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FIND OUT MORE. American Revolution 414 • Indian Wars 417

History^409

From the 16th to 18th century,

European nations invaded and settled

large areas of North America. The

colonists often attacked and dispersed

the American Indians, and fought each

other for control of the territory.

WHO BUILT ST AUGUSTINE?

The Spanish reached Florida in 1513, and in 1565

founded San Agustin (now St Augustine), the first

European settlement in what is now the USA. They

were the first Europeans to see the Mississippi River

and to reach Kansas. The Spanish also extended

Mexico northwards into Texas, New Mexico, and

California. These territories would become part

of the USA in the 19th century.

WHO WERE THE SETTLERS?

Europeans settled in the New World for many

reasons. Some were religious refugees, such as

Quakers, who were unable to worship freely in their

own lands. Some were convicted criminals, sent to

work in the colonies as a punishment. Some were

outlaws or pirates. Others were farmers or business

people looking for good land and opportunities.

WHERE DID THE BRITISH SETTLE?

The English seafarer Sir Walter Raleigh organized

three expeditions to North America after 1584. He

named Virginia after Elizabeth I of England, known as

the “Virgin Queen” because she never married. In

1607, Jamestown in Virginia became the first British

settlement on the Atlantic coast and became wealthy

through the export of tobacco.

WHERE WAS LOUISIANA?

In 1682, the French explorer Robert de la Salle

claimed all the lands around the Mississippi River for

France. The region was named Louisiana, after King

Louis XIV of France. Most of the eastern part passed

to Spain and then to the USA, while the western part

was purchased by the USA from the French in 1803.

1 SAMOSET AND THE PILGRIMS
In 1620, a ship called the Mayflower landed a group of settlers at
Plymouth in New England. They were religious refugees from England
and became known as Pilgrims. They nearly starved to death in their
first winter, but a friendly Patuxet chief called Samoset helped them to
survive. By 1625, they had taken over much of his land.

1 NEW WORLD ORDER

This map shows early settlements

around the Gulf of Mexico, as well

as the 13 British colonies on the

Atlantic coast, which later created

the United States of America. There

was European settlement on the

Pacific coast too, with the Russians

settling Alaska in 1784.

Colonial America

2 NEW AMSTERDAM

In 1626, the Dutch purchased the

island of Manhattan. Its port was

named New Amsterdam. It was

captured by the British in 1664

and renamed New York.

Ships anchored

at the mouth of

the Hudson river

Buildings were

in the Dutch style

British

control

Indian

control

Spanish

control

French

control

Great

Lakes

VIRGINIA

PENNSYLVANIA

NEW

YORK

DISTRICT

OF MAINE

(to Masachusetts)

MASSACHUSETTS

CONNECTICUT

MARYLAND

DELAWARE

NEW JERSEY

NORTH

CAROLINA

SOUTH

CAROLINA

GEORGIA

NEW

HAMPSHIRE

RHODE IS.

L

O

U

I

S

I

A

N

A

VICEROYALTY OF NEW SPAIN

B

ah

am

as

The Illinois Post

Santa Fe Taos

Santa Clara San Juan

Santo Domingo

Soccorra

El Paso del Norte

New Orleans

San Luis

Santa Felipe

Santa Elena

San Pedro

St. Augustine

Rancho de Chua

Tocobaga

San Antonio

Santa Lucia

Tegasta

New York

Boston

Gulf of

Mexico

A T L A N T I

C

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C
E
A
N
R O C K Y M O U N T A
IN
S
G r e a t P l a i n s
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0 miles 800
800
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400
colonial
America