John Smith
The General History
Of Virginia
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Born in 1580 in
Willoughby, England,
John Smith left home at
age 16 after his father
died.
From early youth he
was a soldier, and for
four years he was in
wars in the Netherlands.
Smith’s Coat of Arms
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At the age of twenty-seven, already
greatly renowned, he sailed for
America on Dec. 19, 1606 with
Captain Christopher Newport.
Newport commanded three vessels
that bore 105 emigrants who were
preparing to form the colony of
Virginia under the grant and direct
patronage of James I.
King James I
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Smith had made himself so useful that the king
named him as one of the councilors of the new
colony.
The voyage was by the southern route, and was
long and tedious.
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The fleet anchored May
13, 1607.
The settlement received
the name of Jamestown,
in further demonstration
of loyalty to the king.
Illustration of the original settlement
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When the first re-supply ship did not return to
Jamestown in November, John Smith set out to
trade with the Indians for food.
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In December
1607, Smith was
captured by
several Indian
warriors and taken
to a local chief
named Powhatan.
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Smith was made
to take part in
some sort of
ritual or trial,
after which, in
keeping with an
Indian custom,
he was made a
subordinate chief
in the tribe.
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Smith was convinced
that Pocahontas,
Powhatan’s 11 year
old daughter, had
saved his life.
Pocahontas
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By early 1608 only 38 of the original 104
colonists were still alive
Due to bad government and near chaos, Smith
was eventually elected president of the local
council in September 1608.
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Badly wounded by a gunpowder explosion in
the fall of 1609, Smith returned to England.
Smith spent his remaining years in England
writing books about America.
Smith died in 1631.