in the Barbada's, Bermuda's, Virginia and Antego, or either of them. The act authorized Parliamentary privateers to act against English vessels trading with the rebellious colonies: "All Ships that Trade with the Rebels may be surprized. Goods and tackle of such ships not to be embezeled, till judgement in the Admiralty; Two or three of the Officers of every ship to be examined upon oath." Virginia's population swelled with Cavaliers during and after
7623-661: The shoreline to their right, they then ventured up the largest river, which they named the James , for their king. After exploring at least as far upriver as the confluence of the Appomattox River at present-day Hopewell , they returned downstream to Jamestown Island , which offered a favorable defensive position against enemy ships and deep water anchorage adjacent to the land. Within two weeks, they had constructed their first fort and named their settlement Jamestown. In addition to securing gold and other precious minerals to send back to
7722-402: The site and returned to England. On the return trip, Gilbert's ship capsized, and all aboard perished. The charter was abandoned. In 1585, Raleigh sent his first colonization mission to Roanoke Island (in present-day North Carolina) with over 100 male settlers. However, when Sir Francis Drake arrived at the colony in the summer of 1586, the colonists opted to return to England because there
7821-588: The term Wingandacoa may have influenced the name Virginia." On his next voyage, Raleigh learned that while the chief of the Secotans was indeed called Wingina, the expression wingandacoa heard by the English upon arrival actually meant "What good clothes you wear!" in Carolina Algonquian and was not the name of the country as previously misunderstood. The colony was also known as the Virginia Colony ,
7920-512: The territory encompassed, or claimed by, the colony of Virginia at the time of further American independence in July 1776. "Virginia" is the oldest designation for English claims in North America. In 1584, Sir Walter Raleigh sent Philip Amadas and Arthur Barlowe to explore what is now the North Carolina coast. They returned with word of a regional king ( weroance ) named Wingina , who ruled
8019-402: The village over age 11 were deported to Tangier Island . Opechancanough, variously reported to be 92 to 100 years old, was taken to Jamestown. While a prisoner, Opechancanough was shot in the back and killed by a soldier assigned to guard him. His death disintegrated the Powhatan Confederacy into its component tribes, whom the colonists continued to attack. In the peace treaty of October 1646,
8118-643: The waiting investors in England, the survival plan for the Jamestown colonists depended upon regular supplies from England and trade with the Native Americans . They selected a location largely cut off from the mainland with little game for hunting, no natural fresh drinking water, and minimal ground for farming. Captain Newport returned to England twice, delivering the first and second supply missions during 1608 and leaving
8217-629: The way of food and supplies. Combined with drought and hostile relations with the Native Americans , the loss of the supplies that had been aboard the Sea Venture resulted in the Starving Time in late 1609 to May 1610, during which over 80% of the colonists perished. Conditions were so adverse it appears, from skeletal evidence, that the survivors engaged in cannibalism. The survivors from Bermuda had brought few supplies and food with them, and it appeared to all that Jamestown must be abandoned, and it would be necessary to return to England. Samuel Argall
8316-419: Was a British colonial settlement in North America between 1606 and 1776. The first effort to create an English settlement in the area was chartered in 1584 and established in 1585; the resulting Roanoke Colony lasted for three attempts totaling six years. In 1590, the colony was abandoned. But nearly 20 years later, the colony was re-settled at Jamestown , not far north of the original site. A second charter
8415-402: Was a lack of supply ships, abandoning the colony. Supply ships arrived at the abandoned colony later in 1586; 15 soldiers were left behind to hold the island, but no trace of these men was later found. In 1587, Raleigh sent another group to attempt to establish a permanent settlement. The expedition leader, John White , returned to England for supplies that same year but was unable to return to
8514-419: Was actually the first successful town the English established in the New World . Bermuda and Bermudians have played important, sometimes pivotal, roles in the shaping of the English and British trans-Atlantic empires. These include roles in maritime commerce, settlement of the continent and of the West Indies, and the projection of naval power via the colony's privateers , among others. Between 1640 and 1660,
8613-504: Was claimed for centuries by the English monarch; however, English control mostly was resigned to an area of Ireland known as The Pale , most of Ireland, large swaths of Munster , Ulster and Connaught remained independent of English rule until the Tudor and Stuart period. It was not until the 16th century that the Tudor monarchs of England began to "plant" Protestant settlers in Ireland as part of
8712-658: Was defined as: All the land between the Blackwater and York rivers, and up to the navigable point of each of the major rivers – which were connected by a straight line running directly from modern Franklin on the Blackwater, northwesterly to the Appomattoc village beside Fort Henry, and continuing in the same direction to the Monocan village above the falls of the James, where Fort Charles was built, then turning sharp right, to Fort Royal on
8811-627: Was established in the late 1560s, at Kerrycurrihy near Cork city Several people who helped establish colonies in Ireland also later played a part in the early colonisation of North America, particularly a group known as the West Country men . The first English colonies overseas in America was made in the last quarter of the 16th century, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth . The 1580s saw the first attempt at permanent English settlements in North America ,
8910-401: Was frequently amended during the colonial period, but there were no changes in its essential features. The act provided that no tobacco was to be shipped except in hogsheads, cases, or casks, without having first passed an inspection at one of the legally established inspection warehouses; thus the shipment of bulk tobacco was prohibited. Two inspectors were employed at each warehouse, and a third
9009-561: Was issued in 1606 and settled in 1607, becoming the first enduring English colony in North America . It followed failed attempts at settlement on Newfoundland by Sir Humphrey Gilbert in 1583 and the Roanoke Colony (in modern eastern North Carolina ) by Sir Walter Raleigh in the late 1580s. The founder of the Jamestown colony was the Virginia Company , chartered by King James I , with its first two settlements being in Jamestown on
9108-420: Was named in her honor), who was among those whose fate is unknown. The word Croatoan was found carved into a tree, the name of a tribe on a nearby island. Following the failure of the previous colonization attempts, England resumed attempts to set up colonies. This time, joint-stock companies were used rather than giving extensive grants to a landed proprietor such as Gilbert or Raleigh. King James granted
9207-404: Was permitted to establish between the 34th parallel and the 41st parallel (approximately between Cape Fear and Long Island Sound ) and also owned a large portion of Atlantic and Inland Canada. In the area of overlap, the two companies were not permitted to establish colonies within one hundred miles of each other. During 1606, each company organized expeditions to establish settlements within
9306-519: Was spared from destruction because an Indian boy named Chanco learned of the planned attacks from his brother and warned colonist Richard Pace with whom he lived. Pace, after securing himself and his neighbors on the south side of the James River, took a canoe across the river to warn Jamestown, which narrowly escaped destruction. However, there was no time to warn the other settlements. A year later, Captain William Tucker and John Pott worked out
9405-407: Was succeeded by his own younger brother, Opechancanough . On the surface, he maintained friendly relations with the English, negotiating with them through his warrior Nemattanew . Still, by 1622, after Nemattanew had been slain, Opechancanough was ready to order a limited surprise attack on the colonists, hoping to persuade them to move on and settle elsewhere. Chief Opechancanough organized and led
9504-460: Was summoned in case of a dispute between the two regular inspectors. These officials were bonded and were forbidden under heavy penalties to pass bad tobacco, engage in the tobacco trade, or to take rewards. Tobacco offered in payment of debts, public or private, had to be inspected under the same conditions as that to be exported. The inspectors were required to open the hogshead, extract and carefully examine two samplings; all trash and unsound tobacco
9603-425: Was the captain of one of the seven ships of the third supply that arrived at Jamestown in 1609 after being separated from the Sea Venture , whose fate was unknown. Depositing his passengers and limited supplies, he returned to England with word of the colonists' plight at Jamestown. The king authorized another leader, Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr , later better known as "Lord Delaware", to have greater powers, and
9702-442: Was to be burned in the warehouse kiln in the presence and with the consent of the owner. If the owner refused consent the entire hogshead was to be destroyed. After the tobacco was sorted, the good tobacco was repacked in the hogshead and the planter's distinguishing mark, net weight, tare (weight of the hogshead), and name of inspection warehouse were stamped on the hogshead. The law dictated that public warehouses should be set up at
9801-585: Was well established in the Americas, while Portugal had built up a network of trading posts and fortresses on the coasts of Africa, Brazil , and China , and the French had already begun to settle the Saint Lawrence River , which later became New France . The first English overseas colonies started in 1556 with the plantations of Ireland after the Tudor conquest of Ireland . One such overseas joint stock colony
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