History

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American History
Discuss the European motives for expansion and colonization in the New World. Then describe the different colonial transplantations that occurred in Virginia, Maryland, and Massachusetts Bay. What were the major sources of friction between the Indians and the English in Virginia and Massachusetts Bay?
One of the main reasons for the Europeans to travel to the New World was the population growth in Europe. With a rise in property values also came the expansion of commerce. Farmers stopped growing crops and began to raise sheep, because of better profits; this made a lot of the works that worked the land for the farmers out of jobs. Lands usually saved for renters where given to the sheep for grassing areas. It leads the landlords to look for places of new and more products. The landlords needed to look for new trade routes to Asia. The New World was a land of new opportunities. Europeans could start with a new begin and place problems from the Old World behind them. Others were using the New World as an escape from the Roman Catholic Church and the corrupt practices of the Bishops. The New World allowed for practices of other religions without prosecution.
The English settlers tried to recreate the English society, but ended up making a society combined with English and Native American ways of life. Virginia settlements like the other settlements of 1600s had many problems and disasters. To start, their choice of the wrong site, but with good intentions. The main choice was for defense against Native Americans and easy access by ships. But, the site they chose was low and swampy. Which led to an outbreak of malaria and was within territory of powerful local Natives. What was supposed to be a new life for the settlers turned out to be misery and most cases death. The area was surrounded by dense woods, which made for poor farming. The settlers wanted nothing to do with the local Natives. The London Company who had sp...