Colonies in New England

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they had trouble keeping up. Tobacco and rice were the cash crops that colonists made the most money off of. The Governor at this time, William Berkeley, of Virginia, didn’t allow white settlers and made taxes heavy on tobacco. A man the name of Nathaniel Bacon, was furious with Berkeley. He led himself, smaller farmers, indentured servants, landless men, and some Africans against the governor and big plantation owners. This was because Bacon nor the others had political rights, protection of their crops, or even land period. Bacon confronted the governor, Berkeley, and his system of rule. This created conflict within the Virginia elite. Bacon disdained Berkeley’s men of “mean education and employments.” Bacon “refused Berkeley’s order to disband and marched on Jamestown, burning it down.” Berkeley fled, and Bacon became the ruler of Virginia. Taxes were reduced and white colonists could settle on Virginia’s land. This was known as the Bacon Rebellion. The headright system was something that granted 50 acres of land to any colonist that had paid their way over. This led to conflict because of plantations and the amount of crops a colonist could grow. The society was very divided. The Maryland Toleration Act was the one thing that influenced the Chesapeake colonies the most. The Maryland Toleration Act meant religious toleration. This act granted religious freedom to those who believed in the Trinity and that Jesus was the son of God. Laws made it a crime to call believers nasty names, the death penalty could be used on those who denied the Trinity or rejected the Christ’s sonship, and if one were to have spoken against Virgin Mary, they’d be fined and whipped. There was even a sanctuary for the persecuted Catholics. Religion did not have an impact on the society nor did one religion dominate, although the Chesapeake was predominantly Anglicans and Baptists.