About the Excellence of the Georgian English Colony: 1747

This book is a translation of the 1747 account of the founding of the Georgia colony, Ebenezer, written by Johannes Agustus Urlsperger of Germany. Urlsperger argues there are four chief causes for colonies to be established: ‘Removal of those inconvenient to the kingdom’; ‘Fruitfulness of the Land’; ‘Trade’; and ‘Defense:’ The Salzburgers settled in Ebenezer after being recruited by General James Oglethorpe. Having been persecuted in Europe, the Salzburgers found Ebenezer a welcome sanctuary. Urlsperger provides rich details on the soils, crops, animals, forests, minerals, and climate that make Georgia so productive. He conducts an economic analysis of the potential trade colony suggesting that each colonist could support five foreigners. With regard to defense, he argues that Georgia, because it was the first line of defense against the Spanish in Florida, protected all the English colonies. Miller concludes with a detailed discussion of the government, administration and daily life of the Salzburgers in Ebenezer.