Hello, and welcome to today's history lesson.

My name is Mr. Merrett, and I'll be guiding you through today's lesson, so let's get started.

Today's lesson is looking at factors causing westward migration, and by the end of today's lesson, we'll be able to recall that westward migration between the 16th and 17th century was caused by economic resources, and religious persecution, as well as other factors.

In order to do that, we need to use some key terms, and our key terms for today are enslaved people, colony, and migration.

So enslaved people are people who've been forced to work without pay, who lose their freedom, and become the property of another person, and sources often refer to them as slaves.

A colony is a country or area under the control of another country and occupied by settlers from that country, and migration means the movement of people into a new area or country.

Today's lesson will consist of three separate learning cycles, and our first learning cycle is looking at our first factor, which is economic resources, so let's get going.

Now, there were a great many factors that were involved in the westward migration of British people during the 16th and 17th centuries.

Economic historians make a strong case to argue that economic resources were the primary reason for much of this migration.

The trade in enslaved people from Africa to the colonies of the Americas made Britain one of the wealthiest countries in the world.

And between 1761 and 1808, Britain generated about 60 million pounds from the Triangular Slave Trade and the secondary industries that benefited from the trade in enslaved people.

The government played a large part in exploiting the wealth that the trade and enslaved people could generate.

Between 1680 and 1688, the Royal African Company, which was partly run by King Charles II and his brother and successor James II, transported 60,000 enslaved people from Africa to the American colonies.

As the largest trader of enslaved people in Europe, Britain caused the forced westward migration of enormous numbers of people.

Enslaved people were transported to the Americas, primarily in order to work on the large plantations that had been established to grow cash crops, such as tobacco and sugar, and these were incredibly profitable.

By the 1690s, Barbados was the most profitable of all of Britain's colonies, mainly due to the fact that nearly all of the island was covered in sugarcane plantations.

Prior to the use of enslaved people, plantations had employed indentured servants to work the fields, and these were either convicted criminals or poorer people, who agreed to have their passage paid for them, in exchange for working on a plantation for a set number of years.

Britain in the 16th century, in particular, suffered from a series of poor harvests, coupled with rising unemployment, and a population boom, so many British people were keen to lead their native land for western shores.

North America, although lacking in the precious metals that had made the Spanish colonies further south, so, so wealthy, was rich in fishing grounds and farmlands, which were very enticing for a starving population.

Similar reasons also explain why the Highlanders and Islanders of Scotland were forced to migrate west from their native land.

After they had been removed from their ancestral homes in the Scottish interior, to be replaced by more profitable sheep farms, many of the Highlanders were unable to feed themselves, and so looked to their landlords for relief.

Many of the landlords found it cheaper to force the Highlanders to immigrate to Canada, where food and land were abundant, rather than continue to pay to feed them.

Okay, let's have a quick check for understanding now, and it's a discussion-based question.

I'd like you to consider what economic resources encouraged the British colonisation of North America? So pause the video, whilst you consider that question, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Okay, welcome back, I hope you done okay with that, let's think about what you could have said then.

So you might have said that there was good farmland, there were good fishing grounds, there was the possibility of precious metals that there wasn't really in reality, but certainly the possibility that there might be encouraged a lot of people to emigrate.

There was the ability to grow cash crops such as tobacco and sugar, and there was also the trade in African enslaved people.

So you might have other reasons as well, but hopefully, you've got at least some of those on the screen there in front of you.

And another check for understanding it's a true or false statement now, so the trade in African enslaved people mainly benefited the American colonies by increasing the population, is that true or is that false? Okay, if you chose false, then, well done, that is correct, but let's justify that now, why is that a false statement? Is it false because African enslaved people were used as cheap labour on the plantations? Or is it false because African enslaved people were used to fish the Grand Banks off of Newfoundland? So choose your justification now.

Okay, if you chose A, then very well done, that's the correct answer.

Well, let's go for our first task for today.

So I'd like to think how similar were the forced migrations of Africans to the Americans compared to the forced migrations of Highlanders? And I'd like you to explain your answer using evidence from this lesson and your own knowledge.

So pause the video whilst you complete this task, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Okay, welcome back.

I hope you've got on okay with that task.

Let's think about what you could have said then.

So you might have said, "The forced migration of Africans to the Americas does bear some similarity to the forced migration of Highlanders, but these similarities are limited.

The most obvious similarity is that both of these peoples were removed from their homes against their will, and that this happened for economic reasons.

In the trade in enslaved Africans, European merchants exploited and deliberately intensified rivalries between different West African kingdoms in order to trade enslaved prisoners of war for European goods, whilst Highlanders were moved from their ancestral homes in the Scottish interior by their clan chiefs or landlords who wanted to use the land for more profitable sheep farms." "Another similarity is that both groups migrated to the Americas.

Enslaved people from Africa were transported to plantations in the American and Caribbean colonies to work as cheap labour growing cash crops, such as sugar and tobacco, whereas Highlanders migrated to Canada in particular.

An estimated 12.

5 million Africans were transported to the Americas between 1526 and 1867, whilst more than 11,000 Highlanders received assisted migration away from Scotland.

However, one major difference between these groups is that many Highlanders chose to immigrate to the Americas, frequently paying for their fair through indentured service.

Enslaved people from Africa were not given a choice.

So if you have a different opinion to myself, then that's absolutely fine, as long as you've justified why you hold that opinion, and you do that, by supporting your opinion with specific bits of evidence, and then you need to explain how your pieces of evidence support the point that you are making.

So as long as you've done that, regardless of what your opinion is, you've done absolutely fine.

Okay, let's go on and look at our second learning cycle for today, which is looking at our second factor, and that is religion.

So economic resources were not the only factor that caused people to migrate westward.

The earliest successful English colony in North America was New Plymouth.

There were earlier colonies, but New Plymouth lasted for longer, whereas the earlier colonies, generally speaking, didn't last for as long, and New Plymouth was settled in 1620, and it was founded by Puritans looking for an escape from religious persecution.

Despite a rocky start in which the colony only survived thanks to the aid of the local Native American tribe, the colony soon thrived as a haven for Puritans.

Between 1630 and 1641, roughly 80,000 Puritans migrated to the American colonies, and 20,000 of them went to the colony of Massachusetts, which is where New Plymouth was located.

Other religious groups looked to America for the promise of religious toleration as well.

By the late 17th and early 18th centuries, many of the Huguenots fleeing persecution from Catholic France had settled in Britain, although there were a significant number who continued their journey to the American colonies.

Wherever they settled, Huguenot migrants brought tremendous economic benefits with them, as many of them were skilled craftsmen such as goldsmiths and silk weavers.

Religion as a driving force for migration can also be linked heavily with other factors, such as the idea of a national identity.

The Gaelic culture of the Scottish Highlands had more in common with the Irish Gales in Ulster than that of the Scottish and the Lowlands.

Both the Catholic spoke Gaelic and lived in small rural communities.

The Ulster plantations pulled English and Scottish planters westward to Ireland in order to dilute this separate national identity, and instead, promote a more loyal Protestant identity.

This caused a great deal of violence and the clash of religions and national identity, still affects Northern Ireland to this day.

Alright, let's run another check for understanding now.

So why did the Puritans leave Britain for North America? Was it to convert Native Americans to their religion? Was it to escape religious persecution? Or was it that they were forced to immigrate by the government? Make your choice now.

Okay, if you chose B, then very well done, that's the correct answer.

Let's have another check for understanding now.

Which Catholic country did Huguenots flee from before making their way west to Britain? Was it France, Italy, or Spain? Make your choice now.

Okay, if you chose A, then congratulations, that's the correct answer.

Okay, let's go for our next task now.

So how significant was the Puritan colony of New Plymouth in the development of the British colonies in North America? And I'd like you to explain your answer using evidence from this lesson, and also your own knowledge.

So try and think of a couple of reasons why the New Plymouth Puritan colony was important in developing the other British colonies in the Americas.

Pause the video whilst you complete this task, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Okay, welcome back, I hope you got on okay with that task.

Let's think about what you could have said.

So you might have said that, "The Puritan colony of New Plymouth was very significant in the development of the British colonies in North America.

After the first Puritan settlers managed to establish themselves in 1620, other Puritans joined them, primarily from Britain, swelling the population of the colony enormously.

Between 1630 and 1641, roughly 80,000 British Puritans migrated to the American colonies, roughly 20,000 of whom settled in Massachusetts, which was the colony that New Plymouth was located in.

The New Plymouth colony was also significant because the Puritans who first settled there established rules for the settlement that prioritised fairness and equality.

These rules apply to Puritans and non-Puritans alike.

These principles went on to help form the national identity of the American colonists, which was separate from that of Britain.

Tensions between British and American identities and how these were represented, eventually led to the American War of Independence and the loss of the 13 Colonies." So you might have a different opinion to myself, you might have different reasons regarding how insignificant or how important the Puritan colony of New Plymouth was, but again, as long as you've supported your opinion with specific evidence and you've explained how the evidence supports your point, that's the key thing, you can't be wrong in that respect.

Let's move on now into our third and final learning cycle for today, which is to consider what other factors affected westward migration.

So many of the factors affecting westward migration cannot be viewed in isolation, but instead, should be seen as individual threads in the tapestry of Britain's history, weaving and joined together to create a coherent whole.

James VI of Scotland, who is later James I of England as well, and his government, for example, were significant reasons for the elimination of the Gaelic national identity in both Scotland and Ireland.

James laid the groundwork for the attempted elimination of the Highland culture centuries later, by causing cracks to appear between the Highland clan chiefs and their clan members who rented land from their chiefs.

It was also James's government that spearheaded the Ulster plantations.

James had an intense personal dislike for Gaelic culture, to a great extent because it was Catholic and rebellious, and he saw its removal as an opportunity to forge a British identity in its place.

James's personal feelings towards Gaelic culture, make him a key individual in the idea of shaping a British national identity to counter it, while the actions of his government and successive governments in executing James' plan, means that the government was an essential factor in the establishment of the Ulster plantations.

Although they were unsuccessful in converting all of Ireland's Protestantism, their partial success in turning much of Ulster Protestant as well as being a key reason for their creation in the first place, also places religion as a key factor in the Ulster plantations.

Examples of other factors can be found to a greater or lesser degrees in many of the examples of westward migration for this time period.

The colonisation of North America, for example, would not have been possible without the advances in science and technology necessary to safely transport people across the Atlantic Ocean.

Magnetic compasses made travel across the Atlantic Ocean more accurate, lateen sails made these journeys faster, and advances in mapmaking ensured that future travellers could follow those who made the earliest voyages.

So Walter Raleigh and John Hawkins were key individuals in the British colonisation of America, and its subsequent use of the labour of enslaved people for its plantations.

Raleigh was the first Englishman to try to settle in North America, and John Hawkins was the first Englishman to engage in the trade in enslaved people.

The actions of both, laid the groundwork for others to follow.

War was also an immensely significant factor in the initial growth, and then the loss of the 13 American colonies.

So the initial growth there, we had the French and Indian War to thank for the significant increase in British territory in North America.

And then the War of Independence, subsequently, lost a great deal of that, gained territory, plus the initial 13 Colonies that Britain already settled as well.

And this led also led to the creation of a distinct American national identity.

The growth in Britain's territory in North America from the French and Indian War, also encouraged British people to settle in new areas on the continent, at the behest of the government, it was specifically in what was Spanish Florida and French Canada as well.

Later, the War of Independence saw the 13 Colonies break away from Britain and formed the United States, which limited British immigration there, but redirected immigration to Canada and elsewhere in the British Empire instead.

Okay, let's do another check for understanding now.

So which ethnic culture was significantly diminished in both Ireland and Scotland? Was it the Basque, the Gaelic, or the Sami cultures? Make your choice now.

Okay, if you chose B, then congratulations, that as a correct answer, and I'd like you now to identify two wars which assisted the 13 American colonies to establish their own national identity.

So was it the French and Indian War, the Thirty Years' War, Tyrone's Rebellion, or the War of Independence? So make two choices now.

Okay, if you chose A and D, then very well done, those are the correct answers.

Okay, let's move on to our next task then.

So I'd like you to identify three factors from the list below that affected migration to North America.

And I'd like you to write a sentence explaining the impact of these factors.

So you can choose from war, religion, governments, economic resources, science and technology, ideas, or key individuals.

So pause the video whilst you complete this task, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Okay, welcome back, I hope you got on okay with that task.

So here's what you could have said then.

So I chose key individuals and I said that, "Sir Walter Raleigh was the first Englishman to try to settle in North America, without whom the British colonisation may have happened much later, or perhaps not at all; John Hawkins was the first Englishman to engage in the trade in enslaved people, which proved so profitable that it encouraged many others to get involved in the Transatlantic Slave Trade, transporting enslaved people from Africa to the Americas as a way of making money." I also chose science at technology and I said that, "The development of magnetic compasses was a technological advance that made it possible for ships to cross the Atlantic Ocean and arrive reliably at ports on the other side, while the development of lateen sails meant crossings of the Atlantic were made much faster than before.

Without advances in mapmaking, sailors would not have been able to accurately plot their course so that others could follow the same course." And finally, I chose war.

And for this one I said, "The French and Indian War dramatically expanded Britain's colonies in North America, encouraging British people to settle in new areas on the continent.

The War of Independence saw the 13 Colonies break away from Britain and form the United States, limiting British immigration there, but redirecting immigration to Canada and elsewhere in the Empire instead." If you've chosen three different factors to myself, that's absolutely fine.

You can now use my three factors and their examples as well, in any future question which may come up.

Well, let's move on then to our final task for today, and I'd like you to consider which of your three chosen factors do you think was the most important in affecting migration to North America? I'd like you to explain your answer using evidence from this lesson and your own knowledge.

Now, if possible, what I'd also like you to try and do is try and think about how these different factors all fit together.

So are there ways in which your three chosen factors link together? Could you perhaps link your chosen factors to other factors as well? So the more you can do this, the better an answer you will receive because you're demonstrating that you understand how different factors interact throughout history.

So see if you 're able to do this to some extent as well.

Pause the video whilst you do this, and I'll see you again in just a moment.

Okay, welcome back.

I hope you got on okay with this task, let's think about what you could have said then.

So you could have said that, "I think science and technology was the most important of my chosen factors in affecting migration to North America.

This is because it allowed people to make the journey across the Atlantic Ocean, without which there would have been no migration to North America at all.

Key individuals such as Sir Water Raleigh made people in government seriously consider the idea of colonisation, and John Hawkins opened people's eyes to the economic resources that were available in North America, but both of these key individuals relied upon accurate maps, magnetic compasses, and lateen sails for the actions that caused them to be considered key individuals in the first place.

War was an important factor in the areas that British people migrated to within North America, success in the French and Indian War opened up a lot of new territories to colonise, whereas the War of Independence closed off an equally large amount of territory to British colonists, but it wasn't a factor that enabled or prevented migration to North America by itself.

Religion did encourage large numbers of people to migrate to certain parts of North America, such as Puritans to Massachusetts, but once again, these migrants would not have been able to make the journey without the advances made through science and technology." Now, once again, if you've got a different opinion to myself, that's absolutely fine, the key aspect here that I was trying to demonstrate is how these different factors can all link together.

Linking all seven factors together is quite frankly overkill, but I just wanted to demonstrate that it is possible to demonstrate links between different factors.

So if you've got different links to myself, then that's fantastic, so the more you can do this, the better your overall answer will be.

Okay, let's summarise today's lesson now then.

So, economic resources were a significant factor in the migration of British people and African people to North America, although the reasons for the migration of these two groups differed significantly.

Enslaved people suffered forced migration in order to work on the plantations in the colonies; many British people worked as indentured servants in the colonies, but gained their freedom after a certain number of years.

Religion was also an important factor in the development of the American colonies.

Puritans in particular, migrated in their thousands to escape religious persecution.

Westward migration significantly impacted the national identities of people in America, Ireland, and Scotland during this period in particular.

Thank you very much for joining me today.

Hopefully, you've enjoyed yourself.

Hopefully, you learned something, and hopefully, I'll see you again next time, bye-bye!.