Lesson 4 - Colonising America - Interpretations
Until the middle of the eighteenth century, almost all European countries were ruled by monarchs (kings or queens). The monarchs believed that God had given them the right to rule and that their people should obey them as they obeyed God. Sometimes monarchs asked noblemen for advice about how they should rule. But ordinary people had no say at all in how their countries were run. Their duty was to pay their taxes and obey their rulers. As we have seen, the new ideas of the Enlightenment changed all of that. In this section we shall see how these new ideas produced revolution in America and later we will look at France.
Settling in the New World
After Columbus landed in America the Spaniards and Portuguese claimed that all of North and South America belonged to them. But other countries did not accept this. The French took control of Canada and the valley of the Mississippi river from New Orleans. The English took control of the east coast of North America.
The following extract is taken from an old history textbook and was a fairly standard account of the origins of the United States:
After Columbus landed in America the Spaniards and Portuguese claimed that all of North and South America belonged to them. But other countries did not accept this. The French took control of Canada and the valley of the Mississippi river from New Orleans. The English took control of the east coast of North America.
The following extract is taken from an old history textbook and was a fairly standard account of the origins of the United States:
The English first settled in an area which they called Virginia in honour of Queen Elizabeth (the 'Virgin Queen'). In 1620 a group called the 'Pilgrim Fathers' set sail for Virginia. Their leadership came from the religious congregations of English Dissenters (Calvinists) who had fled England for the relative calm and tolerance of Holland. Concerned with losing their cultural identity, the group later arranged with English investors to establish a new colony in North America. The colony, established in 1620, became the oldest continuously inhabited British settlement and the second successful English settlement (after the founding of Jamestown, Virginia in 1607) in what was to become the United States of America. Their ship, the Mayflower, was blown off course and arrived further north in an area called Massachusetts. The first winter was very hard and many of the settlers died. Today, Americans celebrate the survival of the Pilgrim Fathers on Thanksgiving Day. In Canada, Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the second Monday in October. In the United States, it falls on the fourth Thursday of November.
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Activities
1. Read the extract from the textbook very carefully so as to get a clear idea about the main points it is making. 2. Watch the Crash Course video opposite from the beginning to 7.20. You may want to watch it a few times because it contains a lot of information. 3. Make a list of the main ways in which John Green's (Crash Course) interpretation is different to that of the textbook. |
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4. The textbook account is only about 200 words and clearly cannot cover as much history as the film, but this is not the only reason why it is different. In 200 words or less, write your own account of the colonising of America which takes into account what you have learnt from John Green.
5. Suggest some possible reasons why the text book account is different from yours.
5. Suggest some possible reasons why the text book account is different from yours.