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Trustee Period and Royal Period

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1 Trustee Period and Royal Period


3 Salzburgers In March 1734, Oglethorpe was planning to leave for Great Britain to report to the colony’s trustees A group of Protestants had been force to leave Salzburg, Germany which was then controlled by Catholics. They were led by John Martin Bolzius, and they asked to live in Georgia.

4 Salzburgers Oglethorpe took the Salzburgers to a place 25 miles from Savannah. There they began a town called Ebenezer, which means “the Rock of Help.” Because the land was marshy with poor soil for crops, the Salzburgers asked Oglethorpe for a better site. In 1736, they moved to Red Bluff on the Savannah River. There they built New Ebenezer.

5 Salzburgers Oglethorpe made a trip to Great Britain. When he returned to Savannah in early February 1736, he brought 300 new colonists. Another group of Salzburgers Moravians John and Charles Wesley He also helped the Salzburgers move to Frederica on St. Simons Island

6 Highland Scots James Oglethorpe wanted to protect the Georgia colony from possible attacks from Spanish Florida. The men of Scotland had the reputation of being good soldiers, so Oglethorpe recruited a group of about 175 Highland Scots to settle in the area south of Savannah.

7 Highland Scots The group arrived at the Altamaha River in 1736 and established a settlement they originally called New Inverness. Later, they changed the name to Darien. It was the only Gaelic speaking settlement in Georgia.

8 Highland Scots The Highland Scots kept many of their culture’s traditions, including: Family clans Wearing kilts rather than pants The Highland Scots were hard workers. When they found the land was not good for farming they changed to raising cattle and timber. This encouraged others to emigrated.

9 Highland Scots In 1739, a number of the Darien leaders signed a petition asking that slavery not be introduced into the colony. This was the earliest antislavery petition in the South, and it was successful for a time. The ban against slavery was not lifted until 1749.

10 Malcontents Upon his return from Great Britain in 1736, Oglethorpe introduced several new regulations with the approval of the trustees: Buying rum was to be against the law. Alcohol could not be used in trading with the Native Americans. Slavery was not allowed (Oglethorpe thought it caused landowners to be idle while, at the same time, made them want more land)

11 Malcontents Oglethorpe’s new regulations were not popular.
These along with earlier ones about passing on land only to male heirs began to divide the colonists. They were already facing economic hardships: Mulberry trees were the wrong kind for producing large amounts of silk Unable to grow hemp, flax, indigo or grapes

12 Malcontents To make matters worse, their South Carolina neighbors, who had large amounts of land, slaves and rum were doing well. They were growing rice, cotton, and tobacco, and their success was due, in part, to the use of slave labor.

13 Malcontents There was less and less support for the trustees’ regulations. Many of the malcontent settlers moved to places where they could live more nearly as they wished. Upon Oglethorpe’s return from one of his trips he found upset people all over the colony.

14 The Spanish Threat from Florida
Great Britain controlled Georgia’s borders. Spain controlled Florida’s borders. In the fall of 1739 a war broke out between Great Britain and Spain. It was called the “War of Jenkins’s Ear” Several years earlier, Spanish sailors were said to have cut off the ear of Robert Jenkins, a British seaman, to serve as a warning to British ship captains smuggling goods off the Florida coast.

15 The Spanish Threat from Florida
Oglethorpe welcomed the war. It gave him a reason to invade Florida. A force of about 2000 men, mostly Native Americans and settlers from Georgia and South Carolina, was quickly organized.

16 The Spanish Threat from Florida
They tried to take major Spanish forts in Florida, particularly St. Augustine. However, a well-organized Spanish militia met Oglethorpe and his soldiers with a surprise attack on June 15, 1740. The Spanish won, and Oglethorpe’s forces had to retreat to St. Simons Island.

17 The Spanish Threat from Florida
During the next 2 years, there were numerous attacks and counterattacks between the Spanish and British settlers, with neither side gaining much ground. In July 1742, Oglethorpe got the opportunity he needed. His forces, assisted by the Highland Scots, waited in the dense woods along the marshes on St. Simons Island.

18 The Spanish Threat from Florida
Spanish troops who came that way were caught completely by surprise and forced back across the Florida border. The action was known as the Battle of Bloody Marsh, it was neither big nor very bloody. It did mark the beginning of a safe southern frontier for the British.

19 An Evaluation of the Trustee Period
In 1743, Oglethorpe was called to Great Britain to answer charges that he had not acted correctly when he failed to capture Spanish-held St. Augustine. He was cleared of the charges, but did not return to Georgia. William Stephens, the trustees’ secretary, was named president of a colony filled with disagreement.

20 An Evaluation of the Trustee Period
The effort to keep rum from being sold ended in 1742. By 1750 the regulation against slaves along with the one that limited land ownership to 500 acres. Stephens retired in 1751. He was replaced by his assistant, Henry Parker. Parker died a year later. From 1752 to 1754 Georgia was led by Patrick Graham. Many settlers who had left under the trustee rules returned. In 1752 the trustees returned Georgia to King George II.

21 An Evaluation of the Trustee Period
During the 20 years of the original charter 5,500 people settled in Georgia Many were European Protestants who came to escape religious persecution Treaties had been signed with Indians and The Spanish threat from Florida had been eliminated.

22 An Evaluation of the Trustee Period
The colony also had noteworthy religious, social, and political accomplishments: Evangelist Georgia Whitfield established the Bethesda Orphans home in Ebenezer. Later it was expanded into a school and renamed Bethesda House. In Savannah, John and Charles Wesley established the first Sunday school in America. They also founded the Methodist Church. A court system Women were able to inherit property Set the stage for Georgia to become a successful and profitable Royal Colony.

23 Royal Period SS8H2c. Explain the development of Georgia as a royal colony with regard to land ownership, slavery, government, and the impact of the royal governors.

24 Impact of the Royal Governors
The period after Georgia returned its charter and became a British royal colony until the end of the American Revolution was a time of unrest and turmoil in Georgia and in the other colonies. In 1752, Georgia ceased to be a proprietary colony and became a royal colony.

25 Impact of the Royal Governors
Proprietary Colony Royal Colony One that was governed by a board of trustees. One directly governed by the king.

26 Impact of the Royal Governors
During the 2 years before the first royal governor was appointed, some of the people who had left Georgia while it was a proprietary colony began to return. In 1752, Puritans from South Carolina bought 32,000 acres of land at Midway in present-day Liberty County. They moved there, bringing their slaves with them. Soon they began growing rice and indigo. A port was built nearby at Sunbury so the planters could ship their crops.

27 Development of Georgia as a Royal Colony
Governor John Reynolds

28 Governor John Reynolds
On October 1, 1754 John Reynolds, the first royal governor arrived. Because the trustees had believed the first Georgia settlers were not able to govern themselves, they had not given them the right to vote, hold elections, or collect taxes. Governor Reynolds introduced the idea of self-government. He wanted the colonists to help run the government.

29 Governor John Reynolds

30 Governor John Reynolds
A bicameral legislature was set up to represent the 8 parishes of the colony. Lower House or Commons house of Assembly Upper House or the Governor’s Council Those wishing to become a member of the Assembly had to own at least 500 acres of land. The king of England appointed the members of the Governor’s Council.

31 Governor John Reynolds
Governor Reynolds also set up a court system. When the colonists had differences with each other they went before the Court of Conscience, over which presides a local justice of the peace. Cases that could not be settled by the Court of Conscience went to the Governor’s Council.

32 Governor John Reynolds
Georgia’s new government met for the first time in 1755 in Savannah, the colony’s capital and largest city. The delegates: Reorganized the state militia Passed bills so roads could be built and repaired Drew up codes that restricted the rights of slaves The governor and the assembly worked well together for a while.

33 Governor John Reynolds
However, during one legislative session, members of the Governor’s Council could not agree on how much was needed to improve the military defenses of the colony. Governor Reynolds became so angry at their failure to agree that he stopped the meeting and sent the legislators home. During the months that followed, Reynolds tried to govern by himself. This made the colonists angry.

34 Governor John Reynolds
There were arguments between those who thought he should leave and those who wanted him to stay. Many Georgians didn’t like having their right to self-government taken away and wrote to King George to complain. Then Reynolds recommended moving Savannah to the Ogeechee River, that was the last straw. Finally, after 2 years, the group that wanted self-government won.

35 Development of Georgia as a Royal Colony
Governor Henry Ellis

36 Governor Henry Ellis In February 1757, the king chose Captain Henry Ellis as the next royal governor. Governor Ellis was a naturalist and scientist. Ellis learned quickly from Reynolds's mistakes. During his 3 years as governor Ellis: Brought together people of many different political groups Sought the advice of the governor of the colony of South Carolina Depended on well-known and wealthy citizens to lead the colony.

37 Governor Henry Ellis

38 Governor Henry Ellis While Ellis was Governor:
New colonists came to Georgia from South Carolina and the West Indies Many of these new settlers brought slaves with them the governor granted them large amounts of land By 1759, the population of the colony had grown to about 10,000, including 3,600 slaves.

39 Governor Henry Ellis Under Ellis the colony made economic gains
More and profitable farms Merchants with a greater variety of items like Cloth Sugar Farming tools Seeds In 1759, Governor Ellis became ill and asked to return to Great Britain.

40 Development of Georgia as a Royal Colony
Governor James Wright

41 Governor James Wright Wright was born in Charleston but educated in Great Britain He had arrived in Georgia on October 11, 1760, to serve as lieutenant governor He had been attorney general of South Carolina for 21 years He was loyal to the king, but wanted the colonies to do well.

42 Governor James Wright

43 Governor James Wright He believed that Georgia would continue to grow if: Large farms got even bigger Trading expanded Western lands of the colony were opened to settlers Wright agreed with the self-government program Colonists were pleased with him at first.

44 Governor James Wright Wright Completed the defenses around Savannah
Palisades surrounded the city Forts were made stronger

45 Governor James Wright The town of Sunbury grew and became the colony’s official port of entry for ships arriving from other countries and colonies.

46 Governor James Wright Both houses of the colonial legislature worked together to promote Georgia’s economic growth. Farmers were allowed to borrow more money, do they bought more land The amount of land owned grew from 1 million acres to 7 million acres Rice and Indigo became profitable crops A ton of silk was exported to Great Britain each year More schools More people reading

47 Governor James Wright In 1763, the colony’s first newspaper, The Georgia Gazette, was started Small frame houses were taken down and replaced with 2-story houses

48 Governor James Wright There was, however, another side of Georgia during these early years. Many mothers died in childbirth Schools were mostly for children in the upper economic classes

49 Governor James Wright A group of what plantation owners called “undesirable people” moved from Virginia and the Carolinas to settle in the middle and western parts of the colony. This people became known as crackers. The term may have come from The cracking sound of whips used on oxen or horses as the new settlers went to market to sell their goods Cracking corn as the prepared corn meal Some say the term came from a Scottish word that meant “boaster” No matter how it started, the term was meant as an insult Crackers were thought of as people who did not obey the law and were not welcome in the colony.

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