Who is pocahontas and what did she do

They had a son. They traveled to England to promote the colony to investors, and Rebecca was celebrated in the highest London society. But as the Rolfes began their return to Virginia, she took ill and died in Gravesend, England.

Her native world was largely lost to time until the Jamestown Rediscovery Project began excavating the James Fort site in The archaeological research has uncovered thousands of native artifacts—the largest known collection of Virginia Indian artifacts from the contact period.

Pocahontas was named Amonute at birth and went by the name Matoaka. The first English settlers arrived in Jamestown colony in May According to Smith, his head was placed on two stones and a warrior prepared to smash his head and kill him. Chief Powhatan then bartered with Smith, referred to him as his son and sent him on his way. Many historians believe Smith was never in peril and the placement of his head on the stones was ceremonial.

Pocahontas became known by the colonists as an important Powhatan emissary. She occasionally brought the hungry settlers food and helped successfully negotiate the release of Powhatan prisoners in But relations between the colonists and the Indians remained strained.

By , drought, starvation and disease had ravaged the colonists and they became increasingly dependent on the Powhatan to survive. Desperate and dying, they threatened to burn Powhatan towns for food, so Chief Powhatan suggested a barter with Captain Smith. Soon after, Smith was injured and returned to England; however, Pocahontas and her father were told he died. While in captivity, Pocahontas lived in the settlement of Henricus under the care of a minister named Alexander Whitaker where she learned about Christianity , English culture and how to speak English.

During her imprisonment, Pocahontas met widower and tobacco planter John Rolfe. They sent word to Chief Powhatan that they wanted to marry; he consented as did the Virginia governor, Sir Thomas Dale. Pocahontas married Rolfe in April The match was considered an important step towards re-establishing positive relations between the colonists and the Indians.

Indeed, the marriage brought a season of peace to the region. In , Sir Thomas Dale sailed to England to rally financial support for the Virginia Company, the company owned by wealthy Londoners that had financed the Jamestown colony. The company also wanted to prove they had met their goal of converting Native Americans to Christianity, so Rolfe, Pocahontas, their infant son Thomas born in and a dozen Powhatan Indians accompanied Dale on the trip.

Much to her surprise, Pocahontas encountered Captain Smith whom she thought was dead in London. In March , Pocahontas, her husband and son set sail for Virginia. But they had hardly made progress when she became gravely ill and was taken ashore at Gravesend, England.

Some speculate it was tuberculosis, pneumonia, dysentery or smallpox; others believe she was poisoned. Pocahontas was buried at St. Rolfe returned to Virginia, but her son Thomas remained with relatives in England.

She learned the English language, religion and customs. While not all was strange to Pocahontas, it was vastly different than the Powhatan world. During her religious instruction, Pocahontas met widower John Rolfe, who would become famous for introducing the cash crop tobacco to the settlers in Virginia.

By all English accounts, the two fell in love and wanted to marry. Perhaps, once Pocahontas was kidnapped, Kocoum, her first husband, realized divorce was inevitable there was a form of divorce in Powhatan society. Once Powhatan was sent word that Pocahontas and Rolfe wanted to marry, his people would have considered Pocahontas and Kocoum divorced.

Powhatan consented to the proposed marriage and sent an uncle of Pocahontas' to represent him and her people at the wedding. In , Pocahontas converted to Christianity and was baptized "Rebecca.

The marriage led to the "Peace of Pocahontas;" a lull in the inevitable conflicts between the English and Powhatan Indians. The Rolfes soon had a son named Thomas. The Virginia Company of London, who had funded the settling of Jamestown, decided to make use of the favorite daughter of the great Powhatan to their advantage.

They thought, as a Christian convert married to an Englishman, Pocahontas could encourage interest in Virginia and the company. Pocahontas, known as "Lady Rebecca Rolfe," was also accompanied by about a dozen Powhatan men and women. Once in England, the party toured the country. Smith had not forgotten about Pocahontas and had even written a letter to Queen Anne describing all she had done to help the English in Jamestown's early years.

Pocahontas had been in England for months, though, before Smith visited her. He wrote that she was so overcome with emotion that she could not speak and turned away from him.

Upon gaining her composure, Pocahontas reprimanded Smith for the manner in which he had treated her father and her people. She reminded him how Powhatan had welcomed him as a son, how Smith had called him "father.

She said the settlers had reported Smith had died after his accident, but that Powhatan had suspected otherwise as "your countrymen will lie much. After traveling down the Thames River, Pocahontas, seriously ill, had to be taken ashore. In the town of Gravesend, Pocahontas died of an unspecified illness.

Many historians believe she suffered from an upper respiratory ailment, such as pneumonia, while others think she could have died from some form of dysentery. Pocahontas, about twenty-one, was buried at St. George's Church on March 21, John Rolfe returned to Virginia, but left the young ailing Thomas with relatives in England. Within a year, Powhatan died. The "Peace of Pocahontas" began to slowly unravel.

Life for her people would never be the same. Daniel "Silver Star," based on the sacred oral history of the Mattaponi tribe, offers some further, and sometimes very different, insights into the real Pocahontas. Pocahontas was the last child of Wahunsenaca Chief Powhatan and his first wife Pocahontas, his wife of choice and of love.

Pocahontas' mother died during childbirth. Their daughter was given the name Matoaka which meant "flower between two streams. Wahunsenaca was devastated by the loss of his wife, but found joy in his daughter.

He often called her Pocahontas, which meant "laughing and joyous one," since she reminded him of his beloved wife. There was no question that she was his favorite and that the two had a special bond.

Even so, Wahunsenaca thought it best to send her to be raised in the Mattaponi village rather than at his capital of Werowocomoco. She was raised by her aunts and cousins, who took care of her as if she were their own.

Once Pocahontas was weaned, she returned to live with her father at Werowocomoco. Wahunsenaca had other children with Pocahontas' mother as well as with his alliance wives, but Pocahontas held a special place in her father's heart. Pocahontas held a special love and respect for her father as well. All of the actions of Pocahontas or her father were motivated by their deep love for each other, their deep and strong bond.

The love and bond between them never wavered. Most of her older siblings were grown, as Wahunsenaca fathered Pocahontas later in his life. Many of her brothers and sisters held prominent positions within Powhatan society. Her family was very protective of her and saw to it that she was well looked after. As a child, Pocahontas' life was very different than as an adult. The distinction between childhood and adulthood was visible through physical appearance as well as through behavior.

Pocahontas would not have cut her hair or worn clothing until she came of age in winter she wore a covering to protect against the cold. There were also certain ceremonies she was not allowed to participate in or even witness. Even as a child, the cultural standards of Powhatan society applied to her, and in fact, as the daughter of the paramount chief, more responsibility and discipline were expected of her. Pocahontas also received more supervision and training; as Wahunsenaca's favorite daughter she probably had even more security, as well.

The most famous event of Pocahontas' life, her rescue of Captain John Smith, did not happen the way he wrote it. Smith was exploring when he encountered a Powhatan hunting party. A fight ensued, and Smith was captured by Opechancanough. Opechancanough, a younger brother of Wahunsenaca, took Smith from village to village to demonstrate to the Powhatan people that Smith, in particular, and the English, in general, were as human as they were.

The "rescue" was a ceremony, initiating Smith as another chief. It was a way to welcome Smith, and, by extension, all the English, into the Powhatan nation.

It was an important ceremony, so the quiakros would have played an integral role. Wahunsenaca truly liked Smith. He even offered a healthier location for the English, Capahowasick east of Werowocomoco. Smith's life was never in danger. As for Pocahontas, she would not have been present, as children were not allowed at religious rituals. Afterwards, Pocahontas would have considered Smith a leader and defender of the Powhatan people, as an allied chief of the English tribe.

She would have expected Smith to be loyal to her people, since he had pledged friendship to Wahunsenaca. In Powhatan society, one's word was one's bond. That bond was sacred. The English had been welcomed by the Powhatan people. To cement this new alliance, Wahunsenaca sent food to Jamestown during the winter of Doing so was the Powhatan way, as leaders acted for the good of the whole tribe.

It was during these visits to the fort with food that Pocahontas became known to the English, as a symbol of peace. Since she was still a child, she would not have been allowed to travel alone or without adequate protection and permission from her father. The tight security that surrounded Pocahontas at Jamestown, though often disguised, may have been how the English realized she was Wahunsenaca's favorite.

Over time, relations between the Powhatan Indians and the English began to deteriorate. The settlers were aggressively demanding food that, due to summer droughts, could not be provided. Wahunsenaca reprimanded Smith for English conduct, in general, and for Smith's own, in particular. He also expressed his desire for peace with the English.

Wahunsenaca followed the Powhatan philosophy of gaining more through peaceful and respectful means than through war and force. According to Smith, during this visit Pocahontas again saved his life by running through the woods that night to warn him her father intended to kill him. However, as in , Smith's life was not in danger. Pocahontas was still a child, and a very well protected and supervised one; it is unlikely she would have been able to provide such a warning.

It would have gone against Powhatan cultural standards for children. If Wahunsenaca truly intended to kill Smith, Pocahontas could not have gotten past Smith's guards, let alone prevented his death. As relations continued to worsen between the two peoples, Pocahontas stopped visiting, but the English did not forget her.

Pocahontas had her coming of age ceremony, which symbolized that she was eligible for courtship and marriage. This ceremony took place annually and boys and girls aged twelve to fourteen took part. Pocahontas' coming of age ceremony called a huskanasquaw for girls took place once she began to show signs of womanhood.

Since her mother was dead, her older sister Mattachanna oversaw the huskanasquaw , during which Wahunsenaca's daughter officially changed her name to Pocahontas. The ceremony itself was performed discreetly and more secretly than usual because the quiakros had heard rumors the English planned to kidnap Pocahontas. After the ceremony a powwow was held in celebration and thanksgiving. During the powwow, a courtship dance allowed single male warriors to search for a mate. It was most likely during this dance that Pocahontas met Kocoum.

After a courtship period, the two married. Wahunsenaca was happy with Pocahontas' choice, as Kocoum was not only the brother of a close friend of his, Chief Japazaw also called Iopassus of the Potowomac Patawomeck tribe, but was also one of his finest warriors.

He knew Pocahontas would be well protected. Rumors of the English wanting to kidnap Pocahontas resurfaced, so she and Kocoum moved to his home village. While there, Pocahontas gave birth to a son. Then, in , the long suspected English plan to kidnap Pocahontas was carried out.

Captain Samuel Argall demanded the help of Chief Japazaw. A council was held with the quiakros , while word was sent to Wahunsenaca. Japazaw did not want to give Pocahontas to Argall; she was his sister-in-law.

However, not agreeing would have meant certain attack by a relentless Argall, an attack for which Japazaw's people could offer no real defense.