Mr. Lakhaney 12/22/14 Humanities 7. Jamestown Body Paragraphs. The settlement which was located in Virginia was named Jamestown. The English settlers

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1 Mr. Lakhaney 12/22/14 Humanities 7 Jamestown Body Paragraphs Following the discovery of America, many European countries took the opportunity to establish colonies, including England. England formed its first colony in the Americas in The settlement which was located in Virginia was named Jamestown. The English settlers encountered the Powhatans, who were the Native Americans who lived in the area before the English arrival. The Powhatans and English had many conflicts with each other and developed a complex relationship. In 1622, a bloody war took place between the two groups which destroyed all chances for them to have lived together in cooperation. With the two groups differences and negative views of each other, England s motivations and background conditions, early conflicts, and the fight over land and resources conflict between the Powhatans and English was inevitable. The Powhatan and English had many differences and negative views of each other that made it so conflict between them was inevitable. They were two extremely different groups with different views, lifestyles, beliefs, mindsets, motivations, societies, etc. The Powhatans wanted to keep their way of life, protect their land, and get rid of settlers. On the other hand, the Englishmen were set on growing powerful and wealthy. They used up land and resources (in America), cut the forests, and filled the land with people. The Powhatans were hunters and needed the forests and resources to keep their way of life. They viewed nature not as something to be dominated but something to manage. Unlike the Englishmen, they depended on wildlife and nature. Since the English and Powhatan had to share America, they both couldn t get what they wanted. Naturally, there would be some tension. In order for there to be cooperation, the

2 two groups would have to accept the other group s ways. This wouldn t be likely especially since the English and Powhatans had negative views of each other. The Powhatans were called savages which means beast. Also, Englishmen were Christians and most Christians believed they were better and superior than nonchristians. Some of them wanted to kill all the Indians and vice versa. Some Powhatans also thought they were superior. The Englishmen were religious and had beliefs, and so did the Indians. These things would make it very difficult for the two groups to live together in peace. There would be constant fights and disputes among them. When they were friendly, it never lasted. The English and Powhatans couldn t accept their differences and learn to respect each other which made conflict between them difficult to avoid. In addition to the two groups negative views and differences, England s background conditions and motivations also made conflict unavoidable. During that time, England was an overcrowded place. There were beggars and starving people on the streets and resources and farmland was getting scarcer. This drove many people to go to America to seek new opportunities. Because of the poor conditions in England many of the people who came were looking for riches or a better life or they were unwanted criminals. Majority of them had motivations of greed and only cared about finding resources and benefitting England and themselves. To add on, the fact that the English were encouraged to prey on Spanish ships tells a lot about their mindset. Seeing the English s aggressive behavior and how they wouldn t let anything get in their way, it wouldn t be surprising if the English settlers mistreated or attacked the Indians. There were probably things the English wanted that the Indians refused to give. The Indians most likely didn t go down without a fight. These things would repeatedly lead to conflict, and as long as they won t go away (which is the case), conflict between the English and

3 Powhatans won t go away. Many people say that conflict between the English and Powhatans was not inevitable because of a handful of individuals who helped unite the two groups. This included Pocahontas, John Smith, and Tom Savage. Pocahontas was a Powhatan princess who married an Englishman, and John Smith was adopted into the Powhatan s tribe and was made an honorary chief. Tom Savage was an English boy who the Powhatans adopted. All of these people helped bring some peace between the English and Powhatans. However they weren t immortal. When they died the English and Powhatans moved on and the individuals impact of the relationship between the two groups would fade away. The English had many early conflicts with the Powhatans, that made it so conflict could not be avoided. This includes when the two groups first met. The Englishmen were attacked by the Powhatans with their bow and arrows when they first arrived in Virginia. They fought back and the Powhatans retreated. This was not a good first impression of the Indians for the settlers. After this incident the English would have seen them as a threat. This would be the same with the Powhatans. Both groups would have a reason to not trust each other. Another conflict that occurred was the Starving Time. The Starving Time took place during the winter of The Indians stopped trade with the settlers and laid siege on Jamestown. No one was allowed in or out. The settlers couldn t farm or fish or get to their chickens or pigs. To survive, the English ate dogs, cats, rats, mice, snakes, and even shoes. Out of the fivehundred people who were in Jamestown in October, only 60 remained alive. The Native Americans weren t the only ones who attacked. Englishmen burned and attacked Indian villages sometimes for no clear reason. It might have been revenge for the Starving Time or because of the English s belligerent behavior. To refer back to the previous paragraph, the English were pretty hostile towards Spanish ships.

4 To continue, they also enslaved many Indians to work on tobacco fields. All of these conflicts wouldn t be forgotten by the two groups. There would be a lack of trust between the English and Powhatans. The Powhatans would have a reason to resent, hate, and attack the English. This would make it hard for the groups to live in cooperation forever. After these events, more conflict was likely. Besides previous conflicts, land and resources also pushed the English and Powhatans to a point where they couldn t avoid conflict with each other. The English settlers and Powhatans had to share the land and resources in America. For example, during the Starving Time a major drought was taking place. This lead to animals and crops dying because of the weather conditions. With the shortage of resources, there wouldn t be enough for the English and Powhatans to share. Besides a shortage of resources, the Englishmen in Jamestown used up a lot of the Powhatans land and cut down forests for settlements and tobacco fields. As mentioned before, the Powhatans needed wildlife and forests to maintain their way of life. In addition more English people started to come to Jamestown as time past. This meant that more of the Powhatans land would be used and filled up with people. There would be less land and resources for the Powhatans. The Powhatans probably became frustrated that what was once solely theirs they now had to share. There would be some tension between the two groups. Both groups would want resources and land for themselves instead of sharing. There were some Englishmen who respected the Powhatans and were willing to share the land, but these fairminded people were overpowered by landhungry settlers. The rivalry for resources between the English and Powhatans would be continuous until one of them leaves which both groups were not willing to do. Some might argue that conflict was not unavoidable because both

5 groups had things the other wanted. This would enable trade between them. Although this could help bring cooperation between the English and Powhatans, it didn t guarantee peace. There were possibilities that one group would stop trading. For instance, the Powhatan cut off trade with the Englishmen during the Starving Time. When the English came to Jamestown, conflict with the Powhatans was going to happen no matter what. There was no chance of both groups living together in cooperation because of their many differences and negative attitudes toward each other, and England s background conditions and selfish motivations. Numerous early conflicts and the fact that the groups had to share the land and resources in America also contributed to conflict being inevitable. Conflict between the English and Powhatans would be endless and impossible to avoid until one group cleared out, which was what eventually happened to the Powhatans and all the other Native American tribes in America.