Queen Elizabeth I reigns during a time of unrest in England after her father, Henry VIII, broke away from the Roman Catholic Church in order to secure a divorce; her brother Edward doesn't last long on the thrown; her sister, Mary becomes queen and tries to reverse the course of the English reformation and attempts by force to bring the country back to the Catholic Church. After Mary's death, Elizabeth is now queen of England and Ireland and her church...
Elizabeth's reign is an interesting time for both English history and world history, and whole sets of college coursework can be found on Elizabethan England, the Tudor-Stuart House, and early modern Britain & Ireland. There's exactly 0 chance of me unpacking all of that here. What's most important to be aware of is that:
- On the continent of Europe the Protestant Reformation is playing out. England's in a tricky spot because Ireland, France, and Spain are Catholic. The English crown is currently Anglican, which while not Catholic, it isn't really seen as truly protestant either as opposed to Lutherans or Calvinists. (Reformation as being played out by German and Dutch reformers and Scottish Presbyterianism)
- The global picture has Spain as the dominant naval force. At about the same time as Elizabeth was born, Pizarro massacres the Incans and executes their emperor. Spain is extracting goods for trade (tobacco) and gold out of the New World. Stolen New World gold is filling Spanish coffers. The Spanish Empire is very much on the rise and Spain's Armada (navy) is the means. European kingdoms become quickly aware of the need to explore and colonize in order to keep pace.
- Domestically, Elizabeth has her hands full. She isn't married, she's the "Virgin Queen". Rulers from outside England and the English nobility are all interested suitors. She also has religious affairs to attend to and anyone not participating in the Anglican church like Catholics is a potential threat to her rule.
Enter Sir Walter Raleigh, whose name will one day be given to the capital of North Carolina. As noted above, Queen Elizabeth has plenty to keep her eye on during her reign, including Irish Catholics (subjects to the English crown, despite not being English or Anglican, or having much say in the matter) connect with Spanish and Italian Catholics in common cause. The rebellion takes places on Irish soil where English gentry had been given rights to Irish lands and turned these into plantations (If this sounds a bit like American history, that's because it is.) This particular uprising in 1580 takes place in Munster, where Spanish and Italian forces had joined Irish Catholics in revolt. Walter Raleigh was an officer in the English response and appears to have participated in the Massacre at the Siege of Smerwick. Raleigh ends up being one of Queen Elizabth's closest allies and suitors and is granted the rights to colonize part of the Americas.
The language used in granting these rights is worth noting specifically: "discover, search, finde out, and view such remote, heathen and barbarous lands, countreis, and territories, not actually possessed of any Christian prince, nor inhabited by Christian people, as to him, his heires and assignes, and to every or any of them shall seeme good, and the same to have, holde, occupy".
In short, Raleigh has the go ahead to go adventuring. Any land he finds that is populated by non-Christian (probably means non-Anglican based on the religious events of the day) is his to keep because those currently in possession are just barbarians anyway. Queen Elizabeth is well aware that the Spanish encountered nations across the ocean. She certainly expects that Raleigh will as well, and she's given him the go ahead to dispossess these nations of their land.
The plan for the English colonization of the Americas is something being tested out in Ireland, and which Walter Raleigh already some experience of from his time Ireland during the Munster rebellion.
Walter Raleigh funds and assembles the expedition to establish a colony in the Americas, ultimately be called Virginia, named after her majesty the Virgin Queen. The first attempt at colonization is led by John White who lands at Roanoke Island (in modern day North Carolina).
The initial encounter between the English and local Algonquins is described like this:
"Inhabitants therof as soone as they saw us began to make a great and horrible crye, as people which never befoer had seene men apparelled like us, and camme a way makinge out crys like wild beasts or men out of their wyts. But beeng gentlye called backe, wee offred them of our wares, as glasses, knives, babies, and other trifles, which wee thougt they deligted in. Soe they stood still, and percevinge our Good will and courtesie came fawninge uppon us, and bade us welcome. Then they brougt us to their village in the iland called, Roanoac, and unto their Weroans or Prince, which entertained us with Reasonable curtesie, althoug they wear amased at the first sight of us."
This interaction sounds roughly similar to Columbus' first interaction with the Taino. Europeans arrive on ships. The people already living there come out to greet them (arguably in a more aggressive fashion this time), and they are start with an amicable meeting, sharing goods and greeting the local village and leaders. The attire of the local people is one of the first things noted including descriptions of hair, robes, and jewelry made of pearls and copper.
The village where the English arrive is described thusly:
"Their townes that are not inclosed with poles are commonlye fayrer then suche as are inclosed, as appereth in this figure which livelye expresseth the towne of Secotam. For the howses are Scattered heer and ther, and they have gardein expressed by the letter E. wherin groweth Tobacco which the inhabitants call Uppowoc. They have also groaves wherin thei take deer, and fields wherin they sowe their corne"
The local people are planting and harvesting corn which as noted in an earlier post was a staple food crop in the Americas. What's also noteworthy here is the description of growing tobacco in a garden. Tobacco had become known to the Europeans as the Spanish began to bring it back. This is a new world plant which we are familiar with today, and like today it was used for smoking. The English at this point don't know it but the writing is already on the wall for Virginia.
Unlike the Spanish who encountered civilizations that had amassed some gold which the Spanish stole to fill their coffers, and then used to pay for their Armada; there is no gold, just the copper and pearl jewelry. The future success of the colony won't be in repossessing Native American gold, the English are eventually going to need to learn to grow Native American crops for a profit.
A colony is setup on the island in 1585, and the colony fails to thrive. The situation is described like this:
"They answered him that they lived all; but hitherto in some scarsity: and as yet could heare of no supply out of England: therefore they requested him that hee would leave with them some two or three ships, that if in some reasonable time they heard not out of England, they might then returne themselves.".
Their supplies and food are low, and they ask Francis Drake to leave ships (when he stops by apparently in the midst of other voyages) so they can return to England if they want.
Colonization is hard. Some small number of people need to find or grow food successfully, build their own housing, and craft whatever tools or parts they need without the usual resources. They also know that any help from England is a long time away. Colonization is even harder if you thought that you were going to land and immediately find gold which could be funneled back to Walter Raleigh and the Queen of England, but you fail to find any.
The first colony is abandoned by the English who return with Drake bringing corn, tobacco, and potatoes back to England.
A more famous second attempt is made which plays out more like an episode of Unsolved Mysteries. The Lost Colony continues to be the one taught in US History classes as it's the one that captures our imaginations.
However the story of the first colony teaches a number of valuable lessons: First, we can see clearly that the English intention is clearly to repossess whatever land they can from whatever people are already living there. Second, we can also see that this isn't a first attempt at this kind of colonization, it's something these same figures were trying in Ireland. Third, we can see the foreshadowing that colonization of North America is going to take longer to fetch a real return on investment; it will have to grow up around trade and farming rather than looting temples and cities of their gold.
But at the end of the day, the first of the 13 colonies is effectively established.
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