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Unit 2 Part 3
THE COLONIES
The colonies grow
rapidly over the
course of the 1700s.
Driven by both growing birth
rates and immigration by
British, German and ScotchIrish.
The largest group of NonBritish immigrants are
African slaves, who by 1775
will make up 20% of the total
population of the colonies.
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS
OF THE COLONIES
Self-Government Every colony had a representative assembly elected by eligible
voters. Generally the governor was appointed by the crown.
Religious Toleration All colonies accepted different religions to some extent.
Pennsylvania and Rhode Island are the most liberal, Massachusetts the most
conservative.
No Hereditary Aristocracy Class system was based on economics, not on nobility
or inherited privilege. Most colonists were craftsmen or small farmers.
Social Mobility aside from slaves, all people living in the colonies had the
opportunity to achieve a higher standard of living.
Potential Test Question: How might these sentiments test the relationship between
the colonists and the monarchy?
THE
FAMILY
The family is the center
of colonial life.
Men controlled most power in
the family. Only they could
hold property and they held
unlimited power within the
home.
Women were responsible for
caring for the home and
children, including their
education, but still were
expected to work alongside
their husbands on the farm.
Mutual dependence gave
women some limited power
This all changes in the 1730s with the beginning of the First Great
Awakening.
The FGA moves the colonists away from the stuffy, indoor, going through the motions style worship to
a much more active and
JONATHAN EDWARDS
GEORGE WHITEFIELD
THE BEGINNING OF
NATIONAL IDENTITY