Spanish and French Colonies
The experiences of those in the Spanish and French colonies overlapped with much of what happened in the English colonies, yet their conceptions of women’s roles and the impact of race and religion on social status would complicate the evolution of American identity and culture as these regions were added to the United States.
Key Ideas
- The 1700s were years of intense growth and cultural exchange for the Spanish and French of North America.
- The experiences of women in the Spanish and French colonies varied widely based on race, class, age, and geographic region.
- Women played active and integrated roles in colonial societies across the Americas, but these roles differed depending on the communities they lived in.
Introduction
Spanish and French Colonies
In the 1700s the Spanish and French expanded their colonial endeavors in North America. The Spanish stretched north from Mexico into Alta California, and the French down the Mississippi River into Louisiana. During this expansion, life in the North American colonies evolved from the conquest and struggle for survival that characterized the earliest period of colonization into a new era of cultural encounter and social change. Some of these exchanges brought prosperity to one or more of the groups involved; others were characterized by severe oppression, extraction, and subjugation.
Teaching Materials
Resources in this Topic
The Casket Girls
This kind of trunk was used by the French women who were shipped to colonial Louisiana to marry French settlers.
Casta Paintings
A series of paintings that demonstrate the complex racial and social hierarchies of the Spanish colonies.
Colonial Refugees
A woman petitions the French Colonial government for help after being expelled from the English colonies.
Fashionable Rebellion
This portrait shows how free Black women in Spanish Louisiana turned an oppressive law into a celebration of individuality and culture.
Free Black Women in Spanish Florida
A document that illuminates the legal status of free Black women in Spanish Florida.
Inquisition Report
An accusation made against a person for defying gender norms.
Life in the Mission System
This drawing of the Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo shows the setting of Spanish efforts to convert and Europeanize Indigenous populations in Alta California.
Purity of Blood
Margarita Wiltz’s petition to marry a Spanish soldier captures early expressions of white supremacy in Spanish Louisiana.
Quapaw Artistry
This skillfully painted hide demonstrates the craft and artistry of Quapaw women and provides clues about the Quapaw’s relationship with French settlers and neighboring tribes.
Settling Russian Alaska
This letter demonstrates that Russian colonial efforts relied on intermarriage between Russian traders and Alaska Native women.
Mother Esther Marie-Joseph Wheelwright de l’Enfant
War Captive to Mother Superior. The story of a Puritan girl who became a community leader in Quebec during the French and Indian War.
Esperanza Rodríguez
Intersectional Jewish Identity in the Spanish Colonies. A mixed-race enslaved conversa who faced the Spanish Inquisition.
Madame Montour
Interpreter and Diplomat. The story of an Indigenous woman who played a central role in the diplomatic relations of Western New York and Pennsylvania.
Marguerite Faffart
Métis Fur Trader in New France. The story of how a métis fur trader of the Great Lakes region of New France built a thriving trade network to support her family.
Marie-Thérèse Bourgeois Chouteau
A Founding Mother of St. Louis. The story of a woman who built a trading dynasty in French Louisiana.
Nansi Wiggins
Enslaved to Enslaver. The story of a Black woman who overcame enslavement and rose to the status of plantation owner in Spanish Florida.
Toypurina
Fighting the Mission System. The story of a Tongva wise woman who led a rebellion against the San Gabriel mission in Alta California.
Get Deeper into Relevant Topics
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English Colonies
Life in the English colonies laid the foundation for what would become American culture. This was true for all aspects of life, including the role of women. Yet women of diverse backgrounds both adopted and challenged English social norms, creating an identity and culture unique to North America.
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The American Revolution
Though women in the English colonies were legally barred from nearly all forms of public and political life, they found numerous ways to engage in the political discourse that heated up in the years before and during the American Revolution.
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