When will the papers of William Berkeley arrive from the publisher? I have been eagerly awaiting them... Kind regards, Charles --- "Warren M. Billings" <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Rarely do I disagree with the historical judgments > of Fred Fausz or Jon > Kukla, but I must respectfully dissent from their > briefs for William > Claiborne as the most significant Virginia colonist > of the seventeenth > century. That distinction clearly belongs to Sir > William Berkeley, whose > record of achievement surpasses Claiborne's by some > considerable distance. > To be sure, the twom men shared common attributes. > Both made themselves > into Virginians. Both men sought in Virginia places > and preferments that > they could not achieve in England. Berkeley also had > an Atlantic trading > network, and it was arguably more extensive than > Claiborne's which was > centered on London, whereas Berkeley's extended to > continental Europe as > well as New England, the Caribbean, and the British > Isles. Berkeley's > Indian policy differed not all that much from > Claiborne's, and after 1646 > it kept relations between the two peoples reasonably > quiet. (Of course, > Berkeley could do little to stem the tide of English > immigration that > swept over the reserve lands north of the York.)They > rivalled one another, > though they were never enemies. Berkeley got the > better of Claiborne in > the 1640s, whereas Claiborne outed Berkeley in 1652, > only to help bring > him back as governor in 1660. Thereafter, Claiborne > was retired from > public life and remained mainly in seculsion til his > death, though Berkely > advance his sons in public life. > > Sir William governed longer than any other chief > executive, colonial or > modern, he set in train developments that translated > the General Assembly > from a corporate appendage to a little Parliament, > and he erected the > offices of attorney general and auditor general. > (His encouragement of > bicameralism had profound implications for the rise > of Virginia's self- > governing tradition.) He abetted the emergence of > the great planters and > became one of them. Moreover he was one of the > largest landholders in the > colony, and if one includes his eighth share in the > Carolina proprietary, > he ranked with the greatest landowners anywhere in > English North America. > In the 1660s he spearheaded urban renewal at > Jamestown and touted > diversification of the economy. He came within a few > whiskers of > succeeding with the latter goal, but its failure > assured that a single- > crop, bound labor based, plantation agricultural > base would be the norm > for centuries to come. His other great > failure--bumbling into Bacon's > Rebellion--contributed to a vigorous reassertion of > royal authority in the > colony after 1677 with the result that Virginia was > cut more closely to > the Stuart model of empire. Consequently, the > General Assembly lost much > of the autonomy it had enjoyed from the 1640s to the > 1670s. And whereas > the politics of accommodation drove the relationship > between Berkeley, his > councillors, and the burgesses, confrontation > generally dictated the > responses of royal governors-general and colonial > leaders to one another > from 1677 to the Revolution. > > In short, Sir William stands ahead of Claiborne as > the most significant > seventeenth-century English Virginian. > > To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please > see the instructions > at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html > Charles K. Ortel 42 Route 343 Millbrook, N.Y. 12545 To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html