Failed Colonies in the Americas

1. Excerpts from the Spanish do not consider that the French forces had been reduced by a hurricane prior to the attack. Instead, the chaplain of the Spanish expedition glorifies the leadership of the general in defeating the French and justifies it with support from God. Both sides emphasize the religious tensions underlying the attack, which points to the larger social and political context in Europe at this time.

2. The criteria and justification of their actions stem from a religious base. The Spanish sees their conquest as spreading the Catholic religion and combating Protestantism, even if it requires murdering otherwise innocent people. Since the Church was closely tied to the state at that time, this justification also serves as a political motivation, since successful conquests could simultaneously spread Catholicism and gain territory. Also, the French recognize the possibility that they could be killed over their religion, Lutheranism, but they accept defeat as a punishment for their previous sins, according to the text. Therefore, in both cases, religious arguments are used to explain and justify the circumstances.

3. The strength of their colonies lies in their conviction that their home countries will support them in their endeavor that aims to serve and to please God. However, a major weakness of the settlements is the consistent lack of food and resources.

4. The settlers ascribe famine and population decline to the work of God, but as is shown in the letter by Chaplain Quirós, he attributes their lack of ability to get free food from the Indians an error on their part.

5. The colonists' exhibited poor planning for their settlements, mainly by not bringing enough resources and not being knowledgeable of the landscape beforehand, which is true for both Fort Caroline and Ajacan. In Ajacan, the settlers adapted by getting food from the Indians, but this soon caused problems, especially in the winter since their food ran scarce. 

6. The Indians may have been able to help them in the short run, but since they didn't return the favors, that discouraged the already-suffering Indians from doing so in the long run, and may have even led to conflicts with them.

7. Their underestimation of the hardships presented by the terrain caused them many problems in finding and growing food, and also prevented them from navigating it effectively. All these issues result in a waste of their resources, which were already scarce.

8. The French leadership in Fort Caroline was already discouraged by their deteriorated forces in the face of the sudden attack by the Spanish, their surrender was an easy victory for the Spanish. In Ajacan, the leader prevented the settlers from bartering with the Indians, which led to their downfall as they lost resources and increased tensions between their two groups.

9. Demonstrated by the plight of the settlers in Fort Caroline and in Ajacan, sufficient resources and material reinforcements from the home country are vital for a successful colony. Equally important to a successful colony is cooperation with native populations and an attempt to understand the existing culture.

10. The colonists prepared for failure by having distress signals in place to alert White (if he ever returned) of their fate. The colonists also had a backup plan to go to Croatoan.

11. Fort Caroline ended with the Spanish conquest, while Roanoke ended supposedly from lack of resources.

12. Accounts of successful colonies will include those written by settlers themselves and provide a better picture of everyday life.

13. Better organization and preparation could have enabled the colonists to better face the challenges of the new environment.

14. Settlers can gain information about why these colonies failed (lack of reinforcement, tensions with natives) and hopefully learn from previous colonists' mistakes.

15. European rivalries' resulted in competition and fighting for these colonies that may have perpetuated their downfall, similar to Fort Caroline.

English Civil Wars

Although the population opposed King Charles I's execution, the English parliament carried out this desperate and aberrant act. The regicides were self-righteous fanatics, who had vengeance for the ungodly king who reopened the civil war in 1648. The Puritans believed that the world was distinguished between the pope and true religion. They also believed that Scriptures were the formulas for politics and other reformations. 

Thomas Dugard, a parliamentarian clergymen preached that King Charles I's issuing of the Book of Sports was the cause of the bloodshed. Charles's religious policies mimicked those of popery, and many believed that he had brought God's wrath upon them. Many believed that a lot had to be done in order to secure peace once again. 

After the king's death, Parliament regained power, and proceedings towards the king has some real basis in the political culture of England. Edmund Ludlow rejoiced that the king had sinned so openly, thus providing an excuse to execute him. Charles had attacked the constitution of the kingdom and had stirred bloody and unnecessary wars.