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The Southern Colonies. Chapter 3, Section 1. Cash Crops. Tobacco became the South’s 1 st successful cash crop. Particularly in Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina. Rice and indigo were important to South Carolina All cash crops were grown on plantations. Tobacco.
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The Southern Colonies Chapter 3, Section 1
Cash Crops • Tobacco became the South’s 1st successful cash crop. Particularly in Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina. • Rice and indigo were important to South Carolina • All cash crops were grown on plantations
Tobacco • Demand was greater than supply- Plantation owners became wealthy • Transported on ships around the Chesapeake Bay • Required many workers to cultivate tobacco
Indentured Servants • High unemployment rate in England • Shortage of workers in America • The English were offered passage to America in exchange for a set period of service. The contract was often 4-7 years. • Gained freedom and land when their term was finished • High mortality (death) rate
Planter Elite • Wealthy landowners; had a lot of political and economic influence • At first: small plantations and everyone worked side-by-side • As plantations switched to slave labor the plantations grew and owners became more wealthy
Backcountry Farmers • Indentured servants • Owned the land further inland- closer to Indian territory • Worked on small farms and lived in tiny homes • Relied upon subsistence farming
The bottom • Landless tenant farmers (indentured servants) • Indentured servants- still in service • Enslaved Africans • ******Uneven distribution of wealth**********
Sir William Berkeley • Controlled Virginia through the House of Burgesses • Exempted friends for paying taxes • Restricted vote to property owners • Angered back country and tenant farmers
Leading up to the Rebellion • Wealthy landowners in the Tidewater region • Wealthy did NOT support expanding colony into Indian Territory • They feared the repercussions • 1675- war between Backcountry farmers and Susquehannock people • Berkeley did NOT support farmers
Bacon’s Rebellion • Backcountry farmers, led by Nathanial Bacon, raised a militia and attacked Natives • In an effort to “fix things” the House of Burgesses authorized Bacon the right to raise troops- Berkeley restored the right to vote and removed tax exemptions • Bacon- still mad- returned to Jamestown with a militia and seized power. Charged Berkeley with corruption
Berkeley raised his own army and the two fought for months until Bacon died • Rebellion convinced many that slavery was a better option than indentured servants
Slaves vs. Indentured Servants • Reasons for the switch: • Slaves didn’t need to be released and didn’t need land • Fewer English settlers were willing to become indentured servants • Laws changed making the slave trade easier
The Slave Trade • Africans were forcibly removed from West Africa • Europeans traded guns for enslaved Africans • Slaves were crammed on ships and transported across the Atlantic Ocean= MIDDLE PASSAGE • Those that died or became ill were thrown overboard
1st Africans were brought to Virginia in 1619 • Treated like indentured servants- they did not have slavery at the time • Many Africans converted to Christianity • As more Africans arrived their status changed
Slave Codes • Laws that regulated and defined slavery • Became more strict over time • Limited the rights of Africans in the colonies