During the early days of their establishment, new netherland and pennsylvania both
“All I know of my ancestors commences with the first emigrant from Holland who came over in 1633, and settled in what is now called Rensselaer County in the state of New York.”- President Martin Van Buren Show
Martin Van Buren was the sixth generation of a pioneer family who were part of a migration of Dutch emigrants who came seeking a home outside of Europe. These Dutch families brought their lives and traditions with them to a new colony, where they started the beginnings of a solid Dutch presence in North America. The experiment of a Dutch colony was short, but had lasting implications. The ship used to transport people to their new life. @Freepages.rootsweb.com European BackgroundThe United Provinces of the Netherlands was a federal republic established by seven Dutch provinces which had seceded from Spanish rule in 1579. The new nation was the
first fully independent Dutch state, and by 1609 was a nation of about 3.5 million people. The inhabitants distinguished themselves by shipbuilding and world trade through the Dutch East India Company and later the Dutch West India Company. While the conflict with Spain was continuing, the country was experiencing explosive growth. From 1600 to 1690, the Dutch Republic experienced its “Golden Age.” DiscoveryThe “Age of Exploration,” during the 15th to the 17th centuries, brought Europeans to numerous and unknown parts of the world, including the Western Hemisphere. European countries were exploring the coasts of Africa, India and the Orient and finding wealth in the natural resources found there. In their search for a shorter route to the East, explorers found massive amounts of resources in North America. By 1612, explorers Adrian Block, Cornelis May, and Hendrik Christiansen had been exploring the east coast of North America and brought news of its rivers and resources to the Dutch East India Company. Christiansen brought expeditions of people to collect lumber, furs and other plentiful goods back to Europe. Henry Hudson found his way up the mouth of the “North” River and made several trips going over 150 miles upriver. With the Spanish, French, and British making claims on land in the newly found “Americas,” the Dutch began to build forts along the North (Hudson,) South (Delaware,) and Fresh (Connecticut) Rivers. The forts gave them a place to anchor while collecting the produce of North American resources. Created by William Usselinx, The Dutch West India Company encouraged people to seek land that they considered widely available for Dutch citizens to purchase from the indigenous people. New Netherland had been conceived as a private business venture to exploit the North American fur trade. By the 1650s, the colony had experienced dramatic growth and become a major port for trade in the North Atlantic. At its height, about 9,000 people lived in the colony of New Netherland. This map shows the boundaries of the colony of "Nieuw Nederland" against modern state borders. Copyright © 2022 Vivid Maps. The Colony FormsWealth in the United Provinces lie in the hands of the landowners. Land and jobs were plentiful there, and people lived without fear of persecution. There had been, however, a large number of foreigners or “Walloons” who decided to try life in a new part of the world. This included Belgians who had moved first to the Netherlands, then to the Americas. The first 31 families arrived in the harbor of the North River in 1623 aboard the “New Netherland,” and by 1624, the colony of “New Amsterdam” began to be formed. Soon Dutch colonists were claiming land as far north as present day Albany, New York; as far south as to include all of present day New Jersey; to Cape Henlopen, Delaware; and as far east as the Connecticut River. Cornelis May, one of the ship captains, directed the colonizing process until being succeeded by Willem Verhulst. As conflicts with native tribes soon began, the West India Company needed a stronger leader, which they found in a multi-lingual businessman, Peter Minuit. Minuit arranged for the colonists to acquire use of the island of Mana-Hatta, and was appointed to be the first civilian Director-General of the New Netherland Colony. Inexpensive and plentiful land was the lure that brought many Dutch to North America. The colonists found wealth in animal furs, mining, farming, and trade. Through the West India Company, a colonist who organized fifty people to come to New Netherland, would be given a special grant of land and, within four years, be given special privileges as the owner and “patroon” of the land or ”manor.” The patroon provided land, buildings, and tools and prepared the land for farming and, in some cases, even provided enslaved Africans. He would also provide a school, with a schoolmaster, and perhaps even a church with clergy. Tenant farmers paid no taxes for ten years, but were required to pay the patroon rent and a percentage of that which they harvested. No farmer could sell any product without first offering it to the patroon. Once the manor became a profitable enterprise, the patroon was expected to share the profits with the tenants. The patroon was required to give a five percent duty on exports to the West India Company. Some tenants were actually “bonded” to their patroons and could not move to a different estate or town. This effectively gave the patroon “feudal” rights over the colonists. The patroon system was successful in bringing people to New Netherland, but the feudal system soon became unpopular. Tenant farmers began selling their harvests independently and were refusing to pay the patroon what he was due. Director-General Peter Minuit was expected to enforce the West India Company’s rules but was failing to do so. In 1631, he was recalled to the United Provinces. The only manor that came reasonably close to being a success was “Rensselaerswijck,” established by Amsterdam diamond merchant, Kilian Van Rensselaer in what are now Albany and Rensselaer Counties in New York. Farmers such as Cornelis Maessen came to Rensselaerswijck and took out a contract with Van Rensselaer. Maessen worked his contract for three years and acquired land of his own. Now, with his own farm on which to live, Maessen, with his wife and son, made New Netherland their permanent home. Cornelis Maessen was third great grandfather to President Martin Van Buren. Commander Peter Heyes brought a colony of 30 settlers to Delaware Bay in April of 1631. Heyes landed his people a few miles above Cape Henlopen, built a brick house and called the area Swaanendael. It included a tract of land twelve miles square that he had purchased from the local tribes. Farming began on the land until misunderstandings with the tribes over land ownership resulted in violent conflicts until every one of the Dutch settlers had been massacred. The area that became Southern Delaware was left largely abandoned for nearly twenty years. A map of the short lived colony of New Sweden ©nationalgeographic.org The Swedish Invasion Leadership Van Der Donck Native Conflicts End of an Era The Second Chance Aftermath Take an interactive audio tour about Dutch history in New York's Hudson Valley. Which best compares New Netherland in Pennsylvania in the early days of their establishment?Which best compares New Netherland and Pennsylvania in the early days of their establishment? Both had good relations with American Indians.
Who were the Pennsylvania Dutch Why did they settle in Pennsylvania quizlet?The Pennsylvania Dutch were German settlers in Pennsylvania; they settled in the colony because of its policy of religious freedom and because it contained rich farmland much like their native Germany.
What was the main focus of the economy in New Netherland?New Netherland had been conceived as a private business venture to exploit the North American fur trade. By the 1650s, the colony had experienced dramatic growth and become a major port for trade in the North Atlantic. At its height, about 9,000 people lived in the colony of New Netherland.
Which of the following groups was most important in bringing settlers to New Netherland in the 1600s?Answer. Answer: The West India Company turned to a group known as "Walloons," French- speaking people who had fled their homeland in what is now Belgium and came to the Dutch Republic. These "Walloons" became the first permanent settlers in New Netherland.
|