England Controls Colonial Trade
England Controls Colonial Trade is a Grade 5 history skill from California myWorld Interactive, Chapter 4: Life in the Colonies. Students learn how England used mercantilism to control colonial trade, forcing colonies to ship raw materials only to England and buy expensive manufactured goods in return, creating the triangular trade system that connected Europe, Africa, and the Americas—with enslaved Africans as its brutal centerpiece.
Key Concepts
England believed a country's power came from its wealth. It used an economic idea called mercantilism to control colonial trade. The colonies had to ship raw materials, like lumber and tobacco, only to England. In return, colonists had to buy more expensive manufactured goods, like tools and cloth, from England.
This system created complex shipping routes across the Atlantic Ocean. These routes connected Europe, Africa, and the Americas in a pattern called the triangular trade . A central and brutal part of this trade was the forced journey of enslaved Africans to the Americas.
Common Questions
What was mercantilism in colonial America?
Mercantilism was England's economic policy that required colonies to ship raw materials like lumber and tobacco only to England, and to buy more expensive manufactured goods from England in return.
What was the triangular trade?
The triangular trade was a set of shipping routes connecting Europe, Africa, and the Americas. A central and brutal part of this trade was the forced journey of enslaved Africans to work on colonial plantations.
Why did England control colonial trade?
England believed its power came from its wealth, so it used mercantilism to ensure the colonies benefited England economically rather than trading freely with other nations.
What textbook covers colonial trade for Grade 5?
This topic is covered in California myWorld Interactive, Grade 5, Chapter 4: Life in the Colonies.