ONE LAND
DIFFERENT LIVES
400TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE JAMESTOWN LANDINGS
A Survival International publication
www.survival-international.org
Master reference drawn 27.10.03
400 ANNIVERSARY OF THE JAMESTOWN LANDINGS
TH
1607:
ONE LAND, DIFFERENT LIVES
POCAHONTAS’S PEOPLE:
THE POWHATAN CONFEDERACY
POWHATAN LIFE
The Powhatans were a confederacy of about 30 tribes,
Powhatan society was divided into different classes,
The Powhatan way of life was dictated by the seasons.
the most southerly members of the Algonquian language
with status dependent on wealth, acquired through
Everything they used, either to dress, build their houses
group. There were approximately 12,000 of them.
warfare, and the collection of corn, metal, and skins.
or make their tools, came from their environment. They
The leader governed a council comprised of men from
held invaluable knowledge of the forest, rivers, animals,
the upper class, and the priest who held an important
and plants.
The confederacy was named after Powhatan,
Pocahontas’s father. Although, his real name was
Wahunsonacock, the English named him Powhatan after
the area where he lived. This confederacy, as with similar
ones, was glued together by persuasion rather than
force: Wahunsonacock’s father, a powerful figure who
had imposed his authority over the other peoples, had
brought the tribes together. The member tribes paid
tribute and accepted his authority in exchange for
role. Each tribe lived in a village of their own but they
shared many things, such as religious beliefs and
cultural traditions. They had no written language;
instead they recorded important events through
story telling and symbolic drawing. Every member
of the tribe had to pay taxes in the form of deerskins,
corn or copper to their leader, in return for his or
her protection.
protection, and help in war. A powerful leader could
pumpkins, sunflowers and beans, and they
supplemented this with fishing and hunting. The
men hunted and fished, while the women were
responsible for farming, building their homes and
cooking (and cutting their husbands’ hair!).
Powhatan children wore no clothes. At the age of about
12 they began to dress as adults, with the girls wearing
extend his influence by conquering new tribes, but
others occasionally broke free. Under this overarching
They lived mainly by agriculture: growing corn,
MAP: CHESAPEAKE BAY
an apron made from deerskin decorated with rows of
beads. In the winter, they put oil on their skin for warmth.
political structure, each tribe had its own leader. A
Virginian Indians near Roanoke, original watercolour
by John White (later etched by Theodor de Bry).
In 1600, there were 12,000 Powhatans; one
hundred years later just 1,000 survived.hatans.
Both men and women decorated their bodies with paint
female leader was known as werowansqua, whilst
made from roots and women wore necklaces, bracelets,
a male leader was referred to as werowance.
and earrings made from pearls, shell beads, copper,
The chiefs of the ‘subsidiary’ tribes provided
animal teeth or bone.
CONTACT
The English first landed in 1607. Between then and
the early 1620s, they traded for food and often stole
Wahunsonacock with a council to govern and punish
wrongdoers. Interestingly, Wahunsonacock was probably
the son of a Caribbean Indian who had fled his homeland
in the 16th Century because of the Spaniards’ invasion.
There was also time for recreational activities too!
American Indian produce at gunpoint, whilst at the
Swimming and canoeing races, dancing, and singing are
same time condemning the Indians as savages. The
a few examples of how Powhatans enjoyed themselves.
English were obsessed with the idea of finding gold,
and were not prepared to do much other work. There
The English were prejudiced against the Indians,
HOMES
governed themselves well. An English colonist,
Their homes were called yehakin and were made from
in Jamestown (the initial colony). By 1625, 6,040 out
Alexander Whitaker, said they have, ‘a rude kind of
saplings bent together at the top, with floors covered
of the 7,289 immigrants had died.
commonwealth, wherein they both honour and obey
by straw and grass matting. The yehakin were
the first wave of 100 colonists died in the first summer
constructed next to the fields the Powhatans farmed
European diseases were also disastrous for the
John Smith (whom Pocahontas allegedly saved)
and were rebuilt each time they moved to new pastures.
Indians, who had no resistance against illnesses,
said, ‘Although the Country people [American Indians]
This ensured long-term use of the land, as it allowed a
such as smallpox, and died in their thousands.
be very barbarous, yet have they amongst them such
their kins, parents, and governors…’ And Captain
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was a very high death rate amongst them: over half of
but they were forced to admit that the Powhatans
Jamestown was the site of the first English colony.
period of rest for the planting fields. It also relied on a
At the same time, more and more settlers came
government, as that their Magistrates for good
principle of sharing with other tribes from the Powhatan
in, supplanting the Powhatan tribe and demanding
commanding, and their people for due subjection
confederacy, who could use the land once it was fertile
food. Eventually, in 1622, the Powhatans could not
and obeying, excel many places that would be
again. Houses were tunnel-like and had a central
stand it any more and Wahunsonacock’s half-brother,
counted very civil.’
fireplace that was used all year round: in summer the
Opechancanough, attacked the colony after a revered
smoke eradicated mosquitoes, whilst in winter it
Powhatan man called Nemattanew was killed.
heated and dried their homes.
Opechancanough’s men killed 347 colonists
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400 ANNIVERSARY OF THE JAMESTOWN LANDINGS
TH
SETTLING ON POWHATAN LAND
(a quarter of the population), but Jamestown itself
The economic changes in England during the 15th
The English colonists assumed that any seemingly
was warned and could defend itself. The English
and 16th centuries transformed relations to the land
unoccupied land could be claimed. Although the
At the time, the region was experiencing one of the
decided this was their justification to kill the Powhatan
and made the settling of America both feasible and
island on which Jamestown was established was
greatest droughts it had ever known. If the Powhatans
tribe once and for all, ‘with horses, and blood hounds to
desirable. New rules relating to the private ownership
part of Powhatan land, the Powhatans did not
had initially agreed to trade food with the settlers, they
draw after them, the mastives to seaze them, which take
of land enabled English landowners to legally fence
inhabit the island: being in the middle of the river,
increasingly tended to keep the food provisions and
this naked, tanned, deformed savage, for no other than
off their grazing land for sheep (a process known as
the site was swampy and infested with mosquitoes,
hunted game for themselves as resources became
wild beasts.’ From then on, the aim of the colonists was
‘enclosure’). This had two important consequences
with virtually no animals to hunt, no land to farm,
scarce through the winter. The settlers’ response was
to exterminate the tribe. In one incident, the colonists
for the colonisation of America. On the one hand, it
and no drinkable water. When the settlers landed
to threaten the Indians and to take the leader’s son as
invited an entire community to a peace council, and
provided capital, since landowners, wool manufacturers,
in April 1607, they might have been safe from
hostage. The relations between both parties deteriorated
then poisoned them. In another, about 1,000 Indians
and merchants began looking for new ways to invest
European attacks, but not from dysentery, malaria,
and both led attacks with the aim of getting rid of each
were killed in an attack on the village of Pamunkey.
their new-found wealth from the wool trade. On the
scurvy, typhoid fever, and starvation.
other. So much so that when another group of settlers
other hand, it provided willing workers, since small
Opechancanough survived and made another attempt
to wipe out the English colony in 1644, when he was
an old man. The Powhatans killed another 500 colonists,
but by that time this was only one sixteenth of the total
colony. The Powhatans’ fate was embodied in that of
Opechancanough who was captured in 1646, when he
tenant farmers who had previously rented their land
from large landowners lost both their land and
livelihoods. Many had to move into urban areas to
look for jobs, but frequently resorted to begging or
stealing to survive. Migration to an unknown land
often represented an opportunity for a better life.
was over 100 years old, paraded through the town and
then shot.
Disease and genocide had almost wiped out the
Powhatan population by the end of the 17th Century:
from 12,000 Powhatans in 1600, there were less than
1,000 by 1700. In that time the number of colonists
had grown to 100,000.
Today, only eight of the 30 Powhatan tribes
remain with very reduced numbers.
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arrived and tried to meet with the indigenous people
It is likely that the Powhatans saw the colonists
arriving on 26th May 1607, as the Indians controlled
the waterways and are reported to have attacked the
colonists immediately after landing. This was not the
first time the Powhatans would have seen European
in 1587, the latter refused. Under such threatening
circumstances and fearing for their lives, the settlers
sent their governor back to England for help. When
he was finally able to return to Roanoke Island in 1590,
he found the colony abandoned.
settlers, and they had ample reason to feel threatened.
In 1570, the Spanish had tried to establish a Jesuit
Thus we do not know how the Roanoke settlement
Therefore, settling in America happened to be in
mission, but probably of greater significance to the
ended, and a number of interpretations exist. One theory
the interest of both wealthy landowners and poor
Powhatans was their experience in 1585 of the first
proposes that the settlers had no option but to disperse
unskilled workers, the latter usually being adventurous,
unsuccessful English settlement at Roanoke in the
and assimilate with the tribes living in the region. Another
young men. In 1606, King James I divided the land
southern part of their territory (please see: ‘Roanoke
suggests that they grew tired of waiting for their governor
now known as the state of Virginia between two
Island ban’).
to return and perished attempting to return to England on
groups of competing English merchants. The official
motive was to spread Christianity, but the merchants’
real intention was to find gold, silver and any precious
material possible.
their own. A third theory involves John Smith and his
Following such encounters, the Powhatans were wary
of Europeans and let it be known that they were ready
to defend their land. In less than two weeks, their
attacks caused the death of one settler and left many
In December 1606, an expedition was sent by the
others wounded. Consequently, the settlers made
Virginia Company of London to establish an agricultural
building a fort at Jamestown a priority, whilst fear
EUROPEAN DESIRE FOR OVERSEAS LAND:
WHY AND HOW?
colony. At the time, the English were not alone in
and anger at the Powhatans grew.
The European settlers arrived on the American continent
French, Dutch, and Spanish in what was a fierce
with varying motives, largely determined by the context
competition for power. Because of this, the expedition
of European trade. For centuries, Arab traders controlled
maintained a military nature and all men were required
international trade (between Europe, Asia, and Africa)
to serve in the armed forces. Their decision to settle
and Europeans bought goods such as silk, spices, and
on a small island in the middle of what they called the
precious stones from them at high prices. In the 15th
James River was due to the Virginia Company of
companions, whose task, among others, was to try and
locate the Roanoke colonists. The Powhatans apparently
told Smith that they killed the colonists as the latter were
developing relations with the rival Chesapeake tribe.
colonising overseas land and were at war with the
century, European kingdoms sought to control trade
London’s advice to select a site that could be easily
routes to increase their wealth and power. Columbus
defended against possible Spanish, Dutch or French
came upon the American continent whilst searching
attacks. This island was to become Jamestown, the
for a route to India that avoided going round Africa.
first permanent English settlement in North America.
ROANOKE ISLAND BAN
The colonising of Roanoke Island was financed and
organised by Sir Walter Raleigh, whose ambitions
were to profit from the trading of American riches
with England. A first trip was undertaken in 1584,
from which the English returned with samples of the
local flora and fauna, as well as two kidnapped American
Indians, Manteo and Wanchese. A second trip was
To Europeans, the colonising of America appeared to be
organised in 1585 to establish a proper colony. As the
Secotan, an Algonquin village on the Pamlico River,
a worthwhile investment, providing an invaluable source
newcomers explored the land, they came into contact
between 1610-1620. Engraving by Theodor de Bry,
of raw materials and precious metals.
with more American Indian tribes.
from an original drawing by John White.
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400 ANNIVERSARY OF THE JAMESTOWN LANDINGS
TH
POCAHONTAS:
THE REAL STORY
Pocahontas’s real name was Matoaka: Pocahontas (‘little
However, they only got as far as Gravesend in the
to Squanto of the Petuxet Wampanoag tribe, who
play thing’) was her nickname. She was the daughter of
Thames estuary, for Pocahontas was suddenly taken
learned to speak English whilst enslaved by earlier
Powhatan, and was about 12 years old in 1607 when
ill there, and died almost immediately. She was 22
colonists. He introduced them to the large and well-
a party of Englishmen led by Captain John Smith was
years old.
established Wampanoag people, who kindly provided
them with food. They also taught the Europeans what
exploring along the Chickahominy River northwest of the
She was buried at St George’s Church in Gravesend,
new Jamestown colony. They were surprised by a group
where a statue in the churchyard commemorates her.
of Powhatan men, led by Opechancanough, who took
Her son Thomas later returned home. Through him,
Captain John Smith prisoner.
and taught them many invaluable skills that ensured
the colony’s development.
many people claim to descend from Pocahontas,
According to Smith, the Powhatans held him captive
including the Duchess of Windsor, the wife of a
The following autumn, the settlers organised a
for several weeks until he arrived at the village of
former US President, and an American Senator.
three-day feast with Squanto and the Petuxet
Werowocomoco, where he was due to be executed. But
The claim to be ‘descended from an Indian princess’
Wampanoags to celebrate the year’s harvest and
at the crucial moment, ‘two great stones were brought
is prevalent throughout America and derives in large
to honour them for having saved their lives. It is
before Powhatan: then as many as could layd hands on
part from the Pocahontas legend.
recalled as the ‘first thanksgiving’.
Because the known facts are so few, this legend
Unfortunately, as the Powhatans had previously
has been shaped and twisted countless ways
experienced, the settlers did not thank the Petuxet
throughout the centuries to suit the purposes
Wampanoags for their generosity by offering a respectful
of the time. Pocahontas’s story has been used
share of the land. As the number of settlers grew, the
for everything from attacking slavery to advocating
question of ownership of the land became a bone of
the superiority of European culture and she has
contention. If the earlier Puritans had respected
been called both a ‘savage’ and ‘the virgin queen
American Indian ways, it was not the case with the
of the West’.
new settlers. They sought individual prosperity and
him [Smith], dragged him to them, and thereon laid his
© Clare Adams/Survival
head, and being ready with their clubs, to beate out his
braines, Pocahontas the Kings dearest daughter, when
no entreaty could prevaile, got his head in her armes and
laid her owne upon his to save him from death: whereat
the Emperour was contented he should live to make him
hatchets, and her bells, beads, and copper.’
Pocahontas came to the rescue of the English
What is certain is the next stage of Pocahontas’s life
settlers a second time, when in January 1608, soon
when an English captain, Samuel Argall, kidnapped
after Smith’s release, the colony was almost destroyed
her in 1613 to use her as ransom for the release of
by fire. Pocahontas brought food and warm clothing
English prisoners. She was held captive for a year,
THANKSGIVING
What began as a productive collaboration ended in
to the colonists, thus ensuring their survival.
during which time she was baptised as a Christian,
Thanksgiving began several years after the settlement
attempted genocide. Settlers seized the land through
and at the end of which she married a 28year-old
of Jamestown. However, we could consider
violent methods, enslaving a number of Virginian Indians
English settler, John Rolfe. Two years later, in 1616,
Pocahontas’s gifts of food and clothes to the colonists
and killing the rest. Settlers attacked local tribes as they
the Virginia Company, the enterprise behind the
to help them survive the winter of 1608 as a similar
gathered for cultural ceremonies. John Winthrop,
Jamestown settlement, brought her to England
event, 12 years earlier.
Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony between
In his autobiography, Smith says that Pocahontas
saved his life again a year later, when she warned
him of a plan to kill him.
Nobody knows today if Smith’s story is true. He has
often been accused of exaggerating details of his life for
dramatic effect and self-promotion. There is conflicting
evidence as to the authenticity of his accounts, and it
may well have been that he misunderstood what was
happening to him. On the other hand, it seems likely
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and how to farm. Squanto stayed among the settlers
decided that since it was not managed in a European
manner, the land was theirs.
with Rolfe and their small son. The company wanted
to show off to the English public the success of the
colony in ‘pacifying’ and ‘civilising’ the natives, and
use her to encourage investment. During her stay,
she was presented to English society and to any
potential investors in the company.
1631 and 1648, was reported to declare, ‘A day of
In fact, the settlers that arrived in 1620 at a place they
later called ‘Plymouth Plantation’ were actually heading
Thanksgiving, thanking God, for eliminating their
enemies so swiftly.’
for Virginia. But their ship got blown off course and
landed in what is now Massachusetts. They were
When Thanksgiving became a national celebration, it
Puritans, a religious group led by separatists from the
was based on the peaceful, happy ‘first thanksgiving’.
Church of England. Less than 50 of the 110 pilgrims
However, by then, many American Indians had died,
that some significant event did occur between him
After a year in England, Pocahontas and her family
that settled in Massachusetts survived the first winter.
either from European diseases or by the settlers’
and Pocahontas.
began the return journey in the spring of 1617.
Faced with a new environment, they owed their survival
efforts at exterminating them.
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400 ANNIVERSARY OF THE JAMESTOWN LANDINGS
TH
TIMELINE
1570
1584
1585-87
May 1607
••
•
•
Spanish Jesuits set up a mission by the York River in Chesapeake Bay. It will only last a few months.
The English reach Roanoke Island in July and return to England in September.
The English return to Roanoke Island on three different voyages to establish a colony.
When new settlers arrive in 1590, they find it abandoned.
14 May: the English reach Chesapeake Bay and decide to settle. They establish Jamestown by
the Powhatan River, which they will later rename James River. Both are named after King James I.
They explore the river up to the falls and Powhatan’s village. Within a fortnight, the Powhatans who
refuse to share their land with the new settlers attack them.
26 May: John Smith records in his journal that about two hundred Powhatans attacked the settlement,
killing one and wounding eleven.
Dec 1607
Jan 1608
1609
1613
April 1614
1616
1617
1620
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Opechancanough ambushes John Smith’s expedition team and captures Smith (the other members
of the expedition are killed). He brings him to his brother Powhatan, the leader of the Powhatan
Confederacy. John Smith will remain captive for four months, during which time he meets the
leader’s daughter, Pocahontas.
Powhatan releases Smith and guides him back to Jamestown. When Smith arrives, he finds the
settlement on the verge of collapse.
Captain Christopher Newport, who returned to England in 1607 to recruit more settlers, arrives with
100 new people. They find only 38 survivors at Jamestown.
7 January: a great fire destroys most of the settlement and leaves the new settlers in despair.
Pocahontas comes to rescue them and provides food and clothing.
‘MAKA KE WAKEN
– the land is sacred.
The land is our mother,
the rivers our blood.
Take away our land
and we die.’
Mary Brave Bird, Brule Sioux, USA
Under the leadership of John Smith, the colony starts farming and trading with the Powhatans.
August: seven ships arrive, bringing over 200 new settlers.
September: Smith returns to England to recover from a gunpowder wound. He will never return to the
colony. After his departure, relations with the Powhatans deteriorate. The Indians lay siege to the fort,
preventing settlers from getting food other than the few provisions they have in the fort. The event is
recalled as ‘the starving time’.
Pocahontas is kidnapped by the English, who ask for the release of English hostages detained by the
Powhatans. The Powhatans release some of their detainees but the English do not free Pocahontas,
who has no choice but to assimilate to her new life among the settlers.
Following her baptism, Pocahontas marries John Rolfe in April. Rolfe is the first English tobacco cultivator.
The marriage ensures relative peace between the English and Powhatans for eight years.
Pocahontas, her husband and son, Thomas, leave Virginia for England. As the daughter of the Powhatan
Confederacy’s chief she is considered an ‘aristocrat’ and is received by the King and the Queen.
1617 Pocahontas dies in England. She is buried in Gravesend, Kent.
The Mayflower ship arrives in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The colony will only survive thanks to the
Wampanoag people who provide them with food. The event is now celebrated as ‘Thanksgiving’.
We help tribal peoples defend
their lives, protect their lands
and determine their own futures.
Survival International
6 Charterhouse Buildings, London EC1M 7ET, UK
T: 020 7687 8700 E: [email protected]
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Master reference drawn 27.10.03
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