John Smith Research Paper

"I wanted to be the first to view a country on which the eyes of a white man had never gazed and to follow the course of rivers that run through a new land."

When the name John Smith is mentioned, people of all ages are familiar with it and could tell a lot about him. Why is this? How is it that a man who lived over 400 years ago still so popular today, more specifically to our children? The answer to that question is because John Smith can be viewed as one of America’s earliest heroes. His leadership was vital to the survival of the Jamestown colony. Most people are familiar with his famous quote, “he that will not work shall not eat.” He carried all the qualities of an influential leader, and even had a mystical legend with Pocahontas, in which no one truly knows what happened. His leadership characteristics and qualities possessed hard work, grit, and determination. He was an individualist that had an “American” dream. However, during his time, the colonists did not look at it as an “American” dream. Without him and his leadership, America may not be what it is today.

Bortholomew Gosnold was the leader, he died within the first five months, and when he died John Smith took over. Josh Smith was prepared to absorb as much as he could about the Indians language and philosophy. Ultimately, John Smith wanted the Indians to trust the colonists. This led to John Smith leading his people to request a trade with the Indians for food, at first, Chief Powhatan refused but then Pocahontas changed his mind. After a while, John Smith began drinking the salty water and got poisoned and they hurried him back to England for medical treatment. Departing from Jamestown and going back to England avoided him being killed. Going to England helped him recover with normal food and

John Smith, from book 3, chapter 2 of his book, The Generall Historie of Virginia, New-England, and the Summer Isles, wrote about his adventures in the new land of the Indians where he experienced new people, a new governance system and a new culture (Smith, The Generall Historie of Virginia, New England & the Summer Isles 43). Smith, who was an English soldier, explorer and author, ventured into a new and unfamiliar territory where he experienced many unknown and unusual conditions and his writings depict his initial experience with the natives of this new and hostile land. He referred to the indigenous people as “savages” based on their hostile nature and brutal behavior towards him and his men. Initially the native chief, Powhatan, wanted to torture and Kill Captain Smith but he

The Jamestown landing was on May 14th, 1607 and was the beginning of the first English settlement in America. The Virginia Company of London financed this journey to Virginia to extract profits from gold, silver and many other riches expected to be found. Additionally, they hoped to create a trade route to the Pacific. Of the many men that were selected to make this journey, there was a John Smith, who was a former soldier and an arrogant impatient natured man. Smith would eventually meet a young Indian princess named Pocahontas. He and Pocahontas would later become known as the two people who saved Jamestown.

The leadership strengths and weaknesses of John Smith evoked a profound effect on the Jamestown colony. The fact that Smith actually arrived in the colony as a common prisoner and was able to achieve the leadership role that he gained is amazing. His creativity and knowledge in certain areas actually saved the colonists from attack and starvation in the early days. Some of the rules he enforced as a leader were actually instrumental in saving the colony. His skill in dealing with the natives allowed him to gain their support and continue trade that resulted in the survival of the colony.

One of the very first colonies in the New World was named Jamestown. Located in Virginia near the coast, it was infested with diseases like malaria, dysentery and typhoid. Life was short for these colonist dying from harsh conditions. Famine eventually arose, the colonist were so obsessed with finding gold that maintaining a stable source of food did not cross their mind. A man named John Smith was aware of this issue "There was no talk... but dig gold, wash gold, refine gold, load gold."(Doc 5). He maintained leadership with the philosophy of "He who does not work, neither shall he eat", keeping the colony alive until help from England arrived. Eventually the discovery of tobacco saved the colony, John Rolfe who experimented with tobacco found that Virginian land was suitable for the seed. Although colonist did not find gold, tobacco became their cash crop, profiting the colony.

When Jamestown was founded in 1607 many of the settlers were unsure of what to expect. John Smith preserved the first English Virginians from the ravages off their own sloth as well from the hostility of their native neighbors. John Smith called them savages and barbarians but also thought they were kind. Jamestown’s John Smith led an expedition of the Chesapeake Bay and was almost killed by a ray on the first of his two explorations. In the 1620’s jamestown expanded from James fort into a new town built in the East and is now the capitol of

John Smith was born in Lincolnshire, England to a farmer and his wife in 1580. He only had a grammar school education, but with this

Today’s issue with schools named after our first prime minister, John A. Macdonald may not be worth doing something about but maybe having a good discussion about. Changing the names of monuments and things named after historical figures from the past because of racism is not ideal because of how things were and how people thought in the past which cannot be judged by our present eyes but maybe, the reasons for their wrongdoings could be well understood now for humanity to never make the same mistakes and move forward into a better future where our past is understood and respected but also seen both the good way and the bad way.

When the English began to make there way over to the Americas, there were many different kinds people traveling over for more than one reason. Many who traveled to the Chesapeake were young, unskilled, single men who were not looking to settle and according to John Smith the men were being mislead about their real purpose they were traveling to America. Men thought they were coming to America to “dig gold, wash god, refine god, load gold”, and also to find a path to the Indies for trade. At least twenty eight percent of settlers died each year due to hunger and sickness. Settlers became frustrated because they were not accomplishing what they came here to do. John Smith then came into light when he began to discipline the men, saying that they needed to work in order to eat. The Chesapeake main intention was economic gain. Unlike in the Chesapeake, the

John Smith was an English explorer and a soldier who has remained in the books of history for his role in the establishment of a British colony in America. He reigned Virginia British colony which was based at Jamestown for one year between late 1608 and late 1609. During his reign, he used his experience as a soldier and an explorer to lead exploration of major rivers around the colony. Smith was first involved in plans to establish a British colony in North America in 1606 for personal gains with a London company which had been granted a charter by the King of England. Towards the end of

One of the writers who wrote about the hardships they had experienced was John Smith. Captain John Smith was a soldier and the governor of Jamestown. In Smith’s writings, he speaks mostly about the colonization coming to the new land. He and his men believed they were going to build a successful colony. But due to disease, famine, and the occasional attacks from the neighboring Powhatan Indians, and

Jamestown, the birthplace of America was the first permanent english settlement in North America. In April 1606, King James I established Jamestown and on May 13, 1607, colonists began to arrive at Jamestown. When establishing Jamestown as a colony, the Virginia Company was in search of economic opportunities. The citizens wanted to escape poverty and prosecution. They wanted to be able to believe in what they wanted. The first month in Jamestown was a struggle for all passengers. The moment the passengers came ashore, they immediately began on settlement. Serious problems soon emerged when about 15,000-25,000 Indians were already living in the Chesapeake Bay when the colony was founded. The Indians were part of the Powhatan Confederacy which was ruled by Powhatan, a powerful leader. At this time, the English settlers were looking for gold that no one was farming. In this situation, Captain John Smith became the colony’s leader and established a “no work, no food” policy. Smith had been instrumental in trading with the Powhatan Indians for food but their relationship was tense in all aspects. After he was injured by a burning gunpowder in 1608 and left for England, the “starving time” began. This was a period of warfare between the colonists and Indians and the depth of many English men

John Smith was selected because he was a Colonizer, soldier and an author as he wrote his first book in English in the New World called “A True Relation of Such Occurrences and Accidents of Note as Hath Happened in Virginia since the First Planting of that Colony (1608)”. While he was only in America for two years, Smith was in charge of the survival of England's first English colony in the New World. He is best known for being in