Source: AMSCO United States History, Chapter 2 | Course: AP U.S. History / Early U.S. History
Difficulty: Introductory | Prerequisites: Basic familiarity with European exploration of the Americas (AMSCO Ch. 1) is helpful but not essential.
This chapter covers the founding and development of Britain's thirteen North American colonies from 1607 to roughly 1750. It sits at the start of the AP U.S. History curriculum because everything that follows, from the road to revolution through the Constitutional Convention, grows directly out of the political, economic and social patterns established during this period. You should already have a basic sense of why Europeans crossed the Atlantic in the first place (AMSCO Ch. 1). The central thread here is how each colonial region developed a distinct identity while still operating within the framework of the British Empire, and how the tension between colonial self-government and royal authority was baked in from the beginning.
Between 1607 and 1733, England established thirteen colonies along the Atlantic Coast, each operating under one of three charter types (corporate, royal, proprietary). The colonies sorted themselves into four regional groups, each with a different economic base and social character: Chesapeake (tobacco plantations), New England (Puritan towns, self-government), Middle (diverse trade economies), and Southern (large-scale plantation agriculture). Throughout, colonists carried English traditions of representative government that would eventually collide with royal authority.
Charter
A document from the English monarch granting special privileges, including the authority to establish and operate a colony. In simple terms, this was the legal permission slip that gave a colony the right to exist.
Corporate colony
A colony operated by a joint-stock company, meaning a group of private investors funded and managed it. Think of it as a business venture with a royal licence.
Royal colony
A colony under the direct authority of the king's government. The crown appointed the governor and kept tighter control over colonial affairs.
Proprietary colony
A colony granted to an individual (or small group) by the king, who then owned and governed it. Think of it as a personal land grant with governing powers attached.
Act of Toleration (1649)
A colonial statute in Maryland granting religious freedom to all Christians in the colony. It was an early experiment in religious tolerance, though it did not extend to non-Christians and was later undermined by Protestant-Catholic conflict.
Town meetings
Assemblies in New England colonies where local residents gathered to make decisions and elect representatives. In simple terms, this was direct democracy at the village level, and it became a defining feature of New England political life.
Joint-stock company
A business arrangement in which investors pooled money to fund a colonial venture, sharing both the risks and the profits. The Virginia Company is the most exam-relevant example.
Virginia (founded 1607)
Originally a corporate colony, established by the Virginia Company as a joint-stock venture
Became a royal colony in 1624 after the company's charter was revoked
Economy centred on tobacco cultivation and enslaved labour
Jamestown was the first permanent English settlement in North America
Maryland (founded 1634)
A proprietary colony granted to George Calvert, Lord Baltimore
Established as a haven for English Catholics
The Act of Toleration (1649) granted religious freedom to all Christians
Protestant resentment against the Catholic proprietor led to a brief civil war in the late 1600s
Catholics eventually lost the right to vote in Maryland assembly elections
By the 18th century, Maryland's economy and society closely resembled Virginia's: plantation agriculture, enslaved Africans, tobacco wealth
Founded in the early to mid-17th century
Massachusetts
Initially a corporate colony (Massachusetts Bay Company)
Became a royal colony in 1691
The dominant colony in the region, shaped heavily by Puritan religious and social values
Puritan influence
Strong emphasis on religious conformity, education and community
Puritan values shaped law, governance and daily life throughout the region
Self-government and town meetings
Colonists established town meetings as the primary unit of local government
Residents gathered to debate issues, make decisions and elect representatives
This tradition of participatory self-government became a defining characteristic of New England
Economy
Mixed agriculture and trade
Smaller farms than the Southern colonies; no large-scale plantation system
Fishing, shipbuilding and commerce also played important roles
Founded in the late 17th and early 18th centuries
Diversity
The most ethnically and religiously diverse colonial region
Settlers included Dutch, German, Scots-Irish, English and Swedish populations
Economy
A productive mix of agriculture, trade and manufacturing
Often called the "breadbasket colonies" for their grain production
Pennsylvania
Founded by William Penn as a Quaker colony
Known for its policy of religious tolerance and relatively peaceful relations with Native Americans
New York
Originally the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam, seized by England in 1664
Became a major commercial hub
Founded in the late 17th and early 18th centuries (Georgia last, in 1733)
Economy
Dominated by plantation agriculture: tobacco, rice and indigo were the primary cash crops
The plantation system depended heavily on the labour of enslaved Africans
Social structure
A small planter elite controlled most of the land and political power
Large gaps between wealthy planters and poorer white colonists, with enslaved people at the bottom of the hierarchy
Georgia (founded 1733)
The last of the thirteen colonies
Originally established as a buffer between the Carolinas and Spanish Florida
Also intended as a colony for debtors and the poor, though this vision was not fully realised
Students often think the Act of Toleration meant full religious freedom. It did not. It applied only to Christians, and even that protection was later rolled back for Catholics.
Students sometimes assume all colonies started as royal colonies. In fact, many began as corporate or proprietary ventures and only became royal colonies later (Virginia in 1624, Massachusetts in 1691).
The Middle Colonies are frequently overlooked on exams, but their diversity and mixed economy are a common comparison point. Do not treat them as a footnote.
Students often conflate the reasons for founding different colonies. Maryland was founded for religious reasons (Catholic haven), Virginia for profit (joint-stock company), Pennsylvania for religious tolerance (Quakers), and Georgia as a buffer colony and debtors' refuge. Keep these distinct.
⚠️ The three charter types (corporate, royal, proprietary) and their differences come up regularly. Know which colonies fit which type and how they transitioned.
⚠️ Regional comparisons are a staple of AP exam free-response questions. Be ready to compare and contrast the economic, social and political characteristics of the Chesapeake, New England, Middle and Southern colonies.
⚠️ The tension between colonial self-government (town meetings, elected assemblies) and royal authority is a through-line for the entire APUSH curriculum. This chapter introduces that theme.
⚠️ The role of religion in colonial founding is heavily tested: Puritans in Massachusetts, Catholics in Maryland, Quakers in Pennsylvania. Know the specific religious motivation for each.
⚠️ The growth of enslaved labour in the Southern and Chesapeake colonies connects directly to later units on slavery, sectionalism and the Civil War.
True or False: Maryland was originally founded as a royal colony. (False: it was a proprietary colony.)
Fill in the blank: A colony operated by a joint-stock company is called a ______ colony. (Corporate.)
True or False: The Act of Toleration extended religious freedom to all religions in Maryland. (False: only to Christians.)
Fill in the blank: The primary form of local self-government in New England was the ______. (Town meeting.)
True or False: Georgia was the first of the thirteen colonies to be founded. (False: it was the last, founded in 1733.)
Q: What were the three types of colonial charters, and how did they differ in terms of governance?
A: Corporate colonies were operated by joint-stock companies, royal colonies were under the direct authority of the king's government, and proprietary colonies were governed by individuals granted charters of ownership by the king. The key difference is who held governing authority: investors, the crown, or an individual proprietor.
Q: Why was Maryland founded, and what was the significance of the Act of Toleration?
A: Maryland was founded as a haven for English Catholics by George Calvert, Lord Baltimore. The Act of Toleration (1649) granted religious freedom to all Christians in the colony, making it one of the earliest experiments in religious tolerance in the English colonies. However, it did not protect non-Christians, and Catholic rights were later curtailed after Protestant-Catholic conflict.
Q: Compare the economic bases of the New England and Southern colonies.
A: New England's economy was based on small-scale agriculture, fishing, shipbuilding and trade. The Southern colonies relied on large-scale plantation agriculture (tobacco, rice, indigo) worked by enslaved Africans. The difference in economic structure shaped their social hierarchies, labour systems and political cultures.
Q: What role did self-government play in the New England colonies?
A: The New England colonies had a strong tradition of self-government, most visibly through town meetings where local residents gathered to debate issues, make decisions and elect representatives. This practice laid the groundwork for later demands for representative government and resistance to British authority.
Q: What distinguished the Middle Colonies from the other colonial regions?
A: The Middle Colonies were the most ethnically and religiously diverse region, with settlers from multiple European backgrounds. Their economy was a productive mix of agriculture, trade and manufacturing. This diversity and economic balance set them apart from the Puritan-dominated New England and the plantation-dominated South.
This connects to AMSCO Chapter 1 (European exploration and early contact) because the colonial charters and settlement patterns grew directly out of English commercial and religious ambitions established in the Age of Exploration. It also connects forward to AMSCO Chapters 3 and 4 (colonial society and the road to revolution), where the self-governing traditions introduced here, especially town meetings and elected assemblies, become the foundation for colonial resistance to British taxation and parliamentary authority. The regional differences in labour systems (free labour in New England vs. enslaved labour in the South) set up the sectional tensions that run through the entire course and culminate in the Civil War.
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