British Colonies - 1763

Servants and Colonists in Colonial America

British Colonies

This article on  British Colonies in 1763 provides information about the British Colonies following the French and Indian Wars when the French were ousted from America by the British and the American colonists were subject to British rule

  • British Colonies in 1763
  • Facts about the British Colonies
  • Fast facts and information about life in the British Colonies
  • Life in the British colonies in New England, the Middle Colonies and the Southern Colonies
  • Interesting information and Facts about the British Colonies
American Colonies IndexFirst 13 Colonies

History of the Colonization of America and the original 13 Colonies

Life in the British Colonies: The Establishment and Settlement of the 13 original colonies

British Colonies: 1763
The fight for territories and power in North America were fought by the countries in Europe. The Swedish and Dutch were ousted in the early colonial struggles, leaving the 'Super Powers' to fight for possession of America and their policy of
Colonialism. The following map shows the land claims made by the Spanish, British and French and the disputed areas of the New World in 1754. The French and Indian Wars had raged between England and France for 75 years. 

Victory for the British Colonies
The British victories at the Battle of Quebec in 1759 and the Battle of Montreal finally led to the demise of New France. The 1763 Treaty of Paris was signed and nearly all the French possessions east of the Mississippi River and Canada were surrendered to the British, Spain traded Florida to Great Britain for control of Havana and North America was added to the British empire and became subject to British rule.

 
1754 Map showing claims of
Great Britain, France and Spain in 1754
 
1754 Map showing claims of Great Britain, France and Spain
     British Colonies
●    New France
      New Spain
    Disputed Areas

The French in America

The Spanish in America

The 13 British Colonies

The original 13 British Colonies had been established in America over a period of many years. The original British colonies were located on the North East coast of America as shown on the following map.

Map of the 13 British Colonies

Colonial America - Map of the 13 British Colonies

The British Colonies
Life in the British colonies was completely different between the New England colonies, Middle colonies and Southern colonies. Economic activities and trade were dependant of the environment in which the American Colonists lived.  So what was life like in the British colonies in 1763?
 

Life in the British Colonies in 1763

Life in the British Colonies Fact 1The geography and climate impacted the trade and economic activities of British Colonies in Colonial Times

 

 
Life in the British Colonies Fact 2Land was controlled by the wealthy and labor was performed by slaves, criminals or by Indentured Servants

 

 
Life in the British Colonies Fact 3Life in the New England Colonies: New England consisted of mountains, trees, rivers and poor rocky soil that was difficult to farm and unsuitable for crops. Life centered around fishing, the fur trade and commerce.
 
 
Life in the British Colonies Fact 4Life in the Middle Colonies: The Middle colonies had fertile soil and land that was suited to farming refer to Colonial Food. These were the big food producing regions that included corn and wheat and livestock. Their industries included the production of iron ore, lumber, textiles, furs and shipbuilding
 
 
Life in the British Colonies Fact 5Life in the Southern Colonies: The warm climate of the South made it possible to grow crops throughout the year and was ideally suited for Plantations. The plantations produced 'cash crops' of tobacco, cotton, rice and indigo (dye) and this type of agriculture system was based on Slave Plantations
 
 
Life in the British Colonies Fact 6Town life existed in the New England and Middle Colonies but was little known in the South, particularly in Virginia
 
 
Life in the British Colonies Fact 7Government: The governing body aiding the King, were the Lords of Trade and Plantations in London. Under them in America were the royal and proprietary governors, who, with the local colonial legislatures managed the affairs of the British colonies - refer to Colonial Government
 
 
Life in the British Colonies Fact 8Religion: The different types of religions practised also varied from one colony to another. New England was Puritan. The Middle and Southern Colonies were not dominated by a single religion which gave way to more liberal attitudes and some religious freedom. Refer to Religion in the Colonies
 
 
Life in the British Colonies Fact 9Taxes - The American colonists were becoming increasingly incensed by the demands made and taxes required by Great Britain, the sovereign state. Taxes in the Colonies were to become a major issue...
 
 
Life in the British Colonies Fact 10Triangular Trade: The Triangular trade routes were pivotal to the practise of Mercantilism by Great Britain by which colonies had one main purpose: to enrich the parent country

 

 
Life in the British Colonies Fact 11The purpose of the British colonies was to supply raw materials and serve as a market for the finished goods that would be made in England. It was forbidden by the laws of trade to produce highly profitable 'finished goods'. Nobody was permitted to manufacture iron beyond the state of pig or bar iron, or make woolen goods for export, or make hats.
 
 

British Colonies

British Colonies

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Unrest in the British Colonies
As soon as the French abandoned North America and Great Britain acquired Florida from Spain changes were made in the British colonies. The defeat of the French made way for the expansion of the British colonies in North America. But the American colonists were subject to British rule and Great Britain promptly issued the Proclamation of 1763. The Royal Proclamation of 1763 was designed to calm the fears of Native Indians by halting the westward expansion by colonists whilst expanding the lucrative fur trade. The British colonists believed that the British King had sided with the Indians, against the interests of the settlers. Great Britain then immediately increased the British standing or permanent army in North America to take possession of the new territory and defend the British colonies. Great Britain passed a law called the 1765 Quartering Act that made provisions for British troops to be given food and shelter at the expense of the American colonists. The British were faced with clearing a massive War Debt caused by the wars. Additional taxes were levied on the American colonists in the British Colonies, there were objections and dissension and many other Causes of the American Revolutionary War. The actions of Great Britain were leading America down the Road to Revolution.

Pictures and Videos of British Colonies
The 13 British Colonies were classified in three separate areas consisting of the New England Colonies, the Middle Colonies and the Southern Colonies.  The names were the Virginia Colony, Pennsylvania Colony, Massachusetts Bay Colony (which included Maine), New Jersey Colony, Georgia Colony, Connecticut Colony, Maryland Colony, South Carolina Colony, New Hampshire Colony, Delaware Colony, New York Colony, North Carolina Colony, and Rhode Island Colony. We hope that this article providing a British Colonies will assist in your studies or homework and that you will enjoy watching the videos featuring many pictures of the colonists. A great educational resource for kids on the subject of British Colonies.

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