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→Colonial Era
Politically the planters controlled local government through their control of the Anglican parishes and county government; neither was elected. The planters also controled elections to the the colonial legislature, the House of Burgesses. English institutions were changed into a system of democracy--most white men owned property so they could and did vote, and usually voted for their "betters". (In England, by contrast, fewer than 10% of the men could vote.)
Politically the planters controlled local government through their control of the Anglican parishes and county government; neither was elected. The planters also controled elections to the the colonial legislature, the House of Burgesses. English institutions were changed into a system of democracy--most white men owned property so they could and did vote, and usually voted for their "betters". (In England, by contrast, fewer than 10% of the men could vote.)
It was a patriarchal society ruled exclusively by men. However, if a man overstepped the boundaries of local norms, the county court could intervene and punish him. Thus in 1668-70 a rich planter named Henry Smith was charged several times in court--he was accused of concubinage, wife beating, adultery, child abuse, fathering bastards, sexual harassment, rape, and brutality toward servants. The court heard damning testimony from his wife and from his mistress and other local women. Illiterate and isolated but well versed in their legal and customary rights and duties, the women knew how to handle Smith, who was found guilty.<ref> Irmina Wawrzyczek, "The Women of Accomack Versus Henry Smith: Gender, Legal Recourse, and the Social Order in Seventeenth-Century Virginia," ''Virginia Magazine of History and Biography,'' 1997 105(1): 5-26. </ref>
===Frontier===
Tobacco plantations were in the "tidewater" area close to the ocean. Plenty of good cheap land was available on the frontier. The settlers west of the Blue Ridge mountains from the 1720s to the 1740s were mostly German and Scotch-Irish Protestants, whose society contrasted sharply with tidewater Anglican colonists. Historians explaining the distinctiveness of the backcountry focus on two factors: the availability of good land at low prices and the pioneering efforts of land speculators encouraged by the colonial government.
===Religion===
The Anglican religion was established--meaning that taxes were collected to support the church and the parish handled poor relief. Most Virginians were not very religious, but most also believed in a spirit world. The supernatural world of the settlers involved belief in benevolent and demonic forces, divine judgment, omens, magic, witchcraft, combat with the devil, and other ideas brought over from England. This complex supernatural world functioned to explain the unknown, sanction colonization, demonize the native population, control the colonists, and provide a defense against internal and external enemies.<ref> Edward L. Bond, "Source of Knowledge, Source of Power: The Supernatural World of English Virginia, 1607-1624." ''Virginia Magazine of History and Biography'' 2000 108(2): 105-138. 0042-6636 </ref>
The Anglican religion was established--meaning that taxes were collected to support the church and the parish handled poor relief. Most Virginians were not very religious, but most also believed in a spirit world. The supernatural world of the settlers involved belief in benevolent and demonic forces, divine judgment, omens, magic, witchcraft, combat with the devil, and other ideas brought over from England. This complex supernatural world functioned to explain the unknown, sanction colonization, demonize the native population, control the colonists, and provide a defense against internal and external enemies.<ref> Edward L. Bond, "Source of Knowledge, Source of Power: The Supernatural World of English Virginia, 1607-1624." ''Virginia Magazine of History and Biography'' 2000 108(2): 105-138. 0042-6636 </ref>
===Rise of the Baptists===
===Rise of the Baptists===
From 1755 to 1790 Virginia hosted numerous local religious revivals that led to the rapid growth of the Baptist Church among poor white farmers. Converts were particularly drawn to the faith by its promise to provide social order through heightened self-discipline and its ability to elicit interpersonal contact and intense emotional release. Although the congregations have been described as favorably disposed toward slaves, an overwhelming body of evidence suggests the predominance of proslavery tendencies. Friends, relatives and neighbors brought potential converts to revival meetings, and supported them when they converted. After 1800 black slaves adopted the Baptist religion as well, ignoring the Episciopal and Presbyterian churches of their owners<ref> Jewel L. Spangler, Becoming Baptists: Conversion in Colonial and Early National Virginia. Journal of Southern History 2001 67(2): 243-286. 0022-4642 </ref>
Created in 1758, the Sandy Creek Association was the third Baptist association formed in colonial America. It brought together all Separate Baptist churches in Virginia and the Carolinas. Its early meetings were times of singing, preaching, and encouraging and training younger pastors, but it split three ways in 1770 because Shubal Stearns, the legendary Baptist leader, established a strongly centralized organization that many churches felt they had to leave to preserve their autonomy.
From 1755 to 1790 Virginia hosted numerous local religious revivals that led to the rapid growth of the Baptist Church among poor white farmers. Converts were particularly drawn to the faith by its promise to provide social order through heightened self-discipline and its ability to elicit interpersonal contact and intense emotional release. Although the congregations have been described as favorably disposed toward slaves, an overwhelming body of evidence suggests the predominance of proslavery tendencies. Friends, relatives and neighbors brought potential converts to revival meetings, and supported them when they converted. After 1800 black slaves adopted the Baptist religion as well, ignoring the Episciopal and Presbyterian churches of their owners<ref> Jewel L. Spangler, Becoming Baptists: Conversion in Colonial and Early National Virginia. Journal of Southern History 2001 67(2): 243-286. 0022-4642 </ref>
The Anglican elite depended on automatic deference from ordinary farmers. Increasingly the Baptists and Presbysterians refused to doff their hats or vote the way they were told, and they managed to stick together thanks to their strong social networks. The colonial government faced the issue by creating a standing "Committee for Religion" in the House of Burgesses in 1769. It first made sure London did not impose an Anglican bishop for the colony, and thus kept Anglican church affairs in the hands of the gentry. It was forced to concede to dissenter demands for greater toleration and agreed to allow several parishes the right to elect their vestrymen. As the colonial era ended the interlocking crises of religion in Virginia remained unresolved, but the committee had served as a forum within which the ruling elite worked out solutions that were designed to win public support.<ref> Paul K. Longmore, "'All Matters and Things Relating to Religion and Morality': The Virginia Burgesses' Committee for Religion, 1769 To 1775." ''Journal of Church and State'' 1996 38(4): 775-797. </ref>
==American Revolution==
==American Revolution==