Beyond Barbados, Part 2 - Sweet Success

Dutch Sephardic Jewish colonists moved from Brazil to Barbados to escape the religious persecution of the Spanish Inquisition. These Sephardic Jews brought with them the knowledge to produce a highly sought after commodity in Europe: Sugarcane. The production of sugarcane became wildly successful in Barbados, and transformed the economic and cultural landscape forever. As business grew in Barbados, so did the demand for enslaved field workers. Poor white indentured servants, and African slaves primarily worked these plantations, but gradually shifted to African slaves, since the white indentured servants died from yellow fever and the heat. Sugarcane was a profitable crop, but took grueling, arduous work to cultivate it. 

Standards

• 4-2 The student will demonstrate an understanding of how the settlement of North America was influenced by the interactions of Native Americans, Europeans, and Africans.
  • The interaction among peoples from three different continents created a distinctly American culture. To understand the contributions made by Native Americans, Europeans, and Africans to the settlement of North America, the student will utilize the kno...
    • 4-2.3 Explain the impact of the triangular trade, indentured servitude, and the enslaved and free Africans on the developing culture and economy of North America.
• This indicator was developed to encourage inquiry into the impact of Transatlantic interaction with Europeans, Africans, and others on the indigenous populations of the Americas.
  • 6.3.CE Explain the impact of increased global exchanges on the development of the Atlantic World.
  • This indicator was developed to encourage inquiry into the impact of the Transatlantic slave trade on Africa, Europe, and the Americas. This indicator promotes inquiry into the beginning of the Transatlantic slave trade, the ideological, economic, and...
• 7-1 The student will demonstrate an understanding of the growth and impact of global trade on world civilizations after 1600.
  • European expansion during the 1600s and 1700s was often driven by economic and technological forces. To understand the influence of these forces, the student will utilize the knowledge and skills set forth in the following indicators:
    • 7-1.5 Compare the differing ways that European nations developed political and economic influences, including trade and settlement patterns, on the continents of Asia, Africa, and the Americas.
• This indicator was designed to encourage inquiry into the geographic and human factors that contributed to the development of South Carolina’s economic system. This indicator was also written to encourage inquiry into South Carolina’s distinct social and economic system as influenced by British Barbados.
  • 8.1.CE Analyze the factors that contributed to the development of South Carolina’s economic system and the subsequent impacts on different populations within the colony.
• Human populations and migration patterns vary across Earth’s surface and change through time. The interaction between human and environmental conditions helps to explain the characteristics, spatial distributions, and movements of human populations.
  • HG.1.2.PR Explain the cultural, economic, environmental, and political conditions and connections that contribute to human migration patterns.

Resources