2. Ch. 14 The Atlantic*News The increased volume and predictability of shipping improved the flow of transatlantic information, eroding the colonial sense of isolation. Increased information from home-and greater colonial dependence upon it-stimulated the development of colonial newspapers. The London news afforded a barometer of political stability and foreign relations-both of great importance as the colonists became more involved in transatlantic commerce and more vulnerable to imperial warfare.
3. Ch. 14 The Atlantic*Trade During the eighteenth century, trade within the empire became increasingly complex. Rather than a simple, bilateral trade between the colonies and Britain, the empire developed a multilateral trading system that used bills of exchange drawn on London merchant firms to balance regional credits and debits. The improved flow of information and more complex patterns of commerce boosted economic growth in the colonies.
4. Ch.15 Awakenings*Establishments Most colonies’ founders believed that public morality, political harmony, and social order required religious uniformity. On pain of fines, jail, and whipping, they required the colonists to attend, and pay taxes for, one “established” church. At the end of the seventeenth century, most colonies offered less religious toleration than did the mother country.
5. Ch.15 Awakenings*Growth and Limits Despite the difficult conditions, every colonial region developed an extensive and conspicuous array of churches. Despite the impressive extensive growth in religion, many ministers complained that only a declining minority of adults qualified for full church membership and communion. In addition to the many denominational divisions, colonial churches were developing an internal rift between evangelicals and rationalists.
6. Ch.17 The Great Plains*Villagers and Nomads Until about A.D. 800 the Great Plains belonged to many small and dispersed bands of hunter-gatherers, who traveled on foot. Life in permanent, substantial, and prosperous villages encouraged the development of an elaborate annual cycle of religious ceremonies meant to ensure the continued success of crops and hunting. Nomads were mostly known as being buffalo hunters. Unlike the villagers, the nomads lived year-round in many small mobile camps with few possessions, little time for ceremonies, and scant surplus food.
7. Ch.17 The Great Plains*Horses and Guns The association of Great Plains Indians with the horse is relatively recent and depended upon the colonial intrusion. During the 18th century, as they obtained horses, the great plains peoples also acquired firearms. They sought guns to defend their villages and raid their enemies, but they continued to rely on the bow for hunting buffalo.
8. Ch. 18 Imperial Wars and Crisis *Renewed War During the 1720s and 1730s the dominant British politician, Sir Robert Walpole, preferred stability and peace over the costly uncertainties of a renewed war with France. In the press and Parliament, the war party fanned public outrage over the severe treatment of British sailors and smugglers by Spanish colonial authorities.
9. Ch. 18 Imperial Wars and Crisis *Balance of Power Savvy imperialists recognized that Indians determined the military balance of power within North America. Skilled at guerrilla warfare, Indians dominated the forest passages between the rival empires. A prolonged war depleted the supplies in New France and Louisiana, obliging more Indians to make peace with British officials so that they could obtain trade goods.
