The Seeds of Rebellion
The Rebellion
In 1675, members of the Doeg tribe raided a plantation in retaliation for the owner’s refusal to pay for items he had obtained from the Doegs. The situation became dire when colonists retaliated against the Susquehannocks rather than the Doegs. Indigenous people raided the colonists in response.
Governor Berkeley, in hopes of stopping future attacks and maintaining friendly trade relations with Indigenous tribes, opened an investigation into the Doeg raids. With the support of the Virginia General Assembly, he planned a series of frontier patrols and asked colonists to keep their distance from all Native Americans. Many Virginians objected, calling all Indigenous peoples—even those who had friendly relations with the colony—enemies of the English. In their outrage, these frontier settlers chose Nathaniel Bacon to become the leader of the volunteer militiamen who wanted to “go out forth against the Indians.” Bacon’s militia killed Occaneechi, Indigenous people who were friendly to the colony, and threatened the peace that Governor Berkeley had tried to maintain, beginning what became known as Bacon’s Rebellion.
A 1646 map of Virginia. (Click on the image to view a larger version.)
