Speaker 1: No doubt, James Smith was pleased to watch Newport's ships
Speaker 1: sail away from the Jamestown Colony in Virginia. As the
Speaker 1: mass disappeared down the James River on its way back
Speaker 1: to England, Smith realized that he was in charge, and
Speaker 1: as the weather turned bitterly cold in December, he first
Speaker 1: concerned himself with securing provisions to just try to keep
Speaker 1: the two hundred or so settlers alive during that winter.
Speaker 1: The Indians, however, refused to trade. They said because they
Speaker 1: were quote so commanded by Pahatton end quote so, threatening
Speaker 1: to take their corn by force if they refused to bargain.
Speaker 1: Smith persuaded the nearby Nesseimunds to part with one hundred bushels.
Speaker 1: But Smith now realized that Wassahonack had ordered an embargo
Speaker 1: on trade with the English and concluded that the Pahatan
Speaker 1: chief must be confronted or else the colony would starve.
Speaker 1: There was no third option. In fact, Smith had been
Speaker 1: invited to meet the chief at where Mucoco, where Wassahonik
Speaker 1: promised he would load the englishman's ship with corn if
Speaker 1: in return he would send him men to build a house,
Speaker 1: provide a grindstone, fifty swords, some cannon, copper, and beads. Now.
Speaker 1: Smith realized that he might be walking into a trap,
Speaker 1: but he had little choice but to agree. So he
Speaker 1: sent along Richard Savage and four German settlers to build
Speaker 1: the house that Wassahnack had requested, and then he set
Speaker 1: off in the Pinnacle with two barges and forty six men.
Speaker 1: In the final days of that calendar year. They finally
Speaker 1: arrived at where Macoco, the Indian capital, on January the twelfth,
Speaker 1: sixteen oht nine. The next day, Smith met with Wassahonic.
Speaker 1: The chief said that he hadn't sent for them and
Speaker 1: asked when they planned to leave. He assured Smith that
Speaker 1: he didn't have any corn to trade, although he would
Speaker 1: spare forty bushels and the like number of swords. Looking
Speaker 1: over the goods that the English had brought, he repeated
Speaker 1: that he was interested in trading for guns and swords only.
Speaker 1: He said that he valued a basket of corn more
Speaker 1: highly than a basket of copper, because you could eat
Speaker 1: the corn but not the copper. Now, this is a
Speaker 1: really interesting part because the dialogue between Smith and Wassahonic
Speaker 1: is actually recorded in its entirety, and it's the most
Speaker 1: extensive verbatim exchange that we have between the two men.
Speaker 1: Although we cannot possibly ever know for sure whether the
Speaker 1: voice of Wassahonic, the Bahatan chief, is authentic, it's the
Speaker 1: closest that we can come to hearing the chief's words
Speaker 1: from his own lips. Smith wanted corn, was Sahonic wanted
Speaker 1: English weapons, and neither of the two men was prepared
Speaker 1: to compromise. Smith began the discussion by emphasizing his friendship
Speaker 1: and then ending with a thinly veiled threat. And this
Speaker 1: is supposedly Smith's own words here, Powhatten. Though I had
Speaker 1: many courses to have made my provision, yet believing your
Speaker 1: promises to supply my wants, I neglected all. To satisfy
Speaker 1: your desire and to testify my love. I sent you
Speaker 1: by men for building, neglecting my own what your people
Speaker 1: had engrossed, forbidding them our trade. And now you think
Speaker 1: by consuming the time we shall consume for want, not
Speaker 1: having to fulfill your strange demands. As for swords and guns,
Speaker 1: I told you long ago I had none to spare,
Speaker 1: and you shall know those I have can keep me
Speaker 1: from want, yet steal or wrong you, I will not
Speaker 1: nor dissolve that friendship we have mutually promised, except you
Speaker 1: constrain me by your bad usage. Now, Walsahonic promised, for
Speaker 1: his part, that he would supply them with what they
Speaker 1: could spare within two days, but he made his doubts
Speaker 1: of the Englishman's intentions clear, saying as follows, Yet, Captain Smith,
Speaker 1: some doubt I have of your coming hither that makes
Speaker 1: me not so kindly seek to relieve you, as I
Speaker 1: would for many to inform me your coming is not
Speaker 1: for trade, but to invade my people and possess my country.
Speaker 1: Who dare not come to bring you corn? Seeing you
Speaker 1: thus armed with your men to clear of this fear,
Speaker 1: leave aboard your weapons, for here they are needless. We
Speaker 1: are all friends and forever Pahadans. The rest of the
Speaker 1: day was spent in further discussions, and continued into the
Speaker 1: next when the chief talked at length about war and
Speaker 1: peace and his fears about why the English had come
Speaker 1: into his country. Again, here we get the voice of Wassahonic.
Speaker 1: Captain Smith, you may understand that I having seen the
Speaker 1: death of all my people thrice and not one living
Speaker 1: of those three generations, but myself. I know the difference
Speaker 1: between peace and war better than any in my country.
Speaker 1: But this brute rumor from the Nasamund that you are
Speaker 1: come to destroy my country so much affrightened all my people,
Speaker 1: as they dared not visit you. What will it avail
Speaker 1: you to take that perforce that you may quietly have
Speaker 1: with love, or to destroy them that provide you food?
Speaker 1: Well you can get by war when we hide our
Speaker 1: provision and fly to the woods, whereby you must famish
Speaker 1: by wronging us your friends? And why you are jealous
Speaker 1: of our love seeing us unarmed, and both do and
Speaker 1: are willing still to feed you with that you cannot
Speaker 1: get but by our labors end quote Now, Smith, just
Speaker 1: like was Wassahonic, wanted to pose himself as the wronged party,
Speaker 1: and responded by stressing again his love for the Bahatans
Speaker 1: despite their failure to supply the colony with food as promised.
Speaker 1: He ignored the chief's view of the English as adopted Bahattans,
Speaker 1: and he rejected any suggestion that the English could only
Speaker 1: survive if they remained unfriendly terms. Sure, the English could
Speaker 1: take what they wanted by force if they chose, but
Speaker 1: they preferred to live in peace, Knowing the colony was
Speaker 1: once again on the brink of starvation. Wassahonic was hardly
Speaker 1: persuaded by Smith's assertions. It must have wondered at the
Speaker 1: Englishman's brazenness in standing before him and making these outrageous claims,
Speaker 1: or at least outrageous they would have seemed to him,
Speaker 1: seeing that the English persisted in refusing to lay down
Speaker 1: their arms. Whiles Ahonic spoke again this time and his
Speaker 1: disappointment of Smith and his actions. I never used any
Speaker 1: of my wear an ox to kindle as yourself. If
Speaker 1: from you I received the least kindness of any Captain
Speaker 1: Newport gave me swords, copper cloths, a bed, tools, or
Speaker 1: what I desired, ever taking what I offered him, and
Speaker 1: would send away his guns when I entreated him. None
Speaker 1: does deny to lay at my feet or do what
Speaker 1: I desire, but only you, of whom I have nothing
Speaker 1: but what you regard not, And yet you have whatsoever
Speaker 1: you demand. Captain Newport, you call father, and so you
Speaker 1: call me. But I see for us both you will
Speaker 1: do what you list, and we must both seek to
Speaker 1: content you. But if you intend so friendly as you said,
Speaker 1: send hence your arms that I may believe you, or
Speaker 1: you see the love I bear. You doth cause me
Speaker 1: thus nakedly to forget myself and quote, now, this is
Speaker 1: again a tacit effort by Wasashnik to try to get
Speaker 1: Smith to accept his authority to refer to him as father.
Speaker 1: Now Smith refused to acknowledge that, in fact, he didn't
Speaker 1: even follow the orders of his English father, Captain Newport.
Speaker 1: But by this time Smith was convinced that the Bahawtans
Speaker 1: were merely waiting for the opportunity to murder him. He
Speaker 1: therefore decided to surprise the chief, take him hostage, and
Speaker 1: make his escape with as much corn as he could carry. Here.
Speaker 1: Smith replies, quote, well, Houghton, you must know I have
Speaker 1: but one god, my honor, but one king. I live
Speaker 1: not here as your subject, as your friend, to pleasure
Speaker 1: with what I can. By the gifts you bestow upon me,
Speaker 1: you gain more than by trade. Yet would you visit
Speaker 1: me as I do you? You should know it is
Speaker 1: not our customs to sell courtesy as a commodity. Bring
Speaker 1: all your country with you. I will not dislike of
Speaker 1: it as being over jealous, But to content to you
Speaker 1: tomorrow I will leave my arms and trust to your promise.
Speaker 1: I call you father indeed, and as father you shall
Speaker 1: see I love you. But the small care I had
Speaker 1: of such a child caused my men to persuade me
Speaker 1: to shift from myself. Now these were the last words
Speaker 1: that these two men would ever exchange. Smith was given
Speaker 1: a bracelet and a chain of pearl and the Indians
Speaker 1: agreed to load corn onto his barge. But in fact,
Speaker 1: in reality, Wissahonik had ordered that Smith be murdered that
Speaker 1: very evening. The plan was to ambush them at dinner
Speaker 1: time when the guard was down. According to legend, Smith
Speaker 1: was once again rescued by young Pocahontas. She came to
Speaker 1: him and told him of the plot before it was
Speaker 1: too late. Smith chose not to flee. However, he simply
Speaker 1: stood there calmly and formed the warriors that he knew
Speaker 1: why they had come. And so Smith and his men,
Speaker 1: armed with English weapons, and the Bahatans armed with theirs,
Speaker 1: simply spent the next several hours watching each other warily,
Speaker 1: until the Englishmen were able to escape safely on the
Speaker 1: midnight tide. Rather than return to Jamestown, Smith opted to
Speaker 1: head up river and continue his searches for corn. He
Speaker 1: understood fully well the risk. It was possible that perhaps
Speaker 1: was Sahnick's brother might be more determined than his brother
Speaker 1: to rid himself of the tiresome captain, and that was
Speaker 1: the direction he was going. But Smith knew that he
Speaker 1: didn't have a choice. The English didn't have sufficient food
Speaker 1: to get through the winter, and he knew there was
Speaker 1: little chance of finding enough food elsewhere. But if he
Speaker 1: had known about another group that left where Macoco that night,
Speaker 1: he might have reconsidered his plans. Wassahonic was ready to
Speaker 1: dispense with Smith because, actually, unbeknownst to Smith, he had
Speaker 1: succeeded in winning over to his side the Germans sent
Speaker 1: to build his house. He had made them substantially the
Speaker 1: same offer that he had made Smith a little more
Speaker 1: than a year before, with the exception that he didn't
Speaker 1: intend to raise any of them to the status of chief.
Speaker 1: That being said, several of the Germans accepted the offer,
Speaker 1: and as Smith was sailing upriver, they were actually on
Speaker 1: their way back to Jamestown, directed by Wassahonic to steal
Speaker 1: as many weapons as humanly possible and return to him.
Speaker 1: But Smith didn't know about any of that, and so
Speaker 1: he sailed up the river to meet with Wassahonik's brother Apohanock.
Speaker 1: Abahonic readily agreed to trade and promised to provide ample
Speaker 1: stores of corn the next day. When the Englishmen returned
Speaker 1: the following morning, they found four or five Indians with
Speaker 1: great baskets of food. Still, one of his men, John Russell,
Speaker 1: informed Smith that they had been betrayed. In fact, six
Speaker 1: and seven hundred warriors were surrounding them in the woods,
Speaker 1: taking a play right out of the Francisco Pizaro playbook.
Speaker 1: So Smith walked right up to Apahonock and challenged him
Speaker 1: to single combat, adding the following, Apohanock, you plan to
Speaker 1: murder me, but I fear it is not as yet
Speaker 1: Your men are mine, have done no harm. But by
Speaker 1: our directions, take there for your arms. You see mine
Speaker 1: my body shall be as naked as yours, and if
Speaker 1: you be contented, we shall fight, and the conqueror shall
Speaker 1: be lord and master over all our men. Otherwise, draw
Speaker 1: all your men into the field. If you have not enough,
Speaker 1: take time to fetch more and bring what number you will.
Speaker 1: So everyone, bring a basket of corn, against which I
Speaker 1: will stake the value and copper. You see I have
Speaker 1: but fifteen men and our game shall be the conqueror
Speaker 1: take all end quote. If Apohonic understood any of this,
Speaker 1: he could hardly be blamed for ignoring it. He had
Speaker 1: nothing to gain and everything to lose by accepting. He
Speaker 1: chose therefore, to try to draw Smith out of the
Speaker 1: house he was currently in and make him an easy
Speaker 1: target for his bowman positioned outside. In the heat of
Speaker 1: the moment, perhaps Smith may not have thought too much
Speaker 1: about his reaction, but what happened next sealed his own
Speaker 1: fate among the Pahatans and cast a bloody shadow over
Speaker 1: the English colony for years to come. Commanding two of
Speaker 1: his men to make the house safe and two men
Speaker 1: to guard the door, Smith grabbed Apahonic by his long
Speaker 1: scalplock and aimed his pistol directly at his chest, and
Speaker 1: then he led them out among his people, forced him
Speaker 1: to surrender his weapons, and made his men do the same.
Speaker 1: Then he addressed the astonished assembled natives with the usual
Speaker 1: mixture of threats and fair promises, saying, I see you,
Speaker 1: paniukis the great desire you have to cut my throat
Speaker 1: and my long suffering. Your injuries have emboldened you to
Speaker 1: this presumption. The cause I have forborne your insolences is
Speaker 1: the promise I made you before the God. I serve
Speaker 1: to be your friend, So you give me just cause
Speaker 1: to be your enemy. If I keep this vow, my
Speaker 1: God will keep me. You cannot hurt me. If I
Speaker 1: break it, he will destroy me. But if you shoot
Speaker 1: one arrow, to shed one drop of blood of any
Speaker 1: of my men, or steal the least of these blades
Speaker 1: or copper, you shall see I shall not cease vengeance
Speaker 1: if once I begin, so long as I can hear
Speaker 1: where to find one of your nation that will not
Speaker 1: deny your name end quote. Referring then to his capture
Speaker 1: in the winter of sixteen oh seven, Smith offered in
Speaker 1: return to overlook the Indians treachery, saying quote, if as
Speaker 1: friends you will come and trade, I once more promise
Speaker 1: not to trouble you, except you give me the first
Speaker 1: occasion end quote. Incredibly, after the attempts on his life
Speaker 1: and the terrible personal insult he had just dealt Apahonic,
Speaker 1: Smith still tried to persuade the natives to remain on
Speaker 1: friendly terms, and yet the root of Smith's problem ran
Speaker 1: a lot deeper than the immediate desire to get corn.
Speaker 1: He had lost now his influence with Wassahonic and Apahonic,
Speaker 1: and with it the prime advantage that he had with
Speaker 1: other leaders over the colony since his miraculous return from
Speaker 1: captivity in early sixteen oh eight. Nor could he hope
Speaker 1: any longer for these groups of Indians help in supplying
Speaker 1: the colonists with food. Smith understood, just as Wassahonic did,
Speaker 1: the Englishman's dependence on the Pahatans for provisions. If they
Speaker 1: saw to destroy the natives, than they would surely sarve.
Speaker 1: Smith in fact wrote quote, then by their loss, we
Speaker 1: should have lost ourselves end quote. Hence Smith's continued and
Speaker 1: desperate efforts to avoid conflict. Unfortunately for Smith, the pot
Speaker 1: in chief no longer needed Smith. Now that he could
Speaker 1: depend upon the Germans, he could get whatever he wanted
Speaker 1: by treachery rather than by trade. Though Smith did not
Speaker 1: yet know the cause, the balance of power had shifted
Speaker 1: decisively now toward the Pohatans. He returned to Jamestown in
Speaker 1: early February with two hundred and seventy nine bushels of
Speaker 1: corn and other provisions, but unbeknownst to him, the cost
Speaker 1: of that immediate survival had been enormous. More bad news
Speaker 1: awaited Smith back at the forts. A couple of weeks before,
Speaker 1: Matthew Scribner, a captain named Richard Waldo, both of whom
Speaker 1: were on the council, and eight others, were drowned during
Speaker 1: the extreme frozen period that had existed since Smith had left. Meanwhile,
Speaker 1: as Smith endeavored to find a means of forcing his
Speaker 1: men to work, two of the Germans still with Wassahonick
Speaker 1: sent a compatriot back to the fort to find out
Speaker 1: why they had not been joined by more of the colonists.
Speaker 1: News of the Germans return came to the ears of Smith,
Speaker 1: who sent out a party of twenty men to bring
Speaker 1: the trader back to the fort. Smith joined in the search, and,
Speaker 1: passing by the newly constructed glasshouse alone, was suddenly attacked
Speaker 1: by the chief of the nearby Passaheggs, who hoped to
Speaker 1: gain favor with Wassahonack by killing the Englishmen. Locked in
Speaker 1: hand to hand combat, the two men fell into the
Speaker 1: river nearby, where the Indian tried to drag Smith under
Speaker 1: the water, only to be thwarted. When a couple of
Speaker 1: colonists came to Smith's rescue, This attack persuaded Smith to
Speaker 1: inflict immediate reprisals against the nearby Natives, and with a
Speaker 1: small force, he carried out a quick and brutal raid
Speaker 1: on their village. Smith and his men killed six or
Speaker 1: seven warriors, took as many prisoners, and burned the Indians' houses,
Speaker 1: destroyed their canoes in the process. He then promised to
Speaker 1: leave the Indians alone if they could only provide him
Speaker 1: with food, this being the kind of agreement that he
Speaker 1: had also worked out with the Bahatans. During the next
Speaker 1: few months, Smith kept his men busy repairing the ford,
Speaker 1: producing pitch tar, soap, ashes, and glass. Scarcity of food
Speaker 1: continued to be a major concern because the corn they
Speaker 1: had taken from the natives had rotted in the casks
Speaker 1: or been devoured by rats from the ships, leaving them
Speaker 1: nothing but what they could scrape out of the nearby woods.
Speaker 1: Smith was left with little choice but to disburse his men.
Speaker 1: In May, about a third of the two hundred English
Speaker 1: were spent twenty miles down river with one of the
Speaker 1: original settlers to Quote live on oysters end Quote. Twenty
Speaker 1: went to try their hand at fishing, and a similar
Speaker 1: number were dispatched upriver to live off the land at
Speaker 1: the falls. The rest stayed at Jamestown. Despite the settler's
Speaker 1: desperate situation, however, the majority remained reluctant to do any work.
Speaker 1: They had signed up as soldiers, not as fishermen and farmers,
Speaker 1: and rather than find their own provisions, preferred to trade
Speaker 1: anything and everything to the local natives. Finally, Smith had
Speaker 1: no choice. He addressed the company and declared that anyone
Speaker 1: who did not daily produce as much food from himself
Speaker 1: would be banished from the fort. Time was running out
Speaker 1: for John Smith. Many of the men were ready to revolt,
Speaker 1: and the locals were now openly hostile. Somehow, picking up
Speaker 1: a rumor that a Spanish assault might be imminent, the
Speaker 1: renegade Germans planned to join an invading force and drive
Speaker 1: the English out for good. Learning of the disarray at Jamestown,
Speaker 1: they informed Wasahonic at the moment had come to attack,
Speaker 1: and the plan came to nothing, probably because the Pahatans
Speaker 1: remained wary of a frontal assault on the fort. Yet,
Speaker 1: the situation revealed the extent of discontent among the Englishmen,
Speaker 1: as well as the continued threat posed by settlers who
Speaker 1: ran away to the Indians. Yet, for all the challenges
Speaker 1: Smith faced in the colony, ultimately it was neither his
Speaker 1: own men nor the Phatans who would cause his downfall,
Speaker 1: but rather the changing tide of events back in London.
Speaker 1: As far as the company's sponsors were concerned, the colony
Speaker 1: had failed to fulfill its expectations and required immediate and
Speaker 1: thorough reorganization. A new beginning was called for, one that
Speaker 1: placed the colony on a very different footing from Virginia
Speaker 1: all the way back to London. The winter of sixteen
Speaker 1: oh eight to sixteen oh nine was one of the
Speaker 1: hardest in living memory. Living in London through that brutal
Speaker 1: winter was one Sir Thomas Smith. He was the leading
Speaker 1: merchant of his day. In his youth he had been
Speaker 1: fascinated by different English schemes to found an English empire
Speaker 1: in North Atlantic, but luckily for him, he didn't take
Speaker 1: part in some of the last disastrous voyages. He had
Speaker 1: been the governor of the East India Company since its founding.
Speaker 1: He was a member of Parliament, served as one of
Speaker 1: the four Principles of the Navy, and personally knew the
Speaker 1: King's most important ministers. In Smith, it turned out the
Speaker 1: Virginia Company could not have found a more powerful advocate. Now.
Speaker 1: Initial steps to reform the colony had begun nearly a
Speaker 1: year earlier. In the spring of sixteen o eight, Henry Clinton,
Speaker 1: Earl of Lincoln, who had recently been added to the
Speaker 1: Virginia Council, urged that several thousand men be sent to
Speaker 1: Jamestown as soon as possible to populate the colony. Meanwhile,
Speaker 1: Sir Thomas Gates, a captain of the English Company in
Speaker 1: the Netherlands, was commissioned to lead a large scale expedition
Speaker 1: to the land of Virginia. Gates was an enthusiastic supporter
Speaker 1: of colonies and a seasoned military commander. He had been
Speaker 1: foremost in petitioning the King for a charter to colonize America,
Speaker 1: and was the first name grantee in the letters patent
Speaker 1: issued to the London Company by James the First. Rather
Speaker 1: than accompany the voyage to Virginia, however, at least initially,
Speaker 1: he had returned to the Netherlands, where he had served
Speaker 1: with Sir Thomas Gale in South Holland. It was from
Speaker 1: there that Gates made his way to England in May
Speaker 1: sixteen oh eight. Upon his return, Gates heard that Newport
Speaker 1: had arrived from Virginia bringing details of the colonies near
Speaker 1: collapse and whigs overthrow. We can confirm this because, writing
Speaker 1: in late June that year, the ambassador to England and
Speaker 1: also so secret Spanish spy Zuniga, noted that despite being
Speaker 1: almost bankrupt the company, the Virginia Company, was preparing to
Speaker 1: send out another expedition. Zuniga could think of only one
Speaker 1: possibility for this piracy, he wrote, for the purpose quote
Speaker 1: carrying on piracy from there, and I mean only the
Speaker 1: prospect of plunder could explain why this colony that seemed
Speaker 1: so hapless could continue to attract settlers. Now, piracy was
Speaker 1: not at all on the minds of the company's leaders,
Speaker 1: But as Sir Thomas Smith wrote out purposefully from his
Speaker 1: house in late January sixteen oh nine, he was already
Speaker 1: aware that the colony had quote went backwards rather than
Speaker 1: forwards end quote. Having read John Smith's long letter criticizing
Speaker 1: the company's policies, which had arrived from Newport from Virginia
Speaker 1: a few days before, and having had discussions with John Ratcliffe,
Speaker 1: also recently returned, and others, it was clear to Thomas
Speaker 1: and the company that the colony needed to be reorganized
Speaker 1: as soon as humanly possible. There and afterwards was a
Speaker 1: series of meetings during which would occurred, more than anything else,
Speaker 1: was a perfectly candidate and somewhat unusual appraisal of the
Speaker 1: problems which had beset the colony from its beginning. A
Speaker 1: series of orders would go out which would serve as
Speaker 1: sort of a response to Smiths criticisms. Now, really, what
Speaker 1: these responses illustrate are the ways that perhaps the company
Speaker 1: intends to restructure the colony in order to work more efficiently.
Speaker 1: But as always, it's one thing when you're actually on
Speaker 1: the moment, another thing when you are giving directions from
Speaker 1: the safety of earth. Oftentimes the colony and the company
Speaker 1: are going to see things differently based on where they
Speaker 1: are in the ground. Theoretically, maybe things in Virginia look
Speaker 1: better than they actually are, despite the worrying words that
Speaker 1: come in. So, according to the company in London, all
Speaker 1: of the problems were reduced to really two quote the
Speaker 1: form of government and the length and danger of the
Speaker 1: passage by the southerly course of the Indies end quote.
Speaker 1: To counter the first, it was agreed that the King
Speaker 1: should be petitioned quote for a special charter with such
Speaker 1: ample and large privileges and powers as what enabled them
Speaker 1: to reform and correct those errors already discovered, and to
Speaker 1: prevent such as in the future might threaten them end quote.
Speaker 1: To deal with the second problem, that is the long
Speaker 1: course of the southerly route, the company decided to employ
Speaker 1: one Captain Samuel Argyle, to find a shorter passage to
Speaker 1: the Chesapeake by sailing directly from the Canaries in a
Speaker 1: straight westerly course, avoiding the Spanish possession and keeping way
Speaker 1: of piracy. Now, this overall charter proposed important changes to
Speaker 1: the way the company and colony had been run and
Speaker 1: structured for the last several years. A new Virginia Council
Speaker 1: would be created, made up of men drawn up from
Speaker 1: adventurers nominated by the Company rather than by his King
Speaker 1: and his ministers, and the council's jurisdiction would be limited
Speaker 1: only by the restriction that such ordinances and whatever it
Speaker 1: passed couldn't be contrary to the quote laws, statute, government
Speaker 1: and policy in England end quote. So obviously this is
Speaker 1: pretty broad. Powers to do whatever you see fit. All
Speaker 1: aspects of policy and administration of the colony were firmly
Speaker 1: located in the company's hands in London. But to butcherss
Speaker 1: All this there'd be a principal offer in Virginia, and
Speaker 1: then a new position called the Governor would be created,
Speaker 1: and this position would have extensive powers. In fact, the
Speaker 1: governor would have the right to enforce martial law if
Speaker 1: he saw a fit, and though he'd be assisted in
Speaker 1: Virginia by the Advisory Council, he could not be overruled
Speaker 1: or ousted by them under any circumstances. He was in
Speaker 1: effect an authoritarian government and an autocrat. Even so, the
Speaker 1: company appointed Sir Thomas Welst, the twelfth Baron de la War,
Speaker 1: a high ranking nobleman and soldier, the colony's first Lord governor.
Speaker 1: Significant proposals were also made to greatly expand the colony's territory. Henceforth,
Speaker 1: not only were the bounds north and south of the
Speaker 1: original settlement increased fifty to two hundred miles inland, the
Speaker 1: colony was extended from quote c to sea west and
Speaker 1: northwest end quote that is, what they assumed was from
Speaker 1: the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. The choice of
Speaker 1: two hundred miles north and south of Cape Comfort at
Speaker 1: the mouth of the James wasn't arbitrary. It was based
Speaker 1: upon information from John Smith's explorations and claims to a
Speaker 1: greater Virginia that included Roanoke Island to the south and
Speaker 1: lands as far as the head of the Chesapeake Bay
Speaker 1: to the north, just as an extension of territories from
Speaker 1: sea to sea reflected the continuing hope of finding a
Speaker 1: river passage somewhere near the head of the bay that
Speaker 1: would ultimately lead to the Pacific in the far east.
Speaker 1: If the company wasn't all critical of Captain Smith's vigorous
Speaker 1: style of leadership, it clearly recognized the potential value of
Speaker 1: his recent discoveries, and they were determined to protect them
Speaker 1: from anyone else who may show up. At the same
Speaker 1: time all of this was going on, Sir Thomas Smith
Speaker 1: was out there desperately trying to raise as much money
Speaker 1: and as many settlers as he possibly could for the ordeal.
Speaker 1: He organized as a joint stock venture individual subscribers, companies
Speaker 1: and corporations who purchase shares, and this would prove to
Speaker 1: be the major source of capital for the company. In return,
Speaker 1: those who bought a ship would get a portion of the
Speaker 1: land minerals or other profits according to the size of
Speaker 1: the investment. Seven years after the adoptment of the Charter
Speaker 1: Bills of Adventure, these were the shares could be purchased
Speaker 1: for as little as twelve pounds ten pence each, or
Speaker 1: an individual could volunteer to join the expedition for an
Speaker 1: equivalent of his or her rank. Efforts were made to
Speaker 1: sign up skilled artisans from abroad, glass makers from Italy,
Speaker 1: mill rights from Hamburg to establish sawmills, Polish workers to
Speaker 1: oversee the production of pitch tar Pottish soap ash. And
Speaker 1: if the appeal to potential investors in colonists was broad based,
Speaker 1: so was the vision of this colony's future. In an
Speaker 1: ambitious piece of propaganda titled Nova Britannia also intended to
Speaker 1: attract investors and settlers, Robert Johnson, merchant and deputy treasurer
Speaker 1: of the company, described the natural resources of Virginia. The
Speaker 1: air climate claimed were quote most sweet and wholesome, much
Speaker 1: warmer than England, and very agreeable to our natures end quote.
Speaker 1: He wrote further that the country itself quote large and great,
Speaker 1: with excellent harbors, of which the world affords no ship
Speaker 1: of all burdens end quote. Those who took the trip
Speaker 1: would find out that that was a tad bit of
Speaker 1: an overstatement. In addition to this new mercantile argument, there
Speaker 1: was a new emphasis being placed on the reason to
Speaker 1: travel to the New World for a new settlers, and
Speaker 1: that was quote advancing the Kingdom of God end quote.
Speaker 1: The idea was to bring the Protestant faith to the
Speaker 1: Indian peoples. Now, this had long been an aspect of
Speaker 1: Catholic of Spanish and Portuguese colonization abroad, at least in theory.
Speaker 1: One of the reasons that the Pope divided the world
Speaker 1: between the Portuguese and the Spanish was that they were
Speaker 1: going to expand the Catholic faith. England was actually the
Speaker 1: first Protestant nation to say, well, actually, we could take
Speaker 1: that ideology and we could do that. And so now
Speaker 1: the Virginia Company for the first time is putting this
Speaker 1: into their ideology for expansion. The idea was that settlement
Speaker 1: would be clear evidence of the fulfillment of a biblical prophecy,
Speaker 1: whereby the true faith and by of course, which they
Speaker 1: mean the Protestant faith would be transferred around the globe
Speaker 1: in ways and in numbers, never before seen now. As
Speaker 1: preparations for the expedition to leave for Jamestown went ahead
Speaker 1: through the spring and early summer of sixteen oh nine,
Speaker 1: Don Pedro de Zuniga again and passer to Spain slash
Speaker 1: secret spy in the court of James the First, for
Speaker 1: Philip the Third of Spain was becoming increasingly alarmed. He
Speaker 1: realized that Lord de la War was about to leave
Speaker 1: for the New World from England with six or seven
Speaker 1: hundred men quote, a great part of them gentry and
Speaker 1: some women end quote. He reported this directly to Philip
Speaker 1: the Third, and he would soon be followed dayla War,
Speaker 1: that is, by Sir Thomas Gates, with another four or
Speaker 1: five hundred men and at least one hundred women. The
Speaker 1: Spanish ambassador became convinced, in fact, remained so that the
Speaker 1: colony was to primarily serve as a base for pirate fleets,
Speaker 1: as a base whereby the English could prey on the
Speaker 1: Spanish treasure fleet as it hoovered up the gold and
Speaker 1: silver from the New World and moved it over to
Speaker 1: the Old. It was as though the Spanish were saying, Hey,
Speaker 1: that's my treasure. We write stole it. You don't get
Speaker 1: to steal it from us. This would be done on
Speaker 1: a scale Zuniga believed that would effectively just cut off
Speaker 1: the flow of silver from the Indies and ruin trade,
Speaker 1: obviously forcing Philip a Third into bankruptcy earlier than he's
Speaker 1: going to be. And that moreover, Zuniga pointed out that
Speaker 1: he believed for the first time that the English monarch
Speaker 1: James the First had a direct hand in this. So
Speaker 1: if it wasn't the English directly striking out at the Spanish,
Speaker 1: they were doing so at the very least indirectly in
Speaker 1: a way that should be obvious to just about anyone.
Speaker 1: Zuniga ended the letter back to Philip the Third with
Speaker 1: one piece of what we call stern device. He needed
Speaker 1: to quote quickly command the expiration of these insolens end quote,
Speaker 1: presumably before it was too late. The Spanish had to
Speaker 1: stamp out the embers before it had become a fire. Now,
Speaker 1: you may remember, multiple episodes back, the Spanish had previously
Speaker 1: wiped out a settlement of men, women and children French
Speaker 1: Huguenots on the north coast of what is today Florida,
Speaker 1: a lot closer to them in Virginia, obviously, but it
Speaker 1: set the precedent that the Spanish weren't about to just
Speaker 1: look the other way when it came to perceptive threats
Speaker 1: on their New World expansions. And so the company then
Speaker 1: issued Gates confidential instructions before the expedition was about to
Speaker 1: leave London in May. And the goal here was how
Speaker 1: could we turn this colony as profitable as possible, as
Speaker 1: quickly as possible, and see to its defense in the
Speaker 1: event that there is a Spanish attack. Now here were
Speaker 1: the different They called them four principal ways of enriching
Speaker 1: the colony was written quote. The first is the discovery
Speaker 1: of either the South seas or the royal mines. Thereby
Speaker 1: they mean gold, nothing new there, right. The second is trade,
Speaker 1: whereby you recover all the commodities of those country that
Speaker 1: lay far off and yet are accessible by water. The
Speaker 1: third is tribute, and the fourth is the labor of
Speaker 1: your own men in making wines, pitch, sorrow, soap, ashes, steel,
Speaker 1: so on and so forth. Now what's interesting, of course
Speaker 1: about this list is that we have to get to
Speaker 1: step four before the colonists are actually going to do
Speaker 1: anything productive. Step one and two is still let's either
Speaker 1: look for gold to try to take it from the natives,
Speaker 1: and step three is some interesting form of tribute system. Now,
Speaker 1: the more interesting parts of this order about what the
Speaker 1: company now expected to do with Jamestown. Jamestown itself was
Speaker 1: to be reduced to a small garrison. It wasn't going
Speaker 1: to be a city anymore. Instead, when they got there,
Speaker 1: Gates at All were supposed to select a site for
Speaker 1: the colony's chief new seat, away from major rivers, accessible
Speaker 1: only by small boats or from overland. The company had
Speaker 1: a new proposal for the site of the new capital,
Speaker 1: one that conjured up a radically different vision of the
Speaker 1: colony to that projected by John Smith's voyages of discovery
Speaker 1: around the Chesapeake Bay the year before Gates was informed.
Speaker 1: Quote four days journey from your fort southwards is a
Speaker 1: town called Ahanahan, seated on where the river of the
Speaker 1: Chikaniki divideth itself into three branches and falleth into the
Speaker 1: Sea of Roanoke. Further inland at Akanahan was a brave
Speaker 1: and beautiful country, well watered and every way accessible by
Speaker 1: a stranger enemy end Quote. Nearby, at least in theory,
Speaker 1: were rich copper mines that could be taken advantage of
Speaker 1: by the settlers without doubts. The passage in Gates Instructions
Speaker 1: detailing lance to the south of Jamestown was somewhat ironically
Speaker 1: derived in part from James john Smith's sketch of map
Speaker 1: and description in sixteen oh eight. So the very man
Speaker 1: who would have told them that this was a fool's
Speaker 1: errand that there weren't rich copper minds of the South was,
Speaker 1: interestingly enough, the one who provided the inspiration for yet
Speaker 1: what would prove to be another English boondoggle. From some
Speaker 1: source or sources, the company had discovered further information about
Speaker 1: lands to the south, as well as intelligence regarding the
Speaker 1: lost colonists, I mean Roanoke's slaughter and demise. But who
Speaker 1: on earth would have informed the colonists and then the
Speaker 1: London Company about the killing of the lost Colonists of Roanoke.
Speaker 1: The most likely candidate is a shadowy Indian figure in
Speaker 1: our story called Matschumps. He may have learned of the
Speaker 1: slaughter from his sister Wassniki, one of Wasahonak's favorite wives,
Speaker 1: or from other relatives close to the Great Chief. Machumps
Speaker 1: had been sent to England by Wassahonic in late sixteen
Speaker 1: oh eight with Newport to see the country, and remained there,
Speaker 1: we think in London, until returning with gates Fleet the
Speaker 1: following summer. He was probably the one who spilled the
Speaker 1: beans as to what happened. But what had happened to
Speaker 1: the lost colonists and why was the new information so
Speaker 1: important to the Virginia Company well. The conventional explanation is
Speaker 1: that after John White left the colonists in fifteen eighty seven,
Speaker 1: they split into two groups. A small group of women, children,
Speaker 1: and those unable to travel were transported to the nearby
Speaker 1: island of crow Atoan, where they'd be safe with local
Speaker 1: friendly peoples, and the main body would move northwards toward
Speaker 1: the territory of what was the Chesapeake Bay near the entrance,
Speaker 1: where they would settle down with the Indians. Soon after
Speaker 1: arrival of the English at Jamestown, Wassahonics sent his men
Speaker 1: to destroy the Chesapeakes and the colonists still living with them.
Speaker 1: The chief was acting on the advice of his priests,
Speaker 1: who had warned him that quote from the Chesapeake Bay,
Speaker 1: a nation should arise which would dissolve and give end
Speaker 1: to his empire end quote. Not one to take any chances,
Speaker 1: the great Chief ordered the killing of quote, all such
Speaker 1: who might lie under any doubtful construction of the said
Speaker 1: prophecy end quote. And so it was Wasahonic who, in
Speaker 1: one swift, decisive hammer blow, really finished out the first
Speaker 1: English colony in the New World. But there is of
Speaker 1: course an alternative explanation, and to an extent it makes
Speaker 1: better sense of what little evidence exists this one. The
Speaker 1: main group of colonists, consisting of about ninety to one
Speaker 1: hundred men, women and children, moved westward into the Carolina interior,
Speaker 1: not northwards at all, into the territory of the Chesapeakes.
Speaker 1: Setting out in a small ship left by Whight, they
Speaker 1: followed the Abermeil Sound, the route taken by actually Ralph
Speaker 1: Lane two years earlier, to the Chotun River, where they
Speaker 1: planned to winter among the friendly peoples there. Moving fifty
Speaker 1: miles further into the main to the fertile lands along
Speaker 1: the Chowan would put them out of the immediate danger
Speaker 1: of attack of more hostile groups. The colonists remained there
Speaker 1: for the next couple of years, simply waiting for White
Speaker 1: to return, either living with the friendly Chawannox or in
Speaker 1: a small settlement nearby. But as time passed, it became
Speaker 1: less and less likely that white was ever going to
Speaker 1: come back, or that anyone was ever going to come back.
Speaker 1: They gradually realized that they were never going to be
Speaker 1: able to get home, they would never see England again,
Speaker 1: and so they simply did what any of us would
Speaker 1: have done. They settled down, They intermarried with the friendly
Speaker 1: local Indians, and they live their lives here in villages
Speaker 1: along the Chohen and Roanoke Rivers. Nearly two decades later,
Speaker 1: the lost colonists, the children, and their Indian allies were
Speaker 1: tracked down finally slaughtered by Wassahonics warriors. So I guess
Speaker 1: in either story, Wassahonic it gets the last laugh. But
Speaker 1: why did the Pohatans attack them? What possible threat could
Speaker 1: the colonists posed after settling with the Chawanoks in South Virginia.
Speaker 1: Wassanok may have believed that the survivors would serve as
Speaker 1: go betweens in forging alliances between the new English arrivals
Speaker 1: and the Indian peoples that they the lost colonists lived with,
Speaker 1: and so they might pose a threat to the chief's
Speaker 1: influence in the region. There was also the possibility that
Speaker 1: peoples to the south and west of Wassahonics territories would
Speaker 1: ally themselves with the English newcomers. Regardless, Wassahonics killing of
Speaker 1: the lost colonists and their offspring was not merely a
Speaker 1: fiction dreamt up by the English to justify later declarations
Speaker 1: of war against the Bahatans. They almost certainly happened. Regardless,
Speaker 1: they did force Sir Thomas Smith and his advisers to
Speaker 1: rethink the colony's fundamental relations with the Bahatans. The most
Speaker 1: powerful and local tribe, Wassahonic, it was ultimately decided, would
Speaker 1: be spared, but never again could he be trusted. The
Speaker 1: Company's Indian policy premise now on the treachery of Wassahonic
Speaker 1: and his priests would be at the heart of every
Speaker 1: foreign policy decision made by the Colony going forward until
Speaker 1: such time as Wassahonic and his priests could be removed.
Speaker 1: The English were advised by the Company to proceed cautiously.
Speaker 1: Alliances were to be made only with peoples outside the
Speaker 1: region that were hostile to the Bahatans. Thus, company plans,
Speaker 1: as relayed to gast at least, rested on two basic assumptions.
Speaker 1: Number One, Wassahonic and his priests were to be dealt with.
Speaker 1: The people would embrace English rule once that happened, and
Speaker 1: would willing render tribute to the English. And Second, if
Speaker 1: some of the lost colonists who had survived the Phatan
Speaker 1: slaughter in the Piedmont to the west of Roanoke Island
Speaker 1: could be found, then it could be them that was
Speaker 1: the key to the survival of the colony, because they
Speaker 1: would have information about where to go in the interior.
Speaker 1: We could only speculate about what John Smith would have
Speaker 1: thought about Sir Thomas's plans. If he had been privy
Speaker 1: to the company's discussions in the spring of sixteen oh nine,
Speaker 1: he might have found much to agree with, particularly in
Speaker 1: regard to organizing the settlers into work gangs to produce
Speaker 1: the kind of commodities wine, pitch tar, so on and
Speaker 1: so forth that he believed would ultimately provide a return,
Speaker 1: a sound, consistent return for investors, and the idea that
Speaker 1: the men needed discipline to keep them busy. But from
Speaker 1: his own experience of dealing with the Powhatans, Smith would
Speaker 1: have known the proposals to capture or eliminate Woasahonic at
Speaker 1: some point, and his priests were totally unrealistic, and that
Speaker 1: the very attempt of which which was burden to fail,
Speaker 1: could only lead to war. Likewise, the company's decision to
Speaker 1: remove the capital from Jamestown to a new site upriver,
Speaker 1: beyond the falls or inland in North Carolina would have
Speaker 1: been equally incomprehensible. It had taken the settlers two years
Speaker 1: almost to establish themselves at Jamestown, and only now were
Speaker 1: they beginning to produce modest quantities of goods for export.
Speaker 1: Abandoning the fort would require a further period of building
Speaker 1: a new site, during which little of value could be produced.
Speaker 1: Even when construction was completed, Smith would have asked how
Speaker 1: would the colony's commodities be transported over the falls and
Speaker 1: from interior locations for shipment to England, And how could
Speaker 1: the company's ships provision such remote outposts. The company was
Speaker 1: rightly concerned about Jamestown's vulnerability from Spanish attack, but removing
Speaker 1: settlements far inland might make trades so difficult as to
Speaker 1: be prohibitively expensive. By sixteen oh nine, Smith was skeptical
Speaker 1: as well of the likelihood of finding survivors from the
Speaker 1: lost Roanoke Colony. In the early summer, though Smith had
Speaker 1: more immediate problems on his mind than wondering about the
Speaker 1: company's future plans. Christopher Newport still hadn't returned to Virginia
Speaker 1: in that spring with fresh supplies, which had been expected,
Speaker 1: and so the company was once again on the brink
Speaker 1: of collapse in Virginia, whiles Ahnik was biding his time
Speaker 1: and content to watch and wait for the colony to
Speaker 1: disintegrate or for John Smith, its most capable leader, to
Speaker 1: be overthrown. So it was that news of a sighting
Speaker 1: of a ship in the James River in mid July
Speaker 1: was met with keene anticipation. The Mary and John, commanded
Speaker 1: by Sam Argyle, had been dispatched by the company in
Speaker 1: early May to find a more direct route to virgin
Speaker 1: then through the Southern Passage, and thereby substantially reduced the
Speaker 1: cost of future voyages to the colony. Argyle left Portsmouth
Speaker 1: and set his court southward until he reached thirty degrees north,
Speaker 1: then headed due west until he was within a few
Speaker 1: hundred miles of Bermuda, before turning northwards to the Chesapeake Bay,
Speaker 1: where he made landfall on July the thirteenth, after a
Speaker 1: crossing of nine weeks. What he found upon arriving at
Speaker 1: Jamestown confirmed the company's fears. Now, at the same time
Speaker 1: that the Mary and John was making its way across
Speaker 1: the Atlantic Tour of Virginia, another ship, a Spanish ship,
Speaker 1: the La Ansucion de Cristo, was buried at the same time,
Speaker 1: beating its way north from Florida, having left Saint Augustine
Speaker 1: on June the eleventh. Now, this ship had actually been
Speaker 1: sent by Philip the Third to reconnoiter Jamestown. It only
Speaker 1: contained twenty five officers and soldiers. It was hardly a
Speaker 1: massive show of force. Really, the only purpose behind it
Speaker 1: was to arrive at Jamestown, see what the situation was,
Speaker 1: and then perhaps prepare for a larger invasion force later on. However,
Speaker 1: at this point, Jamestown was virtually defenseless. It had a
Speaker 1: few cannons, but it didn't have anything capable of handling
Speaker 1: a Spanish ship which would be able to bring up
Speaker 1: its broadside guns right up alongside of Jamestown. So had
Speaker 1: the La Assuncion de Cristo arrived before the Mary and John,
Speaker 1: it's likely that Jamestown would have been simply wiped out. Now,
Speaker 1: Fortunately for the English, as it later transpired. The Spanish
Speaker 1: admiral adopted a rather leisurely pace as he proceeded up
Speaker 1: the coast, taking nearly three weeks before reaching the Rio
Speaker 1: Jordaines today the Santee River, three hundred miles from San
Speaker 1: Augustine and less than halfway to their destination. Only when
Speaker 1: he was about four or five days journey away to
Speaker 1: the Spanish admiral learned that the English had settled on
Speaker 1: an island in a river that ran to the sea,
Speaker 1: apart from a narrow strip that connected the island to
Speaker 1: the mainland, that they were totally surrounded by water. At
Speaker 1: this place, he was told the English had built a
Speaker 1: fort made of wood and had made alliances with regional
Speaker 1: peoples who provided them with food and return for clothes
Speaker 1: and tools. Because the colonists quote did not bother with sowing,
Speaker 1: but with fortifying end quote. According to these safe sources,
Speaker 1: ships reportedly came and went every day, and three months
Speaker 1: before seven had sailed from the settlement, six to the
Speaker 1: north and one to the south, the latter flying colors
Speaker 1: and beating a war drum. This was obviously a reference
Speaker 1: to piracy. Now this information would have made the Spanish
Speaker 1: admiral both skeptical and uneasy. He probably doubted the number
Speaker 1: of ships mentioned in the frequency of their comings and goings,
Speaker 1: but there had been no doubt that the English were
Speaker 1: busy establishing themselves in the region. Confirming what had been
Speaker 1: told to him by the Governor of New Spain, how
Speaker 1: many men in ships the settlement had, what types of fortifications,
Speaker 1: and whether alliances with the locals had been struck. It
Speaker 1: was up to him to find that out, And so
Speaker 1: it was finally that at five o'clock in the afternoon
Speaker 1: on July the fourteenth, the Spanish finally arrived off the
Speaker 1: Cape of Henry, spotting surprisingly a ship in the bay.
Speaker 1: Now the standoff therefore between the Law and Suncion and
Speaker 1: the English festival, the Mary and John headed into several hours. Finally,
Speaker 1: after those hours were over, the Spanish ship lifted anchor
Speaker 1: and headed into the interior, showing the way up river.
Speaker 1: From there, the Spanish captain could now see Jamestown and
Speaker 1: understand what was it located now. The ship that had
Speaker 1: blocked the Spaniard's way was, of course our Giles. But
Speaker 1: what would have happened if the Spanish would have arrived
Speaker 1: a week earlier? The English had been dispersed up and
Speaker 1: down the river in an effort to try to find food,
Speaker 1: and so with very very few left, it's likely the
Speaker 1: fort would have been destroyed before the colonists could have rallied. Curiously, though,
Speaker 1: Smith makes absolutely no reference to what is somewhat of
Speaker 1: a miraculous circumstance in any of his writings. Unaware at
Speaker 1: how perilously close the colony had come to destruction, Smith
Speaker 1: and his men gathered at Jamestown on a hot summer's
Speaker 1: day to enjoy the luxury of a small amount of wine, beer, fish,
Speaker 1: and English biscuit, all that had arrived with our Gyle.
Speaker 1: Given the circumstances of the previous six months, Smith may
Speaker 1: have felt heartened by how things had turned out. Our
Speaker 1: Gyle's arrival had cheered the men. They had survived the winter,
Speaker 1: this time with few losses, and a great fleet was
Speaker 1: bringing hundreds of new settlers and fresh solce applies to
Speaker 1: the colonies. For once, prospect looks bright. Perhaps for Smith,
Speaker 1: for England, and for the Virginia Company. This might just
Speaker 1: all work out