Government, Religion, and Culture

1
Government, Religion, and Culture

• Chapter 4, Section 2 Pages 108 - 113

2
Did You Know?

• The Great Awakening of the 1730s and 1740s
• called for a greater involvement of faith in God
  in
• daily life.
• On the other side, the Enlightenment of the
• 1770s questioned such involvement of faith and
• called for a smaller role for God in the daily
  affairs
• of people.

3
English Colonial Rule

• In the mid-1600s, the English monarchy saw
  Charles II
• and then James II rule.
• James II tried to tighten royal control over the
  colonies,
• but in 1688 he was forced out by the English
• Parliament.
• Mary, his daughter, and her husband, William
  ruled.
• This power of elected representatives over the
  monarch
• was known as the Glorious Revolution.

4
English Bill of Rights

• The English Bill of Rights, signed by William and
• Mary in 1689, guaranteed certain basic rights to
• all citizens.
• This document later inspired the creation of the
• American Bill of Rights.

5
The Navigation Acts

• England passed a series of laws called the
  Navigation
• Acts.
• The colonies were an economic resource that
  England
• wanted to maintain control of.
• These laws controlled the flow of goods between
  England and the colonies.
• They kept the colonies from sending certain
  products outside of England and forced the
  colonists to use English ships.

6
Illegal Trade

• Some colonists began smuggling, or illegally
• trading with other nations.
• They did not want to trade only with England.
• This illegal trade was the beginning of the
• economic conflict between England and the
• colonies.

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Charter Colonies

• Connecticut and Rhode Island.
• Established by a group of settlers who had been
  given a charter, or a grant of rights and
  privileges.
• Colonists elected governors and members of both
  houses of legislature.
• Britain could approve the governors appointment,
  but the governor could not veto acts of the
  legislature.

8
Proprietary Colonies

• Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania.
• Britain granted land to proprietors to start
  these colonies.
• The proprietors could usually rule as they
  wished.
• They appointed the governor and members of the
  upper house, or the council.
• The colonists elected members of the lower house,
  or assembly.

9
Royal Colonies

• Georgia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New
  Jersey,
• North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.
• Ruled directly by Great Britain.
• The King appointed a governor and council.
• The colonists elected the assembly.
• The governor and council members usually acted as
  Britain told them. However, conflicts arose,
  especially in the assembly, when officials tried
  to enforce laws and trade restrictions.

10
Voting Rights

• Voting rights were granted only to white men who
• owned property.
• Women, indentured servants, men without land,
• and African Americans could not vote.

11
An Emerging Culture

• The return of strong religious values in the
  1720s
• through the 1740s led to the Great Awakening.
• Influential preachers like Jonathan Edwards and
• George Whitefield inspired colonists in New
• England and the Middle Colonies to reexamine
• their lifestyles, their relationships with one
  another
• and their faith.

12
The Colonial Family

• The family was the foundation of colonial
  society.
• Men were the formal heads of the households.
• They managed the farms and represented the
• family in community matters.
• Women also participated in decision making and
• worked in the fields or on farms. In the cities
  and
• towns, they worked outside the home for wealthy
• families, as teachers, nurses, or as shopkeepers.

13
Colonial Education

• Education was valued in the colonies.
• Many communities established schools.
• By 1750 the literacy rate in New England was
  approximately 85 percent for men and 50 percent
  for women.
• Many schools were run by widows or unmarried
  women who taught in their homes.
• Many schools were operated by the towns church.

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The Enlightenment

• The Enlightenment, a movement that began in
• Europe in the 1750s, influenced the colonists.
• It spread the idea that knowledge, reason, and
• science could improve society.
• Ideas spread through newspapers, lectures, and
• organizations.

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Freedom of the Press

• The foundation for freedom of the press came
  about
• when New York Weekly Journal publisher John Peter
• Zenger was sued, accused of libel for printing
  article
• criticizing the royal governor of New York.
• Zenger argued that free speech was a basic right
  of
• the people.
• The trial jury based it decision on whether the
  articles
• were turn, not offensive. Zenger was found not
  guilty.

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Discussion Questions

• How did the economic theory of mercantilism
  govern Englands interest in controlling colonial
  trade?
• How did the colonists involvement in government
  prepare them for their eventual struggle for
  independence from Britain?
• Compare the family roles of men and women in
  colonial times to those of today.