New Englanders and the Chesapeake

There was a time of mass colonization

especially in newly discovered America, between the end of the 16th and beginning of the 17th centuries. The United Kingdom, in particular, scattered numerous forces to the East Coast of North America, where they controlled two regions: New England and the Chesapeake. While having the same political histories, the cultures represented different, independent, and distinct personalities through the vicissitudes of time. The disparities, though, were caused by one key factor: the specific goals that drove the settlers to move to the new world.

Religious Differences

On the first note, the two regions depicted religious differences. The “Separatists” group, as they were commonly called, together with the victimized Catholics who never joined the Church of England migrated to the New England with the hope of getting their well sought religious freedom as well as practice just like they wished (Faragher, 2016). In addition to that, the New Englanders proved to be the most sacred with the family forming the cornerstone with a reserved piety. In fact, 1: 600 was the clergyman to population ratio which was considered as the best in the world. On the contrary, the Chesapeake religion was mild with Anglican as the only established denomination founded later in 1692. Additionally, the tone of the religion was moderate and slaves forming higher percentage saw low if any, Church attendants in the Chesapeake region (Faragher, 2016).

Population Composition

Thus, the population composition of the two areas differed considerably. The majority of the Chesapeake region consisted of black slaves as a result of the booming tobacco industry which required heavy labor to work on the plantations (Faragher, 2016). Therefore, slave trade solely thrived more than the tobacco industry making their population much bigger than their owners. The New England, on the other hand, was purely composed of whites or English people with an establishment of a congressional church. It consisted of people fleeing religious persecution who were determined to create and ’fix’ the morally decayed portion of the England church. More so, they strived to create a well-coordinated and perfect society premised on formidable family values so that their mother country could emulate and practice back home (Faragher, 2016).

Lifestyle Differences

Additionally, the lifestyle differed in the two regions as well. The colonies of the New England areas lived happier and healthier lives as a result of healthier environment and advanced farming practices which ensured surplus food supplies. They adopted the “Protestant work ethic” which advocated for hard work as well as devotion to community development, materially and spiritually. They enjoyed luxuries like hearty eating, singing, and drinking being careful to undertake feasts with moderations through implementations of pleasure laws to confine pleasures to certain limits. The Chesapeake occupants, on the other hand, experienced bad eating habits, poor environment, and overall led harder lives (Faragher, 2016).

Conclusion

The desire for economic prosperity as well as religious independence diffused the identities of the New Englanders and the Chesapeake as they differed in their population composition, lifestyle, and religious practices. In a matter of conviction, the New England occupants established more churches and flourishing neighborhood to challenge their home country to encourage social tolerance to its diverse religious heritages as well as stop oppressions while the fortune seeking Chesapeake designed their society around wealth creation. It is imperative to note that the New England and the Chesapeake regions were distinguished based on their motives in the 1700’s. Thus, the precise objectives drove the settlers to migrate into the new world.

Reference

Faragher, J.M. (2016). Out of many: a history of the American people, Volume 1-to 1877, Boston. 8th Edition: 46-53.