Who is nathaniel bacon

In this charged atmosphere Bacon became the leader of the angry and frightened militiamen in the upper reaches of the James River valley, and he requested permission from the governor to lead an expedition against the hostile Indians. Berkeley also called for the election of a new House of Burgesses and convened the new assembly as soon as possible in order to take necessary additional steps to secure the safety of the colony.

Bacon, meanwhile, led his men southwest to one of the main Occaneechi villages. He persuaded the Occaneechi to attack a nearby party of hostile Susquehannocks, but the allies soon quarreled and, after a pitched battle, Bacon and his men devastated the Occaneechi village.

On June 6, , Bacon and a company of armed men arrived in Jamestown. The governor then announced that he was pardoning Bacon and restoring him to his seat on the Council. At this point an assembly member urged that Bacon be made a general to command the campaign against the Indians, and the large crowd of angry men who had descended on Jamestown took up the cry. The governor vacillated, first agreeing to the appointment but then changing his mind, revoking his pardon of Bacon, and again expelling him from the Council.

Bacon left Jamestown, but on June 23 he stormed back into the capital with about men and demanded that the governor commission him as a general to lead the colony against the Indians.

Berkeley nevertheless yielded to the demands of Bacon and his supporters, and the assembly rapidly completed work on the laws of the session. Bacon withdrew upriver in search of Indians to attack, but late in July the governor again reversed course, once again declared Bacon a rebel, and went to Gloucester County to recruit men to fight him. Bacon and his army marched to Middle Plantation, the site of present-day Williamsburg, while Berkeley retreated to the Eastern Shore.

On August 3, , Bacon obtained the endorsement of seventy of them to his leadership against the Indians, and the next day thirty signatories assented to a more radical declaration that a new assembly was to be chosen under his authority rather than recalling the one that had met in June. Bacon then marched his men into the Dragon Swamp on the lower reaches of the Rappahannock River, where they attacked the friendly Pamunkey Indians. Early in September the governor returned to Jamestown with a small force and issued another proclamation against Bacon, whereupon Bacon marched there and laid siege to the capital.

Many of them apparently spent much of their time ransacking the estates of men identified as loyal to the governor. By autumn letters from Virginia had arrived in London apprising royal officials of the rebellion. King Charles II formed a three-member commission to assist the governor in suppressing the revolt and to inquire into its causes.

With respect to Nathaniel Bacon, the proclamation was already a dead letter. Governor Berkeley has had his defenders, too. Washburn presented Bacon as the ambitious and impetuous leader of a mob of Indian-hating frontiersmen. However one may interpret him, the rebellion itself preceded significant changes for Virginia.

Encyclopedia Virginia Grady Ave. Virginia Humanities acknowledges the Monacan Nation , the original people of the land and waters of our home in Charlottesville, Virginia. We invite you to learn more about Indians in Virginia in our Encyclopedia Virginia.

Skip to content. Arrest of Nathaniel Bacon. November 22, After studying with a tutor and touring the Continent, Nathaniel Bacon is admitted to Gray's Inn and returns to Cambridge University. May Nathaniel Bacon marries Elizabeth Duke, whose disapproving father disinherits her as a result. The couple will have two daughters. National Sports. Community Calendar. About Us. Contact Us. NBC12 Jobs. Local Steals and Deals.

Latest Newscasts. Investigate TV. Gray DC Bureau. Freeze Warning is in effect. Dismiss Weather Alerts Alerts Bar. By Rachel DePompa. Updated: Oct. But, Nathaniel Bacon was not a man to be taken easily. He mounted a horse and rode away across the country in the darkness until he had put many miles between himself and his enemies and had reached the home of friends and safety.

A guard was hastily dispatched for Bacon, and he hurried back to Jamestown to control the infuriated frontiersmen. Berkeley now found himself in the position where he had hoped to force Bacon, but, instead, the colonists forced the governor to sign a commission appointing Bacon a Major-General. Later, Bacon also was able to get the Legislature to pass laws for the relief of the suffering people.

While Bacon and his friends wrestled with the Governor and the Legislature, the Indians sneaked down upon a little village about twenty miles north of Jamestown and murdered the people in cold blood. General Bacon at once set out for the Indian country; but, just as he was leaving the last town on the frontier, a messenger came riding up saying the Governor was raising troops, intending to capture Bacon on his return.

The General promptly turned his army and set out on a quick march for Jamestown. But, he need not have troubled himself. When the militia found they had been called out to capture Bacon instead of to fight Indians, they unanimously turned and left the field. The old governor fainted with anger and mortification and was forced to flee across the Chesapeake for safety.

Upon his arrival, Bacon, at the desire of the people, took charge of the government. He was now between two enemies. The Indians; however, seemed the most insistent. For, the moment his back was turned, they had again rushed down upon the unprotected people along the frontier again. He, therefore, set out at once for their relief. For many days General and his valiant band fought and pursued the Indians. Then they turned homeward, confident that the Indians had tasted enough battle to satisfy their war appetite for many months.

When they reached the frontier settlements again, they learned that Governor Berkeley had, in some way, managed to get possession of Jamestown. The remnant of his army; however, footsore and hungry as they were, were more than willing to attack Berkeley, whom all regarded as a common enemy.

They set out quickly and pushed onward with such untiring vigor that they were rounding the narrow neck of sand which connected Jamestown with the mainland before the Governor heard of their intentions. Undercover of the silence and darkness of night, Bacon and his men threw up entrenchments about the town and shut in the Governor and his people. They were determined to subdue the governor and force him to recognize the rights of the people. Finally, Berkeley and his men slipped away down the bay in their vessels; and Bacon let them go.