Differences Between New England Colonies

As more and more Europeans moved to the New World, colonies were created for specific groups of people. Colonies were created for varying religions, lifestyles, and economic reasons. The New England colonies had numerous difference and few similarities with the Southern Colonies. These differences created distinct features of the regions and the people who lived there. Due to the geographic location of the Southern Colonies, their economic development relied mainly on agriculture.

The British colonies of New England, Middle, and Southern developed during the 17th and 18th centuries as a result of the competitive nature of the European explorers to colonize and obtain more land than the others.

In a time when the native population was slowly decreasing and the number of colonies was rising, the New England and the Spanish colonies were born. At that time, everything was constantly changing. Slavery was used in some colonies- the encomienda system was used in others, the economy of the two groups of colonies were completely different, and even what the colonists believed religiously was completely different based on location and biases. Between the New England colonies and the Spanish, there were many significant differences and similarities. In this context, between the years of 1492 and 1700, the New England colonies were extremely similar and different to the Spanish colonies in three aspects- the role of religion of their everyday life, the treatment of the indigenous people, and the amount of control the European government had on the colonies.

In a time when numerous countries were beginning to explore the new and exciting land of North America during the Age of Exploration, and groups of people from England and Spain were fleeing their home countries either for religious freedom or wealth, vast and civilized colonies began to form all throughout the New World. It is in this context that the colonies founded by the English and the Spanish began to develop and grow. There was a significant difference between the Spanish and New England colonies between 1492 and 1700 in terms of the treatment of indigenous people, and there were some immense similarities between the two colonies in terms of the role of religion in their society and the

Brinkley’s contradiction exists because throughout the early 18th Century nearly all colonist considered themselves to be loyal English subjects. Despite this, the American colonist simultaneously, and inadvertently began to develop their own unique identity. One that wasn’t necessarily a conscious decision to be different from England, but one that was largely shaped by, as Brinkley states, “the nature of the New World” (53). American colonist tried hard to maintain their cultural Englishness, but were being shaped by environmental factors in the areas where they now lived. This led to unique differences between the colonies and England in terms of population, economics, and society and religion, and political ideas.

New England and the Chesapeake region were both settled largely by people of English origin, but by the 1700’s they were two distinct societies. They differed politically, economically, and socially, and these differences stemmed from when people first arrived in the colonies to how the colonies grew over time.

The three colonies all wanted to make money but they had to go about it in different ways. This was mainly due to what they had available. The New England Colonies were mainly agricultural farmers. With all the water reservoirs like Cape Cod there were plenty of fish so lots of people became fishermen. There were a lot of lumberjacks to cut down trees and export them to England. The Middle Colonies were extremely different because they set up extensive cosmopolitan cities reminiscent of New York. They had many specialists like doctors, lawyers, accountants, and teachers. They traded a lot with in North America and occasionally overseas. The Southern Colonies primarily depended on cotton and tobacco plantations. As the plantations grew they had to employ black slaves. The plantations were fully self contained with their own blacksmith, teachers and professionals. So there were no big cities or towns. The main plantations traded directly with Europe via the Mississippi. The three colonies all made money differently with their diverse professions and traders.

In the New World, various resources, climates, and considerable amounts of land allowed numerous opportunities for settlers. Those who once yearned to climb the social ladder or gain the freedoms bestowed from land ownership flocked toward the newfound settlements. Colonization proved to be a grueling task; however, success was found after adapting to the new environment and facing many hardships. Two colonies established early in the seventeenth century included Virginia and New England. Both Virginia and New England were forerunning settlements that differed in the following senses: political, social, and economical.

During the Ages of Exploration, various European nations, such as Spain, French and England, created colonies in the newly discovered America. England, in particular, created settlements near the East coast of North America. The reason behind the rapid expansion and colonization was the idea of mercantilism. Mercantilism is when the mother country, England, exports more than it imports. The colonies were responsible for bringing the raw materials to the mother country, where it was turned into finished goods and then be exported. Mercantilism was believed to be a zero-sum game, which meant that if one country had something, other countries could not take it. Since Spain already had various settlements in the New World, England wanted to compete with them and gain land to become more economically advanced. Two particular regions of settlement for the English colonies were the Chesapeake region and New England. The Chesapeake region include present-day Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. The New England region included Massachusetts Bay Colony, Plymouth, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. Although they were both English colonies, they had developed distinct societies. People left England to go to the New World for different reasons. Whether it was for religious or for political reasons, it had caused the two regions of settlement to differ from each other in the colonies’ social, political, religious, and economic aspects.

The British pursued mercantilism, a favorable balance of trade, around 1650 to gain more wealth for the British colonies. As mercantilism increased in Europe after the Enlightenment period, there was a greater need for materials, and the exploration of new lands eventually led to the colonization of America. The colonies were divided into regions such as the New England and Chesapeake colonies. Although the New England and Chesapeake colonies were mostly developed by people of English origin, differences arose by 1700 due to social, geographic, and economic differences, however, both colonies were based upon people of various religious views.

The three colonial regions varied in their societies and in their economies. New England didn't have good farming land, but had an abundance in fishing. Middle Colonies had a little more luck in farming with better soil and some slaves. Southern Colonies had the perfect environment for bunches of crops and had the most slaves. All three regions did farm and own slaves, but from least amount of slaves to most it went New England, Middle Colonies, and Southern Colonies.

The New England, and the Chesapeake region were settled by englishmen of the same ethnicity, by the 1700 the regions had evolved into two distinct societies. The different characteristic among the colonies developed due to religion, economy, and motives for colonial expansion. The Chesapeake colonies was Pennsylvania, Virginia, New Jerseys, and Maryland. Jamestown, was the first colonie in the Chesapeake, When they first settled their first thought was to find gold as stated in Document 6 until Captain John Smith came he was famous for his quote “ He that will not work shall not eat”.

Like other original colonies, New England and Chesapeake were colonized by English settlers. Today, New England is acknowledged as the colony settled by hard working families that established tightly knit communities that centered their lives around their strong Godly beliefs. Virginia is known for its prospering trade and plantations where successful crops such as tobacco were produced. During the 17th century, citizens from England left and began settling in New England and Chesapeake regions. Although they came from the same country, they were not motivated by the same reasons.

Creating Contrasting Colonies The development of the thirteen British colonies of America majorly varied from region to region, but their similarities them to later unite into the superpower the world knows today. Due to lack religious freedom and tolerance in England, Protestant faiths set up self-governing colonies in 1620-1700s in what is later known as as New England. Following the defeat of Spanish Armada and England’s new major naval power status, England charted several royal, proprietary, and commerce colonies within the span of 1618 to the 1700s, which developed in the Chesapeake region each ruled by a royal governor or a joint stock company.

The American colonies were a diverse and interesting people. The colonies are typically split between the New England colonies and the Southern colonies. While both sets of colonies would eventually make up what is now the original thirteen colonies of the United States, they both had their similarities and differences. What led to the differences of the two sets of colonies and how were they similar? This question was relevant then and it is relevant in today’s world.