JQ+August+30,+2009

__**Question:**__ English colonization was a difficult and deadly process throughout the Jamestown settlement. Why did these colonists decide to collectively endure the hardships? Was the need to keep pace with Spain on a Global scale the primary motivation or were other factors throughout England forcing the colonists to make the new settlement work?

In the late 16th century and early 17th century, the English colonization of Jamestown was a difficult and even fatal process. For the Jamestown settlers, many hardships were forced upon them. Moreover, the colonists created these hardships for themselves. The colonists came to Jamestown for two main reasons: to find gold and other riches and to advance their exploration routes just like Spain. They didn't focus on surviving because they didn't have any intentions of staying. After creating plantations, they had some food but no one to do the manual labor that it entailed. In result to this, a lot of settlers starved to death. In addition, the settlers spread out their large plantation which caused problems such as lack of communication and transportation, as well as labor shortages and trouble getting trade back to England. Through all of this, the colonists decided to endure the hardships that they faced because they wanted to prove to all of England that they still have their pride and dignity left after everything they went through. Many colonists were also afraid to face the stockholders and tell them that no gold had been found.
 * __Response:__**

Spain was becoming the dominant country in the 16th and 17th century because of their advanced exploration and expansion of their country. However, England was not necessarily jealous of all the glory Spain had. England knew of all the riches Spain had found, which is a partial reason for some people traveling to the New World. But the reason for most settlers going to the New World was more than that. A lot of settlers felt that any other place could not be as terrible as England. The country was going through an economic depression, along with a population growth, where people started to run out of places to live. Because of these struggles, most people decided to take the journey to the New World. Even though life was tough in Jamestown, the struggles in England were what made the settlers grateful for their lives in Jamestown.