Impact of the English Reformation and the Restoration on the English Colonies free essay sample

In England, clashes between Catholics and Protestants, brought upon by the establishment of the Church of England in 1531 by King Henry VIII, placed many in complete disarray. The Separatist, befittingly termed, were a group of puritans sought out an escape from the institutionalize corruption and rituals practiced by both faiths. They believed solely in the authority of the Bible, and viewed unfounded rituals and means to reach salvation as corrupt. They also believed in society holistically, covenants between God and His people, hierarchy and inequality, and most of all the idea of predestination. Predestination was the idea that suggested that Salvation was already determined by God, and there is nothing one can do to alter that and the Puritans believed that they were the select few of God’s children that were chosen for salvation. Puritan beliefs were unconventional, not generally accepted and deemed illegal in some parts of England, which was attributable to the power held by the Church of England imposed upon by the English Reformation. Thus in pursuit of religious freedom, the Puritan saw the New World as prospective haven to live and prosper in their way of life. The first of the Puritans to go to the New World were the Pilgrims, who were of lower middle class to middle class status and one of the most zealous of the Puritans that wanted to set up a Utopia guided by Puritan principles and practices. With the consent of the Crown, the Pilgrims sailed on the Mayflower and landed on Plymouth. Many more Migrated in the decades followed, known as the Great Puritan Migration. The drive to the migration and colonization of the New England were primarily religious based from the aftermaths of the Reformation, not for onetary benefits in the outlook of both the Crown of England and the separatist themselves. Thus, unlike Jamestown, the Puritans went there to stay and thrive. In order to do so, the majority of them migrated there in family units with equal number of men and women. The Reformation cause the most religiously enthusiastic of the puritans to come to New World, consequently, a strong linkage between religion and society was eminent. The dis tinction between church and state was little. Only male church members were allowed to cast votes in political venues. Religion played a role in every aspect in the lives of the Puritans in the New England colonies. The covenants were a firm belief among them in which the actions of one person reflected the actions of the entire community. Therefore, little privacy was a conventional norm that they lived by and there was little religious freedom in the New England colonies. Distinctive from the New England colonies, the establishment of the Middle colonies and the Carolinas were predominantly inspired, during the Restoration, to gain an economic advantage for the British Empire. King Charles’ II rise to the throne gave way to the charter of the Middle colonies and Carolinas in which he contributed to his loyal collaborators. He took it as an opportunity to reestablish the connection with the English colonies and make Great Britain a true empire to be reckoned with. He enacted the Navigation Laws that entailed colonies can trade only with English ships, some items could be shipped only on English ships, all goods had to pass through England to pay taxes before being shipped to America, and to safeguard against invasion. Navigation acts were part of the ideology of â€Å"mercantilism which is a collection of policies designed to keep Great Britain Prosperous through economic regulation. † These policies encouraged the colonies to be self-sufficient in both agriculture and manufacture, the desire of precious metals, more exports than imports, sea power to control foreign markets, strong states to enforce policies, and many other like it. . At the expense of the English colonies, the employment of mercantilist policies permitted the British Empire to prosper in wealth and power. Although religion wasn’t a major incentive in the formation of the Restoration colonies as it was in the New England colonies, it still played a major role in the types of people that migrated to there. Maryland, founded by Lord Baltimore, served as a refuge for Catholics. Nonetheless, Catholics eventually lost control due the influx of other religious groups. Pennsylvania, in the other hand, served as a refuge for the Quakers, who sought out the New World to avoid further persecution for their beliefs in England. Their beliefs were extremely unconventional in regards to the dogmas of the time. For instance, they believed God speaks to one and all through inner light including women, equality for all, challenge the idea of hierarchy, were against slavery, were pacifist, and were very tolerant and liberal minded. The implementation of mercantilist policies as a result of the Restoration, promoted self-sustained economy in the colonies. As a result, rice, cotton, and indigo harvesting were a prominent export in the Carolinas. This booming agricultural economy required hard intensive labor and a huge workforce and the exploitations of indentured servants and slaves was the solution. The employment of slaves and indentured servants allowed the South to have thriving economy and its own developing cultured that differed from the North. Although the economic powerhouse introduced by the Mercantilist policies that rose from the Restoration impacted all the English colonies and religious freedom was a driving force for most of the colonist, British Empire endorsed the formation of the Middle Colonies and the Carolinas with a primary goal in mind, gained economic advantage, whereas before during the formation of New England colonies, gaining an economic benefit was not much of a concern. Short Answers (5 points each) 12. What were slave codes and what were they intended to do? A series of laws passed mainly in the Southern colonies in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries to defend the status of slaves and codify the denial of basic civil rights to them. These codes give absolute power to slave owners over the African slaves. Slaves did not have the rights to form a family for it would cause problems for owners when having to separate them. â€Å"Slave codes made it illegal to teach slave children to read; Africans ere not allowed to carry arms or ammunition; children were descended from mothers instead of fathers in order to keep children of slaves enslaved; free women who married slaves were forced to serve the slaves masters and their children became slaves; servants brought into the country who were not Christians were to be enslaved (this included Negroes, mulattoes, and Indians), but eventual baptism into the Christian faith failed to alter a sla ves status. Finally, if a slave resisted his master and the slave was killed, the master was pardoned for the crime of killing his servant. † 13. What are some of the reasons for the Salem witch trials? How did the reasons for the trials demonstrate the problems that threatened Puritan New England during the late seventeenth century? How was Hester Prynne, the main character of  The Scarlet Letter, an example of this threat? Many reasons contributed to the mass hysteria of the Salem witch trials. Young accusers bored with bible study, a growing immigrant population with secular motives, and fears of natives wanting revenge. Members of the community were losing their religious values and shifted their interests to trade and commerce. Hester Prynne is an example of how a society trying to hold on to their values, sets an example of an individuals to deter others from doing the same â€Å"crimes. † 14. What were the Navigation Acts? How did they attempt to tie the American colonies to England? The Navigation Acts were part of mercantilism which is a set of imperialistic policies that allowed for British Empire to economically prosper. The Navigation Acts restored the linkage between the English colonies and England by placing trading limitations on the colonies so that the British Empire can rake in the benefits at the expense of the English colonies. These policies stated that â€Å"colonies could trade exclusively to English ships, some items can be shipped only on English ships, All goods had to pass through England to pay taxes before being shipped to America, and policies were established in 1666 to safeguard against invasion. † 15. What influence did the Quaker population have on the development of Pennsylvania? Pennsylvania served as a refuge for the Quakers, who sought out the New World to avoid further persecution for their beliefs in England. Their beliefs were extremely unconventional in regards to the dogmas of the time. For instance, they believed God speaks to one and all through inner light including women, equality for all, challenge the idea of hierarchy, were against slavery, were pacifist, and were very tolerant and liberal minded. They also believed that it was wrong to take land from the Indians without payment. For their beliefs, Pennsylvania was a mecca for religious tolerance, equality among all including slaves and women, among other things. 16. Who was Anne Hutchinson? How did she present a challenge to Puritan New England? Anne Hutchinson was a minister’s daughter born in England who followed her minister, John Colton, to Puritan New England. She started holding her own Bible studies and prayer meetings in her place, which was highly unconventional especially for a women being that ministers had the critical religious authority. Her gatherings became extremely popular among both men and women around the colony. They started to consider her a prophet that spoke directly to God to spread the message among the community. After a while, she started criticizing the New England Preachers about their teachings of salvation among others. She was arrested and put on trial and then to exile to Rhode Island for falsely claiming to be a prophet.