Starving Time

England?s Imperial Stirrings By the year 1607, Central and South America was largely controlled by Spain or Portugal, but North America was mostly unclaimed. In North America, there were few Europeans. Spain had established Santa Fe. France had established Quebec. Britain had just established Jamestown, and it was struggling. In the 1500s, Britain had made only feeble efforts to colonize America. There was a rash of problems hinging on a mix of religion and politics? King Henry VIII?had broken with the Roman Catholic Church in the 1530s, brining the Protestant Reformation to England and thus creating religious division. When Elizabeth I became queen, England moved decidedly in the Protestant direction. This also meant Catholic Spain was an immediate rival.