Who created the headright system

The early inhabitants of Jamestown were employees of the Virginia Company and were supposed to direct their labors toward the production of profits for the investors. It quickly became apparent that gold and silver did not exist in appreciable amounts in eastern North America, a fact that left the colony without a cash crop and the resultant threat of bankruptcy. The advent of the tobacco economy in the 1610s changed the course of Virginia’s development. Tobacco production required large tracts of land and many workers. The company held title to tremendous amounts of land, but had few workers at their disposal. In 1618, the headright system was introduced as a means to solve the labor shortage. It provided the following:

• Colonists already residing in Virginia were granted two headrights, meaning two tracts of 50 acres each, or a total of 100 acres of land.
• New settlers who paid their own passage to Virginia were granted one headright. Since every person who entered the colony received a headright, families were encouraged to migrate together.
• Wealthy individuals could accumulate headrights by paying for the passage of poor individuals. Most of the workers who entered Virginia under this arrangement came as indentured servants — people who paid for their transportation by pledging to perform five to seven years of labor for the landowner.

England found itself territorially and financially falling behind its rival Spain in the early seventeenth century. The reason, they believed, was due to the Spanish conquest and colonization of Mexico and Central America in the New World. Spain was reaping the benefits of a seemingly unlimited supply of gold, silver, and other metals from these colonies. England began to charter explorations for permanent settlements in America in the 1580s, but its first permanent colony, Jamestown, was not established by the Virginia Company until 1607.

How would the Virginia Company attract more people to come to the New World? The headright system was their answer.

Summary of the Headright System

What exactly was the headright system? A headright was a land grant given to settlers, usually 50 acres, as an incentive to move to the colonies in America.

Those who could afford to pay for their passage- who were considered “Head of Household”- from Europe were granted a headright, as were those who were already settled into the colony and paid for the transport of those who couldn’t afford it. They could be granted two headrights for doing so. Any other men, such as family members, servants, or laborers, who the Head of Household could afford to charter with them, would grant them additional acreage per person they brought.

People whose passage was paid for by existing colonists usually migrated as indentured servants; in return for their passage, they would work for planters for periods ranging from four to seven years.

Purpose of the Headright System

The purpose of the system was to attract new settlers, particularly in Jamestown. It aimed to fill the region's labor needs, as its economy was built on tobacco farming, which required lots of land and labor.

Headright System History

The Virginia Company created the headright system in 1618. In 1624, the Virginia Company was dissolved, and the area was made into the royal colony of Virginia, but notably, the King maintained the use of the headright system.

The headright system became widely used across the other colonies, primarily in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Maryland.

The following is an excerpt from the instructions from the Virginia Company to the incoming Governor of the Colony in 1618, detailing the use of the Headright System.

“And that for all such Planters as were brought thither at the Companies Charge to inhabit there before the coming away [...] after the time of their Service to the Company on the common Land agreed shall be expired there be set out One hundred Acres of Land for each of their person Adventurers to be held by them their heirs and Assigns forever paying for every fifty Acres the yearly free Rent of one Shilling to the said treasurer and Company [...] the share be of one hundred Acres the share upon the first division and of as many more upon A Second Division when the land of the first division shall be Sufficiently peopled And for Every person which they shall transport thither within seven years after Midsummer Day One thousand six hundred and Eighteen.”1

Headright System Significance

How did this system affect the colonies? The table below details the significant impacts of the headright system.

The use of the headright system ended in Virginia in 1779 but continued in other colonies.

England created the royal colony of Georgia in 1732 as a territorial buffer between the other English colonies and Spanish-controlled Florida. The headright system was introduced in Georgia in 1783 after the American Revolution and was used until 1804.

How did the Georgian headright system work?

• 200 acres was given to soldiers who had fought in the Revolution and to heads of households.

• 50 extra acres were given for every additional household member, counting slaves.

• The goal was also to attract settlers and defend the colony. Landholders were expected to serve as militiamen against the Spanish.

• Initially, women were prohibited from inheriting land owned by their husbands, but this was soon changed to attract more people.

• Eventually, there was not enough land to continue the system, hence its end.

Headright system - Key Takeaways

• The Virginia Company established the headright system in 1618 to encourage Englishmen to settle in Jamestown, mainly to tackle the labor shortage.

• A headright was usually 50 acres and was given to those who could pay for their passage to the New World. Alternatively, existing settlers could pay for others’ passage and receive headrights. Those who traveled this way usually became indentured servants.

• The system successfully expanded the population of Virginia and was used in other colonies to do the same.

• The practice directly impacted the relationship between English settlers and Indigenous Peoples as it led to rapid population growth, and headrights soon encroached on Indigenous lands.

• The Headright system also influenced the importation of enslaved Africans to the colonies, as farmers and plantation owners could count them as headrights and gain more land.

1. Susan Myra Kingsbury, ed., "The Thomas Jefferson Papers Series 8. Virginia Records Manuscripts. 1606–1737." Records of the Virginia Company, 1606–1626, 3:98–109.

Page 2

Martin Luther, a Catholic monk, wrote a document referred to as 95 Theses, that changed Western Christian religion forever. What made a devout monk openly criticize the Church? What was written in the 95 Theses that made it so important? Let's look at the 95 Theses and Martin Luther!

95 Theses Definition

On October 31, 1417, in Wittenberg, Germany Martin Luther hung his 95 Theses on the door outside of his church. The first two theses were the issues that Luther had with the Catholic Church and the rest were the arguments that he could have with people about these issues.

Martin Luther and the 95 Theses

Martin Luther intended to be a lawyer until he was stuck in a deadly storm. Luther swore an oath to God that if he lived then he would become a monk. True to his word, Luther became a monk and then completed his doctoral program. Eventually, he had his very own church in Wittenberg, Germany.

95 Theses Summary

Over in Rome in 1515, Pope Leo X wanted to renovate St. Peter's Basilica. The Pope permitted the sale of indulgences to raise money for this construction project. Indulgences challenged Luther's view of Christianity. If a priest sold an indulgence, then the person who received it paid for forgiveness. The forgiveness of their sins did not come from God but the priest.

Luther believed that forgiveness and salvation could only come from God. A person could also buy indulgences on behalf of other people. One could even buy an indulgence for a dead person to shorten their stay in Purgatory. This practice was illegal in Germany but one day Luther's congregation told him that they would no longer need confessionals because their sins had been forgiven through indulgences.

95 Theses Date

On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther went outside of his church and hammered his 95 Theses to the Church wall. This sounds dramatic but historians think it probably wasn't. Luther's theses took off and were soon translated to different languages. It even made its way to Pope Leo X!

The Catholic Church

The Catholic Church was the only Christian church in existence at this time, there were no Baptists, Presbyterians, or Protestants. The Church (meaning the Catholic Church) also provided the only welfare programs. They fed the hungry, gave shelter to the poor, and provided medical care. The only education available was through the Catholic Church. Faith was not the only reason people attended church. At church, they could show off their status and socialize.

The pope was extremely powerful. The Catholic Church owned one-third of the land in Europe. The pope also had power over kings. This is because kings were thought to be appointed by God and the pope was a direct link to God. The pope would advise kings and could heavily influence wars and other political struggles.

When going forward, remember how important and powerful the Catholic Church was. This will offer context to the Protestant Reformation.

95 Theses Summary

The first two theses are about indulgences and why they are immoral. The first thesis refers to God as the only being who can grant forgiveness from sins. Luther was very dedicated to the belief that God could grant forgiveness to anyone who prayed for it.

The second thesis was directly calling out the Catholic Church. Luther reminds the reader that the church does not have the authority to forgive sins so when they sell indulgences, they are selling something they do not have. If God is the only one who can forgive sins and the indulgences weren't bought from God, then they are fake.

1. When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, ``Repent'' (Mt 4:17), he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.
2. This word cannot be understood as referring to the sacrament of penance, that is, confession and satisfaction, as administered by the clergy.

The rest of the theses are providing evidence of Luther's first two claims. These are written as arguing points. Luther opens the door that if anyone found fought in any of his points then they could write him and they would debate. The point of the theses was not to destroy the Catholic church but to reform it. The 95 Theses were translated from Latin to German and were read by people all over the country!

Luther wrote the theses in a conversational tone. While it was written in Latin, this would not be for the clergy alone. This would also be for the Catholics who, in Luther's eyes, wasted their money on indulgences. Luther proposed a reform of the Catholic Church. He was not trying to strike out and create a new form of Christianity.

Martin Luther no longer believed that priests could forgive people of their sins on behalf of God. He had a completely radical idea that people could confess in prayer on their own and God would forgive them. Luther also believed that the bible should be translated into German so that everyone could read it. At this point, it was written in Latin and only the clergy could read it.

The Gutenberg Printing Press and the Protestant Reformation

Martin Luther was not the first educated person to go up against the Catholic Church but he is the first to start a reformation. What made him different? In 1440, Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press. This made information spread quicker than it had previously. While historians are still researching the effect of the printing press on the Protestant Reformation, most agree that the Reformation would not have happened without it.

95 Theses Effect on Europe

Luther was excommunicated from the church while the 95 Theses sparked the Protestant Reformation. This was also a political reform. It eventually took away the majority of the pope's power removing his role as a political leader and leaving him as a spiritual leader. The nobility began to break from the Catholic Church because they could then dissolve the church's landholdings and keep the profits. Nobles who were monks could leave the Catholics and get married then produce heirs.

Through the Protestant Reformation people were able to get a German translation of the bible. Anyone who was literate could read the bible for themselves. No longer did they have to rely so heavily on the priests. This created different denominations of Christianity that did not follow the same rules as the Catholic Church or each other's. This also sparked the German Peasant Revolt which was the largest peasant revolt at that time.

95 Theses - Key takeaways

• The 95 Theses was originally a response to the sale of Indulgences
• The Catholic Church was a social, political, and spiritual world power
• The 95 Theses sparked the Protestant Reformation which eventually drastically diminished the power of the Catholic Church

The 95 Theses was a document posted by Martin Luther. It was written so the Catholic Church would reform.

The 95 Theses was posted on October 31st, 1517 in Wittenberg, Germany.

Martin Luther wrote the 95 Theses so that the Catholic Church would reform and stop selling indulgences. 

Martin Luther wrote the 95 Theses.

The first two theses were against the sale of indulgences the rest of the theses backed up that claim. 

Question

Answer

Question

When were the 95 Theses written? 

Answer

Question

Where was the 95 Theses posted?

Answer

Question

When someone is removed from the Catholic church because of their actions it is called ________.

Answer

Question

What were tokens that could be purchased by anyone that meant the buyer's sins had been forgiven?

Answer

Question

Why did Pope Leo X allow Catholics to start back selling indulgences?

Answer

To Fund the restoration of St. Peter's Basilica

Question

What was the first thesis about?

Answer

Only God can forgive people of their sins

Question

What was the second thesis about?

Answer

The Catholic Church did not have the authority to forgive people of their sins

Question

What were the third through ninety-nine theses about?

Answer

They were points that backed up the first two theses. 

Question

What invention helped the spread of the Protestant Reformation?

Answer

The Gutenberg Printing Press

Question

What reformation was sparked by the Ninety-Five Theses?

Answer

Question

True/False

Nobles broke from the Catholic Church then dissolved the Church's holdings so that they could keep the revenue.

Answer

Question

True/False 

Before the Protestant Reformation, there were plenty of denominations of Christians.

Answer

Question

Which book did Luther translate into German that greatly influenced the Protestant Reformation?

Answer

Question

Who did Martin Luther think that people needed to forgive their sins?