Georgia Colony.
In the 1730s, England founded its last colony in North America. James Oglethorpe, a former British army officer, conceived the project. After leaving the army, Oglethorpe devoted himself to helping London’s poor and debt-ridden people, whom he suggested settling in America. His choice of Georgia, named for the new King, also reflected the idea of creating a defensive buffer for South Carolina, an increasingly important colony with many potential enemies nearby. These enemies included the Spanish in Florida, the French in Louisiana and along the Mississippi River, and these powers’ Indian allies throughout the region.
Parliament funded twenty trustees and issued a charter from the King in June 1732. The charter granted the trustees corporate powers; they could elect their own governing body, make land grants, and enact their own laws and taxes. Because the corporation was a charitable body, none of the trustees could receive land from it or hold a paid position in it. Also, because the undertaking was designed to benefit the poor, the trustees placed a 500-acre limit on individual landholdings. People who received charity and did not purchase their land could not sell it or borrow money against it. The trustees wanted to avoid the situation in South Carolina, which had vast plantations and extreme gaps between the wealthy and the poor.
Georgia Colonists.
The undertaking was very paternalistic, as the trustees did not trust the colonists to make their laws. Therefore, they did not establish a representative assembly, although every other mainland colony had one. The trustees made all the colony’s laws. Second, the trustees laid out the settlements in compact, confined, and concentrated townships. This arrangement was partly intended to strengthen the colony’s defenses, but social control was another consideration. Third, the trustees prohibited the import and manufacture of rum, for rum would lead to idleness. Finally, the trustees prohibited black slavery, for they believed that this ban would encourage the settlement of “English and Christian” people.
James Oglethorpe.
Georgia’s first year, 1733, went well enough as settlers cleared the land, built houses, and constructed fortifications. Those who came in the first wave of settlement realized that after the first year, they would be working for themselves. Meanwhile, Oglethorpe, who went to Georgia with the first settlers, began negotiating treaties with local Indian tribes, especially the Upper Creek tribe. Knowing that the Spanish, based in Florida, had significant influence over many tribes in the region, Oglethorpe thought it necessary to reach an understanding with these native peoples if Georgia was to remain free from attack. In addition, the Indian trade became an essential element of Georgia’s economy.
It didn’t take long, however, for settlers to grumble about the restrictions the trustees imposed on them. This grumbling may have been partly because most of those moving to Georgia after the first several years came from other colonies, especially South Carolina. These settlers viewed restrictions on the size of individual landholdings as a sure pathway to poverty. They also opposed restrictions on land sales and the prohibition against slavery for the same reason. They certainly did not like being deprived of self-government and their English rights. By the early 1740s, the trustees slowly addressed most of the colonists’ grievances.
Compiled by Kathy Alexander-Alexander/Legends of America, updated September 2026.
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Source: Library of Congress