APUSH Review Unit 2 (Period 2: 1607-1754)—Everything You NEED To Know

Summary

This video script offers a comprehensive review of Unit 2 of AP US History, covering the period from 1607 to 1754. It explores the distinct motives and methods of European colonization in the Americas, focusing on the Spanish, French, Dutch, and British approaches. The script delves into economic models like joint-stock companies, labor systems including indentured servitude and slavery, and the impact of the Atlantic trade system. It also touches on the Enlightenment's influence, the Great Awakening's religious revival, and the growing colonial resistance to British practices like impressment, setting the stage for America's eventual push for independence.

Takeaways

• 📚 The time period covered in AP US History Unit 2 is from 1607 to 1754, focusing on European colonization of the Americas.
• 🏰 Spain colonized for wealth extraction, focusing on valuable cash crops and gold/silver mining, and attempted to convert natives to Christianity.
• 🐟 France pursued trade over conquest, with a focus on the fish and fur trade, and established trading settlements, often marrying into native tribes to solidify alliances.
• 📈 The Dutch primarily aimed for economic gains through fur trading, establishing New Amsterdam as a trade hub without much interest in religious conversion.
• 🇬🇧 Britain's colonization was driven by economic hardships and the search for religious freedom, leading to diverse types of colonies along the eastern coast of North America.
• 🚢 The Chesapeake region saw the establishment of Jamestown, marked by joint-stock company financing and early struggles, later booming with tobacco cultivation.
• 🌾 New England colonies, like Plymouth, were family-based societies focused on agriculture and religious freedom, facing early hardships but eventually thriving.
• 🏝️ The British West Indies colonies were heavily involved in the sugarcane industry, leading to a high demand for African slaves and strict slave codes.
• 🌪️ The Middle Colonies had a mixed economy with cereal crops, leading to social inequality and a growing elite class, while Pennsylvania was noted for its religious tolerance.
• 🔗 The Atlantic trade system, including the Triangular Trade, was a global economic network that enriched merchants and plantation owners, and was underpinned by mercantilism.
• ⛓ The British colonies participated in the slave trade, with the majority of enslaved Africans being sold in the West Indies, leading to a significant African population and resistance movements.
• 🔥 The Great Awakening was a religious revival that swept through the colonies, fostering a sense of American identity and laying the groundwork for resistance against British rule.

Q & A

What is the time period covered in Unit 2 of AP US History?

Unit 2 of AP US History covers the time period from 1607 to 1754.

What were the main themes of Unit 2 in the context of European colonization?

The main themes of Unit 2 involve comparing the different motives and methods that Europeans used to colonize the Americas.

How did the Spanish colonization of the Americas differ from the French approach?

The Spanish focused on extracting wealth through valuable cash crops and mining gold and silver, while the French were more interested in trade, particularly in fish and fur.

What economic model was used to finance the founding of Jamestown?

Jamestown was financed by a joint-stock company, a private business entity where multiple investors pooled money and shared in the profits.

What was the significance of tobacco cultivation in the Chesapeake region?

Tobacco cultivation led to a reversal of fortunes for the struggling Jamestown colony, as it became a marketable commodity that attracted investment and increased demand for land.

How did the British colonization motivations differ from those of the Spanish and French?

The British were motivated by new economic opportunities and the need for land, as well as the desire for religious freedom and improved living conditions, in contrast to the Spanish focus on wealth extraction and the French interest in trade.

What was the impact of the triangular trade on the Atlantic economy?

The triangular trade was a significant manifestation of the new Atlantic economy, generating massive wealth for elites and turning American seaports into thriving urban centers.

What was the role of mercantilism in the British colonial project?

Mercantilism was an economic system where the goal was to gain as much wealth as possible by maintaining a favorable balance of trade, which led to the establishment of colonies for raw materials.

How did the Great Awakening influence the political and social realities in the colonies?

The Great Awakening was a religious revival that led to a large-scale return to Christianity and is considered one of the first instances of a true American identity, sowing seeds for the eventual rejection of British rule.

What was the significance of the Navigation Acts in the British colonial system?

The Navigation Acts were a set of laws that required merchants to engage in trade with English colonies using English-owned ships and for certain valuable trade items to pass through British ports, where they could be taxed.

How did the practice of impressment contribute to growing mistrust between the colonists and England?

Impressment was the act of seizing colonial men and forcing them to serve in the Royal Navy, which led to resistance and highlighted the colonists' growing awareness of their natural rights and their refusal to have them violated by England.

Outlines

00:00

🏰 European Colonialism in America (1607-1754)

This paragraph introduces Unit 2 of AP US History, focusing on the period from 1607 to 1754. It outlines the major themes of European colonization in the Americas, highlighting the different motives and methods used by various European powers. The video promises a comprehensive review of the unit, which includes a comparison of Spanish, French, Dutch, and British colonial strategies. Spain is noted for its wealth extraction and religious conversion efforts, while France's focus on trade, particularly in fur and fish, is contrasted with the more economic-driven Dutch and British colonization. The paragraph also mentions the Ultimate Review Packet for AP US History as a resource for students.

05:01

🚢 British Colonial Motivations and Settlements

The second paragraph delves into the British colonization of North America, exploring the economic and social factors that drove the British to seek new opportunities in the Americas. It discusses the impact of inflation and the enclosure movement on British society, prompting the search for new lands and resources. The paragraph provides an overview of the different types of British colonies established along the Eastern coast, including the Chesapeake region with its focus on tobacco cultivation and labor systems, the New England colonies with their religious motivations, the Caribbean colonies with their shift from tobacco to sugarcane cultivation, and the Middle Colonies known for their diverse populations and cereal crop economies. It also touches on the democratic governance structures that emerged in the colonies during this period.

10:02

🌐 The Atlantic Trade System and Mercantilism

This paragraph examines the development of the Atlantic trade system in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, with a particular focus on the triangular trade route that connected New England, West Africa, and the West Indies. It explains the concept of mercantilism, which underpinned the economic strategies of the time, emphasizing the importance of maintaining a favorable balance of trade and the role of colonies in supplying raw materials. The paragraph also discusses the Navigation Acts, which were designed to strengthen the economic ties between Britain and its colonies by regulating trade and taxation. The effects of this trade system on colonial economies and the rise of urban centers are highlighted.

15:03

⚔️ Colonial Society, Enlightenment, and the Great Awakening

The final paragraph discusses the social and religious changes within the American colonies during this period, influenced by the Enlightenment and the Great Awakening. It describes the Enlightenment's emphasis on rational thinking and its impact on religious authority, leading to the rise of democratic principles and the concept of natural rights. The paragraph also covers the Great Awakening, a religious revival that swept through the colonies and contributed to the development of a distinct American identity. It touches on the resistance to British practices such as impressment, which led to growing distrust and the assertion of natural rights by the colonists. The paragraph concludes with a call to action for students to utilize the Ultimate Review Packet and subscribe for more educational content.

Keywords

💡Colonialism

Colonialism refers to the establishment, exploitation, maintenance, acquisition, and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is central to the video's theme as it discusses how different European powers colonized the Americas between 1607 and 1754 for various motives and using different methods. For example, the Spanish sought to extract wealth and convert natives to Christianity, while the French focused more on trade, especially in fish and fur.

💡Enlightenment

The Enlightenment was an intellectual and philosophical movement that dominated the world of ideas in Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries. It emphasized reason, individualism, and skepticism of traditional and religious authority. In the video, the Enlightenment is mentioned as having influenced colonial ministers and leading to the Great Awakening, which in turn helped to shape a sense of American identity and resistance to British rule.

💡Mercantilism

Mercantilism was the dominant economic theory and practice of the time, which held that a nation's wealth and power were best served by accumulating gold and silver through a positive balance of trade, meaning exporting more than importing. The video explains how the British colonies participated in the Atlantic trade system based on mercantilist principles, which involved the Navigation Acts and the Triangular Trade, contributing to the wealth of the empire.

💡Triangular Trade

Triangular Trade refers to the three-legged trade route that connected Europe, Africa, and the Americas. The term is used in the script to describe the trade system where New England merchants would trade rum for enslaved people in West Africa, who were then transported to the West Indies to be traded for sugar, which was brought back to New England to produce more rum. This trade system was a significant part of the Atlantic economy.

💡Indentured Servitude

Indentured Servitude was a system under which people agreed to work for a fixed period (usually several years) in exchange for their passage to the Americas. It was a major labor system in the colonies, as mentioned in the video in the context of tobacco cultivation. The system began to decline as the demand for labor increased and was replaced by African slavery, especially after events like Bacon's Rebellion.

💡Bacon's Rebellion

Bacon's Rebellion was an armed uprising in the Virginia Colony in 1676 led by Nathaniel Bacon against the rule of Governor William Berkeley. The rebellion is highlighted in the video as a significant event that led to a shift towards African slavery as the primary labor source in the colonies due to the fear of disgruntled indentured servants.

💡Metacom's War

Metacom's War, known to the British as King Philip's War, was a conflict in 1675–1676 between English colonists and Native American tribes in the New England area. The video uses this war as an example of the deteriorating relations between the colonists and the Native Americans, as the colonists' encroachment on tribal lands led to violent resistance.

💡Great Awakening

The Great Awakening was a series of religious revivals that swept through the American colonies in the 18th century. The video describes it as a significant religious and social upheaval that led to a large-scale return to Christian faith and contributed to the development of a distinct American identity, which was crucial in the eventual rejection of British rule.

💡Impressment

Impressment was the practice of forcing individuals into military service against their will, often used by the British to fill the ranks of their navy during times of war. In the video, impressment is cited as a source of growing frustration and resistance among the colonists, as it violated their sense of natural rights and contributed to the growing rift between the colonies and England.

💡Natural Rights

Natural Rights are the rights that are believed to be inherent by virtue of human nature and remain outside the control of the state. The video explains that the Enlightenment introduced the concept of natural rights to the colonies, which argued that people have inborn rights that cannot be taken away by the government. This idea was crucial in the development of democratic principles and the eventual American Revolution.

Highlights

Review of Unit 2 of AP US History covering the time period 1607 to 1754.

Major themes involve comparing European motives and methods for colonizing the Americas.

Spanish colonization aimed at extracting wealth and converting natives to Christianity with a caste system.

French colonial policies focused on trade, especially in fish and fur, with fewer settlers and intermarriage with natives.

Dutch colonization was economically driven, establishing a fur trading center and New Amsterdam for trade advancement.

British colonization was motivated by economic opportunities and lands, amidst economic struggles and inflation in Britain.

Jamestown's establishment and reliance on a joint-stock company model for financing colonization.

Tobacco cultivation as a turning point for Jamestown's economy and the labor system involving indentured servants.

Bacon's Rebellion as a result of land encroachment and violence leading to conflict with native populations.

New England colonies were family-based societies focused on religion and agriculture.

British West Indies and Southern Atlantic colonies' focus on sugarcane cultivation and the rise of the slave trade.

Middle Colonies' diverse population and economy based on cereal crops and growing inequality.

Pennsylvania's foundation on religious freedom and democratic governance influenced by William Penn.

Triangular trade and its significance in the Atlantic economy, involving rum, enslaved people, and sugar cane.

Mercantilism as the economic system driving colonization and the establishment of colonies for raw materials.

Navigation Acts to strengthen trade with English colonies and tax certain valuable trade items.

Slavery in British colonies and the significant number of enslaved Africans transported during 1700-1808.

Resistance and rebellion among enslaved people, including the Stono Rebellion in South Carolina.

Colonists' relations with Native Americans, including Metacom's War and the growing mistrust.

Colonial society's structure influenced by the Enlightenment, emphasizing rational thinking and natural rights.

The Great Awakening as a religious revival that contributed to an emerging American identity.

Impressment as a practice that led to growing frustration and resistance among the colonists against Britain.

Transcripts

well hey there and welcome back to

highlanders history now in this video

we're going to review every dang thing

you need to know about unit 2 of ap us

history time period is 1607 to 1754. now

the major themes of this unit have to do

with comparing the different motives and

methods that europeans use to colonize

the americas why don't you go ahead and

crack open them brain folds because i'm

about to dump some learning into them

let's get to it now before we get

started just so you know this video is

part of a larger ultimate review packet

for ap us history it's got everything

you need to get an a in your class and a

five on your exam in may so if you're

interested in something like that link

in description below okay so the last

unit dealt largely with the societal

structures that were in the americas

before the europeans showed up and then

we saw how the europeans namely the

spaniards showed up kind of accidentally

and got their conquistador on and this

unit is going to deal with the black

friday sale of all european colonialism

in the americas as the french and the

dutch and the british all begin

clamoring to stake their claim in the

americas but each of these european

states implemented their colonial

project just a little bit differently

based on their colonial goals and their

regional circumstances so let's look at

each of them first let's remind

ourselves about how spain colonized the

americas now we talked about this in

unit 1 but just for the sake of

comparison let's remind ourselves the

spanish established colonies in the

americas in order to extract wealth both

in the form of valuable cash crops and

the actual digging of gold and silver

out of the ground and they subjected the

native population to this end they tried

with mixed success to convert them to

christianity and introduced a caste

system that reorganized society based on

racial ancestry okay now let's have a

look at how the french colonized the

americas french colonial policies

differed from the spanish colonial

policies because the french were more

interested in trade than they were in

conquest especially the fish and fur

trade compared to the spanish and the

english of whom i will have more to say

in just a moment there were relatively

few french people who showed up on the

american shore now despite the first

permanent french settlement in quebec

mostly the french established trading

settlements around north america and in

order to further advance their economic

goals some french traders married

american indian wives which kept kinship

ties alive with some of their more

significant native trading partners i

don't care who you are that's romantic

hey honey i just want you to know that

the last week has been the greatest week

of my life and there was nobody whom i

would rather marry in order to firm up

my trading relationship with your people

than you so will you marry me

is that a yes

anybody understand this language and yes

while these marriages may have been a

little transactional for our taste that

doesn't mean that there wasn't some

mutual benefit that occurred out of

these alliances for example the french

fostered some alliances with the ojibwe

indians and there was some mutual

cultural exchange the indians benefited

the french because they could prepare

beaver skins for sale at market and the

french benefited the indians by

introducing iron cookware and

manufactured claw all right now let's

look at the dutch and their colonial

goals in 1609 the dutch established a

fur trading center on the hudson river

which is in present-day new york and

their goals for colonizing were mainly

economic like the french now the dutch

were altogether protestant but unlike

the spanish they showed very little

interest in converting the natives to

christianity by 1624 they had

established new amsterdam which

facilitated and advanced their economic

goals and this became a hub of trade

that attracted large populations of

traders and merchants and fishermen and

farmers okay now we need to turn our

attention to the british and their

colonial project and arguably it's the

british and their colonial goals that

are the most relevant for united states

history so first let's talk about the

motivations for british colonization and

then we'll compare the different kinds

of colonies that they set up on the

eastern coast of north america now

economically during this period britain

was to put it mildly a hot mess the

colombian exchange was changing the

economy wars with france and the

conquest of ireland were costing them a

fortune and as a result of all that

inflation began to take hold of the

british economy if you don't know what

inflation is it just means that prices

were rising and that means their money

was worthless it just wouldn't buy as

much and this was particularly grievous

to the noble class who could see their

wealth vanishing before their eyes

additionally the lower classes were

enduring hardship as well the land which

had always been available to them for

farming was rapidly disappearing due to

the enclosure movement so take all of

that put it in a pot baby you got a stew

going therefore the motivations pushing

the british to colonize the americas

were new economic opportunities and

lands on which they could seek those

opportunities there were others in

britain who wanted to venture across the

atlantic in order to seek religious

freedom and improved living conditions

and as it turns out in america they

found what they were looking for okay

now let's look at each of the british

colonial settlements in north america

and just for poops and giggles let's

start with the chesapeake region in 1607

the british established jamestown which

was their first permanent colonial

settlement in north america the founding

of the colony was financed by a newish

economic model called a joint stock

company a joint stock company was a

private business entity in which several

different investors put money into a pot

and then collected profits when the

entity was successful this is different

than say in spain whose model for

financing colonization was strictly

through the state anyway that model of

financing gives you some sense of what

jamestown was all about as a colony

jamestown was purely a profit-seeking

venture colonists basically divided

their time between searching for gold

and silver and building military force

to defend the gold and silver that they

did fight but the beginnings of that

settlement to put it mildly were in the

first two years disease and famine

killed nearly half the settlers it got

so bad that some of them resorted to

cannibalism just to survive

and by 1610 seven out of eight of the

settlers were dead so the cannibals were

well fed sorry too soon are we laughing

about this yet but in 1612 they stumbled

upon a miracle columnist john ralphian

experimenting with tobacco cultivation

and that led to a complete reversal of

their fortunes a huge influx of

investment game when tobacco was found

to be marketable now i should say that

most of the people doing the work on the

cultivation of these crops were

indentured servants which was the major

labor system in the colonies at that

time now indentured servants were just

people who in general couldn't afford

passage from britain to the new world

and so they signed a labor contract that

paid for that passage and they agreed to

work for usually seven years and then

after that they would go free so as the

demand for tobacco began to increase

there was a corresponding demand for the

land on which to grow that tobacco and

when white folks needed more land they

had a habit of taking it from the native

populations and needless to say that

increased the tension between the two

groups this increasing encroachment on

their land and the violence that came

with it led indians to retaliate in raid

colonial farms these raids of course

infuriated the british settlers and they

appealed to their governor william

berkeley to send troops to keep them

safe and when berkeley refused we get a

little event called bacon's rebellion a

settler named nathaniel bacon led angry

poor farmers including indentured

servants in an attack against the

indians and then turned their militia

toward the plantations owned by governor

berkeley they burned plantations did

incredible amounts of damage but

ultimately the rebellion was squashed

now the consequence of all this is that

the planter elites got a healthy dose of

fear with respect to disgruntled

indentured servants and that made them

want to stop leaning on the broken staff

of indentured servitude and lean more

heavily on african slavery more on that

later all right that's the chesapeake

region now let's talk about the new

england colonies which were a little bit

north of the chesapeake and they were

all together different in 1620 was

settled by pilgrims who migrated in

family units in order to establish a

society not a profit-seeking enterprise

their goals were bound up in their

christian religion and they created

family economies as farmers even though

their goals were different they still

had a rough time like their brethren and

sister into the south fevers and disease

killed about half the original settlers

but after a few years they had

established themselves a thriving

colonial economy that included

agriculture and commerce all right now

let's turn our attention to the colonies

in the british west indies and the

southern atlantic coast colonies in the

1620s the british established permanent

colonies in the caribbean in places like

saint christopher barbados and nevis

there the warm climate afforded them

year-round growing seasons they grew

tobacco of course because it was a

staple cash crop but by the 1630s

falling tobacco prices led to the

introduction of a new crop sugarcane and

sugarcane was wildly popular in europe

and so the demand for it spiked however

sugarcane is a very labor-intensive crop

and so along with the increase in demand

for sugarcane came the increase in

demand for african slaves to grow that

sugarcane the demand for enslaved people

grew so much that by 1660 in barbados

for example the population on that

island was more black than it was white

and yet another result of all this was a

stringent set of laws that were passed

in order to govern the black population

on the island these laws defined

enslaved people as property and govern

every little detail of their lives now

the carolina colonies were influenced by

this system as they set up their own

economy and labor system planters from

the caribbean migrated to south carolina

for example and sought to make a copy of

the caribbean system in the carolinas

and that's exactly what they did all

right now let's take a little jaunt up

to the middle colonies and see what's

going on there in new york and new

jersey there was a diverse population it

was on the sea and was shot through with

many rivers so that these colonies

thrived on an export economy mainly of

cereal crops and because of the success

there was this growing inequality

between the classes there was an

emerging elite class that was mostly

wealthy urban merchants there was a

lower working class that was made up of

laborers orphans widows the unemployed

etc and there was a significant

population of enslaved africans also in

the middle colonies we got pennsylvania

it was founded by the quaker and

pacifist william penn and in this colony

religious freedom for all was recognized

and the land on which colonists farmed

was obtained not by force from the

indians but mainly by negotiation with

them now the governance in the colonies

was unusually democratic during this

time due to britain being across the sea

and generally letting the colonies do

their own thing the colonial leadership

established self-governing structures

and let me give you some examples first

is the mayflower compact pilgrims signed

this before they disembarked from their

ship the mayflower which organized their

government on the model of a

self-governing church congregation the

second is the house of burgesses in

virginia it was a representative

assembly which could levy taxes and pass

laws and there are other examples of

representative assemblies throughout the

colonies but what you really need to

know about them is that where they did

exist they were dominated by the elite

classes new york assemblies were

dominated by wealthy landlords in the

southern colonies these assemblies were

dominated by elite planters okay so

that's our survey of the different

regions that the british colonized but

now we need to think about them as a

whole entity with respect to their role

in trade in the atlantic trade system in

the late 17th and the early 18th

centuries trade truly became global with

the uptick of colonization in the

americas a new atlantic economy was

developed as well and one of the more

significant manifestations of this was

the triangular trade and if you just had

to guess what shape do you think this

trade route resembles

a triangle that's correct me from that

side of the screen merchant ships would

follow a three-part journey on this

trading route let's start in new england

where merchants would carry rum to west

africa where they would trade it for

enslaved people then the ships sailed

the dreaded middle passage in which

their hulls were packed to a cruel and

unhealthy measure with enslaved cargo

eventually they made their landfall in

the west indies where they traded the

slaves for sugar cane then they took

that sugar cane right back up to new

england where they sold the sugar cane

which was made to use rum and the whole

show started all over again okay that's

one aspect of how the atlantic economy

works but now let's pop the hood and see

what made that baby tick it was an

economic system called mercantilism now

those who saw the world through this

economic lens thought there was only a

fixed amount of wealth in the world and

since they measured wealth by gold and

silver technically they were correct and

each state's goal was to gain as much of

that wealth as possible and the way that

they did that was by maintaining what

they called a favorable balance of trade

which is to say more exports than

imports and that makes sense because if

a nation is exporting goods that means

that gold and silver is coming in now

this mercantilist system relied heavily

on establishing colonies because that's

where the raw materials came from and to

that end the british government tried to

weave more tightly the center of the

empire with the colonies of the empire

and one way they did this was through

something called the navigation axe this

set of laws required merchants to engage

in trade with english colonies and

english-owned ships also certain

valuable trade items were required to

pass exclusively through british ports

where they could then be taxed now this

is going to cause some problems in the

next period but for now we'll leave it

there the point is this newly

established atlantic trade system

changed the colonies it generated

massive wealth for the elites like

merchants and investors and plantation

owners and it also turned america's

seaports into thriving urban centers

okay that was trade in the new system

now we need to turn our attention to

slavery in the british colonies between

1700 and 1808 about 3 million enslaved

africans were carried on british ships

across the middle passage the majority

of them were sold into the hands of

planters in the british west indies but

it's important for you to know that

every british colony participated in the

slave trade mainly because of the

extraordinary wealth they gained by

coerced labor in the export economies

dedicated to tobacco sugar cane and

indigo now comparatively new england

farmers held relatively few slaves the

chesapeake and southern colonies on the

other hand held lots of slaves in

virginia following the carolinas and

barbados strict slave codes were

introduced and in these slaves were

defined as chattel which is to say

property additionally slavery was turned

into a perpetual institution that was

handed down from one generation to the

next and they did this out of a desire

to keep them more controlled and growing

labor force because indentured servants

and the slave native americans simply

could not supply the demand that they

need however it's going to be important

for you to know that some enslaved

blacks didn't just accept this system

they actually rebelled and resisted and

the resistance basically came in two

different flavors there was covert and

there was over among the strategies of

the covert resistors were the insistence

to secretly maintain cultural customs

and belief systems from their homeland

others broke tools ruined stored seeds

with moisture or faked illness and among

the strategies of the overt i'll give

you one significant example the stono

rebellion this occurred in south

carolina in 1739. a small group of

slaves stole weapons from a store and

killed its owners and then they marched

along the stono river and their numbers

grew as they marched along the way they

burned plantations and killed white

folks the south carolina militia finally

confronted them and squashed the

rebellion but not before losing many of

their own numbers okay so the

relationship between the colonists and

the black population was a little bleak

but i'm sure the colonists have figured

out by now how to make friends with the

indians yeah no now in the last unit i

mentioned the pueblo revolt against the

spanish and this led to the spanish

making some concessions to american

indian culture and with the british

relations with the indians wasn't much

better case in point metacom's war in

1675 which the british called king

phillips war so metacon was the chief of

the wampanoag indians and the british

called him king phil he began to see

that the british encroachment on their

ancestral lands would destroy their way

of life and therefore the british must

be forced out and so the wampanoag

allied themselves with other indian

groups and attacked white settlements

throughout new england they burned

fields killed men and captured women and

children the british allied themselves

with the mohawk indians who eventually

ambushed and killed metacom and the

movement fizzled out but the point is

all was not well between the british

colonists and the indians okay now in

the last section of this review we need

to talk about colonial society during

that time and its structure and let's

start with religion and if we're going

to talk about religion we need to start

with the enlightenment the enlightenment

was a movement in europe especially

among the elite that emphasized rational

thinking over tradition and religious

revelation in other words people wanted

to rely on their thinking thinking parts

at the expense of their believability

part now this movement took root in the

colonies largely because of a robust

transatlantic print culture that print

culture spread the ideas of

enlightenment thinkers like john locke

and voltaire and immanuel kant now while

this movement certainly undermines

scriptural and religious authority and

i'll talk about that more in a moment it

did introduce to the colonies some ideas

like natural rights and the idea of

natural rights is that people have

inborn rights given to them by a creator

and not by a government there was also

the idea that the best form of

government involved checking and

balancing power and that the best way to

achieve that was to split the government

into three branches the legislative the

executive and the judicial additionally

the colonists encountered ideas like the

social contract which argued that people

were in a contract with their government

since the power to govern is in the

people's hands their job is to take some

of that power and deliver it to the

government in exchange the government's

job was then to protect the natural

rights of the people and if the

government broke that contract it was

the people's right to overthrow that

government all right now let's talk

about the enlightenment's attack on

religious authority a group of christian

colonial ministers who became known as

new light clergy lamented the loss of

faith engendered by the enlightenment so

they began to preach against such

abandonment they also emphasized the

democratic principles of the bible they

railed against the practice of elites

buying pews in churches which were

exclusively reserved for them and as

their work caught on it led to a

leveling out of society and the work of

these new light preachers laid the

groundwork for one of the most

significant religious and social

upheavals of that time namely the great

awakening the great awakening was a

massive religious revival that swept

through all the colonies and generated

intense christian enthusiasts and two

notable leaders in this movement were

jonathan edwards and george whitfield

edwards was a new england minister who

preached in northampton with the

precision of a philosopher in the heart

of an evangelist under his preaching the

revival began to catch but it was only

local at that point it took the english

itinerant evangelist george whitfield to

come make the fire spread this fiery

preacher traveled throughout all the

colonies preaching in churches and in

open city squares and in fields and

wherever he could gather people the

result of the great awakening was a

large-scale return to the christian

faith and an experience that bound the

colonists together and many people point

to the great awakening as the first

vestiges of a true american identity and

where the seeds were sown for the

rejection of the british so all that to

say the great awakening had a massive

impact on political and social realities

in the colonies now also during this

time the colonies were experiencing a

gradual anglicanization which is to say

they were becoming more english-like

they were developing autonomous

political communities that looked very

much like the political communities back

in england even so the colonists began

experiencing a rising frustration with

the british and they began to resist now

all that is going to be explored in its

fullness in the next unit but now i just

need to give you an example of one of

the practices that led to that growing

mistrust between the colonists in

england and there's lots of examples

that i could choose but i'll just choose

one the practice of impressment and

impressment wasn't like yo man that's a

nice hat where'd you get that hat no

impressment was the act of seizing

colonial men and then forcing them to

serve in the royal navy now england

justified this practice because they

needed soldiers for all their wars and

they needed colonial troops because hey

this empire ain't going to rule itself

needless to say colonial men on the

other hand weren't big fans of the

common experience of a royal navy sailor

there was plenty of malnutrition disease

and death and in 1747 a general

impressment for king george's war led to

three days of rioting and resistance in

the colony and the important point is

this the colonies were becoming

increasingly aware of their natural

rights and were refusing to allow their

natural rights to be violated by england

and that's what you need to know about

unit two of ap u.s history if you want

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