Compare and contrast the English colonies of the Chesapeake with their counterparts at Massachusetts Bay. What were their similarities and differences?

European explorers first landed on the shores of what would later become North America more than 500 years ago. English settlers ventured out to establish their claims over lands in the New World. Two principal areas they established were the English colonies of the Chesapeake and their counterparts at Massachusetts Bay. The English colonies and the Massachusetts Bay settlements were different economically and socially but similar religiously. The Chesapeake colonies were founded on a basis of mainly economic pursuits and were the principal exports of tobacco, whereas the Massachusetts area settlers were not heavily focused on economics and only exported wood and grain. These two settlements were also different socially, as their settlers were not alike in their social standings and migrate in different patterns. However, despite these differences, they still remained faithful to the Christian faith as was customary from the regions they migrated from, thus making them similar religiously.

First of all, the Chesapeake’s English colonies included Maryland and Virginia. Founded in 1628 and 1607 respectfully, these two colonies were both main exporting area for tobacco. Although Virginia was founded mainly for economic purposes and Maryland mainly to escape Catholic persecution, both shared similar economic structures for an export oriented economy around tobacco. This was in huge contrast to the Massachusetts Bay area which was not as economically centered as the Chesapeake and only exported modest amounts of wood and grain, which were ease to produce for them.

Similarly, the Chesapeake colonies and the Massachusetts Bay area were also different socially. The Chesapeake settlers were mainly indentured servants who migrated to the New World in order to create a new lifestyle for themselves after their debts had been paid. Contrastingly, the Massachusetts Bay colony settlers were not indentured servants, isolated from their families. These settlers migrated...