Bacon's Rebellion Essay

Nathaniel Bacon's Rebellion was significant in early colonial history because it pronounced the grim collapse of Native American tribes residing in the Chesapeake region, it brought the first, but short-lived, sign of change within the colonial government to achieve equality, and it produced defining black slavery as opposed to the earlier indentured servitude.

In “Bacon’s Declaration in the Name of the People”, Nathaniel Bacon lists every major offense of Sir William Berkeley, many of which collide with one another to display how the governor’s actions and inactions built upon each other to create turmoil for the people of Virginia. However, Berkeley defends himself and proclaims Bacon a traitor in, “The Declaration and Remonstrance of Sir William Berkeley his most sacred Majesties Governor and Captain Generall of Virginia”. In order to gain the king’s favor, both men write separate declarations, but one has everything to lose while the other has everything to gain.

With the immense frustration and anger among the colonists, they began to scapegoat the local Indians. To ward off future attacks and to control the situation, Governor Berkeley instigated the matter. He set up what was to be a disastrous meeting between the parties, which resulted in the murders of several tribal chiefs. In the meantime, Berkeley continually pleaded for restraint from the colonists. Some, including Nathaniel Bacon, refused to listen. Bacon disregarded the Governor's direct orders by seizing some friendly Appomattox Indians for “stealing” corn. Berkeley scolded him, which caused the disgruntled Virginians to wonder which man had taken the right action. Significantly, Berkeley could not compromise earning resentment from about 1,000 Virginians. They fiercely resented Governor Berkeley for his policies toward the Indians. When Berkeley refused to retaliate for a series of savage Indians on frontier settlements after monopolization of fur trade, the

From the terrifying tales of Native American attacks, Virginians learned to fear the Native Americans. They pleaded to the governor for protection from the Native Americans, but Berkeley refused to listen to their tales of Indians committing murders and thieving. It seemed to be that the Indians were the ones receiving protection from Berkeley. The Governor and his “grandees” were controlling the Indian beaver and otter fur trades, so he didn’t want to lose the profit he was making off of his business of trade with the Indians. Many white indentured servants were not happy with the Indians who had ownership rights of land, when they needed to find land to buy when their time serving was completed.

Bacon’s Rebellion may have stemmed from issues with the Indians, but it was rooted far deeper than this surface level issue. Bacon’s reason for rebelling still don’t seem fully clear to me. The colonists, in contrast, have a whole list of grievances.

Bacon’s Rebellion of 1676 was major weight added to the scale that shifted Virginia’s plantation labor from indentured servitude to African slaves. Confrontation between the Native Americans and settlers in western Virginia spearheaded an uprising that demanded Governor Berkeley to provide more land to the poor whites. Berkeley stood by his decision to maintain peaceful relations with the local Native American population, which sparked a series of uprisings and massacres that grew into full rebellion against Berkeley and his men. Berkeley fled when Nathaniel Bacon and his ranks burned Jamestown to the ground, which led to Bacon’s rule over Virginia for a short while until England sent warships to regain control. This conflict altered the planter’s view on indentured servitude, understanding that slaves could never become free men, demanding land and creating successful rebellions. For fear of civil war among whites, the elite planters helped launch us into a racially divided slave society.

When a revolt occurred in American History, there were countless reasons that triggered the public eye to perform acts of violence or open confrontations to the government or a famous ruler. To be more specific, the Bacon’s Rebellion was one of the most famous uprisings in the 1670s and the outcome was being defeated. Nathaniel Bacon, who was a Virginia settler, instigated the issue and wanted to start a rivalry towards the Native Americans. William Berkeley, who was the Governor of the Virginia Colony, was very easy-going about the situation and wanted no tension towards the Native Americans. Bacon believed that the Native Americans was invading Jamestown’s territory area, and he wanted Berkeley to take action by advancing better security. Since nothing was being done on Berkeley’s side of the bargain, Bacon took it upon himself and initiated his opinions to the community. Bacon informed other settlers, servants and slaves to oppose against the Native Americans. Even though this rebellion was about fighting over property, it sparked a lot of additional motives within a one-year period. The revolt had countless cause/effects, and diverse civil rules and beliefs between Berkeley and Bacon. In the 1600’s, events like culture clashing and land rights played a huge role of the riot and molded the background to the Bacon’s Rebellion. Also, the importance of the rebellion encouraged affective outcomes like the Declaration of the People and it becomes one of the first rebellions in the American Colonies.

Nathanial Bacon was a young, bold, active, and powerful individual (Beverly). Bacon was born in England, taught at Cambridge, and later moved to Virginia with his wife, Elizabeth, in 1974 (Tarter). Bacon graduated from the University of Cambridge and studied the law. Elizabeth’s father, the Sir Edward Duke of Suffolk, opposed their marriage. Her disinheritance by her father contributed to Bacon’s decision to migrate to North America. When they moved they got two plantations paid for by his father. Bacon owned the two plantations along the Jamestown northern frontier. By his social position and financial means, Bacon was brought up in the governor’s council in

Nathaniel Bacon is one of the few rebellious people whose name has been taught from school to school in America. “Why is that?”, you may ask, “why him? Why is his rebellion significant in American history?”. Bacon’s rebellion used to be seen as the start of the American Revolution, but now, modern historians have uncovered the truth of the Virginian Rebellion of 1676. Historians have found out that the real issue that caused Nathaniel Bacon’s rebellion was his stubbornness and selfishness. People may specifically point fingers to a number of reasons for Bacon 's rebellion, they may include the following: economic problems, commercial competition from Maryland and Carolina, a restricted English market, and the rising prices from English

Berkeley did not care about the farmers. It was obvious that the only thing he

The seventeenth century marked the start of great colonization and immigration to the New World that was North America. Mainly in on the eastern coast of what is now the United States, England established colonies on this new land to thrive socially and economically. The English government readily sent its citizens to America to exploit its abundant source of raw materials and the English people exponentially came to the colonies to start a new life for themselves and to thrive socially. In Virginia during the seventeenth century, the geographical attributes in this region allowed the establishment of the cash crop tobacco to rapidly transform the colony socially and economically. Particularly in the Chesapeake Bay, the goal of social and

Bacon's Rebellion was a bloody uprising against American Indians and the colonial government whom William Berkeley was a governor. When Bacon arrived at Jamestown, planting tobacco wasn't profitable as it was before. The tobacco price had fallen down as more and more newcomers came to America as laborers in the tobacco fields. Race played a main role in this rebellion in which the American Indians were viewed as trade inferiors to Bacon. Thus, Bacon's motive of getting rid of the American Indians was triggered. Furthermore, the colonial refused to support Bacon's idea in which urged him to challenge them.

Forced Founders: Indians, Debtors, Slaves, and the Making of the American Revolution in Virginia by Woody Holton, inspects life in America leading up to the rebellion from Britain. From big names, such as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson to regular citizens of the colonies, America faces its greatest challenge: will they be able to strike up enough force to remove themselves indefinitely from the British Empire, politically and militarily. While we all know how militias were formed and eventually one army led by General George Washington, the true evolvement and advancement came from the quill and parchment. Just as Martin Luther King once said, “if you want to change the world, pick up your pen and write”.

By the 1670’s prices for tobacco entered a fifty-year period of inactivity and decline, as land became limited and costly. Thereafter, in 1681, Maryland abandoned its requirement for servants to obtain land with their freedom dues. This made the Chesapeake land less of an opportunity for immigrants (Norton, 42). Furthermore, the restoration of the colonies provided mirgrants other settlement options (65). As time passed throughout the 1680’s, the cost for indentured servants rose by nearly sixty percent in some colonial regions. In Europe and England with the increase of income; It then took a smaller share of one’s annual salary to purchase voyage to the colonies, enabling immigrants to refrain from entering indentured contracts. For many of

In the mid-1660s, the landlords of the Virginia in North America wanted to make profit as they had already done in Caribbean. They attracted the Caribbean and the English workers with the freedom of religious and the expansion of rights for the English. At the same time, the Tobacco agriculture played an important role in the economic of Virginia. Since the profit was so observable, the settlers acquired land by taking the land of the Native American. They recruited workers from England which was the large part of labor in Virginia until 1680s.