New Colonists, New Rules The Southern colony had an interesting government. Many colonies were influenced by their government and started their own government very similar to the Southern colonies. In 1619 the Virginia Company had over 1,000 colonists. The Virginia company was a company that was approved by King James I to build settlements in the colony of Virginia. With these many colonists the towns grew chaotic. As a result, the Virginia Company decided to create laws to keep order. To create these new laws the Virginia company set up a legislature. A legislature is a lawmaking branch of government.
The House of Burgesses Virginia’s legislature was called the House of Burgesses. The House of Burgesses