13 colonies

• homeschool

Continental Congress (1774): representatives from the 13 colonies meet in Philadelphia to organise the resistance against Britain

summary:

(make note about this)

1. Britain had 13 colonies in America
   
2. The colonists were angry because they were taxed, but were not represented in British Parliament
   
3. There were demonstrations and actions by colonists to which the British responded with more taxes.
   
4. In 1775 this led to war between the Patriots and the British
   

The 13 British colonies in America, set up at different times, had different laws, governments, even money.

They had regular disputes with each other, especially over borders. Yet, in 1775, they united to demand independence from Britain. Why? 

In the next slides you can read about

4 reasons why the American colonists wanted independence.

What were the 13 colonies?

A colony refers to a region of land that is under the political control of another country. The 13 Colonies refers to the group of colonies established by Great Britain on the Atlantic coast of North America in the 1600’s and early 1700’s. Although many of the colonists came from Great Britain, the 13 Colonies also included settlers from other European countries, Native Americans, and enslaved Africans. The 13 Colonies can be grouped into three regions: New England Colonies, Middle Colonies, and Southern Colonies.

New England Colonies

New Hampshire (1629)

Massachusetts (1620)

Connecticut (1636)

Rhode Island (1636)

Middle Colonies

New York (1664)

Delaware (1664)

New Jersey (1664)

Pennsylvania (1682)

Southern Colonies

Maryland (1634)

Virginia (1607)

North Carolina (1663)

South Carolina (1670)

Georgia (1732)

Why did people come to the 13 Colonies?

These settlers hoped to find wealth in the New World.  Although gold was never found in significant amounts, some Southern colonists did find wealth in the form of cash crops like tobacco.

Enslaved Africans

Beginning in 1619, enslaved Africans were brought to the 13 Colonies against their will. They were forced to work without freedom. Although most enslaved people could not make money from their work, their enslavers did. European colonization itself depended on the work of enslaved people. Slavery and the slave trade were central to the development and growth of the 13 colonies.

Indentured Servants

Many English men and women immigrated as indentured servants. Indentured servants sold their labor for a certain number of years in exchange for passage to America. They hoped that after seven to ten years of labor, they would be able to collect their freedom dues and build lives of their own.

Religious Pilgrims

Others came to the 13 Colonies for religious reasons. For example, Puritans and Pilgrims fled England because they were unhappy with the Church of England. Each group hoped to find religious freedom in the 13 Colonies.

Other Europeans

Colonists from other European countries like the Netherlands and Spain settled the 13 colonies. They settled for similar reasons to the British (ex: to gain wealth, to escape religious persecution, to bring glory to their home country, etc.). They had both peaceful and violent interactions with the English settlers.

Indigenous Peoples

All these groups interacted with the millions of Indigenous Peoples who were already living in North America. In general, European contact resulted in the devestating loss of life and lands for Indigenous Peoples.

online.seterra.com