What about the United States’ fondation? We all know that the US has fifty states but how were the first thirteen states in the United States founded ? Let’s find out..
On the discovery of America
The beginning of the migration
In 1492, the European colonies arrived in the north of America. They thought it was uninhabited and the resources seemed plentiful (like gold and silver). They could travel from east to west and it was full of forests. The Europeans were motivated by religious and economic reasons. They supported the strength of the monarchy of the time.
In the 1500s, Francesco Cortez discovered the Mexico Valley. The Aztecs received the Spanish like gods. They had many materials and culture. But the Europeans attacked the Aztec leader Montezuma in order to conquer the area. They brought diseases with them that the Native Americans had not had before.
The United States’ fondation during the 16th century
In the 16th century, they were 25 million people and in the 17th century only 1 million. They were killed by the diseases and slavery. The English came to Virginia in 1607 and to Massachusetts in the 1620s. Then, the French came to Canada and the Mississippi Valley. The Native Americans were considered savages and not civilized.
They had different social and sexual customs than the Europeans. They practiced non-Christian practices such as polygamy or codification, which were not the same. To finish, they decided to convert them to Christianity.
The first colonies : the states
In the 17th century there were 3 major settlements : New England, Virginia and Barbados. The Virginia Company under the reign of James I settled in the state of Maine. 140 men were sent, but they were not prepared (labor, malnutrition, disease), only 38 survived. They began eating each other to survive.
The Puritans arrived in Plymouth in the 1620s. Thousands of people came to the USA. In the middle of the 17th century, they founded the state of Massachusetts. What happened in the Empire had an impact on New England. In 1642, Charles I was executed by the Puritans. They had now reasons to move to Massachusetts. New colonies were founded as we know them today: New Jersey, New York, the 2 Carolinas, Pennsylvania.
The French had the states of New York, Ohio and Michigan. In the 1730s, the war between France and England began. The English ventured into Ohio and gathered in Albany with the 6 other states. The aim was to defend themselves against France.
After the Seven Years’ War, the American colonists no longer regarded the English as equals. They regarded them as oppressors and exploiters. That led to the revolution…
Vocabulary of the United States’ fondation
Customs : traditions
To settle : s’installer
The puritans : Sous-branche du protestantisme (Christianisme)