Why didn't the Powhatan Indians wipe out the settlers when they had the chance?
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In hindsight, it's obvious that the Powhatans could have bought themselves some time by wiping out the English settlers at various points when the colonists were at their weakest. The so-called "starving time" (winter of 1609-1610) when Percy was leader may have provided the best opportunity, and there were several other weak points that an aggressive Powhatan could have exploited. But the Powhatans didn't have the benefit of hindsight. They certainly understood that tribes were apt to challenge each other for territory, but it would have been difficult to imagine the scope of the catastrophe that was about to befall them. And we should remember that even at the time of Powhatan's death, the success of the Virginia colony was not yet assured. Given different actions on the part of the Powhatans, it's possible to imagine either a delayed English presence or a colonial outcome more resembling the Spanish or French models. Below is what some historians have written that touch on the question posed on this page.
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David A. Price - Love & Hate in Jamestown (2003)
My comment;
These two excerpts from Price taken out of context may seem to be in conflict. However, the first paragraph is referencing only an early moment of colony weakness near the time of the colonists arrival at Jamestown. The second excerpt is an overall assessment of Powhatan's policy towards the English during his lifetime.
- "By this time [summer 1607], nearly half of the colonists were dead. In their time of weakness, the colonists assumed the natives would come to finish them off, and so they waited, "each houre expecting the fury of the salvages." To the colonists' great surprise, however, the natives instead began bringing corn and other provisions from a recent harvest to trade--enough to get the survivors back on their feet. [14]
The move reflected another failure of leadership, this time on the part of Chief Powhatan. The chief of chiefs was no doubt getting reconnaissance reports about the long series of burials at Jamestown. Yet he evidently failed to realize just how weak the foreigners were by this point, and how easily he could have put an end to them. What he apparently focused on instead were the beads, hatchets, and other English goods that his tribesmen could obtain through bargaining, and which they did indeed obtain. It was a small price for the colonists to pay for their lives." p. 50
- "In hindsight, it is clear that {Powhatan] could have eliminated the English threat in its early years with more aggressive methods. Yet it is also true that he faced an unusually formidable diplomatic and martial opponent in John Smith. Much of the time, Powhatan could not be certain of the colonists' true strength or weakness. He also needed to consider the potential value of the English as pawns in his struggle with his neighboring tribes. He had to be mindful, as well, that the English might have a proclivity for sending reinforcements to take bloody revenge, as the Spanish were known to do. Powhatan's caution is understandable in light of these ambiguities, which Smith skillfully capitalized on." p. 185
"When Powhatan finally did decide to root the English out, following Smith's departure, his starvation strategy in 1609 and 1610 came within a hair's breadth of succeeding. It was a tribute to his cautious and canny leadership -- and to the liberal outlook of the English, weighed against that of their Spanish rivals -- that Powhatan ultimately achieved a state of peaceful coexistence with the settlers." pp. 185-186
My comment;
These two excerpts from Price taken out of context may seem to be in conflict. However, the first paragraph is referencing only an early moment of colony weakness near the time of the colonists arrival at Jamestown. The second excerpt is an overall assessment of Powhatan's policy towards the English during his lifetime.
Karen Ordahl Kupperman - Pocahontas and the English Boys (2019)
My comment:
I seem to remember the Powhatans desiring swords and guns more than tools, but whatever. Kupperman is giving a similar reason as Price did above in the first excerpt, with a slightly different spin.
- "Why did the Powhatans not just starve out the colonists and be done with it? One reason was that leaders knew the English had some products that they wanted. Many ships had been in Chesapeake Bay over the preceding decades, and the Powhatans had sophisticated knowledge of what they had to offer. In particular, they wanted tools made of metal: axes, knives, swords, hoes, and kettles. These were all tools that made their own lives smoother and more productive. It was easier to cut down a tree with an axe made of iron or steel than with one made of stone, and a metal hoe made farming faster and better. Powhatan realized he could control the hapless colonists and get what he wanted from them,. Giving them just enough to keep them going was a smart strategy." pp. 18, 19
My comment:
I seem to remember the Powhatans desiring swords and guns more than tools, but whatever. Kupperman is giving a similar reason as Price did above in the first excerpt, with a slightly different spin.
Helen C. Rountree - Pocahontas, Powhatan, Opechancanough: Three Lives Changed by Jamestown (2005)
My comment:
Rountree is making a lot of speculative assumptions here, but I find the one about allowing the English to die out on their own, as appeared to be happening, to be reasonable enough. And the plan almost worked, with the colony being saved only by an incredibly coincidental and fateful turn of events, the arrival of Thomas West, Lord De La Warr. (The words in [brackets] in the passage above are mine.)
- "Some modern readers may wonder why the mamanatowick [Powhatan] did not make a massive strike and wipe out the Jamestown squatters completely during this [starving] time. The answer is that he didn't think he had to bother. He and his people had never seen very many of the foreigners at once, and they seem not to have believed Namontack's account of how many people he saw in London. (Hence Powhatan's 1616 order to the priest Uttamatomakkin to make a careful count while he was in England.) These Tassantassas [foreigners] had to be a nation no more populous than Tsenacomoco, thought Powhatan, so if more of them came to infest his country, their numbers would be about the same as before; ditto their inadequate supplies from home. As for the aliens at Jamestown, they were dying out all by themselves, and he need take no further action than to let his men have some target practice. His opinion seemed to be confirmed when another ship sailed up the James (after May 23). It stayed at Jamestown for half a moon, during which Powhatan's people came around only to watch the invaders and kill a few stragglers. Then (on June 7, 1610) the ship took aboard the walking skeletons who had survived the famine and sailed back down the river again, leaving the fort empty. (40) What a welcome sight!" p. 147
My comment:
Rountree is making a lot of speculative assumptions here, but I find the one about allowing the English to die out on their own, as appeared to be happening, to be reasonable enough. And the plan almost worked, with the colony being saved only by an incredibly coincidental and fateful turn of events, the arrival of Thomas West, Lord De La Warr. (The words in [brackets] in the passage above are mine.)
Updated Feb. 23, 2020 / Banner photo by Hadley-Ives
