Race Relations in Jamestown
The Powhatans
About 13,000-14,000 Powhatan Indians lived in established villages along the rivers of the Tidewater region of Virginia. Their leader, Wahunsonacock — also known as Powhatan — had about 100 wives. One of Powhatan's daughters was Pocahontas, about age 11at the time the Englishmen landed at Jamestown.
Hostilities with the English
The English deemed the Powhatan culture as savage and primitive. Nothing could have been further from the truth! Each "primitive" village was comprised of about 100 homes with a large gardens, too!
The Indians saw their world being invaded by these foreign poachers, who also brought strange diseases to their doorstep. Is it any wonder why the Powhatans raided the Englishmen's makeshift camps and stole some of their pistols and gunpowder? In any case, since the colonists were so greatly outnumbered, it's unlikely that the Powhatans intended to kill them.
In December 1607, the leader of the colonists, Captain John Smith, was ambushed, captured and taken before Powhatan. The rest of the story is legend, as written by Smith. In truth, the Powhatans often conducted mock execution and salvation ceremonies . . .
Trading Brought Peace . . . for awhile
Leaders of both peoples realized the mutual benefit of trade. The English needed so much — food, advise about the New World and knowledgeable guides to gold. The Powhatan people appreciated the Englishmen's tools and weapons.
The First Africans to Jamestown
In 1619, a Dutch slave trader exchanged his "cargo" of 20 Africans for food. It wasn't until 1662 that slavery was officially recognized in the statutory law of Jamestown, so the Africans at first were treated as indentured servants.
African Land Owners
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Portrait of a Negro by Albrecht Dürer
Image Credit: Graphische Sammlung Albertina |
Court records identify some African land owners, such as Anthony Johnson, but they were few. By 1650, Johnson was one of only 400 Africans among 19,000 settlers.
Many African indentured servants ran away and if caught had their servitude extended. But one man, John Punch, was sentenced to a lifetime of service to his "master."
When fewer Englishmen were willing to be indentured servants, the demand for labor increased, which created the "need" for forced labor and the slave trade.
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