- Let's go back to the early 1700's.

Before Georgia had peaches, before there was football, and way before we even became a state.

Back then, Georgia didn't even exist.

That all changed when the British government issued the charter of 1732, officially establishing the colony of Georgia.

But this wouldn't be just any colony.

According to the charter, Georgia was founded for three main reasons, philanthropy, economics, and defense.

(bright music) When Great Britain created the colony of Georgia, its boundaries looked a lot different than they do today.

South Carolina didn't have any settlements south of the Savannah River, so that became Georgia's northern boundary, and the Altamaha River became Georgia's furthest marker to the south.

At the start of each river, a line was drawn due west all the way to the Pacific Ocean.

On a map, that meant Georgia stretched across the entire continent of North America.

The new colony would be run by a British board of trustees under the supervision of King George II, and it would be named Georgia in his honor.

Georgia's structure was unique because it would not involve any corporate ownership, and despite what a lot of people think, Georgia was not a debtor's colony.

So no, people who owed money in England were not released from prison to help settle Georgia.

Still, the trustees who governed Georgia had a unique vision for what the colony would be like.

When the charter of 1732 was issued, it was full of fresh ideas that provided a new kind of structure for colonists, and trustees to ensure fairness in the colony.

And that brings us back to the three main reasons for Georgia's founding, philanthropy, economics, and defense.

Philanthropy means giving back, and the trustees were all about it.

Their motto was Non sibi sed allis, which in Latin means not for self, but others, pretty fitting since their job was literally to act on behalf of other people.

One of the trustees who led the establishment of Georgia was James Oglethorpe.

Oglethorpe's vision for philanthropy was influenced by prison conditions he witnessed in England, and this is why so many people mistakenly believed Georgia was a debtor's colony.

Oglethorpe wanted Georgia to be a place where debtors could get out of prison and start a new life, but that never actually happened.

Instead, the colony became a fresh start for the worthy poor who weren't in prison.

In turn, this would help reduce poverty and unemployment in Britain.

Most of Georgia's settlers weren't rich, but many were skilled workers who couldn't resist the benefits outlined by the charter of 1732.

They could receive between 50 and 500 acres of land, a year's worth of food, plus free seeds and farming tools.

With an offer like that, plenty of folks were ready to take a chance on life in Georgia.

While the charter outlined philanthropic efforts, it also defined some economic rules for the colonists in Georgia.

Ultimately, the British colonies were partially established to help generate wealth for Britain.

Many European countries, including Great Britain operated on an economic system called mercantilism.

Mercantilism was the idea that a country's power came from building wealth by controlling trade, and exporting more goods than it imported.

Like the other colonies, Georgia was expected to help increase Britain's trade and wealth, but some things about Georgia would be different when it came to its economic operations.

One example is that the trustees banned slavery.

Oglethorpe noticed the unbalanced competition between rich plantation owners, and small farmers in colonies like South Carolina and North Carolina.

He wanted all of Georgia settlers to have a fair shot at making money.

So slavery was forbidden.

Rum was also outlawed in the new colony.

Britain was relying on Georgia to produce wrist crops, wine, rice, indigo, silk, and tobacco.

And the trustees worried that access to rum would make the colonists lazy.

While the restrictions on rum and slavery would soon disappear, they revealed the trustee's hope for a colony were effort and determination, not alcohol or enslaved labor led to success.

Philanthropy and economics were clearly important aspects for the new colony.

But the charter of 1732 made it clear that defense was the top priority for Georgia's founding.

In the 1730's, South Carolina was making a lot of money for Britain.

Spanish forces and their indigenous allies in La, Florida were seen as a possible threat.

So England decided that Georgia would act as a military buffer.

To help protect South Carolina, forts were constructed between Spanish, Florida, and Georgia.

And Oglethorpe recruited highly skilled soldiers from Scotland, known as the Highland Scots.

With the colonies objectives, philanthropy, economics, and defense outlined in the charter of 1732, James Oglethorpe and approximately 114 settlers sailed from England to Georgia that same year.

While there were successes, the great Georgia experiment experienced growing pains for the next two decades.

Some colonists, like the malcontents viewed the charter's rules as to rigid.

They felt that it limited economic opportunities, especially compared to neighboring colonies that allowed slavery.

As the leading trustee, Oglethorpe faced a tough problem, when he backed up the trustees' regulations, the colonists complained, but if he relaxed the rules, then the trustees would push back.

Maintaining influence while trying to keep everyone happy is tough for anyone, but imagine doing it when the goals of all people involved are so different.

Eventually, Georgia became too difficult for the trustees to manage.

Out of the total 71 people who served as trustees, only four made it to their last meeting in 1752.

By this time, even James Oglethorpe had called it quits.

The charter was already nearing its expiration, so control of Georgia was handed over to the British government.

With that, the charter of 1732, and the era of the trustee rule came to an end.

Though the document itself was short-lived, its impact on Georgia's history lasted far longer.

The charter of 1732 literally put Georgia on the map, but more importantly, it established a purpose for the colony, philanthropy, economics, and defense.

A lot has changed since then, but Georgia as a place of opportunity, that part still rings true today.

(bright music)