Part 3: Religion in Virginia during the Commonwealth
In our third and final installment of the series on religion in England and its protectorates during the Commonwealth from to , we discuss how the Virginia Colony was affected by its home country&#;s governmental transition to Puritanism.
The traditional religious narrative has stated that the Virginia Colony was religious homogenous, consisting of mostly Anglicans. However, archaeological evidence suggests that early Jamestown was as religiously divided as the rest of the burgeoning British Empire and of Europe. Various Puritan-leaning groups were present in the early 17th Century in Virginia and sought to reform the Church of England from within. The need for stakeholders in the Virginia Company meant that religious conformity was a luxury that the investors could not afford. By the s, Puritans began to settle in groups south of the James River including Warrosquoyake Shire. Puritan Edward Bennett was given sizable land grants and undertook to settle some newcomers to the Colony.¹ Christopher Lawne, a leader in the Brownist movement in England also settled in Warrosquoyake, but the fortunes of Virginia Puritans changed d
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Primary Sources
(1) A supporter of Nathaniel Bacon wrote a detailed report of the rebellion but it was nor published in England until He was critical of William Berkeley who he believed did not do enough to stop attacks by Native Americans.
Frequent complaints of bloodshed were sent to Sir William Berkeley from the heads of the rivers, which were as often answered with promises of assistance. These at the heads of James and York rivers (having now most people destroyed by the Indians) grew impatient at the many slaughters of their neighbours and rose or their own defence, who choosing. Bacon for their leader, sent oftentimes to the Governor, humbly beseeching a commission to go against those Indians at their own charge.
Mr. Bacon, with fifty-seven men, proceeded until the fired the palisades, stormed and burned the fort and cabins, and (with the loss of three English) slew Indians.
(2) Nathaniel Bacon was captured by William Berkeley but he escaped and raised another army to fight Native Americans.
General Bacon marched with 1, men into the forest to seek the enemy Indians; and, in a few days after, our next news was that the Governor had summoned
Bacon’s Rebellion was the first rebellion in the American colonies. Taking place in , this uprising was led by Nathaniel Bacon against the ruling governor, Sir William Berkeley. The rebellion arose from many issues, including grievances over Native American policies and economic struggles. Notably, Bacon&#;s Rebellion saw an unprecedented alliance between white and black indentured servants and enslaved people, unified in their opposition to the colonial elite. This cooperation highlighted the complex social dynamics of the time and foreshadowed the evolving nature of race relations in America.
Roots of Bacon&#;s Rebellion
Bacon’s Rebellion was sparked by a complex interplay of factors that went beyond mere Native American policies. High taxes imposed by the colonial government and low tobacco prices significantly burdened the settlers, many of whom were frontier planters struggling to make a living. Additionally, the system of indentured servitude created widespread discontent among both white and black laborers, who found common cause in their shared grievances against the ruling elite.
While the conflict with Native Americans was the immediate catalyst for the rebelli
Governor William Berkely on Bacon's Rebellion 19 May
Introduction
When Bacon's Rebellion erupted with surprising and stunning swiftness, William Berkeley had been governor ot Virginia for more than thirty years. During the early years of his administration, Berkeley was considered a stalwart and reliable friend of the planters. Through the years he introduced more rigidity in the use of power while, at the same time, aging deprived him of a recognition of the economic, political, and social transition that Virginia, as well as other settled colonies, was undergoing. Berkeley saw Bacon's action as a direct challenge to his own authority - which it was. Bacon, in the governor's opinion, was guilty of treason.
The declaration and Remonstrance of Sir William Berkeley his most sacred Majesties Governor and Captain Generall of Virginia
Sheweth That about the yeare CoIl. Mathews the then Governor dyed and then in consideration of the service I had don the Country, in defending them from, and destroying great numbers of the Indians, without the loss of three men, in all the time that warr lasted, and in contemplation of the equall and uncorrupt Justice I had distributed to all
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