In 1663, King Charles II granted a charter to eight men, known as the Lords Proprietors, paving the way for English colonization of the territory south of Virginia. The Proprietors promised political freedom and religious freedom to immigrants and also encouraged settlement with the Headright System. However, the natural terrain divided Carolina into two distinct regions, and it was officially divided in 1712.
By 1719, people living in South Carolina felt the Proprietors were not doing enough to protect them from pirates and Indians. As British subjects, the people sought protection from the Crown. The Crown agreed and Sir Francis Nicholson was appointed as the first Royal Governor of South Carolina. South Carolina focused on rice, Cotton, Tobacco, and Indigo plantations.
Essential Facts
- Year Founded — 1663 (as Carolina)
- Founded By — Lords Proprietors
- General Assembly Established — 1719
- Region — Southern Colonies
- Part of — Restoration Colonies
Primary Documents
Biographies
- James Adair
- William Henry Drayton
- Christopher Gadsden
- Thomas Heyward Jr.
- Isaac Huger
- John Laurens
- Thomas Lynch Sr.
- Thomas Lynch Jr.
- Francis Marion
- Arthur Middleton
- William Moultrie
- Andrew Pickens
- Charles Cotesworth Pinckney
- Edward Rutledge
- John Rutledge
History
Colonial America
- Yamasee War (1715—1717)
- Stono Rebellion (1739)
- Albany Congress (1754)
- French and Indian War (1754–1763)
Key Concepts
- Agriculture in Colonial America
- Board of Trade
- Mercantilism
- Navigation Acts
- Salutary Neglect
- Transatlantic Slave Trade
- Triangular Trade
- Taxation Without Representation — Overview and History
American Revolution
- Pontiac’s Rebellion (1763)
- Proclamation of 1763
- Sugar Act (1764) — Guide
- Stamp Act (1765) — Guide
- Sons of Liberty
- Townshend Acts (1767—1768)
- Committees of Correspondence
- Tea Act (1773)
- Intolerable Acts (1774)
- South Carolina — Delegates to the First Continental Congress (1774)
- First Continental Congress (1774)
- Continental Association (1774)
American Revolutionary War
1775
- Second Continental Congress (1775—1781)
- Olive Branch Petition (July 8, 1775)
- Snow Campaign (November–December, 1775)
- Battle of Ninety-Six, Siege of Savage’s Old Fields (November 19–21, 1775)
1776
- Battle of Sullivan’s Island (June 28, 1776)
- Declaration of Independence (Rough Draft)
- Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776)
1779
1780
- Siege of Charleston (April 1, 1780–May 12, 1780)
- Battle of Williamson’s Plantation and Huck’s Defeat (July 12, 1780)
- Battle of Rocky Mount (August 1, 1780)
- Battle of Hanging Rock (August 6, 1780)
- Battle of Carey’s Fort/Wateree (August 15, 1780)
- Battle of Camden (August 16, 1780)
- Battle of Fishing Creek (August 18, 1780)
- Battle of Musgrove Mill (August 18, 1780)
- Battle of Kings Mountain (October 7, 1780)
