Colonial Virginia Dbq Analysis

Due to the hardships Virginia faced in the early seventeenth century, the colonists made efforts to improve Virginia’s drawbacks, ultimately changing the colonies socially and economically. These changes occurred at the beginning of disease-ridden, famined, and lowly populated Jamestown, as well as larger plantations of tobacco that were worked on by indentured servants and African slaves. These harsh conditions elicited the colonists to find ways of advancing Virginia, in ways that separated them from Native American groups, and expansion of land and tobacco plantations. Despite conflicts with Native American groups, indentured servants, and slaves, Virginia would still progress towards a successful colony. Virginia faced social challenges …show more content…
At first, they believed they could get “pearl and gold… Earth’s only paradise” (Doc A), but they would find “cruel diseases as swellings, burning fevers, and by wars, and some departed suddenly, but for the most part they died of mere famine” (Doc B). Their hopeful beliefs as they sailed towards the new land were thwarted by the reality of the situation. Disease would bring the total population down drastically, while famine coupled with malnutrition and starvation was increased due to the economic importance of tobacco. Tobacco’s prevalence in Virginia started to exhaust the soil, starting a demand for new land, and the need to move westward. This land deficiency would start more conflict with Native Americans, and indentured servants would be angered by the lack of land, because of the inability for Virginia to complete their freedom dues. Frustrated Virginians broke out in Bacon's Rebellion, and although it was subdued, the effects on the tensions between planters and laborers increased. Planters searched for more stable workers, and they would rely on African slaves to be laborers in this plantatin economy. As slavery began, the agriculturally based society escalated to higher production rates. However, after servants were seen as hostile, and became more likely to misbehave, laws were put in order that if "many times negroes... and other slaves unlawfully absent themselves from their masters... shall resist, runaway or refuse to deliver and surrender him or themselves to any person or persons..., it shall... be lawfull for such person and persons to kill and distroy such negroes" (Doc H). These laws suppressed slaves enough to ensure more productive