What are two major events in European colonial history that were important turning points?
Britain also sent settlers to the rich new world, with the instructions to find gold and claim territory. The Virginia Company, led by Captain John Smith, established the settlement of Jamestown. After barely surviving Indian attacks, winter famines, and diseases, Jamestown finally flourished, becoming the first capitol of Virginia. The Colonial Parkway in Virginia connects Jamestown with several other early British settlements. You can talk with slaves and freemen, traders and trappers, housewives and servants from the 17th century and get a feel for the colonial era. Once the European nations had staked their claims, the stage was set for the next century of conflict. The French had claimed most of the western lands, including the fertile Ohio River Valley and the Great Lakes. As the British Colonies expanded, hungry settlers and traders encroached on French territory, creating tensions that would erupt in the French and Indian War. You can visit historic sites from both sides of thi
