



England weak, politically and economically in
comparison to Spain.
Henry VII had sponsored John Cabot’s voyages
to Canada 1497, lost interest when NW passage
not discovered.
Lack of political will, and military capacity to
challenge Spain before later 16thC
But- dry run for colonial expansion in Ireland







Ireland conquered by Normans, but gradually England
lost control.
Tudors show renewed interest.
Major military expeditions during Elizabethan period,
led by soldiers & adventurers.
Followed up by colonizers,
especially those seeking large land holdings, use of
Gaelic Irish as serfs,
frequent atrocities and brutality towards Irish
 seen as Catholic, barbaric, sub-humans.
About 200,000 migrants from GB to Ireland 1600-1670,
twice number who went to America





Financed by Joint Stock Companies, same as
would finance American colonies
Use of promotional literature to popularize
colonization
Attitudes towards native peoples similar
Many of the individuals involved in Irish
colonization later involved in American
colonization
e.g.



Richard Grenville,
Humphrey Gilbert,
Walter Raleigh.



Motivation: envy of Spanish treasure from
America; wealth helped Spain become most
powerful nation;
English policy to break the Iberian monopoly on
America due to fear that American wealth, after
Henry VIII's split with Rome (1534), could be used
against them.
English government sanctioned privateering
operations against Spanish. Capturing Spanish
treasure ships bringing gold & silver from New
World.




By 1580 increasingly
dangerous to prey on Spanish
shipping - suggestion that
American base needed.
Idea that American colonies
would also ease English
reliance on southern Europe
for citrus fruits, silks, and
vines.
Importance of Propaganda,
 Richard Haklyut.
1st patent to settle in America
granted to Sir Humphrey
Gilbert, half brother to Walter
Raleigh, permitted him to
settle anywhere between
Florida and Northern Canada


Initially England
was not successful
Martin Frobsier


Searching for gold
and a northwest
passge
3 failed journeys
between 1576-1578

Humphrey Gilbert


Attempted to settle in
Newfoundland – failed,
Gilbert dies at sea
John Hawkins and Francis
Drake

Successful in the Caribbean
But as pirates not settlers

But by 1580 England still
had no permanent
settlement in Americas




Three English voyages to
settle North America in
1580s.
The first landed at Roanoke
Island, North Carolina on
July 13th, 1584,
short lived military
expedition which found that
the land was suitable for
both cultivation and
defence,
returned home to England
with 2 local Indians, Manteo
& Wanchese.




1585-6, 2nd English Voyage
under Ralph Lane, discovered
Chesapeake Bay, ideal as naval base.
Noted for the oil paintings of John
White and the descriptions of Thomas
Hariot.
But, young male adventurers, with
ambitions of land and wealth, not
ideal colonists.


Indian relations
deteriorated, food
supply from Indians
cut off
Drake arrived
summer 1586,
seeking re-supply,
ends up providing
food for colonists,
eventually agrees to
return them to
England







Third voyage 1587: very different from previous ones
most colonists farmers not soldiers, & came in family
groups.
Clearly intended to be a permanent settlement, selfsustaining and self-reproducing.
John White = Governor, returned to England for more
supplies, leaving daughter and grand-daughter,
Virginia Dare, at Roanoke.
Unable to return until 1590 due to Spanish Armada,
since all ships diverted to defence of realm.
When finally arrives, found settlement abandoned,
colonists never seen again.
Most likely attacked by Indians, survivors absorbed
into tribes.





3 voyages saw evolution of
colonising thought
Roanoke seen as
A base for privateering,
Then a place where valuable raw
materials could be shipped to
England,
Third voyage aimed to settle
permanently.

The lessons of Roanoke were clear:






no colony could exist without full support from
mother country for at least the first few years of
existence;
clear goals were needed
good relations with the Indians were necessary
Put this together and what was needed was
Order
Order would give control and allow for a
structure



Although beginning of cracks in strict
hierarchy
Still a rigid concept
Heading to the unknown there was a need to
reinforce it






All things bright and
beautiful,
All creatures great and small,
All things wise and
wonderful:
The Lord God made them all.
Each little flower that opens,
Each little bird that sings,
He made their glowing
colors,
He made their tiny wings.
The rich man in his castle,
The poor man at his gate,
He made them, high or
lowly,
And ordered their estate.






Born 1580 in England
left home at age 16 after
his father died
Began travels France
fighting for Dutch
independence from
Spain.
Two years later,
Mediterranean Sea,
working on a merchant
ship
1600 joined Austrian
forces to fight the Turks
promoted to Captain
while fighting in

This is the moment were Smith fights and
defeats
Transylvania 1602
 wounded in battle, captured,
and sold as a slave to a Turk.
 Turk sent Smith as a gift to his
sweetheart in Istanbul
 Girl fell in love with him
 sent him to brother to get
training for Turkish imperial
service.

Escaped by murdering the
brother
 Returned to Transylvania
through Russia and Poland
 Released from service
 Received large reward
 Traveled Europe and Northern
Africa
 Returned to England in the




20 year wait for colonisation to restart
Nothing possible until succession decided, too
much uncertainty
James I (1603-25) ends war with Spain 1604.



Leads to reconsideration of colonisation
Importance of getting a charter, royal
sanction/support



Ends profits from privateering
sets out claims, regardless of other powers
1606 charters given to
Virginia Company of London and Virginia
Company of Plymouth to settle between 34 and 45
degrees N latitude, (NC to Maine)



Basically made up of merchants
charter talks of trade and bringing
Christianity to natives.
Needs colonists as





traders
potential soldiers to defend against Spanish
Offers free land for settlers
144 young men to go on first voyage on
board 3 ships (Godspeed, Discovery and
Susan Constant)
Arrives Jamestown May 1607




Before 1618 all migrants:
Male
Most under 25
Free land offered
obvious draw to poor, as well as to younger
sons of gentry,
 i.e. those with little prospect of riches in
England




Main motivation
economic, seeking fortune and status
many migrants see Virginia as temporary
home
Importance of indentured labour
 Main source of labour in Virginia
before 1680
 People were ‘sold’ for number of
years in return for passage.
 Possibility of land at end of
service.
 Problems of flight
 seen as form of slavery,









Campbell / Galenson historical debate
over social status
Were migrants ‘middling people’ or
‘common sort’ ?
Problem source materials
mainly from 1650s
incompleteness of data
Probably reflected English population
mainly poor (farmers, labourers,
artisans), but not the truly destitute
A few merchants, aristocrats, or wealthy
people

Suggestion religion had
role in colonisation





But little attention paid by
colonists once there.
Authority derived from
either tradition (elders), law
(officials) or charisma
(dictators)
First church built in 1639


Mentioned in charter
Used as recruitment tactic
32 years after arrival
Rebuilt in 1907 on original
spot







People often say America began with the
Pilgrim Fathers
As you know James Town was founded in 1607
New England in 1620
Thirteen years earlier
But did you also know….
The first Africans were taken to James Town in
1619
This means African-Americans were settlers in
America before the Pilgrims


Virginia has crisis of authority
first two governors lose control quickly



can’t prevent a high death toll amongst early settlers
only 38 of 144 original migrants still alive in Nov
1607.
Solved by John Smith
elected Gov in Dec 1608
 introduced system of Martial Law
 moved colony inland
 learned survival techniques from Indians


reduced death rate.



New fleet arrives June 1609, brings 900
new settlers.
Smith ousted, and returns to England
No effective leadership during harsh
winter of 1609-10







lack of planning – no food stockpiled
widespread starvation
some cannibalism.
Spring 1610 only 60 survivors
Decide to return to England
Prevented by arrival of new Governor
Lord De La Warre
Virginia on edge of extinction

De La Warre, formally introduces the Laws
DMM in 1611


Very strict, aims to control populace



Widespread attachment to ‘rights of Englishmen’
Response of Virginia Co
House of Burgesses



all to work collectively for survival of colony
Begins to deter potential colonists


similar to Smith’s martial law
First elected body in North America, July 1619
Again before Pilgrims
Virginia Co charter revoked 1624, becomes
royal colony








No economic purpose to
early settlement
1612 planting of Trinidadian
tobacco by John Rolfe.
Rapid growth of production
2,000 lbs in 1615
1.5m lbs 1629
Vast wealth possible
high prices by 1620 meant
single farmer with no extra
labour could make £200/yr
profit.
Also cause of instability.



Problems with Indians major factor in
Virginia development
Powhatan confederacy more powerful than
English
Numbers approx 10,000 in 1620




1000 English in 1624
Initial antagonism – disputes over property
Smith’s role – situation calms in 1610s
Rolfe marries Pocahontas




Powhatan sees English
as potential allies vs
interior tribes.
Never imagines they
would be threat to him
 Trades for weapons
etc
Powhatan dies 1622
Succeeded by brother
Opechancanough




more hostile to English
especially encroachment
on lands
Role of tobacco in
taking Indian lands
English authorities
unable to prevent it






Decision to attack on
Good Friday (March 22)
1622
Achieves total surprise
Kills 347 whites
 out of population of
1200.
Opechancanough
thought English would
leave
But attack cements
negative image of
Indians among English
makes their destruction
easier to live with


Virginia in 1624 in turmoil
Politically unstable





e.g. Virginia Co loss of charter 1624
Endured disease, war, death.
Only about 1000 whites in Virginia after 17yrs
of colonisation
settlement still in balance
could easily still fail.






Antonio
Velazquez
Summer 1561
Spanish Caravel
buffeted by
storms of South
Carolina
After storm saw
a huge bay
Bahia Santa
Maria
Chesapeake Bay




Anchored and
encountered
Indians
Two agreed
with return to
Spain
Younger Indian
Paquiquineo
given to King
Philip II
renamed Don
Luís de Velasco
A few months
later asked to
return home





Went first to New Spain
Became very ill end of first attempt to
return home
After recovering decided to remain and
learn Catholic faith and Spanish ways
But still kept the desire to return home
Several years later Pedro Menédez de
Avilés, new governor of “la Florida” was
ordered to protect the southeast from the
French
1566 - Don Luis heads out with
Catholic friars on a missionary
journey to his old home
 For some reason ship couldn’t find
bay
 Captain against protests sailed
back to Spain rather than Mexico
 Don Luis fails in second attempt to
return home






1570 manages to get to Cuba
September 1570 arrives back in Bahia
Santa Maria
Shortly thereafter Don Luis fled from
the Spanish
February 1571 Don Luis leads attack
on, and destroys, Spanish settlement
We know this because one Spanish
boy, Alonso, was left alive and
eventually returned to the Spain
 Why
have I told this story?
 1) Don Luis is an example of
one of the many Native
Americans who visited
Europe
 2) We may see Don Luis
again under a different
name.



Central political
development of the
late 16th /early 17th
century within
Virginia
Not arrival of
English
Rise of the
Powhatan
chiefdom
Wahunsonacock
ruled over thirty
or so tribes
 Region known
as
Tsenacommacal
a
 Stretched from
south of the
James River to
the Potomac
 and from the

 Tsenacommacah
was
well populated at the
beginning of the
seventeenth century.
 15, 000– 20,0000 people,
 dispersed in several
hundred villages and
hamlets




Rivers and coastal
waters provided a
superb means of travel
Commonly used for
transporting men and
goods over long
distances
Powhatan settlements
were small by
European standards
consisting of fewer
than a hundred people
‘”of kindred &
 An
illustration
of Secota
(Secotan,
near the
Pamlico
River in
North
Carolina)

Powhatan society organized for war


War was the ultimate test for every male


response to the threat posed by powerful
enemies to the north and west
a searching examination where only the
strong, intelligent, or lucky would survive.
Men were expected to display



strength and courage in hand-to-hand
combat
fortitude if captured and tortured
wisdom in council.
English soon learned of Powhatan
power
 At time of English arrival
 A native nation who lived at the
entrance to the bay

 The
Chesapeakes
Resisted absorption into
Tsenacommacah
 Powhatan response – military attack
 Resulted in the slaughter of men,
women, and children.




As chiefdom grew
So did wealth and
influence
Territories governed
through regional or
district chiefs


Brothers





Opechancanough
Opitchapam
Kekataugh
maintained tight control
over the Pamunkeys
Son


some of whom were
close relatives
Parahunt and Pochins
Ruled important
districts of Powhatan
and Kecoughran

at the falls and mouth
of the James River






Historian Frederich Gleach has looked at
the capture of Smith
Using “Controlled Speculation”
Offers a reinterpretation of the famous story
of Smiths capture
And subsequent release due to the
intervention of Pocahontas
Most famous incident in the history of
Virginia
Some doubt it happened and those who
accept it





Gleach suggests it was part of a larger
ritual
Began with the act of capturing Captain
John Smith in December 1607
Captured by a large party, of 200 to 300
bowmen, led by the Powhatan war-chief
Opechancanough.
His capture was more than incidental
Immediately taken before
Opechancanough, whose duties as warchief would include dealing with
outsiders

His life was threatened



Then taken to the seasonal village of
Rasawek and treated as a captive
chief
Three dances took place centered on
Smith and Opechancanough


the first of three times this would
happen during his captivity
Kept there for close to a week
His life being threatened again while
there


After this second threat the next phase of his
captivity began
A physical transition from the margins of
Tsenacommacah to its heart, the village of
Powhatan




A metaphysical transformation from English to
Anglo-Powhatan.
Smith taken to a series of smaller, peripheral
villages returned to Rasawek
Then taken to Menapacute, one of the main
villages of Pamunkey.
It was while Smith was here that the redefinition
ritual took place

creating a place for the English in the Powhatan
world.


Powhatans then returned Smith to the
periphery of Tsenacommacah,
From this outside position he was brought to
Werowocomoco,





Powhatan's principal residence.
Smith's old life being ended, Pocahontas
ceremonially spared him from death, allowing
him to begin his new life as a Powhatan
Two days later the ritual was completed
Giving Smith and the colony a specific place in
Tsenacommacah.
Smith was returned to Jamestown, early in
1608.




Powahtan’s leading
warrior
Little known about
Opechancanough’s
origins
A few intriguing
references suggest
that he may have
been none other than
Paquiquineo (Don
Luis)




Powhatan saw English
as potential allies vs.
interior tribes.
Never imagines they
would be threat
 Trades for weapons
etc
Powhatan dies 1622
Succeeded by brother
Opechancanough




more hostile to English
especially encroachment
on lands
Role of tobacco in
taking Indian lands
English authorities
unable to prevent it






Decision to attack on
Good Friday (March
22) 1622
Achieves total surprise
Kills 347 whites
 out of population of
1200.
Opechancanough
thought English would
leave
But attack cements
negative image of
Indians among English
makes their
destruction easier to
live with