Powhatan
The Powhatan (also spelled Powatan and Powhaten), or Powhatan Renape[1] (literally, the "Powhatan Human Beings"), is the name of a Native American tribe, and also the name of a powerful confederacy of tribes that they dominated. Also known as Virginia Algonquians, they spoke an eastern-Algonquian language, and lived in what is now the eastern part of Virginia at the time of the first European-Native encounters there. The name is believed to have originated from a village near the head of navigation on a major river, each of which was also called "Powhatan."
The Pamunkey Native American tribe has been in existence since pre-Columbian times. It is one of the two currently existing tribes that were part of the Powhattan Confederacy. They inhabited the coastal tidewater of Virginia, near Chesapeake Bay. The Pamunkey reservation is currently located on the site of some of its ancestral land on the Pamunkey River adjacent to King William County, Virginia. This tribe is significant to American history because of its early contact with American settlers and adaptable forms of self preservation throughout its existence.
History
Powhatan
The name "Powhatan" is believed to have originated as the name of the village or "town" that Wahunsunacock (who has become better-known as the Chief Powhatan) came from. It was located in the East End portion of the modern-day city of Richmond, Virginia). "Powhatan" was also the name used by the natives to refer to the river where the town sat at the head of navigation (today called the James River, renamed by the English colonists for their own king, James I).
"Powhatan" is an Virginia Algonquian word meaning "at the waterfalls";[2][3] the settlement of Powhatan was at the falls of the James River.[4]
Powhatan Hill in the independent city of Richmond is in the general vicinity of the Native American village. Powhatan County and its county seat at Powhatan, Virginia were honorific names many years later, but the location is well west of the area populated by the Powhatan Confederacy.
Building the Powhatan Confederacy
The original six constituent tribes in Wahunsunacock's Powhatan Confederacy were: the Powhatans (proper), the Arrohatecks, the Appamattucks, the Pamunkeys, the Mattaponis, and the Chiskiacks. He added the Kecoughtans to his fold by 1598. Another closely related tribe in the midst of these others, all speaking the same language, was the Chickahominy, who managed to preserve their autonomy from the confederacy.
Wahunsunacock had inherited control over just four tribes, but dominated over thirty by the time the English settlers established their Virginia Colony at Jamestown in 1607.
The English settlers in the land of the Powhatan
The Powhatan Confederacy is famous as embracing those Indians among whom the first permanent English settlement in North America was made. This was also to be the downfall of the Native American empire. Conflicts began almost immediately, and within two weeks of the arrival at Jamestown, deaths had occurred.
The settlers had hoped for friendly relations and had planned to trade with the Native Americans for food. Captain Christopher Newport led the first English exploration party up the James River in 1607 and first met Chief Powhatan and several of his sons. Newport later crowned the Chief with a ceremonial crown and presented him with many European gifts to gain the Indians' friendship. Newport realized that Chief Powhatan's friendship was crucial to the survival of the small Jamestown colony.
On a hunting and trade mission on the Chickahominy River, President of the Colony Captain John Smith was captured by Opechancanough, the younger brother of Chief Powhatan. According to Smith's account (which in the late 1800s was considered to be fabricated, but is still believed by some to be mostly accurate—although several highly romanticized popular versions cloud the matter), Pocahontas, Powhatan's daughter, prevented her father from executing Smith. Some researchers have asserted that this was a ritual intended to adopt Smith into the tribe, but other modern writers dispute this interpretation, pointing out that nothing is known of seventeenth-century Powhatan adoption ceremonies, and that this sort of ritual is even different from known rites of passage. Further, these writes argue, Smith was not apparently treated as a member of the Powhatans after this ritual.
John Smith left Virginia for England, in 1609, because of an injury sustained in a gunpowder accident (never to return). In September 1609, Captain John Ratcliffe was invited to Orapakes, Powhatan's new capital. When he sailed up the Pamunkey River to trade there, a fight broke out between the colonists and the Powhatans. All of the English were killed, including Ratcliffe, who was tortured by the women of the tribe.
During the next year, the tribe attacked and killed many Jamestown residents. The residents fought back, but only killed twenty. However, arrival at Jamestown of a new Governor, Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, (Lord Delaware) in June of 1610 signalled the beginning of the First Anglo-Powhatan War. A brief period of peace only came after the marriage of Pocahontas and colonist John Rolfe in 1614.
However, within a few years both the Chief and Pocahontas were dead from disease. The Chief died in Virginia, but Pocahontas died in England, having been captured and willingly married to the tobacco planter John Rolfe. Meanwhile, the English settlers continued to encroach on Powhatan territory.
After Wahunsunacock's death, his younger brother, Opitchapam, became chief, followed by their younger brother Opechancanough, who in 1622 and 1644 attempted to force the English from Powhatan territories. These attempts saw strong reprisals from the English, ultimately resulting in the near destruction of the tribe. During the 1644 incident, Royal Governor of Virginia William Berkeley's forces captured Opechancanough, thought to be between 90 and 100 years old. While a prisoner, Opechancanough was killed by a soldier (shot in the back) assigned to guard him.
He was succeeded as Weroance by Nectowance and then by Totopotomoi and later by his daughter Cockacoeske. By 1665, the Powhatan were subject to stringent laws enacted that year, which compelled them to accept chiefs appointed by the governor. After the Treaty of Albany in 1684, the Powhatan Confederacy all but vanished.
Capitals of the Powhatan Confederacy
Besides the the capital village of "Powhatan" in the Powhatan Hill section of the eastern part of the current city of Richmond, another capital of this confederacy about 75 miles to the east was called Werowocomoco. It was located near the north bank of the York River in present-day Gloucester County.
Werowocomoco was described by the English colonists as only 12 miles as the crow flies from Jamestown, but also described as 25 miles downstream from present-day West Point.
Around 1609, Wahunsunacock shifted his capital from Werowocomoco to Orapakes, located in a swamp at the head of the Chickahominy River, near the modern-day interchange of Interstate 64 and Interstate 295. Sometime between 1611 and 1614, he moved further north to Matchut, in present-day King William County on the north bank of the Pamunkey River, not far from where his brother Opechancanough ruled at Youghtanund.
Pamunkey
The Pamunkeys are part of the larger Algonquian family. This family represents a number of tribes that spoke variations of the same language, although most of their language is lost now. By 1607 the Powhatan Confederacy was formed, of which they were the largest and most powerful tribe. Both Chief Powhatan himself and his famous daughter Pocahontas were Pamunkeys.
Initial contact with Europeans was around 1570. “And from [1570] on at ever briefer intervals until the first permanent English colony was established at Jamestown in 1607, the Powhatan Confederacy was visited and plagued by white men: Spanish, French, and English” (Barbour, 5). There were an estimated 14,000 members of the Confederacy by the time of English arrival.
The Pamunkeys were formally recognized by the outside world since treaties with King William I of England in the second half of the 17th century. Colonists of the first successful English settlements, based at Jamestown, had an interesting relationship with Virginia Native Americans. Chief Powhatan was very close to Captain John Smith and initially dealt with the colony through him. If not for Chief Powhatan, Jamestown would not have survived through the first winters. As the settlement expanded, the friendly nature of interactions steadily decreased.
Chief Powhatan’s half brother and successor, Opechancanough, launched attacks in 1622 and 1644 in an effort to expel them from the area. The first, known as the Indian Massacre of 1622 destroyed settlements such as Henricus and Wolstenholme Towne and nearly wiped out the colony, although Jamestown itself was spared due to a warning of the impending attack. After the capture and assassination of Opechancanough, the Powhatan Confederacy was disbanded.
The Virginia Colony continued to grow and encroach on Indian land making it impossible to sustain their traditional lifestyle. Many Pamunkeys were forced to work for the English or enslaved. As the settlement grew so did their fear of Native Americans and subsequent racist tendencies and anger. This culminated in Bacon's Rebellion which began in 1675 as the colonists and Royal Governor William Berkeley disagreed about the handling of conflicts with the Indians. During the subsequent reprisals for an incident which took place in what is currently Fairfax County, the Pamunkeys were among many other innocent tribes which were wrongfully targeted. These themes of militancy and encroachment continued throughout much of American history. Although the tribe was divided in the 18th century, many Powhatan tribes including the Pamunkey secretly kept their identity.
Culture
Powhatan
In the late 16th and early 17th centuries, a weroance (or chief) named Wahunsunacock created a powerful empire by conquering or affiliating by agreement with approximately 30 tribes covering much of eastern Virginia, called Tenakomakah ("densely-inhabited Land")[5], and he himself was known as Chief Powhatan. However, beginning with the arrival of the English settlers at Jamestown in 1607, encroachment of the new arrivals and their ever-growing numbers on what had been Indian lands resulted in conflicts which became almost continuous for the next 37 years.
After Wahunsunacock's death in 1618, hostilities escalated under the chiefdom of his brother, Opechancanough, who sought in vain to drive the Europeans away, leading the Indian Massacre of 1622 and another in 1644. These attempts saw strong reprisals from the English, ultimately resulting in the near-destruction of the tribe. The Powhatan Confederacy had been largely decimated by 1646. As the colonial expansion continued, many members assimilated into the populations of persons of European and African-American origin.
Remaining descendants in Virginia in the 21st century include seven recognized tribes with ties to the original confederacy, [6] including two with reservations, the Pamunkey and the Mattaponi, which are accessed through King William County, Virginia. Many years after the Powhatan Confederacy no longer existed, and some miles to the west of area it included, Powhatan County in the Virginia Colony was named in honor of Chief Wahunsunacock, who was the father of Pocahontas.
Although the cultures of the Powhatan and the European settlers were very different, through the union of Pocahontas and English settler John Rolfe and their son Thomas Rolfe, many decedents of the First Families of Virginia trace both Native American and European roots.
The Powhatan lived east of the fall line in Tidewater Virginia. Their houses were made of poles, rushes, and bark, and they supported themselves primarily by growing crops, especially maize, but also by some fishing and hunting. Villages consisted of a number of related families organized in tribes that were led by a king or queen, who was a client of the Emperor and a member of his council.
According to research by the National Park Service, Powhatan "men were warriors and hunters, while women were gardeners and gatherers. The English described the men, who ran and walked extensively through the woods in pursuit of enemies or game, as tall and lean and possessed of handsome physiques. The women were shorter, and were strong because of the hours they spent tending crops, pounding corn into meal, gathering nuts, and performing other domestic chores.When the men undertook extended hunts, the women went ahead of them to construct hunting camps. The Powhatan domestic economy depended on the labor of both sexes." [7]
Pamunkey
The traditional Pamunkey way of life is subsistence living. They have always lived through a combination of fishing, trapping, hunting, and farming. The Pamunkey River was a main mode of transportation and food source. It also provided accessibility to hunting grounds, other tribes, and a defensive view of local river traffic. Access to the river was crucial because Pamunkey villages were not permanent settlements. Because they did not use fertilizer, fields and homes were moved about every ten years. Permitted use of unoccupied land was open to anyone, but understood as under Pamunkey jurisdiction. This proved a major source of conflict with the English because it was the antithesis of their land ownership model.
Coined by the English as “longhouses,” Pamunkey structures tended to be long and narrow. They were relatively simple structures made out of bent saplings and covered with woven mats. Homes of families of higher status were also made of bark. By changing the strength of indoor fires and the amount of mats or bark, these houses were adaptable to all weather conditions and comfortable.
The tribe is governed by a weroance (Chief) and a tribal council composed of seven members, elected every four years. An ethnology written in 1894 by Jno. Garland Pollard, on behalf of the Smithsonian Institute Bureau of Ethnology, stated “The council names two candidates to be voted for. Those favoring the election of candidate number 1 must indicate their choice by depositing a grain of corn in the ballot-box at the schoolhouse, while those who favor the election of candidate number 2 must deposit a bean in the same place. The former or the latter candidate is declared chosen according as the grains of corn of the beans predominate." Typical laws are mostly concerned with but not limited to intermarriage, preventing slander, bad behavior, and land use. There are no corporal punishments such as incarcerations or chastisement. Rather, punishments are only in terms of fines or banishment (usually after the third offense).
A piece of the Pamunkey story is often told through Pocahontas, but from an English perspective. When comparing primary documents from the time of English arrival, it is apparent that initial contact was characterized by mutual cultural misunderstanding. Primary documentation characterizes the Virginia Indians through a series of paradoxes. It is apparent that there is great respect for Chief Powhatan but the other Indians are repeatedly called variations of devils and savages, such as “naked devils” or they were standing there “grim as devils.” There is a great fear and appreciation coupled with distrust and uneasiness. The following quotation from John Smith’s diary exemplifies this duality. “It pleased God, after a while, to send those people which were our mortal enemies to relieve us with victuals, as bread, corn fish, and flesh in great plenty, which was the setting up of our feeble men, otherwise we had all perished” (Southern, 35). Smith makes it apparent that without Chief Powhatan’s kindness the colony would have starved. However, Smith still considers Chief Powhatan’s people his enemies.
This general distrust from the English permeated throughout many tribes, but a sense of honor and morality is attached to the Pamunkey. “There custom is to take anything they can seize off; only the people of Pamunkey we have not found stealing, but what others can steal, their king reveiveth” (83). Even though it is apparent that the Pamunkeys meant no harm until they were pushed to seek revenge, they were repeatedly wronged.
Chief Powhatan could not understand the English need to claim everything and their overall mindset. "What it will avail you to take by force you may quickly have by love, or to destroy them that provide you food? What can you get by war, when we can hide our provisions and fly to the woods? Whereby you must famish by wronging us your friends. And why are you thus jealous of our loves seeing us unarmed, and both do, and are willing still to feed you, with that you cannot get but by our labors?" (Southern, 97). This question posed by Chief Powhatan was translated in Smith’s writings. He could not understand why the British would want to taint relations with his tribe. They were providing Jamestown with food, since the colonists refused to work, and could not otherwise survive the winter. It is apparent that these Indians only went to war as a last resort. They did not understand why the only tactics of the British were force and domination.
Contemporary Overview
Powhatan
Approximately 3,000 Powhatan people remain in Virginia. Some of them live today on two tiny reservations, Mattaponi and Pamunkey, found in King William County, Virginia. However, the Powhatan language is now extinct. Attempts have been made to reconstruct the vocabulary of the language; the only sources are word lists provided by Smith and by William Strachey.
The American entertainer Wayne Newton is of mixed Powhatan, Cherokee, Irish, and German ancestry.
Powhatan County was named in honor of the Chief and his tribe, although located about 60 miles to the west of lands ever under their control. In the independent city of Richmond, Powhatan Hill in the city's east end is traditionally believed to be located near the village Chief Powhatan was originally from, although the specific location of the site is unknown.
The Powhatan people are featured in the Disney animated film Pocahontas (1995). An attempt at a more historically accurate representation of them appears in The New World (2005).
Pamunkey
The Pamunkeys have been able to survive because of their remarkable ability to adapt as a tribe. In modern times they have changed their interpretation of living off the land, but still uphold the central value of subsistence living. They continue to hunt, trap, and fish on what’s left of their reservation grounds. In order to supplement these activities they have turned traditional tribal pottery into profit generating ventures, while continuing to rely on their natural environment. The pottery is made from all natural clay including pulverized white shells used by their ancestors.
Also, the Pamunkey Indian Museum was built in 1979 to resemble a traditional Native American long house. Located on the reservation, it provides visitors with an innovative approach to the tribe throughout the years through artifacts, replicas, and stories. Their history is so rich that the Smithsonian Institute recently selected the Pamunkeys as one of 24 tribes to be featured in the National Museum of the American Indian.
Notes
- ↑ The word "Renape," which means human[1], is cognate with Lenape, the name of another Algonquian-speaking tribe of what is now New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
- ↑ According to the Encyclopedia of Native American Tribes; c.f. Anishinaabe language: Baawiting "at the falls/rapids" (=Sault Ste. Marie)
- ↑ Bright, William (2004). Native American Place Names of the United States. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, pg. 397
- ↑ http://www.accessgenealogy.com/native/tribes/powhatan/powhatanchiefs.htm
- ↑ http://www.wm.edu/niahd/journals/index.php?browse=entry&id=4965 c.f. Anishinaabe language: danakamigaa: "activity-grounds," i.e. "land of much events [for the People]"
- ↑ http://www.virginiaplaces.org/vacities/matchut.html
- ↑ http://www.johnsmith400.org/2TheChesapeakeBayRegionanditsPeoplein1607.pdf
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- A. Bryant Nichols Jr., Captain Christopher Newport: Admiral of Virginia, Sea Venture, 2007
- Southern, Ed. The Jamestown Adventure: Accounts of the Virginia Colony, 1605-1614. John Blair: North Carolina, 2004
- Barbour, Phillip. Pocahontas and her World. Houghton Mifflin Co.: Boston, MA, 1969.
- Hatfield, April Lee. Atlantic VA: Intercolonial Relations in the Seventeenth Century. University of Pennsylvania Press: Philadelphia, PA, 2004.
- Pollard, Jno. Garland. “Pamunkey.” Bureau of Ethnology, Smithsonian Institute: 1894.
- “The Unofficial Pamunkey Indian Website” http://home.earthlink.net/~pamunkey/
External links
- The Anglo-Powhatan Wars
- Powhatan Renape Nation—Rankokus American Indian Reservation
- National Geographic Magazine Jamestown/Werowocomoco Interactive
- UNC Charlotte linguist Blair Rudes restores lost language, culture for 'The New World'
- How a linguist revived 'New World' language
- Princess Cleopatra
Credits
New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here:
The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia:
Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed.
