Bacon’s revolt on Jamestown, Virginia, occurred in 1676-1677. The huge uprising led by Nathaniel Bacon, a Virginia planter, took Jamestown down to the ground. In his mid-twenties, Nathaniel Bacon was a member of the Virginia Council, appointed for this position by Sir William Berkeley, the Governor of Virginia, in 1675 (Rice, 2009). Robert Beverly, a historian of colonial Virginia who lived in 18th century, describes Nathaniel Bacon as a well-educated and active young man. Beverly points out that Nathaniel was qualified enough to lead the masses ("The History Project", 2016).
The rebellion started from a trading dispute between the Doeg Indians and a planter Thomas Mathew; the conflict took place on the territories of the Potomac River in 1675. Thomas Mathew and some of his neighbors murdered several Indians accused of livestock theft. In revenge for the assassinated, the Doegs killed Mathew’s herdsman. The issue was not neglected by Virginia militia, and they followed the Doegs to Maryland. Chasing the cabin of the Doegs, they also attacked innocent Susquehannocks. This way, Indians were forced to raid the Virginia frontier (Rice, 2009).
Governor Sir William Berkeley, who never sought armed conflicts with Indians, suggested a plan of isolating the Susquehannocks. In 1676, he agreed with the General Assembly to establish frontier forts; however, this idea did not receive support from many Virginians. They believed that all Indians were a potential danger to the English (Rice, 2009).
That year, the Inidan raids reached one of the Bacon’s properties, namely Bacon’s Quarter, and the property’s overseer was murdered by the raiders. The issue changed Nathaniel Bacon’s attitude towards Indians, and he decided to take a side of Governor’s and Council’s opponents. Thus, he became a leader of the volunteers who demanded to fight the Indians and stand against the Berkeley’s proponents (Rice, 2009).
Bacon insisted on establishing a commission to go against and defeat Indians. Berkeley could not understand how the people could let such a young and untrustworthy man lead them. Having realized that the Council was not going to accept his demands, Bacon allied with Occaneechi nation, who had been an important trade partner of Virginia for a long time. He persuaded the Occaneechis to attack the Susquehannocks. When the Occaneechis fulfilled their part of the deal, Bacon murdered Occaneechi men and their families, devastate their town (Rice, 2009).
In May 1676, Berkeley excluded Bacon from the Council and declared him to be a rebel. However, in June 1676 that year, Bacon received a seat in the House of Burgesses, representing the Henrico County. On June 6, Bacon was captured and forced to capitulate. Surprisingly, Bacon was returned to the Virginia Council, although not for long. By the end of June, after being expelled from the Council for the second time, Bacon came back to Jamestown supported by the army of 500 volunteers. The statehouse realized they were not in a position to oppose Bacon and, that is why, agreed to proclaim him ‘commander-in-chief of the force raised’ (Rice, 2009).
During the next month, both sides tried to win support from the key officials of the British Crown. Encouraged by numerous complaints from Jamestown residents on Bacon’s forceful recruitment of volunteers, Berkeley again declared Bacon to be in rebellion in July. This decision resulted in Bacon’s army march to Middle Plantation, and the escape of Berkeley to the Eastern Shore. Bacon successfully took power and received sworn allegiance from 70 colony’s leading men (Rice, 2009).
In September, Berkeley tried to retake Jamestown. The rebels understood they were neither able to hold the town, nor could they let Berkeley retake it. Being in despair, Bacon ensured the rebels that the only way out was to burn Jamestown down (Rice, 2009).
In October 1676, Nathaniel Bacon suddenly died from dysentery and typhus. Meanwhile, King Charles II signed the proclamation to put down the rebellion led by Bacon. Great Britain sent troops to Virginia which managed to stop the rebellion only in January of the year 1677. On January 22nd 1677, Sir William Berkeley returned to Jamestown (Rice, 2009).
For a long time, the rebellion was considered as an uprising against English tyranny, the lead up to the American Revolution; however, this idea received a lot of criticism due to various reasons (Rice, 2009).
The causes of Bacon’s Rebellion lie in the social, economic and political crisis that Virginia experienced in the 17th century. Increased conflicts between white settlers and Indians, forced the tribes to abandon settlements in New York, Maryland and Pennsylvania and to occupy the Virginia frontier. Expanding society due to increased number of Native Americans minority resulted in social stress of the community. The intensifying competition for trade with the English resulted in conflicts between the tribes and the Indians with the white settlers ("The History Project", 2016).
Complicated social situations were sharpened by economic difficulties that the region faced. The Navigation Acts of the 1660’s imposed certain restrictions on exports, but, at the same time, brought much profit to political office. Moreover, during the years 1670-1675 tobacco prices sufficiently dropped. The years of tobacco growing affected the soil, so planters were constantly looking for new opportunities in the virgin lands; however, those were controlled by the Crown. The combination of these issues caused a negative impression on the colonial government among Virginian citizens, so that ambitious young men decided to challenge its authority ("The History Project", 2016).
References
Rice, J. D. Bacon's Rebellion (1676–1677). (2014, October 3). In Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved from http://www.EncyclopediaVirginia.org/Bacon_s_Rebellion_1676-1677.
The History Project. (2016). The History Project at UC Davis. Retrieved 5 March 2016, from http://historyproject.ucdavis.edu/lessons/view_lesson.php?id=9
