Jamestown
England’s First Colony in the Americas
1. Introduction: Late Expectations
Many modern American citizens consider Great Britain to be their European
"parent" country. However, by the time British arrived in the New World and
established their first permanent settlement at Jamestown in 1607, much of the
continent had already been claimed by other European nations. The Spanish,
the Dutch, the Swedish, and the French were already on the scene. All of the
modern Southwest, including Texas and California, had been colonized by
Spanish settlers for about a century. The entire expanse of land between the
Appalachian Mountains and the Rocky Mountains had at one point been
claimed by France. (If you want to figure out who settled an area first, look to
the names of the cities. Examples: Los Angeles is Spanish. Baton Rouge is
French. Boston is a city in England. Milwaukee is Native American.)
So, why was England so late to start colonies in the Americas? England was not
the most powerful European nation in the 16th century. Spain was most
influential. Along with Portugal, Spain dominated New World exploration in the
decades that followed Columbus. Although England was an island and therefore
a seafaring nation, Spain was the undisputed superpower of the seas in the
16th century. Many of England's adventurous sea captains found that robbing
Spanish ships was a far simpler means of acquiring wealth than establishing
colonies. France, the Netherlands, and Sweden all showed greater interest in the
Western Hemisphere than England did.
2. Roanoke
Sir Walter Raleigh led the England’s first attempt to form a colony in the
Americas. In 1585, Raleigh's men settled on the small island off the coast of
modern-day North Carolina. His expedition to Ronoake did not fare very well.
Relations with the Native American inhabitants were peaceful at first, but as the
colonists' supplies dwindled, their goodwill toward the natives also dwindled.
The colonists left in 1586 after beheading the local Indian chief.
Raleigh arranged for Governor John White and a group of families to return to
live in peace with the natives in 1587. Violence, however, is not easily forgotten.
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Within one month, hostilities resumed, and White was forced to return to
England to ask Raleigh for reinforcements.
Time was not on White's side. When war with Spain erupted, White could not
return to the colony for three years. When he finally returned to Roanoke Island
in August 1590, he searched frantically for the settlers, including his daughter
and granddaughter, the first English New World baby, named Virginia Dare.
The first English baby born in the new colony, Virginia
Dare, disappeared along with the rest of the "lost colony."
All that could be found was the remains of a village and a mysterious word,
"CROATOAN," engraved on a tree. White concluded there must be a connection
between the word and a nearby Indian tribe, but before he could investigate, a
violent storm forced him out to sea and back to England. This lost colony
remains one of the greatest mysteries of the colonial period.
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3. Joint-Stock Companies
The joint-stock company was the forerunner of the modern corporation. In a
joint-stock venture, stock was sold to wealthy investors. These investors then
owned a share of the company. In return, they would get a share of any profits
that company made. But if the company did not make a profit, the investors
would get nothing. These companies had proven profitable in the past with
trading ventures. The risk was small, and the returns were fairly quick.
But investing in a colony was an altogether different venture. The risk was
larger as the colony might fail. The startup costs were enormous and the
returns might take years. Investors in such endeavors needed more than a
small sense of adventure.
Who led these English colonial expeditions? Often, these leaders were second
sons from noble families. Under English law, only the first-born male could
inherit property. As such, Sir Francis Drake, Sir Walter Raleigh, and Sir
Humphrey Gilbert were all second sons with a thirst to find their own riches.
Others came for adventure, or because they wanted to start their life over with
a clean slate. Even Englishmen who did not want to make the voyage
themselves invested their money so they could also take part in the adventure.
With motivated, adventurous, and devout investors, the joint-stock company
became the vehicle by which England finally settled the Western Hemisphere.
This starkly contrasted with Spanish and French settlements. New Spain and
New France were developed by their kings. The English colonies were developed
by their people. Many historians argue that the primary reason the relatively
small and late English colonization effort ultimately outlasted its predecessors
was because individuals had a true stake in its success.
4. The Virginia Company establishes Jamestown
The first joint-stock company to launch a lasting venture to the New World was
the Virginia Company of London. In 1607, They sent 144 English men and boys
to establish the Jamestown colony. The settlers chose a location close to the
water, hoping to establish a thriving community. They named it after King
James I.
The Virginia Company investors had one goal in mind: gold. They hoped to
repeat the success of Spaniards who found gold in South America. The
colonists were told that if they did not generate any wealth, financial support
for their efforts would end. Many of the men spent their days vainly searching
for gold. As a consequence, the colonists spent little time farming. Food
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supplies dwindled. Malaria and the harsh winter hit the colonists hard, as well.
After the first year, only 38 of the original 144 had survived.
5. John Smith
The colony may well have perished had it not been for the leadership of John
Smith. Back in England, a restless Smith became involved with the Virginia
Company, which wanted to colonize Virginia. On Dec. 20, 1606, three small
ships carrying 104 settlers, including Smith, left England, bound for Virginia.
During the trip, Smith was arrested for mutiny. According to Smith, the
gentlemen on board were jealous of his military and naval experience and
looked down on him because of his rural upbringing. He said they accused him
of plotting to seize power for himself. He spent most of the voyage in irons and
was nearly hanged.
What the gentlemen didn’t know was that prior to departure, the leaders of the
Virginia Company had selected seven voyagers to govern the colony. They put
the names of the chosen in a sealed box, which was not to be opened until
arrival in Virginia. Upon landfall four months later, the colonists opened the
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box and discovered that Smith’s name was among the chosen leaders. Smith
was allowed to take up a position on the council — but he remained disliked.
Early on, Jamestown was plagued by several problems: drought, harsh winters,
swamps, famine, thirst, disease and skirmishes with the natives. Smith’s
approach to these problems differed from many of the council members. Smith
regarded the other leaders as gentlemen with no knowledge or experience in
how to fight for survival. An early advocate of tough love, John Smith is
remembered for his strict leadership and for saving the settlement from
starvation. "Work or starve" was his motto, and each colonist was required to
spend four hours per day farming.
After five months in Jamestown, Smith and two other councilmen came
together to remove colony president Edward Wingfield from office. John
Ratcliffe was assigned to be the new president. Under Ratcliffe’s leadership,
Smith was appointed cape merchant and tasked with trading with the natives
for food. Smith conducted expeditions throughout the region.
6. Chief Powhatan and Pocahontas
On one such expedition in December 1607, Smith and his party were ambushed
on the Chickahominy River by a large Powhatan hunting party. Smith was the
sole survivor and was brought to Werowocomoco, the village of the paramount
chief’s residence.
What happened next is unclear, as Smith gave varying accounts, and the story
has been mythologized in popular culture. The popular story is that the natives
were ready to bash his brains out, when Pocahontas, Chief Powhatan’s 11-year5
old daughter, threw herself on top of Smith, trying to shield him from death.
However, Smith did not write this version until 1624 in his book, "Generall
Historie."
In a letter written soon after the event and long before "Generall Historie" was
published, Smith described feasting and conversing with Chief Powhatan. Most
historians believe that the Powhatan people conducted an adoption ceremony,
welcoming Smith into their community, but that Smith did not understand this.
Pocahontas may well have been too young to even attend the ceremony. Girls
her age were responsible for preparing food and cleaning up afterward.
Chief Powhatan announced that they were friends and that if Smith gave him
two cannons and a grindstone, he would give Smith the village of Capahosic
and would consider him a son. It is now understood that Chief Powhatan was
trying to expand his empire and neutralize the English threat, but Smith may
not have seen this motivation.
After four weeks at Werowocomoco, Smith returned to Jamestown on friendly
terms with the Powhatan people. They continued contact for some time, and
Pocahontas often visited Jamestown with food. Though she and Smith were
acquainted, they were never romantically involved.
Among 18th-century Europeans, tobacco smoking
indicated a high social class. In this 1793 etching
by James Gillray, wealthy men are seen indulging in
tobacco at what was known as a "smoking club."
7. “Drinking Smoke”
Virginia's economic future did not lie with gold. There was too little gold to be
found there. Looking for new ways to make its investments pay dividends, the
Virginia Company of London began encouraging multiple ventures by 1618.
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Jamestown settlers experimented with glassblowing, vineyard cultivation, and
even silkworm farming. Despite efforts to diversify Virginia's economy, by the
end of the 1620s only one Virginia crop was drawing a fair market price in
England: tobacco.
Tobacco was introduced to Europe by the Spanish, who had learned to smoke it
from Native Americans. Despite some early criticism of "drinking smoke,"
tobacco became popular among the middle classes in England. Much of the
tobacco smoked in England was grown in the West indies.
Tobacco Document #1
There is an herb called uppowoc, which sows itself. In the West Indies it
has several names, according to the different places where it grows and is
used, but the Spaniards generally call it tobacco. Its leaves are dried,
made into powder, and then smoked by being sucked through clay pipes
into the stomach and head. The fumes purge superfluous phlegm and
gross humors from the body by opening all the pores and passages. Thus
its use not only preserves the body, but if there are any obstructions it
breaks them up. By this means the natives keep in excellent health,
without many of the grievous diseases which often afflict us in England.
– Thomas Hariot, A Brief and True Report of
the New Found Land of Virginia (1588)
Tobacco Document #2
Smoking is a custom loathsome to the eye, hateful to the nose, harmful
to the brain, dangerous to the lungs, and in the black, stinking fume
thereof nearest resembling the horrible Stygian smoke of the pit that is
bottomless.
– James I of England, A Counterblaste to
Tobacco (1604)
Known among his peers as "an ardent smoker," John Rolfe introduced the
tobacco plant to the Virginia colony. This plant became the cornerstone of the
Virginia economy. Settlers grew tobacco in the streets of Jamestown. The
yellow-leafed crop even covered cemeteries. Because tobacco cultivation is labor
intensive, more settlers were needed.
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John Rolfe thought that Virginia might be an outstanding site for tobacco
growth. Early attempts to sell Virginian tobacco had fallen short of
expectations. Smokers felt that the tobacco of the Caribbean was much less
harsh than Virginian tobacco. Rolfe reacted to consumer demand by importing
seed from the West Indies and cultivating the plant in the Jamestown colony.
Those tobacco seeds became the seeds of a huge economic empire.
By 1630, over a million and a half pounds of tobacco were being exported from
Jamestown every year. The tobacco economy rapidly began to shape the society
and development of the colony. Growing tobacco takes its toil on the soil.
Because tobacco drained the soil of its nutrients, only about three successful
growing seasons could occur on a plot of land. Then the land had to lie fallow
for three years before the soil could be used again. This created a huge drive
for new farmland. Tobacco cultivation was demanding work. Signs such as this
one were posted in England to round up more workers (indentured servants).
Indentured servants became the first means to meet this need for labor. In
return for free passage to Virginia, a laborer worked for four to five years in the
fields before being granted freedom. The Crown rewarded planters with 50
acres of land for every inhabitant they brought to the New World. Naturally, the
colony began to expand. That expansion was soon challenged by the Native
American confederacy formed and named after Powhatan. The expansion of
Jamestown would eventually lead to the Anglo-Powhatan War, the first in a
series of violent brutal confrontations between the natives and the English
settlers.
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