Economics and Conflict
Life was very difficult for the early
settlers. Fire, starvation, disease and hostile Indians were just a
few of their problems. Because many of the first group of settlers
were gentlemen or craftsmen with little or no farming skills and
supply ships from England were sporadic, little or no crops were
planted at first and the colonists had to rely on the trade with the
Powhatan Indians for corn and meat. During the first two years, the
settlers tried to develop industries that would make a profit for the
Virginia Company's English investors, such as ironworks, glass
blowing, and wine and silk production. None of these were successful.
When John Smith, the leader from 1608-1609, who had enjoyed periods
of peaceful cooperation and deadly exchanges with the Indians,
returned to England. Trade relations with the Powhatans broke down.
The winter of 1609-1610 became known as the "Starving Time." The
Powhatans laid siege to Jamestown which meant that armed Indians
wouldn't let anyone in or out of the fort. The settlers couldn't hunt
or fish. They could hardly get to the pigs or chickens. The desperate
settlers ate whatever they could get their hands on, including
snakes, snails, rats, and their own horses and dogs. By May of 1610
when two English ships tied up at Jamestown's docks, only 60 settlers
were alive, compared to 500 settlers in October of 1609. The
surviving settlers actually abandoned the settlement briefly in early
June of 1610 when relief arrived, with the new governor, Lord De La
Warr. He demanded that the colonists stay and work. He also imposed
strict military rule with harsh penalties for stealing food and
swearing. The colony began to rebuild.
Survival
Gardens played an essential
role in seventeen century Virginia survival. After nearly starving to
death during the winter of 1609-1610, when the Powhatans laid siege
to James Fort, the colonists were forced to work hard and feed
themselves to survive. The colonists had small gardens to supplement
their diets and raised herbs, not only for food preparation, but for
medicinal usage as well. Vegetables such as carrots, beets, radishes
and chives were cultivated by the colonial women. John Rolfe began
experimenting with tobacco cultivation around 1610 and tobacco became
the cash crop that helped the colony of Virginia survive. It became
their "brown gold" or Virginia's "golden weed." Within five years,
Jamestown found its riches. Indentured servants and slaves were
brought to the colony to work in the tobacco fields.
As more and more settlers began
arriving, including large numbers of women, this growth brought
immediate conflict with the Indians since the colonists were
infringing on Powhatan lands. By 1622, after periods of sporadic
violence and peace, the Powhatan died and Opechancanough, his
brother, attacked the settlers in March 1622. He and his warriors
killed one-third of the English and started a war that lasted for ten
long years. In 1644, the Indians organized another uprising but were
outgunned and outnumbered and easily crushed. The setters moved the
remaining Indians to reservations. Since the first day when the
colonists came ashore in Virginia, they struggled to survive in a
wild and foreign land. Through their perseverance, Virginia became a
thriving colony and later home to many Presidents.
For more detailed information
try these two sites:
http:www.tobacco.org/History/Jamestown.html
http://www.apva.org/history/timeline.html