CHANGES & CHALLENGES IN

COLONIAL GEORGIA

FUN FACT…

• James Oglethorpe led the settlers himself to Georgia, in fact, he was the ONLY trustee who ever came to the colony…the others stayed in England where they made decisions to govern Georgia.

• What implications (effects) do you think this had on the settlers?

New LawsWhen Oglethorpe returned to Georgia (1736),

he brought cannons and weapons for defense. He issued three laws approved by Britain:• made sale, use of rum, “spirits” illegal in Georgia• required a license for anyone trading with Indians• made slavery illegal in Georgia

(Don’t write!) White indentured servants were allowed when extra workers were needed. Slavery was for a lifetime, whereas indentured servitude was for an agreed-upon time.

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MALCONTENTS 1738

• What does malcontent mean?• Some colonists were not

happy and asked Oglethorpe to make some changes…

• Crops in Georgia were not successful (mulberry trees weren’t producing enough silk)• Colonists saw how successful

South Carolina was because of slavery• Malcontents wanted slaves

and liquor!

James Oglethorpe became very concerned about Georgia’s defense:• convinced Parliament to pay for colony’s protection• ordered forts to be built at north and south ends• Named southern fort and town Frederica (in honor of Frederick

Prince of Wales) and northern fort and town Augusta (in honor of the Prince’s German bride, Augusta).

Strategies to support Georgia against Spanish:• Parliament supplied a regiment of British troops.• 1738 – Several hundred soldiers were brought in to assist.

Georgia defeated Spanish (Battle of Bloody Marsh – July 7, 1742 at Fort Frederica); remained a British colony.

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Defense of Georgia

Fort Frederica National Monument, St. Simons Island, GA. Photo: National Park Service

BATTLE OF BLOODY MARSH (ST. SIMONS ISLAND)—1742

"We are resolved not to suffer defeat. We will rather die like Leonidas and his Spartans – if we can but protect Georgia and Carolina and the rest of the Americans from desolation."

END OF THE TRUSTEE PERIOD

• 1743—Oglethorpe goes to Great Britain and never returns back to Georgia• People were allowed to begin buying and

selling rum (alcohol) in 1742• People still wanted to own more land and

slaves• By 1750, laws against land ownership

slavery were repealed• 1752—Georgia is returned to the authority of

King George and becomes a Royal Colony

• When the original charter ended in 1752, Georgia became a British royal colony (this lasted until the end of the American Revolution—1783)

• Royal colony: one directly governed by the king

• Proprietary colony (GA: 1732-1752): governed by a board of trustees

ROYAL GOVERNMENT• Elements of a royal government included a royal governor

who:• called the legislature into session or dismissed it• granted land; commissioned ships• pardoned crime offenders; spent funds• served as commander-in-chief of the colony

• The royal government included a 12-member council that served as the “Upper House” of legislators (like a SENATE)

• Colony was to have an elected assembly called the Commons House of Assembly: (like a HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES)

• Georgia’s 1st assembly had 19 members elected from the settled areas of Georgia.

JOHN REYNOLDS

• On October 29, 1754, the first royal governor (John Reynolds – appointed by King George II) arrived from England.

• Reynolds (serving as governor from 1754 to 1757) received a hearty welcome in Savannah, and colonists were happy to have a new beginning.

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THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR

• In 1754, conflict known as the French and Indian War, began in the Ohio River valley, far north of Georgia:• In January 1755, the Militia Act was passed by the new

assembly to strengthen Georgia’s defense in case the war came to its borders.

• Georgia was not affected much by the war.• The southern border of Georgia was extended to St. Mary’s

River.

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A TENSE TIME

• Governor Reynolds tried to run the colony like the military:• The counsel and the assembly were dismissed by

Reynolds.• The resentment against Reynolds increased.

• In March 1756, the council asked the Board of Trade to remove Governor Reynolds.• With the war ongoing, Reynolds left the colony in

1757.

In February 1757, Henry Ellis arrived in Savannah as the new governor and worked in various ways to improve the colony:

Ellis stayed in Georgia three years and had a positive impact on the colony.

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Henry Ellis

Original parishes of colonial Georgia.

James WrightGeorgia’s third and final royal governor,

James Wright, was a good leader:Significant treaties for Georgia:• Treaty of Paris (1763): Georgia’s borders now

extended to the Mississippi River, not the Pacific Ocean.

• Treaty of Augusta: Treaty opened over 3 million acres for settlement and led to the creation of 4 new parishes.

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• Georgia’s economy was basically agricultural following the French and Indian War:• Important cash crops of

the period were rice and indigo.• Georgians continued to

make money from their native pine trees

GEORGIA’S EARLY ECONOMY

Indigo plant used to make a purple-blue dye. Image: Public Domain.

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LAND POLICY

• There were three ways for settlers to acquire land in royal Georgia:1. buy it2. receive it as a gift or an inheritance3. receive it as a grant (gift) from the colonial

government• Grants of land were made by the governor and

his council every Tuesday:• size of grant based on size of applicant’s household

(headright system) • grants issued to males and females

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ENSLAVED PEOPLE IN GEORGIA• Indentured servants from Europe had been part

of trustee Georgia, but they became less desirable in the royal period.• Planters who grew rice and indigo relied on the

labor of slaves

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18TH CENTUTRY SLAVE TRADE

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THE WORK OF SLAVES• Georgia saw the growth of slavery to work rice and

indigo plantations:• The enslaved men and women received some food or

clothing from their masters. • Slaves were not required to work on Sundays.• Some slaves learned special skills (e.g., carpentry) and

could be hired out to make extra money for the owner.

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SLAVE CODES

• In 1755, Georgia passed a Slave Code:• Laws governed what slaves and masters could or could

not do.

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ReligionO As Georgia increased in population and

stability under the royal government, organized religion also grew:O The Church of England was Georgia’s

“official” church.O Lutherans & Presbyterians are worshipped in

GeorgiaO Jewish numbers were few; met for the Jewish

Sabbath in members’ homes.O Baptists gained converts in the backcountry;

independent.O Many churches served both blacks and

whites.

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SOCIAL LIFE

By the end of the royal period, although not as strong or prosperous as the older colonies, Georgia had become more like the others.

Idealism of the trustees was replaced by the reality of slavery and inequality of social classes among the free inhabitants.