Part 3 The Powhatan and Jamestown

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Jamestown and the Powhatan

Colonial America

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They sailed closer to the shoreline into what is now called the Chesapeake Bay area

only those who worked would eat.

Captain John Smith was hardworking and organized. Many historians believe that without him, Jamestown would not have survived. When John Smith finally took charge of the settlement, he did not “beat around the bush.” Smith introduced a very direct rule:

John Smith knew it would be a huge challenge for the settlers to survive the cold winter months. As the weeks went by, Smith urged everyone to work on the construction of Jamestown, to gather fruits and berries, to fish and hunt, and to use sparingly, or very carefully, the little food they had stored.

There are several different accounts of what happened during this time. One well-known version of the story, which you may have heard, tells how when the cold winter months came, many of Smith’s fellow settlers were sick and starving to death. John Smith set off to hunt, and to persuade the Powhatan to give them food.

According to this account, which some might call a legend, Smith was captured by Powhatan warriors and taken to their chief because they wanted to kill the man who was leading the foreigners. Then, as the story goes, just moments away from Smith’s death, the chief’s young daughter Pocahontas, or Matoaka (MAH-toe-AH-kah), begged her father to spare Smith.The chief agreed to his daughter’s request, and Smith was released.

This common ritual in many Native American cultures involves the figurative “killing” of a person’s identity in order to be reborn into a new identity. So, these historians believe the Powhatan were going to figuratively “kill” John Smith’s English indentity so he could become a Powhatan.

Many historians today believe that this may be a romanticized version of what happened. They believe that Powhatan did not actually intend to kill John Smith. Instead, he wanted to adopt Smith into the Powhatan tribe.

He immediately set to work hunting and fishing, and doing what he could to persuade his cold, hungry, disheartened companions that all was not lost.

Snow was on the ground, and their food supply was very low. Some were even spending their time foolishly, searching for gold. Smith was not pleased.

When Smith returned to the Jamestown settlement, the colonists had abandoned their work schedule. They were squabbling, or arguing, among themselves again.

Then, one day, a small band of Powhatan, led by Pocahontas, appeared out of the forest. Having taken pity on this bunch of disorganized foreigners, the Powhatan brought with them much needed food

Pocahontas and members of the Powhatan tribe returned many times with food and general aid, or help. They also taught the English new hunting and farming techniques.

Needless to say, the Powhatan were not happy to see even more strangers coming to live on the land they inhabited.

The food the Powhatan provided was enough to keep the English alive until help from their homeland arrived. That help came in January 1608, when Captain Newport’s ship, the Susan Constant, arrived laden with food and more than one hundred new settlers.

Then, tragedy struck...

For a while, the situation for Smith and his men improved. With more food to eat, they had energy to work. With more men, theyhad more hands to help construct the much-needed homes.

Somehow—and it is not certain how—a fire broke out. The fierce flames quickly devoured many of the buildings, as well as some of the food supply and clothes.

The English had no choice but to start again. Fortunately, by this time, the weather was getting warmer. The Powhatan had taught them how to grow corn, which they called maize, now that the weather was better.

The English had no choice but to start again. Fortunately, by this time, the weather was getting warmer. The Powhatan had taught them how to grow corn, which they called maize, now that the weather was better.

However, no gold was found. It seems that Captain Newport transported nothing more than a shipload of dirt acrossthe Atlantic Ocean!

The gold-hungry colonists were certain that tiny pieces of gold would be found once the dirt was properly examined in England.

Some historians have written that the colonists who had been wasting their time searching for gold persuaded Captain Newport to load his ship with a large amount of red-colored dirt and bring it with him.

When spring came, Captain Newport set sail for England.

Yes, two women! One woman, Mrs. Thomas Forrest, was the wife of one of the men on board, and the other was her maid, Ann Burras. They were the first two women to live in Jamestown!

Captain Newport returned to Jamestown again in the fall. The English colonists were happy to see him again. This time, Newport brought more supplies, as well as seventy men, and two women.

Some of the other new settlers were from Poland and Germany, and they brought the skill of glassmaking to the colony

“He that gathereth not every day as much as I do, the next day shall be set beyond the river and be banished from the fort as a drone till he amend his conditions or starve.”

In fact, these are Captain John Smith’s exact words:

By this time, John Smith had been elected president of the colony, and he had consistently enforced his rule: all must work if they wanted to eat.

Under John Smith’s leadership, the colony began to prosper. Smith continued to establish fairly good relations with the Powhatan Indians. The two communities even began to trade with each other. The settlers traded beads and copper for food.

However, two years after Jamestown was established, John Smith was injured in a gunpowder explosion. Without medical assistance, his wounds would not heal. Smith was forced to return to England.

The man chosen to lead the colony in Smith’s absence was George Percy. Unfortunately, Percy was not as good a leader as Smith had been. However, to be fair, he did have a challenge on his hands from the moment he arrived. After Smith left, the Powhatan seemed to have a change of heart with regard to their new neighbors

Without John Smith there to actively promote friendship and trade between the Native Americans and the colonists, relations began to suffer. The Powhatan no longer had someone they felt they could trust within the colony, and they became wary of the Colonists.

They began to raid Jamestown and steal essential supplies, especially food. They fought with the English settlers, killing some of them. In addition, the English settlers—without John Smith there to enforce his rules—did not manage their foodsupplies as carefully as they should have.

This time the Powhatan refused to help the English settlers. The settlers waited anxiously for a ship that was due to arrive with supplies. But no ship appeared on the horizon. The winter of 1609 to 1610 became known as the “starving time” because the colonists ran out of food and many of them died.

Both ships had been badly damaged at sea and had just barely made it to Virginia. The ships were low on supplies. The settlers begged to be taken back to England, and the two captains agreed.

Finally, one spring day, two ships were spotted. They were the Patience and the Deliverance. The settlers who had survived ran to the banks of the James River in eager anticipation.

Lord De la Warr, it seems, had saved the day—well, the entire settlement, actually. He had led three ships across the Atlantic filled to the brim with Englishmen and supplies destined for Jamestown.

The retreating settlers were immediately informed that Lord De la Warr, appointed by King James to be the new governor of Jamestown, was close behind.

Just as the surviving settlers had turned their backs on Jamestown and set sail for England, they spotted an advance party of Englishmen sailing toward them.

Perhaps the most incredible part of this story is what happened next...

The Powhatan must have been horrified to see the settlers return. Even worse, there were more of them!

However, Lord De la Warr did not reach out to the Powhatan as John Smith had. Things in England were changing, and the instructions to Jamestown from the Virginia Company of London were to stop trading with and relying upon the nearby Native Americans.

Under his leadership, the buildings were repaired, and the food and supplies were efficiently managed.

Fortunately for the settlers, Lord De la Warr turned out to be a good leader. He restored a sense of order in Jamestown.

Over the next several years, more and more skilled settlers made their way to Virginia. Eventually, in 1619, the first shipload of women arrived. Colonists began to raise families in this English colony.

Although gold was not discovered, something just as valuable was. In time, a settler named John Rolfe began to establish a relationship with the Powhatan once again. Guided by the Powhatan, and under the supervision of John Rolfe, the settlers began to grow tobacco.

Members of the House of Burgesses were chosen to represent areas of the colony of Virginia. Of course, only men could be chosen, but the House of Burgesses would eventually pave the way for self-government and, ultimately, independence.

That was, as long as the colonists remembered who was really in charge. On July 30, 1619, the first lawmaking assembly gathered in the Virginia House of Burgesses.

There were other important developments that took place in 1619. Now that things were going quite well in the English colonies, the English government felt comfortable allowing the colonists to make certain rules of their own.

Pocahontas’s father was willing to return the kidnapped settlers in exchange for his daughter, but not the firearms. In response, the settlers refused to let Pocahontas go

It was during another period of conflict between the Powhatan and the settlers, that the Powhatan kidnapped some of the settlers and took several firearms, or guns. In response, the settlers kidnapped Pocahontas.

Consequently, or as a result, Pocahontas spent quite a bit of time in the English settlement—several years, in fact.

Sadly, just as Pocahontas and John Rolfe were preparing to return to Virginia, she became very ill. Pocahontas died on March 21, 1617, at the age of 22, and was buried in England.

During this time, Pocahontas and John Rolfe were married and had a son named Thomas. During this time, Pocahontas converted to Christianity and took the name Rebecca. She and John Rolfe traveled together to England, where they were guests at the court of King James.