Analysis of Primary Sources: English America (1607-1660) Report

This report analyzes Eric Foner's examination of the early English colonization of America, focusing on the period between 1607 and 1660. It begins with the establishment of Jamestown and the transformation of American society and culture by English colonizers. The report discusses the motivations for colonization, including trade, profit, and religious conflicts, as well as the challenges faced by the settlers. It highlights the roles of key figures like John Smith and the impact of events such as the rise of Puritanism and the English Civil War. The analysis covers the differences between the Chesapeake and New England settlements and the influence of religion, politics, and freedom on the colonizers' operations. Ultimately, the report explores the commercial empowerment of the English and their increasing control over American lands.

Running head: ANALYSIS OF PRIMARY SOURCES
ANALYSIS OF PRIMARY SOURCES
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Analysis of FONER: Chapter 2 – Beginnings of English America, 1607-1660
Eric Foner in ‘Beginnings of English America’ provides an evaluation of how the
English colonizers transformed the culture and society in America. Jamestown in Virginia is
recognized as the first permanent settlement of the Englishmen in America. The several
religious conflicts observed in England in the beginning of the sixteenth century had widely
disrupted its stability. However, the colonizing methods utilized by England in Ireland were
anticipated in America as well, giving rise to the historical relation between England and the
New World.
The rise of the New World in America was marked by charters issued by the English
crown, allowing individuals like Sir Walter Raleigh and Sir Humphrey Gilbert to attempt at
colonizing the country. The motives behind such colonization were estimated to be the
incentives of trade, profit and national glory along with a rise of anti-Catholic sentiments in
England. However, the instability and poverty in the country increasingly prompted the
Englishmen to move to the New World in search of new opportunities. The colonizers
viewed the Native Americans to have economic independence through individual ownership
of land thereby appealing the interest of the Englishmen to settle there.
The coming of the Englishmen to the American lands saw an inflow of indentured
English servants where ownership of land was considered the foundation to liberty.
Therefore, they were persistently interested in the acquisition of American land. However,
the colonizers had to face several challenges owing to changes in leadership, high rates of
death and the inadequate provision of supplies from England.
The settling of the Chesapeake marked the established of the Jamestown Colony with
the help of John Smith’s leadership and new policies strategized by him. These policies
enabled the indigenous tribes of Powhatan and Pocahontas in America to engage in trade with

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the Englishmen. However, the gradual transformation of the trading post into a permanent
settlement led to the rise of conflicts between the Americans and English in 1622. The region
of Maryland further saw a rise in the number of Protestant settlers than Catholics.
The Protestant reformation in England propagated the emergence of Puritanism,
marking the New England Way. Several Puritans moved to America with the hope of
acquiring the right to govern themselves and having the liberty to worship. This New
England settlement was different from the Chesapeake settlement because of the presence of
a healthier social, religious and economic climate.
Williams, a Puritan minister further proposed the division of New England based on a
separation between the state and church. This enabled the growth of a commercial society in
the New England settlement. The religion, politics and freedom of the Englishmen influenced
their operations in America. However, the Civil War in English America occurred as an
aftereffect of the crisis in Maryland. Cromwell’s aggressive strategies of colonial expansion
further led to a commercial empowerment of the Englishmen through a promotion of
Protestantism. His political influence also caused uprising and intensification of social
conflicts in the later century, with greater control of England over the American lands.

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References and Bibliography
Eric Foner - Give Me Liberty An American History. 1-W. W. Norton & Co. (2017).
Quinn, D.B., 1945. Sir Thomas Smith (1513-1577) and the beginnings of English colonial
theory. Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, 89(4), pp.543-560.
Stick, D., 1983. Roanoke Island, The Beginnings of English America. UNC Press Books.
Tomlins, C., 2010. Freedom bound: Law, labor, and civic identity in colonizing English
America, 1580–1865. Cambridge University Press.