men all over the state to rise against the ruling class. This symbolized a need for change in policy to the bureaucrats in Virginia, and slavery seemed to be the next alternative. The freedmen went back to work as servants, and the Virginia magnates looked to Africa to grant them the freedom they sought themselves. Between 1680 and 1720, the slave population in Virginia exploded and left the large plantations to be run by individuals with no sense of what freedom was. This was key, for the white servants knew what freedom was, and expected certain benefits; whereas, the slave population had no notion of what freedom was, having lived most of their lives as slaves. Not all Africans were slaves, but the vast majority were. The introduction of slavery into Virginian society on a large scale led to the freedom that settlers had been trying to attain for almost a hundred years. The magistrates had their workers and the freedmen had their opportunity to make their own way in the New World. The competition among the freedmen began to diminish after the import of slaves overtook the import of more servants from England. Through these occurrences, the Chesapeake settlement grew and began to foster the ideas upon which America was founded. It took many revolts, revolutions, and re-thoughts to abolish slavery and inequality among the American populace finally, but the advent of slavery in a society that kept biting itself (Virginia) was the quickest way to solve the problems of a newly found colony. The Caucasian view that the white man is superior led to the U. S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights, which may be the most important documents ever written, but the idea of slavery, especially the harsher Western view, was a heavy price to pay in retrospect. If we had it to do again, would Americans make that same choice? I think not, but we owe it to history to study it and not let such things occur again....
