...Bacon’s Rebellion [Instructor’s name] [Class Title] [Date] Bacon’s Rebellion Introduction The historical event discussed in this paper is Bacon’s rebellion. Bacon’s rebellion was an uprising in colonial Virginia in North America that took place in 1676. The rebellion was considered first in history. It was among the first uprising against British authority by the colony and it was the first event that Blacks and Whites, rich and poor, grouped together under one cause. The rebellion was led by Nathaniel Bacon, an Englishman who had recently settled in the Virginia Colony[1]. Background Nathaniel Bacon He had extreme animosity towards Indians-hostile and friendly alike- and developed a worldview that all Indians must be wiped out in Virginia. Nathaniel Bacon was a wealthy 29 year old painter. He was a council at the governor’s office. He rose up as a leader of a group of freeholders (men who own lands and all immovable structures attached to the lands), who wanted to drive-out all the Indians in Virginia[2]. In 1674, these freeholders demanded that Indians should leave treaty protected lands or be killed. This group targeted all Indians, whether friendly or not, thus they are actually starting all out war against Indians. Hostility between Indians and the Free Holders broke out when Doeg Indians raided the farm of one of the Free Holders and stole a number of pigs. The raid was said to be a retaliatory attack by the Indians...
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...To understand the significance of Bacon's rebellion in 1675-1676 and the origin of racism in America you have to backtrack to 1660 when the economy of Virginia was declining. However, thousands of indentured servants continued to give to the colony believing it would better their condition in a "Growing Country. Instead, it was only going from bad to worse. In 1670, the Governor William Berkeley and the House of Burgesses coerced all landless freemen in a belief that they were the source of trouble which only increased the anger of the freemen. Four years later Nathaniel Bacon originally an English aristocrat came to the colony. Berkeley denied Bacon a license to engage in the fur trade, which was only open to the governor and his friends, Bacon was furious. In 1675 when Indians attacked the settlers for some of...
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...wrongdoings of the government (Wertenbaker 211). Thomas Wertenbaker writes: It Put an end to the Berkeleian system of government by corruption, for there were no more long Assemblies in the colony; it brought about reform in local government since many of Bacon’s laws were reenacted in later sessions; it forfeited the people to resist the assault on their liberty known as the second Stuart despotism it gave the English Privy Council a realization of what was to be expected when the Americans were driven to desperation. But after all, the movement was symptomatic rather than conclusive. Bacon’s Declaration of the People was the forerunner of the Declaration of Independence. Though Nathaniel Bacon has never...
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...The Bacon's Rebellion was one of the largest popular Rebellion that uprising prior to the American revolution. This large Rebellion had began as a dispute among the English settlers in Virginia Over the Americans Indian policy. The civil war had erupted pitting Anti- American Indian westerns settlers( this include that there were many slaves and servants in the anti-American civil war. Governor William Berkeley and his allies where encouraged more and more policy toward the indigenous people. In 1876 the rebellion had took the name of the Nathaniel Bacon, that who had arrived as the young men in Virginia into the Elite. Most of all the consequence of wars in the Rebellion were profound than the idea and the sing leadership man. When Bacon had migrated to Virginia to search the personal gain that he entered a precarious world where the American Indians had freed and enslaved blacks, and the English colonist (including many contract with the servants) struggle to the coexist. By the late 1670 only four thousands of the American Indians, had divided twenty different tribes, that continued to live in close to the European settlers. Many of the Europeans settlers accepted the dependent status of the English crown. Governor Berkeley had treated equitably and distinguish between American Indians allies and foes. Regardless about the colonists those people that where located on the western frontier, were deeply evil to all the American Indians. All the details to the rebellion...
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...In July of 1676, the historic Bacon’s Rebellion took place in Jamestown, Virginia, where the first successful English colony on the mainland of North America was settled. The Rebellion started off with small planters and frontiersmen’s attack on local Indians, a revenge for Indians’ constant raid of their property, led by a small planter named Nathanial Bacon. Eventually, due to the government’s refusal to help them against Indians and their growing tiredness of life under the dictatorial government, people turned their anger to the royal governor of Virginia, William Berkeley, and successfully overthrew his unpopular aristocratic government. In the end, unfortunately, the revolutionary army collapsed after the death of its leader...
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...In 1676 an uprising known as Bacon's Rebellion occurred in Virginia. The leader of this rebellion was Nathaniel Bacon, a colonial leader who was born in England. He was sent to Virginia by his father in hopes for him to mature and lead a better life. The opposed during this uprising was Governor Sir William Berkeley and the local Indians. They were living around the Virginia area. Governor Berkeley was a veteran of the English Civil Wars, along with being a frontier Indian fighter, a playwright and scholar. There are multiple explanations as to what caused the rebellion to take place. Tobacco prices were sinking very low in the colony. The struggle for political reform against the oppressive rule of the governor, and the disagreement over Indian policies in regard to how they were handled. The rebellion all started when Governor Berkeley did not grant permission to Nathaniel Bacon to create a party to carry out attacks against all Indians living near the colony. Even though he did not have consent from Governor Berkeley, Bacon rounded up hundreds of men and started attacking the Indians. After some success, Bacon became a popular figure and more people...
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...“BACON’S REBELLION” Question/Prompt: Describe Bacons Rebellion. Be sure to include the causes, outcomes, and overall significance of the Rebellion within your response. Bacon’s Rebellion was an armed conflict in 1675 that occurred primarily because of land and labor disagreements with the Native Americans. The ideology behind the movement was due in one part to settlers requiring more land to either expand on an already large and growing tobacco trade and due to another part because of freed indentured servants. The initial spark of the powder keg was in 1670 when the long standing governor William Berkley enacted legislation heavily favoring large planters, but still required upstart planters and newly indentured servants to pay taxes equivalent to those of the large planters. In 1675, Berkley denied requests to send armed militia against nearby Native Americans in order to expand lands for the tobacco trade, leading to the initial armed action of Bacon’s Rebellion....
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...Bacon’s Rebellion The personality conflict between Nathaniel Bacon and Governor William Berkeley, and the jealousy among the newer colonists over the older colonists’ power caused Bacon’s Rebellion. In many documents recorded from this event, Nathaniel Bacon and Governor William Berkeley disagree and put each other down. This leads me to support the personality conflict theory. In the “Declaration and Remonstrance” document, Berkeley attempts to persuade Virginians to oppose Bacon. Berkeley said, “Mr. Bacon has none about him but the lowest of the people.” (“Declaration and Remonstrance”) He wanted the Virginian’s to think Bacon’s bad company had rubbed off onto Bacon to impair his reputation with his supporters. Governor Berkeley also said Bacon,”treacherously carried to the dishonor of the English nation.” (“Declaration and Remonstrance”) In the assembly of June 1676, also called Bacon’s Assembly, many Acts were passed favoring Bacon. This most likely upset Berkeley. Acts were passed to declare war with Indians and naming Bacon as general and commander in chief, to regulate offices of officers and to remove tax exemptions from counselors and ministerial families, in which Berkeley had enacted. (A Summary of the June Assembly’s Laws 1676) I think Bacon was able to have a following of Virginians the way he did was because he related more to the common people. (A Summary of the June Assembly’s Laws 1676) Bacon backfired to Berkeley in “Bacon’s Manifesto,” his...
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...Kimberly Bailo History Review Essay 1 Bacon's Rebellion Early in 1607, the English relocated to North America for promises of new beginnings, wealth, and religious freedom. The Virginia Company had funded the operation under a charter from King James 1 hoping for promising returns on their investment. The new colonists bright and hopeful settled in Jamestown, Virginia only to find nightmares instead of dreams. The conditions for the new colonists exploited a rising tension that would soon escalate into a famous revolt called Bacon's Rebellion. Jamestown was to be the new Promised Land for the English settlers. It was surrounded by water, which would provide protection and allow for mass trading due to the opportunity to install several ports. As such, the Virginia Company believed the expedition would be profitable and King James 1 saw an opportunity to convert the savages to Christian religion, which would make settling much easier since the heathens would be no more. Many of the settlers were not accustom to getting their hands dirty and came only to find gold and wealth quickly and easily. The tobacco industry became Jamestown's wealth, which required many hard working laborers. They were called indentured servants and promised land after seven years of hard work. In addition, many of the new colonists succumbed to malaria, dysentery, and unbearable working conditions. The women were subjected to sexual abuse along with harsh emotional and...
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...We overheard that a laborer was murdered on Nathaniel Bacon’s plantation, which made him determined to seek revenge, making no differentiation between hostile and friendly Indians. According to Roark, Johnson, Cohen, Stage and Hartman (2014), “Governor Berkley pronounced Bacon a rebel, threatened to punish him for treason, and called for new elections of burgesses who, Berkley believes, would endorse his get-tough policy” (p. 67). In June 1676, the new legislature passed certain measures, of which were known as Bacon’s Laws. We were told that the settlers wanted revenge, not peace, and that they would be following Nathaniel Bacon’s lead, pillaging and ransacking the plantations, gathering the slaves and servants, and burning Jamestown’s capital to the...
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...The author of the Bacon’s Rebellion: The Declaration is Nathaniel Bacon. Nathaniel Bacon was twenty nine years old and a newcomer to Virginia. He came from a wealthy family and was related to Berkeley by marriage. This document was intended to give the poor and the indigent servants more rights. Nathaniel might be from a rich family and maybe related to Governor Berkeley. Yet he still believe in the rights of the poor and lesser class. This sources is a declaration. It was written in July 30th, 1676. That was the year where the Rebellion lead by Bacon was just beginning. In this time the rich thought themselves better then the indigent servants and didn’t want to give away a part of land. Which was supposed to be the reward of the indigent...
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...Bacon's Rebellion "…where we do well know that all our causes will be impartially heard and equally justice administered to all men," as stated by, Nathaniel Bacon. 1 In 1676 an uprising known as Bacon's Rebellion occurred in Virginia. The immediate cause of this revolt was the dissension between the planters and the Indians. Because Sir William Berkeley, the Governor of Virginia had willingly denied support to the farmers, Bacon assumed leadership of an unauthorized expedition against the Indians. When Bacon learned that Governor Berkeley was rising a force against him, he turned away from the Indians to fight with Berkley. This had now become a serious problem for the governor. When news of this revolt had reached King Charles II, it alarmed him so that he dispatched eleven hundred troops to Virginia, recalled his governor, and appointed a commission to determine the causes of the dissatisfaction. Bacon's Rebellion is considered to be the most important event in the establishment of democracy in colonial America because the right to vote and social equality were denied to the farmers by the local government. The right to vote is a small but crucial part of the democracy. During the first half of the 17th century the farmers on the plantations in Virginia were not able to exercise their right to vote. The only people that were able to vote during this time were the wealthy men who owned land. Overall the colonists had not been treated fairly. They had been over taxed and...
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...One of the most complicated rebellions of the 13 colonies was the Bacon Rebellion. Nathaniel Bacon and William Berkeley both fought over what to do with the indians. They both fought going back and forth, sometimes one person had the upper hand sometimes the other. In the end William won, but not after calling for help from Britain. The result of the rebellion was a decrease in Native American power and influence, as well as confirming one of the upper classes largest fear. The two most prominent figures in Bacon's Rebellion were the governor, William Berkeley, and the governor's cousin by marriage, Nathaniel Bacon. These two englishmen both had two different idea’s in their heads. For Berkeley it was that only enemy Native Americans should...
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...Nathaniel Bacon was a young, enthusiastic member of the Virginia colony council. In my eyes, he did what he thought was right, but I believe that his actions were a form of treason. According to the Merriam Webster dictionary treason is "the offense of attempting by overt acts to overthrow the government of the state to which the offender owes allegiance..." Berkeley bluntly stated that he wanted diplomacy instead of aggression. Bacon did ask on multiple occasions for a commission to fight the hostile Indians, but was rejected every time. Bacon gathered a small army of people with the same beliefs as him and went and killed many of the hostile Indians. Consequently, this led to the hunt for Bacon and his small militia. Bacon's rebellion caused...
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...In 1676, there was the event of an armed revolt of settlers in Virginia under the leadership of Nathaniel Bacon (Rice, 2014). This revolt was in rebellion towards William Berkeley who was the governor. Due to inadequate addressing of safety demands of colonists an uprising formed leading to Berkeley been chased from Jamestown, attacks on Indians and burning of the capital. Furthermore, colonists wished to expand their colonial territories by pushing westwards in order to claim the frontier land that belonged to the Indians. However, they were denied by Governor Berkeley (Rice, 2014). Suppression of the revolt was initially managed through merchant ships turned to combat equipment. Later the British royal forces joined and took several years to overcome the resistance. The battleground for this revolt was primary at the Potomac River. Ideally, the setting of the revolt was a political tussle between Bacon and Berkeley. Other consequences of the war included looting of property belonging to both loyalists and rebels. Choice of analyzing this conflict in the wake of colonization of America has been...
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