Running Head ROLE OF COLONIES WITHIN THE BRITISH MERCANTILIST

Running Head: ROLE OF COLONIES WITHIN THE BRITISH
MERCANTILIST SYSTEM
The Role of Colonies Within The British Mercantilist System
Submitted by
J J
El Centro College
HIST 1301, Section 53001, Spring 2019

ROLE OF COLONIES WITHIN THE BRITISH
MERCANTILIST SYSTEM
Tables Of Contents
Abstract
...............................................................................................
.................................................. 1
Introduction
...............................................................................................
............................................ 2
How many colonies existed within the British mercantilist
system? ................................................ 3
How was the mercantilist system
developed?..............................................................................
...4
What was the role of the colonies within the British mercantilist
system? ...................................... 5
How did economic consideration affect decision making in
England and North America? ........... 6
What major changes occurred during the colonial era in the
British mercantilist system? ............. 7

How did the politics in the colonies differ from that of Great
Britain? ............................................ 9
Conclusion..............................................................................
............................................................. 10
References
...............................................................................................
............................................ 12
MERCANTILIST SYSTEM 1
Abstract
The British developed the mercantilist system to determine the
organization of economic
components, business, the state and workers. The idea behind
the theory was that no nation
would survive without the colonies. There were four aims of
mercantilism, they include
“encourage the growth of a merchant marine, provide protection

for British manufacturing,
provide protection for British agriculture, and accumulate as
much gold and silver as possible.
The colonies played a very important role within the British
mercantilist system. They produced
raw material, agricultural goods and other commodities which
the British consumers would have
had to import from their foreign competitors. These products
were also exported to foreign
markets which improved the balance of trade.
A lot of changes occurred during the colonial era in the British
mercantilist system including
population, religion trade and cultural changes. The colonists
had more confidence in their
independence after the revolution. It signified a victory and
sense of independence for members
of the colony. They were more confident and believed that the
laws were sufficient in protecting
their rights and liberties. Also, the colonies believed that their
allegiance with England was a
voluntary alliance. England, on their own part, were content
with the results of the revolution.
They celebrated and returned to a buoyant economy. The
aftermath of the revolution also led to

the passing of the Bill of right by the parliament. The most
distinct factor between British and
American politics was in the role of the colonial governors. In
most parts of the colonies, the
governor was appointed by the king or the proprietor. This made
the governors more loyal to the
British leaders than the colonies.
Introduction
The Mercantilist system was a predominant political system
among European nations
between the sixteenth to eighteenth century. It governed the
organization of the workers, state
and economic components. This political system essentially
directed the interest of workers and
businesses to benefit the interests of the state. By the
seventeenth century, the theory of
mercantilism was adjusted to include the idea of colonies.

The colonies became a very important part of the mercantilist
system and historians believe
that the success of mercantilism could not have been achieved
without them. European countries
including France, Spain, and England utilized mercantilism
within their American colonies.
North America was subject to the mercantile system because
they were an economic subsidiary
of Great Britain. North America produced raw material which
Britain turned into finished goods
and sold to the rest of the world. Mercantilism was beneficial
to the British and the colonies,
however the colonists were not treated as an equal alliance. The
colonists were strictly forbidden
to undergo any type of production or trade outside of the
mercantilist system. Great Britain on
the other hand, enjoyed economic buoyancy and an endless
supply of natural resources.
In this essay, I will examine the role of the colonists in the
British Mercantilist system and
the effect that economic considerations played on political
decision making by answering the
following questions:

• How many colonies existed within the British mercantilist
system?
• How was the mercantilist system developed?
• What was the role of the colonies within the British
mercantilist system?
• How did economic consideration affect decision making in
England and North America?
• What major changes occurred during the colonial era in the
British mercantilist system?
• How did the politics in the colonies differ from that of Great
Britain?
How many colonies existed within the British mercantilist
system?
Within the British mercantilist system, there were 13 colonies;
New Hampshire,
Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New
Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware,
Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and
Georgia.
The civil war created considerable independence for the English

Colonies in North
America. As a result, the king and the parliament could not
manage them effectively. All the
colonies remained neutral except the royal colony of Virginia
who supported the King (Jaycox,
2002). During the period, the largest English colonies were in
the West Indies and the
commonwealth leaders could not find an effective way to
control them (Jaycox, 2002). In 1651,
the parliament passed the first of the Navigation act because
English trade was the main source
of economic growth (Jaycox, 2002). The Navigation Act of
1651 “required all trade goods
between England and her colonies, or among the colonies
themselves, to be carried in English or
colonial ships, and all trade goods between the colonies and
other nations to be carried in English
ships or the ships of the nation producing the merchandise”
(Jaycox, 2002).
In 1642, after the Great Migration, there were 5 independent
colonies left in New
England; Plymouth, Massachusetts Bay, Connecticut, New
Haven, and Rhode Island. A year
after, commissioners from Massachusetts, Plymouth,

Connecticut, and New Haven signed the
New England Confederation Compact in Boston (Jaycox, 2002).
This compact was the first
attempt at unity by the English colonies. After the Civil war,
Massachusetts bay colony became
very powerful and had New Hampshire and Maine under its
control.
Similarly, to New England, the Chesapeake colonies took
advantage of England’s
inattention to function independently. Life in the Chesapeake
colonies was hard, and the
population grew mainly through immigration.
How was the mercantilist system developed?
Mercantilism was a political system that determined the
organization of economic
components, business, the state and workers (Christensen,
2010). It was a popular theory
between the sixteenth to eighteenth century in Europe. The idea
behind the theory is that no

nation can survive without the colonies. There were four aims
of mercantilism, they include
“encourage the growth of a merchant marine, provide protection
for British manufacturing,
provide protection for British agriculture, and accumulate as
much gold and silver as possible”
(Christensen, 2010).
Altogether, the parliament passed four types of mercantilist
regulations between 1651 and
1733. The first regulation restricted the power of the Dutch in
international trade. This law took
off with the enactment of the Navigation Act of 1651 that
stipulated that all trade must be carried
out on English ships or colonial ships only (Goldfield, et al.,
2014). This act further determined
that half of the crew members on trade ships had to be made up
of Englishmen or colonists. After
the enactment of this Act, the maritime industry in England and
the colonies became very
profitable.
The second regulation enacted was focused on specific colonial
goods called enumerated
products. This rule stipulated that certain enumerated goods
including tobacco, sugar, and indigo

could only be shipped to England and English colonies
(Goldfield, et al., 2014).
The third and fourth regulation provided an upper hand for the
England manufacturers
who produced for the colonial market. The law provided an
advantage for the English
manufacturers in two major ways. Firstly, they subsidized raw
materials used for production of
goods. This enables the English manufacturers to sell their
goods at a cheaper price than the
other European manufacturers. Secondly, the regulation banned
the large-scale production of
wool, felt hats and iron. This also reduced the number of
competitors for the English
manufacturers who produced for colonial markets (Goldfield, et
al., 2014).
What was the role of the colonies within the British mercantilist
system?
England was powerful as a result of its sophisticated market

system, dynamic economy
and policy of mercantilism (Goldfield, Abbot, Anderson,
Argersinger, Argersinger, & Barney,
2014). Mercantilism was a set of principles that determined the
organization of business,
economic components, states and workers (Christensen, 2010).
By the beginning of the 17th
century, the principles of mercantilism were modified to include
the idea of colonies. This
development significantly influenced the economic growth of
North America. England adopted
the mercantilism policy to achieve a favorable balance of trade
with exports exceeding imports
within the empire (Goldfield, et al., 2014). The mercantilism
policy was enacted to benefit the
British, however, the contribution of the colonies was required
for its success.
The colonies played a very important role within the British
mercantilist system. They
produced raw material, agricultural goods and other
commodities which the British consumers
would have had to import from their foreign competitors. These
products were also exported to
foreign markets which improved the balance of trade (Goldfield,

et al., 2014). By the late 1760s,
sugar exports had risen to a value of approximately 50% more
than the value of all other exports
from British American colonies (Goldfield, et al., 2014). The
Chesapeake colonies primarily
produced tobacco, South Carolina primarily produced rice and
Indigo and the Middle colonies
primarily produced wheat. The New England colony did not
contribute much with regards to
crop production, but they benefited from transporting other
colonies goods. Additionally, New
England helped to strengthen trade links to the West Indies.
British and colonial traders also sold
rum to Africans in exchange for slaves. The British controlled
majority of the slave market but
New Englanders also profited from the market (Goldfield, et al.,
2014).
The British relied on the Colonies as a relatively inexpensive
way to exploit labor and
land. The colonies were beneficial because they made it

possible for the British to expand their
population without losing any territory. Those in charge of the
colonies turned a blind eye to this
model because it was profitable for them. They received bribes
and ignored the activities within
the colonies until it was too late to do anything about it. The
colonies continued to grow in
strength, and spending power. This growth was possible due to
the Trade laws which governed
the import and exports of goods within the colonies. By the
time, the revolution started, the
colonies had already gained a large amount of strength and
independence.
How did economic consideration affect decision making in
England and North America?
In 1660, James, the duke of York encouraged his brother King
Charles to appoint
millitary officers as royal govenors. James also convinced King
Charles to create the Lord of
Trades to oversee the colonies (Goldfield, et al., 2014).
Thereafter, King James II created the
Dominion of New England out eight colonies in1685. Sir
Edmund Andros was chosen to

overthrow Dominion of England. The Glorious revolution…
Eventually Andros was overthrown
by Bostonians and sent back to England. The Glorious
revolution affected the colonies. For
instance, after Andrew was overthrown, Jacob Leisler who ruled
New York as a dictator
(Goldfield, et al., 2014). Another noticeable effect was the
attempt to end catholic proprietorship
by protestants in Maryland.
In Massachusetts, there was a three-year period without
governorship due to the fact that
Andros was overthrown. As a result, the colony was thrown into
a state of confusion and
economic deterioration. This tension led to a widespread
accusation of witchcraft among
members of the colony. A lot of women were executed by
hanging because they were accused of
being witches (Goldfield, et al., 2014). In addition to the
tension from the economic change, the
colony was also experiencing tension from the appointment of a

new minister.
Generally, the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution created
dramatic changes within
England and the colony. The colonists had more confident in
their independence after the
revolution. It signified a victory and sense of independence for
members of the colony. They
were more confident and believed that the laws were sufficient
in protecting their rights and
liberties. Also, the colonies believed that their allegiance with
England was a voluntary alliance.
England, on their own part, were content with the results of the
revolution. They celebrated and
returned to a buoyant economy. The aftermath of the revolution
also led to the passing of the Bill
of right by the parliament.
What major changes occurred during the colonial era in the
British mercantilist system?
A lot of changes occurred during the colonial era in the British
mercantilist system
including population, religion trade and cultural changes. In
terms of population, there were a
higher number of artisians within the colonies. They were

mainly focused on trades involved in
the exportation of the finished products. During that time, it
was common to see an artisians team
made up of his wife and children. Consequently, their workshop
was commonly attched to their
houses or situated within the house. Another change with
regards to population was the growing
gap between the rich and the poor. Goldfield, et al. (2014)
states that “In 11687, the richest 10
percent of Boston’s residents owned 46% of the taxable
property in the town”. The increased
demand for labor also led to a higher number of slaves within
the colonies.
Culturally, many of the colonists felt inferior to the Britain’s.
The. Colonists imitated
British style and religion to make themselves fit in. By the
eighteenth century, colonists had
become accustomed to a lavish lifestyle. The colonists owned
more high-quality imported goods
than their parents and grandparents. Earlier colonists had

maintained a more conservative
lifestyle spending most of their income on land and landed
property (Goldfield, et al., 2014).
Asides from imported goods, the wealthy colonists also built
large, fancy houses with designs
from Britain architectural books.
The colonists also imitated the British courtesy and mannerism.
Some of them went as far
as importing courtesy books to learn the rules of politeness. In
some boarding schools within the
colonies, girls were taught “polite education” (Goldfield, et al.,
2014). The Eighteenth-century
colonists had more access to printed material than the earlier
colonies. Due to this opportunity,
the level of literacy was higher than that of the earlier colonies.
Interestingly, most members of
the colonists learnt how to read and write by learning how to
read the Bible. The educated
colonists were particularly interested in the age of
enlightenment (Goldfield, et al., 2014).
Thinkers of the age of enlightenment were more interested in
human nature and natural laws.
They did not agree with the idea that God created the world and
everything in it. The colonial

intellectuals were curious and excited about this new
community and made efforts to be
associated with them.
Religion became very popularly in the colonies and there were
a lot of churches erected
there. Goldfield, et al. (2014) noted that “church steeples
dominated the skylines of colonial
cities. By the 1750s, Boston and New York each had eighteen
churches and Philadelphia boasted
twenty”. Most of the colonies had congregational churches
which were headed by Harvard and
Yale trained ministers. Consequently, members of the colonies
supported the ministers by paying
taxes. Unlike the churches in Britain, the churches in the
colonies were spiritually diverse,
competitive and comparatively weak. Religion greatly
influenced politics in the colonies, and it
was common for voters to vote for candidates who shared the
same religious beliefs with them.

How did the politics in the colonies differ from that of Great
Britain?
The colonies believed in the American political style of actual
representation. Therefore,
they believed that elected officers should be responsible for the
common interest of the masses.
They believed strongly in the voting system and that the people
have the right to choose their
leaders. This belief was in direct conflict with the political
beliefs of the British.
The British on the other hand, viewed politics as a social
organization structured like a
family. Only male adults were allowed to own property during
that era. Women and children had
to rely on their husbands or fathers for economic decisions.
Similarly, only adult males were
allowed to occupy political positions within the British political
system. The British viewed
women as insubordinate to men and therefore rendered them
incapable of making important
decisions.
The most distinct factor between British and American politics
was in the role of the

colonial governors. In most parts of the colonies, the governor
was appointed by the king or the
proprietor. This made the governors more loyal to the British
leaders than the colonies. Despite
this factor, majority of the colonists accepted the political
conditions of the British. Ultimately,
they felt that their relationship with Britain was voluntary and
beneficial to both parties.
By the eighteenth century, American politics had grown to be
closer to the Britain model
of politics. During that era, the main difference between the
colonists and Britain politics was the
lack of aristocracy. Asides that, they were fairly similar. For
instance, “land ownership was a
prerequisite for political participation, because it freed people
from dependence on others and
gave them a stake in society”. This condition limited the
number of eligible participators in
Britain but had a larger amount of participants in the colonies.
This was because land ownership

was more widespread in the colonies than Britain. Goldfield, et
al. (2014) explained this
disparity “a majority of white male farmers eventually owned
the land they tilled and, in most
colonies, 50 to 75 percent of white men were eligible to vote”.
Conclusion
Through this research, I discovered that the colonies played a
very significant role within
the British mercantilist system. The colonist were a convenient
source of labor and land for the
British Empire. They produced goods which were exported to
other European countries. The
British also took advantage of their lands for planting and
harvesting crops and raw materials.
These efforts were primary to the success of the British
mercantilist system.
I also discovered that the economic considerations had a
positive influence om politics in
England and North America. Due to the huge economic growth,
North Americans were more
confident in their position within the colonies. They also
believed that their alliance with Britain
was voluntary and not forceful. North Americans were also

confident with their alliance with
Britain because they felt like it was beneficial for both parties
due to the economic growth. They
felt like their rights were protected under the laws of the British
system. The British, on the other
hand were content with the economic outcomes of the
mercantilist system. They benefited from
the huge economic growth and the buoyancy from the system.
Also, the British Parliament
Passed the Bill of rights as an aftermath of the economic
buoyancy.
Overall, mercantilism transformed the military, developed
skilled labor and increased the
economic power of European nations. Mercantilism also paved
the way for capitalism which
involves private control of the market. However, its success was
mainly due to a limited
knowledge of the laws of economics. It is uncertain if
mercantilism would have thrived in a
balanced economy driven by profit and private market control.

Hence, after the eighteenth
century, no nation in the modern world has attempted to adopt
the policy of mercantilism.
References
Christensen, M. (2010). Mercantilism. In Encyclopedia of
American Environmental History.
New York: Facts on File. Retrieved April 16, 2019, from

online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=15149&itemid=WE52&arti
cleId=210984.
Goldfield, D. R., Abbot, C., Anderson, V. D., Argersinger, J. E.,
Argersinger, P. H., & Barney,
W. L. (2014). The American journey: a history of the United
States (7th ed., Vol.
Combined). Boston: Pearson
Jaycox, F. (2002). The English colonies meet in the middle:
1642–1670. In Colonial Era. New
York: Facts on File. Retrieved April 16, 2019, from
cleId=194479.
Maskiell, Michelle. (2017). “American Colonies and the British
Empire.” Colonization and
Settlement, Third Edition, Facts on File, 2017. American
History,
cleId=209005.
Accessed 16 Apr. 2019.
McNeese, T. (2019). Immigrants to the colonies. In Ellis Island
and the Immigrant Experience.
New York: Facts on File. Retrieved April 16, 2019, from

cleId=570756.
Grader - Instructions Access 2016
ProjectGO16_AC_CH01_GRADER_1F_AS - Literary Festival
Events
Project Description:
In this project, you will use a database template and create
database objects to track events for the Literary Festival at a
college. You will enter records into the Events table using a
multiple-items form and a single-items form. You will append
data from Excel to the Events table. You will create a second
table in the database that tracks contact information for the
festival events.
Steps to Perform:
Step
Instructions
Points Possible
1
Start Access. Open the downloaded file named
go_a01_grader_a2_Literary_Events.accdb
and enable the content.
0
2
In the Event List multiple-items form that opened automatically,
in the new record row, enter the following two records (the
Start Time and End Time data will reformat automatically):

Title:
Conversation with Aliyah Jones Start Time:
9/11/21 10a
End Time:
9/11/21 12p Description:
African American Nonfiction Location:
Northeast Campus Theater
Title:
Faculty/Student/Staff Readings Start Time:
9/11/21 2p
End Time:
9/11/21 4p Description:
Favorite Passages Location:
Southeast Campus Forum
10
3
In the Event List form, click New Event and in the Event
Details single-record form, enter the following record (the Start
Time and End Time data will reformat automatically):
Title:
An Evening with Michael Evans
Start Time:
9/11/21 7p
End Time:
9/11/21 9p
Location:
Northwest Campus Atrium
Description:
Historical Writings
10
4
Close the Event Details single-record form and the Event List
form. Append the records from the downloaded Excel file
go_a01_grader_a2_Literary_Events.xlsx to

the Events table.
11
5
Open the Navigation Pane. In the Navigation Pane, organize the
objects by Tables and Related Views. Open the Events table
(the table has 13 records). Apply Best Fit to all of the fields in
the table, and then save and close the table.
11
6
In Datasheet view, create a new table. Beginning in the second
column of the table and using the data type of Short Text, create
the
Campus,
Last Name,
First Name,
Phone Number, and
Email Address fields (in that order).
20
7
For the ID field, change the data type to Short Text and rename
the field to
Contact ID.
6
8
Starting in the Contact ID field, add the following two records
to the new table:
C-01|
Northeast|
Woodward|

as directed.
0
Total Points
100
Created On: 07/05/2019 1
GO16_AC_CH01_GRADER_1F_AS - Literary Festival
Events

Running Head ROLE OF COLONIES WITHIN THE BRITISH MERCANTILIST

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