Jamestown Part One

to keep the whole thing going. The way that this series is going to function as a deep die is that every other episode will be available for free on the main feed. So next week, if you are not a paid Patreon member, you won't see anything. You'll then see episode three the week after. Just to be clear, you can become a member at any time by clicking the link of the show notes, you can get a seven day free trial, and with the base subscription, which gives you access to all of these shows, it's a

dollar a month or twelve dollars a year. Obviously we appreciate it. But with all that being said, I'm not going to do this lengthy preamble into the start of every single one of these, but I wanted to at least get the ground rules downs that you understood so let's begin James Town. The rise of the Hoften Chiefdom was the central political development of the late sixteenth and

early seventeenth centuries. A variety of indigenous now we call Indian peoples lived throughout the coastal plain what is also referred to as the tide water of Virginia space around the Chesapeake Bay, the space around all the various rivers and tributaries that flow into it. In other words, the space with all the good land. Now, sometime around fifteen seventy one, chieftain of the bahatans Wassahunock managed to inherit all the varied holdings of different peoples and subject tributaries.

He pulled this all together into one great Bahatan nation. Although for reasons i'll talk about later, it's a mistake to think about this as sort of like an empire. It wasn't an empire in the way that we think of in the West world, and you think of Rome or the British Empire or anything like that, where everybody is immediately and directly responsible to the chief executive wherever he may be at the given time. It's a much

more loose confederation. That being said, it's worth noting that Wassahanak was definitely the most powerful man in the region by a strong sense. As described by William Stratchi, a prominent settler who arrived in Virginia in sixteen ten, was a hannock who was alive at the time, was a man of quote goodly looks, well beaten with many cold and stormy winters, yet of tall stature and clean limbs

end quote. In the earlier years, this same Stratchy wrote that the great Chief was quote a strong and able savage who's active of daunting, daring spirit, vigilist, ambitious, subtle to enlarge his dominions unquote. In addition to the land that was honok had inherited, the rest of his territories had quote either been farce subdued onto him or through

fear yielded end quote. At about the time that the English arrived, the Chesapeakes, who lived in the entrance to the bay, and who had resisted absorption into this new kingdom, were destroyed an attack that resulted in the slaughter of men, women, and children. A vivid example of the methods that could be used by this great chief to assert his authorities, actually recounted by Captain John Smith for reasons that we

truly don't know even today. In sixteen oh eight, Wassahonk mounted a surprise attack on the neighboring plane Catacks, who lived along the north bank of the river that bears that same name. First he sent some of his men to lodge among them. Then he surrounded their village and at the appointed time launched a swift and deadly attack. Two dozen men, according to Captain John Smith, were killed.

The women and children, along with the chief were captured and presented to Wassahonic so that they could quote unquote do him service. It was also there because they wanted to get the scalps. The scalps of warriors taken in the attack were hung to intimidate visitors, hung between two trees at Wahasahonok's personal residency. This gives you a flavor the sort of hit and run tactics favored by Wassahonic and his peoples, and that are going to give the

English such fits and sleepless nights in years to come. Now, the Bahatans were, of course not the only peoples in the area. They were in fact surrounded, effectively confined by the mountains that were dominated by the Iroquoian and coo And peoples, and they effectively kept the Bahatans on the coastal place. As Wasahawk's chiefdom grew throughout the tide water,

so did his wealth and influence. His people were required to pay tribute in the form of skins, beads, pearls, food and tobacco, all collected annually and stored in temples such as those of the Oorpos, one of his capitals, and another major town, Ottomosuk. He claimed a monopoly on prestige goods that were traded throughout his lands, including copper,

iron wares, and other items sometimes acquired from Europeans. Copper could be traded beyond his dominions with other people and used when necessary to hire mercenary warriors or generally gifts of tribute goods to lesser chiefs. Wear an ox warriors and priests throughout his land provided him with a way of co opting individuals into the regime by rewarding those that he favored, something that be familiar to monarchs throughout Europe at the time and something that's still familiar to

politicians today now. The people of the outlying regions on the edges of the tide water. Now, they might recognize Wassahonics authority that could provide him support in times of war or when called upon, but they also pursued their own independent policies, and an occasion they disobeyed or just

ignored his orders. That is to say, as I mentioned before, Wasahonic was not an absolute ruler in our traditional sense of the term, and in fact, one of the ways that he governed his vast, sprawling territories was through a network of family members, the most important of which was his brother Apichinaka. Apichinacha was the most powerful of Wassahonaks relatives. Now, at the beginning of the seventeenth century, Wasahonics lands were

decently well populated. There were maybe about fifteen thousand total people that lived in the Chesapeake Bay region. The most populous areas were actually inland, away from the exposed crags of the coast. High Ground close to the water was preferred because it protected against possible flooding and provided a vantage point for keeping an eye on the comings and goings along the river or also to the approaches from

inland rivers and coastal waters. Provided a superb means of travel, and were commonly used for transporting men and goods over long distances. Most Pahatan settlements were small by European standards, usually consisting of a fewer than one hundred people at

the most. But it's worth noting, and we'll get to this again in future episodes, that when John Smith and the other English arrive in sixteen oh seven to establish Jamestown, the land that is effectively seated to them is land that the Powhatan people didn't want because they had already established the most effective settlements for themselves across the Chesapeake Bay. Thus, what Smith and his companions got was decidedly second class,

to say the least. Bohatan Society was organized for war a response to the threat posed by powerful enemies to the north and west. Warfare involved a variety of tactics, including frontal assaults, hidden run and ambush and deception. Most attacks took the form of raiding parties, which are the smaller sort of hid and run style attacks. Pitched battles between anything that would have looked remotely like a Western

standing army were credibly uncommon. In a mock battle witnessed by John Smith, the natives divided themselves into two companies of about one hundred men, one called Monocans, the other called Phatans. Each company ordered into ranks of fifteen men of breast. We are agreeing to terms that the women and the children of the vanquish would be the prize of the victors. The two armies approached each other, the men quote leaping and singing after their accustomed tune, which

they only used in war end quote. Each side then shot at the other. When they had discharged all of their arrows, they joined in hand to hand fighting, and here is according to Smith quote, as they got advantage, they catched their enemies by the hair of their head and acted the beating the loser's brains with wooden swords end quote. Womennocan numbers decreased. The Bahatans charged in the half moon formation, ever to surround them, at which the Monocans fled quote in all troop to the cover of

nearby woods. But this was just a ploy the lure of the Beehatans into an ambush where fresh warriors were hiding. The Bohatans, perceiving the danger, withdrew to an area of the field where they had arranged their own ambush, but the Monocans declined to pursue them and instead disappeared into the forest. Now, obviously there's a lot of subterfuge and ambush here going on. There's not a lot of British style lining up with redcoats and just simply firing into

the opponent. Still, men were expected to display courage and strength in hand to hand combat. The Bahatans made up the core of was Sanahawk's fighting forces, and combined may have numbered five or six hundred men together. Of course, Wassanahak could call upon the varying allied and subjugated tribes to provide warriors and get an army somewhere between twelve hundred and fifteen hundred enough, which was more than easily capable of overwhelming any local resistance to his will. Now,

Wahanak did not act alone. As I mentioned previously, He was supposed to take advice from his counselors and priests, and he did. Priests were vital intermediaries between the people and spiritual force. Is an infused earthly society with a spiritual good. Religion and spirituality were of fundamental importance to the peoples of the region and weren't expressed in a variety of beliefs about powerful deities, local spirits, founding myths

and prophecies. The Bahatans revered a quote unquote great good God. His name was a Hoone, who lived in the heavens above, and whose perfection was boundless. A hon had created the cosmos, the earth, and the lesser gods had taught the Indians how to plant corn. He was quote unquote the author of great good He made the sun shine, and through his virtues and influence, all the fruits of the seasons were brought forth. A Hoone was a remote god, unconcerned

with the affairs of men and everyday affairs. The most important deity in the Indians pantheon was Uchius, who, unlike the peace loving a Hone, looked quote into all men's actions and judged them according to a severe scale of justice end quote. The vengeful god punished the people with sickness, struck down their ripe coin with storms, and stirred up wars. He was a quote unquote malicious enemy of mankind. Okius

was the origin of all harm and misfortune. To appease him, the Bahapans dedicated their temples to him, offered him sacrifices, and worshiped him. But Okius was also the god the priest would consult to ask to intercede in times of war and crisis. From the oaks and conifer forests of the Blue Ridge Mountains to the fertile lowlands bordering the Rivers and Bay, the Indian peoples, the Iroquoian, Siaquoyan, and Algonquin and all evolved highly successful methods of harvesting the

natural resources of the land and the rivers. Early European observers were unanimous in their admiration for the Indians adaptime Hati to their environments, and were aware of the subtle as well as more obvious distinctions between the various peoples

who inhabited this land. Throughout the region, different tribes might enjoy a good deal of autonomy, but everywhere the edges of conflict were evident, resulting from the expansion of the Bohoptan chiefdom and long standing hostility between Algonquins and neighboring con and Iroquoian peoples. When the English arrived in Virginia early in the new century, they would encounter a powerful

and complex chiefdom. It was therefore lucky that when Wassanahonok first came face to face with Captain John Smith, the Great Chief took the opportunity to describe to him quote his great and spacious domains end quote, then impressed upon the Englishman in case he missed the point that he knew everyone under his territories. Now, for much of the sixteenth century, England played only a minor role in Western exploration. Even the famed exploits of the conquistadors in Mexico and Peru.

The overthrow of the Mexica and Inca Empires made seemingly little impact on England. During Queen Elizabeth the First reign, however, an awakening of interest and the possibility of establishing English colonies in America occurred. For the first time, colonization was viewed as a project that would be of great benefit not only to individuals and to their financial backers, but

also to the nation as a whole. In fifteen eighty three, Sir George Peckham, a prominent Catholic supporter of colonial ventures, wrote a lengthy treatise that set out the quote unquote law of nations sanctioning trade between Christians or what he called the infidel or savages, and the law of arms which allowed the taking of lands by force, and of course, finally the law of God, which required Christian rulers to settle these lands. Quote for the establishment of God's word

end quote. He went on to write that from ancient times quote, since the Nativity of Christ Mighty and Pussian emperors and kings had performed the like I say, to plant, possess and subdue end quote. Also, the infamous John d astrologer to the Queen, alchemist, mathematician, etc. Etc. Advocated building a strong navy that could be the foundation of a

British empire. He laid out the basis of Queen Elizabeth's right to take possession of foreign regions, followed simply by the same principles that were currently being used by the kings and queens of Spain. But it really fell to a gentleman by the name of Richard Hayuk. He was the foremost proponent of colonization of his age, and he

was the one who really got the ball rolling. Planting English colonies in America would believed would be a quote, mostly godly and Christian work that would ultimately lead to quote gaining the souls of millions and of those wretched people by which he meant the Native Americans, and bringing them from darkness to light end quote. Of course, this is nothing new, you know. The Spanish and the Portuguese to an extent he used Christianization as a justification for

colonization as well. So it makes perfect sense that the English, who saw themselves as the leading Protestant nation, should seek to do the same. Moreover, include believed that perhaps conversion for the English could be achieved not by the brutal methods employed by the Spanish, but by way of quote, a gentle course without cruelty and tyranny, such as the swereth of a profession of a Christian end quote. Exactly

what he meant by that was unclear now. But more important than all the Christian zeal and this is true for Spanish colonization as well, was the likelihood of profit. English settlements in America, the gentleman confidently asserted, would promote commerce, prosperity, and social benefits at home. Trade with the Native Americans would bring a valuable return, but to produce the goods, England needed large numbers of people would have to colonize America.

This would be doubly advantageous. Not only would an expansive new market for English goods be created thereby stimulating production and providing relief for poor workers and depressed English manufacturing centers, but also the country would profit from the growing number of colonial goods that could be sold at home and in Europe, and the colonies, able bodied and unemployed, idle people who were a drain on the country could be

found to work on their own for the nation's advantage. Remember, the process of enclosure had pushed so many people off of their land in England that they didn't have any means of supporting themselves. Thus, the colonies could work as sort of a pressure release valve for England. It would allow a place for all of the people who had been the economic have nots in this situation to have a place to go and the means of supporting themselves.

It's not the way Kluke or any other Englishmen would have put it, but that was the economic message that he was preaching. He proposed the creation of permanent English societies in America, where these new lands lying on latitude stretching from North Africa to Scandinavia could be developed to produce commodities traditionally imported from Europe. All of these arguments

found a receptive year in Queen Elizabeth the First. She was acutely aware that the threat posed by Spain to her kingdom and was incomparably greater than it had been even in her father's time fifty years earlier. And much of the reason that Spain posed this greater problem now than in the reign of Henry the Eighth is because of their colonial wealth. The only way to offset this, many in the English court asserted was for England to do the same. If Spain was to have extensive colonies,

then England needed extensive colonies. The logic was pretty simple. Initial English efforts to colonize New World colonies were a complete and total failure. There were three voyages between fifteen seventy six and fifteen seventy eight off the southern shore of Baffin Island in search of gold and a northwest passage around the top of the American continent, but those

ended in bankruptcy and ruin. A few years later, Sir Humphrey Gilbert hatched a scheme to establish plantations in Newfoundland and along the course of the North American seaboard, but that too was a disaster, resulting in total financial loss and Gilbert's loss of life. Now to the south, in the warm tropical waters of the Caribbean, English privateers enjoyed

better fortunes. John Hawkins and Francis Drake, along with many others, plundered gold, silver, pearls, and precious commodities carried by the Spanish treasure fleets and pillaged Spain's possessions in the West Indies and along the Spanish main Even so, despite notable achievements like Drake's daring raid on a mule train taking a fortune in Peruvian silver on the coast of Panama in fifteen seventy three, and his voyage around the world

between fifteen seventy seven and fifteen eighty, the English still had not succeeded in establishing a single New World colony of their own now. As we know from the last episode, Roanoke, off the coast of North Carolina, was England's most important attempt at establishing a permanent settlement in the New World prior to Jamestown. When news reached London that guild had perished at sea. The Queen's new favorite, Walter Raleigh, wasted little time in petitioning her for the exclusive rights to

explore and colonize North America. He gathered an extensive and remarkable group of men who brought together their scientific knowledge and experiment to try to make this the most successful English effort yet. Now why Raleigh chose to plant this colony along the mid Atlantic coast, we honestly have no idea. The decision may have been influenced by his reluctance to risk the same fate as Gilbert, who was his half brother, who in far northern waters had searched for a northwest passage,

but more likely was simple geography and Spain. He saw the opportunity to halt the advance of the Spanish in North America from a fortification well to the north of earlier French settlements in Florida, which had been destroyed. Yet this would also be a location that would still be within easy reach of the important sea lanes of the

Caribbean and Western Atlantic. A colony could also simply lay claim to North America for England, and serve also as a base from which to launch raids on Spanish silver fleets, and this would of course have obvious appeal to Raleigh, who was interested in potential financial benefit, and it would

also help him attractive masters. So, following a successful reconnaissance voyage in fifteen eighty four that brought back glowing reports of the outer banks of North Carolina, a small garrison of a little more than one hundred men established Ronok the following year under the command as we know of Ralph Lane, an experienced and veteran soldier. In September fifteen eighty five, he had high hopes, writing back, quote, it is the goodliness and most pleasing territory of the world.

For the soil of the continent is of huge, unknown great and the very well peopled and towned, though savage, and the climate so wholesome that we have not had one six since we touched land here quote that, of course, would be the one and only glowing report to come back from Roanoke. Explorations during the summer revealed a low, flat country heavily wooded, but the one major disadvantage of the region was the shallowness of the waters and the sound,

which were not suitable for large vessels. And so subsequently, as winter approached, Lane decided to send out an exploratory party in search of a deep water harbor where the colony could be relocated to the following year, and that's when they discovered Chesapeake Bay to the north in what is today Virginia. They may also have made a brief exploration of the tip of the James York Peninsula before finally returning to Roanoke in late February or early March

fifteen eighty six. By then, unfortunately, the prospect of relocating the colony was all but obsolete. Hostilities with local people, notably the neighboring Setuckins, intensified over the next few months. There were several pitched battles, and the Satakian chief, Winniga, was killed. Without the support of the local natives, Lane could not see how his colony could survive, and so he determined that he would have to abandon Roanoke as soon as humanly possible, and he got his chance in June.

Sir Francis Drake, which had been asked by Raleigh to sort of call in and check on his colony. After cruising around the West Indies a bit arrived off the Outer Banks and offered to take the men back to England. Roanoke had proved unsuitable because its shallow waters could not accommodate ocean going vessels, but the critical discovery of fertile lands farther north on the Chesapeake, they seemed to hold much,

much greater potential. Now his goal, Ralph Lane Gold this time is that he would have a new expedition, a new kind of expedition very different. It would be made up of civilians instead of soldiers, who would hopefully not antagonize local peoples as the previous expedition had done, and could become largely self sufficient. This new expedition departed Plymouth in early May. There were three ships carrying one hundred

and seventeen colonists, including seventeen women and nine children. They arrived off the Outer Banks in mid July, where they intended to acquire about the fate of a small garrison of fifteen men left on Roanoke Island the previous year. Shortly after Lane's departure. What followed was a fiasco. The pilot refused to take the colonists any farther, claiming that it was already too late in the season for privateering ventures, and that his men wanted to get back to the

Caribbean as soon as possible. Whether this was really the reason, we don't know, but at any event, after six weeks on the island, it had become clear, following attacks on the settlers, that the Secociins and other neighboring Indians were as hostile to the new colony as they had been to the last colony, not that it was ever their goal in the first place to go back to Roanoke. The colonists then decided that their leader, one White, should return to England and alert the backers to the unlikely

turn of events and raise fresh supplies. In the meantime, the entire colony would move about fifty miles inland. There, they hoped they would find Indians less hostile and so be able to support themselves through the fall and winter until White could get back. He left at the end of August, but for various reasons, he didn't return for three years. By this time, as we know, the colonists had disappeared, leaving only as an indication that they or some of them had moved to the nearby island of

Croatoan Scratching it into the bark of a tree. Thing more was heard from them for the next two decades, But the failure of Roanoke stemmed from many causes. Politically, the times were not auspicious at all. In the spring and summer of fifteen eighty eight, England faced the threat of losing control of the English Channel to a Great Spanish armada, an invasion by the Armies of Philip the Second.

At the critical moment when a relief expedition mounted by Raleigh was ready to sail for Roanoke, it was prevented for leaving by the invasion scare. More generally, the Sea War against Spain that had steadily escalated in the fifteen eighties, during which tons of privateers set out to plunder Spanish treasure fleets and New World settlements, had a mixture of

influence on colonizing schemes throughout the period. A garrison at Roanoke might be effective at a privateering base, because English mariners could thus replenish supplies and repair their ships without having to return home, But the sirens song of cruising the Caribbean for rich prizes undermined any attempts to establish permanent settlements. The reality was look privateering offered better and

quicker returns than colonization, at least for the moment. After all, a single prize, such as the ship de Santa Maria de San Vicente captured on a return from Roanoke in fifteen eighty five, was worth at least twelve thousand or maybe even fifteen thousand pounds, possibly even more. Roanoke didn't turn any profit. Still, despite its failure, Roanoke had a

continuing influence on future colonizing efforts. The possibility that Raleigh settlers had survived somewhere along the coast became an important argument in favor of English claims to the re in and provided a direct link to the colony that would be founded later on the Chesapeake Bay, the colony that we know as Jamestown. Queen Elizabeth died in March of sixteen o three and was succeeded by King James in a smooth transition of government that was achieved with little

political disruption. Because the king did not wish to continue the sea war against Spain, he quickly negotiated a peace treaty, entering the plundering of Spanish shipping and possessions. Yet he had no intention of renouncing English claims to the American mainland north of Florida. Precisely how the early Jamestown venture

originated is unclear. Captain John Smith credits Bartholomew Gosnauld the role of quote, one of the first movers of the plantation, having many years solicited many of his friends but found small assistants end quote. Gosnald came from a well connected Suffolk family, was actually well known to Richard Heikluk and a married cousin of other individuals who are going to play major roles in the investment to come. We know that Gosnaud had already gone to See, initially as a

privateer and then later on as an explorer. In sixteen oh two he made a highly successful voyage to the coast of New England, where he traded with locals for furs and gathered sassafras roots and sewood. But Gosnold isn't the one that we think of when we think of Jamestown. A person that we think of when we think of Jamestown is John Smith. John Smith was born in fifteen eighty in the village of Willoughby. He was from Lincolnshire,

the son of a middling yellman farmer. He was not cut out for the life of a farmer, however, and was forever fixing his gaze on the distant horizon. Like many young men of his generation, he chose a military career, fighting first in northern France and the Netherlands, and then against the Imperial Army of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria, fighting

against the Turks in central and eastern Europe. After five years, according to him, of quote unquote many brave adventures, among which was the extraordinary feat of killing three Turkish champions one after the other in hand to hand combat, they returned to England in sixteen oh four, a worldly and battle hardened gentleman knight, tired of war but still interested in new adventures. He heard of Gosnold's efforts to raise support for a colony in America. With money left over

from all of his travels, he chose to join the venture. Now, there needed to be other investors who would be interested in supporting this endeavor, and so they cast about for

merchants interested in a profit, and they found many. At the waiting merchants and Plymouth and Bristol were anxious to exploit the fish, oil, furs and timbers of New England, and their London counterparts, with their connections to the Mediterranean and the Near East, were keen to pronote colonies that were capable of producing commodities traditionally imported from southern Europe.

Pushed through by the Lord Chief Justice Popham, the Royal t Charter signed April tenth, sixteen six divided the North American coast into two distinct spheres of interest based off

of these different commercial endeavors. The Plymouth Colony, including merchants and financiers from Bristol, Exeter and smaller West Country outports, were granted the right to settle an area not then quote actually possessed by any Christian prince or people end quote, between latitudes thirty eight degrees and forty five degrees, stretching roughly from the top of the Chesapeake Bay to just

above present day Bangor, Maine. A second company representing London merchants, was allowed to establish a colony to the south, somewhere between Cape Fear, North Carolina and present day New York

latitudes thirty four degrees and forty one degrees. Neither company was granted exclusive rights to all the territory within the region specified, but each was permitted to establish a settlement within those bounds and given jurisdiction over lands fifty miles north and south, one hundred inland and one hundred out

at sea. A Royal Council made up of thirteen members appointed by the King and called the Council of Virginia was created, and this council was designed to oversee the affairs of both companies to make sure that they didn't step on each other's toes. Two separate colonies were to go forward simultaneously under the same terms as set out in the Charter. They would be sponsored by two separate companies.

Who was leading members sat on the Royal Council. Now it looked like a rather ham fisted arrangement at first, but it was actually very pragmatic because the priorities of the West Country and London merchants were very different. It also had the merit of uniting national and private interests to create a common approach to the founding of new colonies. The geographic bounds set out on the Charter were also

just practical. By the opening of the seventeenth century, it was becoming clear that if Spanish warships remained a threat along much of the coast from Florida to South Carolina, and the French were moving into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and what is today Canada. To have any real chance of success, English colonizing projects would necessarily have to be located somewhere along the nine hundred miles from Cape Fear to Nova Scotia. New England was one potential possibility.

The other was the Chesapeake Bay. On the eve of the Jamestown Expedition, only a handful of Englishmen had ever seen the Chesapeake Bay. Few could have foreseen in sixteen oh six that Virginia, not New England, would become the first major site of English colonization in America. And so there we have it. The two worlds of the English and Polhattan were rapidly converging and would soon collide in a series of violent encounters along the James River that

would change both societies forever. On a cold December day, three small ships slipped quietly down the Thames. The largest of the three was a heavily armed merchantman called the Susan Constant about one hundred and twenty tons. It was packed to the gills with supplies and carried seventy one passengers and crew, along with the expedition's most experienced seafarer, Captain Christopher Newport. He knew as much about American water

as any Englishman alive. Following closely behind the Admiral, as the lead ship was known, was the Godspeed, commanded by none other than Bartholomew Gosnauld. At the rear was the tiny pinnacle called the Discovery, just twenty tons, captained by John Ratcliffe. Altogether, one hundred and forty four mariners and adventurers set out from the Blackwell Docks of East London in the last days of sixteen oh six found an

English colony somewhere in the Chesapeake Bay. Between a third and a half were described as gentlemen, and it's likely, in fact that someone possibly a gentleman by the name of George Kendall, was a Spanish spy. Most of these men were in their twenties and thirties. They were by and large all younger sons trying to seek their fortunes in a venture that offered the prospect of both soldiering

and a lot of plunder. Among the non gentry were a dozen skilled craftsmen and artisans, a blacksmith, a mason, two bricklayers, four carpenters, a tailor, two barbers, and a surgeon, And the rest of the company was made up of unskilled workers of various kinds. There were just common sailors, laborers, and boys. The majority of men whose origins have been traced were from the southern and eastern regions of England,

especially from London and its surrounding territories. To maintain public interest and attract potential settlers, there would have to be a spectacular discovery of some sort or a certain promise of riches to come to warrant continued investment in the future. For if the Chesapeake turned out to be worthless, as the Spanish had already decided, why should the English persist there. Neither did the majority of the first planters have any

long term plans to settle in Virginia. Most of these men who went along with the first expedition wanted to just explore the land and hopefully, with some good luck, find gold or silver mines, discover a river or water passage to the south, Sea and hence to China and be Helm in a year or two. The colony was never intended to be primarily an agricultural settlement. Women and children were not taken along to create the conditions for family life. They would only come later once the colony

was already settled. Now, the voyage did not begin well. The fleet was held up for six weeks off the north coast of Kent by stormy weather, but eventually the three ships managed to beat their way out of the storm. They took the southerly route well known to Newport and the other privateers, which would bring them to the Canaries and across the Atlantic to the West Indies. John Smith, in fact, by about day four or five on the voyage, was actually arrested for mutiny and restrained as a prisoner.

He was accused by several of the expedition's leaders of plotting, to quote unquote, usurp the govern murder the council and make himself king. But what led to this accusation mutiny probably implied in subordination. Smith may have been too insistent in his advice to Newport and too liberal in his criticisms of his decisions. Opinionated and vocal we know he was. Smith would have struggled under the command of men he

considered incompetent. He would have found it difficult to restrain himself in talking with the crew and other gentry on board. We know this based off of his later behavior, and during his years fighting in Europe, he had become used to an easy going familiarity with his fellow soldiers, men who judged a man's worth more byability than by rank. Surrounded by the pompous figures of gentry who were placed in charge here, he saw precious little ability and a

lot of unwarranted error. Bigans Wigfield in Newport, for their part, viewed Smith as nothing more than a young upstart, a braggart, a man who spent way too much time questioning and not enough time following orders. Smith's claimed a gentleman's status earned on the battlefields of Eastern Europe did not impress the gentry on board. To them, Smith was merely a vulgar commoner with pretensions above his station. Obviously, the time was ripe and the powder was set. All it needed

was a spark. Now. Contributing to the bad blood among the men was the interesting arrangement whereby the leadership of the colony had been kept secret. The Virginia Council had sealed the names of the leaders in a box and expressly commanded that it was not to be opened until they reached their destination. Presumably this device was intended to keep members of the gentry who had signed up for

the voyage committed to the venture. If they had known the membership of the colony's ruling council before leaving England, some not included might have decided not to go. In practice, however, what this did was create unnecessary uncertainty in the men's minds about who would be in charge in Virginia apart from Newport, who it was assumed would continue to play a leading role, and an increased rather than reduced the

likelihood of shipboard disputes. Still, despite Smith's mutiny, the ships made their course, and toward the end of March the fleet sighted Martinique and soon dropped anchor at Dominica. There another argument broke out between the gentry that resulted in the building of a quote unquote pair of gallows for once again John Smith, who was once again under arrest for insubordination. This time we have absolutely no idea whatsoever

what his offense was. Possibly all this was was just an effort to re establish discipline among the crew and make a big show of it. Gosnold, who was on better terms with Smith than any of the other leaders, together with the Reverend on board, interceded to save his life. Leaving the West Indies on April tenth, the ships headed northwards. After eleven days at sea, they ran into a quote

unquote vehement tempest somewhere off Virginia. The squall was so violent that the mariners lost their bearings, and for several days they didn't even know where they were or how to gain entrance to the bay. But finally, on April twenty sixth, a look outside it the land of Virginia. Although they had arrived somewhat later then anticipated, they would at least be able to replenish their supplies and get some rest in the West Indies, and they had time

to plant crops for the autumn harvest. Still, it was time, and so Newport ordered the fleet to drop anchor on the southern shore of Chesapeake Bay. First impressions were extremely favorable. Here were quote fair meadows and goodly tall trees, with such fresh waters running through the woods end quote. George Percy exclaimed, quote I was almost ravaged at the site thereof end quote. Having spent most of the day ashore, exploring the waterside and a little way inland, the men

returned to their ships as darkness fell. This time a group of natives were waiting for them. Percy describes the scene, quote, at night, when we were going aboard, there came the savages, creeping upon all four from the hills like bears, with their bows in their mouths, charged us very deliberately in the faces, hurt Captain Gabriel archer in both his hands, and a slayer in two places of the body, both dangerous.

After they had spent their arrows and felt the sharpness of our shot, they retired into the woods with a great noise, and so they left us end quote. Now the Indians had probably been watching the Englishman for a while and had carefully planned their attack by taking advantage of nightfall and the cover of trees into which they had made their retreat. Percy makes no further reference to the incident whatsoever, so it could not have been a

major attack. Safely back on board Newport that same night ordered the opening of the box containing the names of the council appointed to govern affairs in Virginia. Seven men were listed. There were the Captains Newport, Whigfield, Gosnold and John Ratcliffe. They were all recognized. There were a couple other names worth noting, but it's interesting because the last

name on the list was John Smith. According to instructions from London, a president was to be elected from the seven men and who would serve for one year unless removed by a majority of the council. As it turned out, command remained split between the elected president, Whigfield, and Newport, with the task of exploring the country for two months before returning to England with the ships laid it ideally

with goods and merchandise. So with Wigfield now installed as president, but Newport is also sort of acting president, the next couple of weeks were spent surveying the James called the Bolhatan or King's River at the time and making contact with local peoples. Entering a river, probably the Lynnhaemen, they came to a plot of cleared ground five miles with

either bush or tree. They found a large dugout canoe and quote a good store of mussels and oysters left by the Indians, which lay on the ground thick as stones end quote. Leaving their boat well guarded, the explorers went on foot several miles into the woods and saw a great deal of smoke burning from the grass where Indians were either clearing land or, as Percy thought, giving a signal to bring warriors together for an attack on

the intruders. In fact, they saw neither an Indian nor a town, only a abundance of flowers and trees, including quote unquote beautiful strawberries. The men did, however, make a significant discovery on the way back to their ships. They found a deep water channel across the James, near a point of land they called Cape Comfort. It was sufficiently

large to allow the passage of ocean going vessels. This was good news, especially for Newport and the mariners, because now they had the fortunate prospect of taking their large ocean going ships upriver as soon as they wanted, rather than spending weeks upon weeks searching the lower reaches of the Bay for a suitable harbor. Now, before heading into the interior, Newport had one more important task to perform.

On the ninth and twentieth day, Percy reported, quote, we set up a cross at the Chesapeake Bay and named the place Cape Henry end quote. Now Percy's short description does little justice to this event. The planting of the cross at the entrance of the bay signified that they had taken possession of the region in the name of James the First, and henceforth the land, at least in their minds, was English. There were no elaborate rituals, speeches,

or processions, nor obviously warning the local peoples involved. This was done for symbolic purposes of announcing to other nations, notably Spain, that Virginia was now English. Following the ceremony, Newport moved the three ships to Cape Comfort anchored and prepared the shallop to explore further up the James River. After a couple of days, they continued on and reached the land of the Appomattox at the confluence of the Epomatics and Upper James Rivers, where initially in locals were

reluctant to allow them to land. Eventually they were permitted to spend a day or two looking around before heading back to their ships. By the end of the second week, Newport had learned it was possible to navigate the James in ocean going vessels as far as the Appomattox, and that most of the Indians along the river were or I guess at least appeared to be friendly. With things seemingly going their way, the men could now look for

a convenient place to establish a settlement. The eventual site chosen, two miles up river, was a marshy peninsula that they called Jamestown. The island seemingly had a number of natural advantages. A settlement on the island would be far enough up the coast about fifty miles to avoid being surprised by Spanish warships, a major concern of the Virginia Council, and the site, surrounded by water, except for a narrow land bridge at the western end, could be easily defended against

local Indians should they prove hostile. There was plenty of game for food and timber for building and exporting back to London. Most important, a deep water channel ran close enough to the land for their ships to be moored near the site. Thus the difficult task of transporting provisions and equipment ashore would be eased, and the settlement could be defended by the ship's cannons. On May fourteenth, the men disembarked and started to unload their stores and set

up camp. According to Smith quote, now falleth every man to work. As the task of beginning a settlement began. Some of the men constructed a rudimentary fortification from the brush in the shape of a half moon. Some cleared the undergrowth so they could pitch tents. Some cut down trees, and the remainder prepaid the ground for tillage or made

fishing nets. Newport remained anxious to explore upriver. The Virginia Council's instructions required that he looked for mountain where you could find valuable raw materials, especially gold, and then a great lake that might be a passage to the East India Sea, and henceforth all the way to China, all along the river. During the next few days, the company was met by friendly peoples, apparently eager to trade. Newport learned a lot from them, notably the existence of a

great king Potton was actually Wassanac. The Englishmen considered this voyage of exploring and discovery a great success. They had a good idea of the extent of the river and had learned much about the peoples who lived along it. Now to an extent, the Phatan people had misled the

Newport expedition the entire time. They had misled him about who in fact was talking to them, because actually one of the leaders who had corresponded with them throughout their voyages was none other than Wassanok's son, but they passed him off as Wassanoc. They also deceived Newport by blaming the Chesapeakes, a different tribe, for the attack on the English a month before, when in fact it was actually

people's loyal to the Bahatans that were responsible. Most importantly, the lavish hospitality extended to the English elsewhere throughout the voyage was merely a subterfuge to try to keep them upriver. While Newport's men were feasting and enjoying the company of the Indians, an alliance of five tribes launched an attack on the unsuspecting colonists back at Jamestown, wounding twelve of

the English, two of whom would later die. After an hour of intense fighting, the attack was beaten off, largely thanks to the small shot from the cannons of the ship. Now This was again all intentional, all driven by Wannock. He wanted to test the newcomer's strength now. If so, the outcome would have been disturbing for the Bahatan chieftain.

In spite of their dredably small numbers, the colonists had managed to hold off a couple hundred warriors and had demonstrated, as the Spanish had earlier, the destructive power of both firearms and cannon. Frontal assaults against these fortified colonial positions. Clearly Wassannock knew at this point would be fruitless and bloody.

He might also have realized that if these newcomers had come to stay in the long run, his military superiority and the security of his lands could be guaranteed only if he were able to acquire English weapons. As far as the English were concerned, the immediate outcome of the attack was to convince the colonies leaders of the need for much much stronger fortifications than the simple brushwood fence they had initially constructed, and so after a couple of

weeks of additional labor, the fort was complete. It was not exactly what the Virginia Council had in mind in their instructions to the colony's leaders. They had recommended a town with the central market square fourtified if need be, with wide streets running in straight lines back and forth from the square. The idea was that the streets could then be commanded by field pieces of artillery which be placed in the square, which then would be the natural

focus of the settlement. Or you could build the storehouse, the church, and other public buildings. The council's instructions suggest that the colony's principal settlement would be a long term idea that it would grow as more settlers arrived and eventually maybe even rival some of the cities of New Spain, and a fitting ambition for a colony that was honestly England's deede diny answer to Spain's rapidly expanding American Empire. But the colony's leaders on the ground in Virginia had

different objectives. They weren't thinking about long term developments or Spanish cities when they started constructing their for it. For them, it was imperative to build adequate fortifications as soon as possible, because no one knew when the next attack would come or whether it would be a much more difficult test of their defenses, and so the colonists built a stout palisade about eight feet high to provide sufficient protection from

Indian arrows. They cut loopholes in the timber, and cannons were molted on three bulwarks, which would allow the Englishmen to fire back safely. The fort commanded a clear view of the river, built as it was on one of the island's ridges. Although a navigable channel ran close to the shore on the western end of the ridge where the colony was planted, to the east, the channel was

farther off from the land. If the Spanish warships did enter the James, they could only get close to the island as they approached the settlement itself, by which time they would be placing themselves directly under the settlement's guns. Now, as I mentioned previously, Captain Newport was supposed to go back to England early with news of all that had been accomplished, and ideally with his ships packed full of

precious goods. On the eve of his departure for England on Sunday, June the twenty first, Newport invited the town's council to dine with him. Seated on tree stumps and sea chests around a table made of rough planks and barrels set up. Smoky torches provided a flickering light. The men had a lot to celebrate. Actually, we can guess

something of the conversation that evening. I mean, within just six weeks of disembarking at Jamestown, they had fortified themselves against the natives, sewn a good crop of wheat, and produced samples of clapperd and sassafras for export. As the evening drew on and the wine flowed freely, talk turned more and more to the rich promise of all these lands they had discovered along the river. There was an abundance of trees fit for many purposes, oaks, ash, walnut, poplar, pine, cedar.

There were all kinds of things. They hadn't necessarily found gold yet, but they knew of mountains to the north and west, and mountains meant precious minerals. Mountains meant gold and silver. Now. In a letter of June the twenty second, the colony's leaders entreated the London Company to organize a second expedition as soon as possible, so that they could

expand on what they've already accomplished. It was the possibility of gold mines in the interior near the falls, rather than the enthusiastic reports of timber and other commodities, that excited attention when Newport got back to London. However, regardless, after Newport delivered his report and the letters from the colonists, there was certainly enough good news from the colony to justify sending more settlers supplies, and so preparations immediately got

underway for another voyage. Now. It was certainly fortunate, though, that the company did not know about what had been going on since Newport's departure. If they had, they might have reconsidered. In the first flush of optimism. After landing, John Smith wrote that Jamestown was quote a very fit place for erecting a great city end quote. But aside from the considerations of defense, which were immediate, the choice

wasn't actually a good one. The site that they had happened upon turned out to be waste ground used by the locals for hunting. The best lands along the river had been occupied by centuries by the local people. Large areas of swamp and marshland natural breeding ground for swarms of mosquitoes, rendered half of the island uninhabitable and unsuitable

for farmland. The absence of fresh water springs meant that drinking water had to be drawn either from brackish wells dug by the settlers or from upriver, which in the summer became increasing saline and polluted, and unknown to the colonists, fresh water would be all the more difficult to find because the land was actually suffering from a severe drought. Six weeks after Newport sailed for England, the terrible role

call began. According to one chronicle quote, the sixth day of August there died John Abbesssy of the bloody flux. The ninth day died George Flowery of the swelling. The tenth day died William Ruster, Gentleman, of a wound given by the savages, and was buried the eleventh day. The fourteenth day, Jerome Alacoq ancient died of a wound. The same day Francis Midwinter Edward Morris corporal died suddenly end quote.

On August twenty second, the colony suffered its greatest loss with the death of Bartholomew Gosnold, perhaps the only person who could have held the fractious community together. So through the end of August into September, George Percy would write, quote, our men were destroyed with cruel diseases as swelling, fluxes, burnings, fevers, and by wars, but for the most part they died of mere famine. There never were Englishmen left in foreign country in such misery as we were in this new

discovered Virginia. Thus we lived the space of five months in this miserable distress, not having five men able to man our bullocks upon many occasion. End quote. Now Percy was actually mistaken here. It wasn't famine that was the principal cause of settlers sickness and death. The departure of ships had removed the floating taverns and beer houses and forced the men to rely on the common kettle of a pint of wheat and barley boiled in water per

man per day. But from May to September they were able to live on sturgeon and sea crabs, a vital and nutritious supplement to what had become a meager die. Instead of starvation, the major killer was actually just polluted river water. This led variously to salt poisoning, dysentery and sometimes typhoid. An epidemic swept the settlement and left half of the one hundred and four men and boys dead before the end of September. By the onset of winter,

fewer than forty remained. The colony was on the brink of collapse. With Newport gone and Gosnell dead, the leadership disintegrated. On September the tenth, John Ratcliffe, Smith, and Martin CONFRONTEDT. Wigfield and removed him from the office of president, declaring

that he was unfit. The following day, in what passed is a court hearing, it was alleged that Wigfield had hoarded food and drink for his own use while the colony had starved, and he had maliciously accused John Smith of mutiny and others of planning to steal away to Newfoundland. It was said that he plotted with the Spanish to destroy the colony, and that he was quote unquote an atheist.

Now were any of these justifications against Wigfield justified? Was he guilty of ineptitude and misconduct that led to the unnecessary deaths and the sickness of so many of his men. Percy, one of Wingfield's supporters described his valor during the Indian attack on the settlement in late May, and later warned that witnesses were being bribed to testify against him. Nevertheless,

he had little to say about Wigfield's hosting from the presidency. Eventually, when they had an opportunity to intervene, the London Company chose not to pursue either Wingfield or the Council's allegations and quietly dropped the entire matter. Now that's hardly surprising, given how damaging the news would have been if it would have been common knowledge. It's clear, however, that Wingfield did not command the respect of the men under his command.

Disgraced and abandoned by his friends, he was left with a little choice but to simply leave the colony at the first opportunity. Had the Bahatans decided to launch a large scale attack during the summer, it is not likely that the depleted and sickly encampment and settlers would have survived. In a seemingly lucky turn of events, however, neighboring peoples chose not to resume hostilities, and in fact saved the disease ridden Englishmen from further sufferings by bringing food to

the fort. Now, one reason for the indians change in attitude must have been the departure of the two main ships, the Susan Constant and the Godspeed. In fact, we know from records that three local chiefs power brokers inquired from the English as to the absence of the ships, so they were clearly noticed. The fact of the matter was with the departure of the ships, the Indians simply looked at the settlers, saw what was going on, and thought that they were less of a threat than they were before.

That doesn't mean that they were done with the Englishman, though, and we're about to find that out next time. Only in the next few months, as summer turn to fall and winter, we find out what Walsahonic's true intentions for the settlers were. Now, as I mentioned at the outset of this episode, next week, if you are a Patreon member, you will see part two of the Jamestown Epic show

up in your feed. If you're not, you won't see anything next week, which is this is the part where I ask you to become a member by clicking on the link in the show notes, and for one dollar a month twelve bucks a year, you can help support the show and get access to every episode in this

mini series on the epic plight of Jamestown. I'm not going to give this preamble every single show, so this will be the only time that I mentioned this from this point until we wrap up with the successful landing of Jamestown and its establishment.