The Influence Of Bacon's Rebellion

In 1676, Nathaniel Bacon rebelled and held a revolt in Colonial Virginia. High taxes, low prices for tobacco, and resentment against special privileges given those close to the governor, Sir William Berkeley, provided the background for the uprising. These factors made the rebellion inevitable. All of the chaos was precipitated by Governor Berkeley's failure to defend the frontier against attacks by Native Americans. Bacon commanded two unauthorized but successful expeditions against the tribes and was then elected to the new House of Burgesses, which Berkeley had been forced to convene. Berkeley then sent out a warrant for his arrest and Bacon was put in jail. Bacon soon was released and he immediately gathered his supporters,

This left small farmers and merchants angry and poor. During this time Native Americans were attacking the frontier settlements of the colony. Nathaniel Bacon used this as leverage and requested that Governor Berkley issue retaliation on the Native Americans. Once Governor Berkley decided not to act, the angry farmers and merchants began to complain that the high taxes were going to Berkley rather than protecting the frontier from attacks. The rebels decided to take matters into their own hands and declared war on all Native Americans.

The New England settlers believed that it was important to have unity among themselves and work together and help each other to survive and establish a life in the settlements (Doc A). Tradesmen were expected not to impoverish each other due to overpriced products. The more fair split of property and agricultural land was also a display of the sense of economic unity in New England (Doc D). The importance of fair pricing and distribution of property to New England settlers showed their sense of unity through the economy as they believed that economic unity was necessary to the success of the settlements. The New England settlers also valued religious unity as well. The structure of the towns around churches contributed to the theocracy of the settlements, uniting those with the the same Puritan views. Alternatively, the Chesapeake region lacked the same economic unity. With the drastic differences between the upper and lower classes, the lower class was overcharged for any products, thus separating the classes instead of uniting them (Doc F). This economic inequality led to Bacon's Rebellion, in which farmers rebelled against Governor Berkeley as a result of the unfair classes and taxes. New England settlements had more economic and religious unity, unlike the settlements in the Chesapeake region who lacked economic

The event of Bacon’s Rebellion told by Schweikart showed that the success in colonization was the underlying cause of the rebellion. To start, in Jamestown, there were members elected for the legislative assembly that was divided into an upper house consisting of the governor and council with a lower house made up of burgesses. This participation in politics portrayed the theme of Politics and Power while Schweikart described the background of Bacon’s Rebellion with the white frontiersmen fearing the Indian’s attacks. Nathaniel Bacon Jr. became the governor of Virginia to be involved in the politics by leading the Virginian commoners to rebel for protection against the Indians. Moreover, the Virginians were angered by the fact that Berkeley

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

Historians decide what parts of history are important, and those that are not. Historiography is how history is recorded, and it has a role in Bacon’s Rebellion. Historians chose what was important about it, and weaved it into a story. But, some facts may have been left out. Depending on what story is chosen, who tells the story, when it is told, and which evidence is selected to construct it, the historical account could have changed dramatically through historian’s interpretation. Through a compilation of reliable articles and facts, a story has been woven together. You will hear about the character of Nathaniel Bacon, the events leading up to the rebellion, the actual rebellion, and the aftermath of the rebellion.

Overall, the factors behind Bacon’s Rebellion, including the economic woes caused by England’s taxes on tobacco, and the desire of colonists such as Nathaniel Bacon to expand west in opposition to Native Americans, were indicative of later developments in colonial America. They foretold the anger of colonists at the overreach of England regarding colonial trade, and conflicts with the Native Americans that would all ensue in the later history of the United States of

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

Tension within the colony made it easy for Bacon to influence the settlers and spread his beliefs. With the help of his cousin, Governor Berkeley, Bacon secured the job as Chief Commissioner and used it to manipulate colonists. Even though Berkeley granted him a large plot of land and an important job, Bacon was quick to criticize the way Berkeley governed Virginia. In his Manifesto, Bacon claimed Berkeley was protecting and favoring the Native Americans. Since Berkeley did everything in his power to prevent a war between the Indigenous tribes and the settlers, Bacon claimed Berkeley was protecting them. The settlers already resented the Native Americans, so publishing his Manifesto brought support to Bacon and his efforts at a rebellion.

Bacon’s rebellion in Virginia 1676 was led by a man named Nathaniel Bacon. During this time Sir William Berkeley, was the governor of colonial Virginia. For over three decades Berkeley ran a corrupt regime of the colony’s wealthiest tobacco planters. Sir William Berkeley would reward his followers with land grants. As tobacco spread he took away his followers land because it got too expensive. HIs followers no option but to move to the frontier. By 1670 there was many whites that were in poverty. The whites then tried to settle in areas that were reserved only for indians but were denied by Sir William Berkeley and that infuriated them causing a series of Indian massacres. Bacon’s rebellion was more about the conflict with Virginia but now

Nathaniel Bacon and his followers were poor, landless frontiersmen searching for land in Virginia where there were already many plantations. Frustrated, they were angry that the Virginia’s Governor William Berkeley refused to seek revenge on the Indians for attacking them, their land, and their

Farmers were being taxed highly and faced debts. The rebellion started in Massachusetts however it spread across the many small farms in America. Most farmers across America were in danger of losing their farms. The farmers rebelled and took up arms against local law enforcement. The Rebellion was only put down when Washington sent several local militias to suppress it. After the Rebellion politicians saw many flaws in the Articles of Confederation. Politicians who first created the articles came together to change them. However in the end it was easier to completely restart from scratch and the Constitution was created as a

The British colonies in the 17th century were afflicted by many strenuous periods of tension that boiled over resulting in violent rebellions. Bacon’s Rebellion and the Stono rebellion are two such rebellions that rocked the colonies. These conflicts rose from strain between the governance of the colonies and those who they ruled over. The Stono Rebellion and Bacon’s Rebellion both displayed the mounting tension in the colonies through defiance, Independence, and brutal bloodshed.

Countless social and economical problems arise throughout 1676 in Virginia. Farmer Nathaniel Bacon promoted concerns about the numerous Indian assaults and the necessity for land; farmers needed economic independence as well as former indentured servants. This revolution was well-known as “Bacon’s Rebellion”. After numerous unsuccessful attempts to fight with the local government, directed by Royal Governor William Berkeley, to strike back against the Indians, Nathaniel Bacon led his revolution by accusing Berkeley and his associates for wrongdoing that went in opposition to the consent of its people. In return, Berkeley addressed Bacon’s objections, by doing an effort to justify his actions and turn down his demands.

In The Civil War, Matloff explains how the North and South were bound to go to war. There were many “events” happening to lead the U.S to “disunion, even war” (Matloff 1). Matloff explains, “During the administration of President James Buchanan, 1857-61, tensions over the issue of extending slavery into the western territories mounted alarmingly” (Matloff 1). Charles Dickens explains the start of the French Revolution, “With a roar that sounded as if all the breath in France had been shaped into the detested word, the living sea rose, wave on wave, depth on depth, and overflowed the city to that point. Alarm bells ringing, drums beating, the sea raging and thundering on it new beach, the attack began” (Dickens 201). The American Civil War and the French Revolution are similar because they both started due to protests against the government. The French Revolution was fighting for a better government to rule their country. In contrast, the American Civil War was fighting to succeed the South from the Union in order to achieve their own slavery laws. This information tells us revolutions start because the people want to see a change in the place they are living in. Although, revolutions do not always solve the problems/achieve the goals of the people. By the end of each revolution, nothing was quite completely