Bacon's Rebellion Thesis

As history shows the issues humanity has gone through, dealing with races, ethnicity, culture and religion, these controversies have not been able to be erased, creating an increasing rate of worldwide complications. One example, is when the Atlantic world was rediscovered humanity had a chance to recreate an ideal world, however, they brought their traditions from the old world generating complications with the New World. In Bacon’s Rebellion the human relations were an extreme issue between both Europeans and Native Americans.

To begin, Bacon’s Rebellion was the first to create a movement about the many attacks both colonist and Indians had been facing in previous matters. Bacon’s Rebellion illustrates the clash between these two completely

different societies, when the Europeans arrived on Native territory (America A Narrative History 67). The competition of survival began in Virginia in 1676 settling onto Chesapeake Bay, where the riot between an Indian and a European planter debated about some hogs (America A Narrative History 68). Later, the Europeans did not appreciate the bickering, and attacked by killing a dozen of Natives (America A Narrative History 68). However, the enraged Natives fought back by murdering the supervisor of Nathaniel Bacon’s land (America A Narrative History 68). Many were impacted by the riot such as women and children that were taken captive and later killed. Bacon then took matters into his own hands, where he presented the situation upon Governor Berkeley, whereas he decided not to revolt against the Natives; therefore, Nathaniel gathered some men to threaten the Indians (America A Narrative History 68). Bacon persisted several times to the governor along with those seated in the council to allow him to create a militia to rampage the Native community. Those who joined Bacon’s small army were promised to be set free from being indentured servants or slaves, so long as they exterminated Indians, they also argued against the richest people in Virginia and politicians even though Nathaniel had a position in the council, but later removed (America A Narrative History 68). Bacon’s external desires were falsified since he was no longer was fighting in the lovely memory of his overseer, but for the ambition to have power over minorities, his morality was then lost (America A Narrative History 68). Bacon still thought that it was wrong for the Natives to have murdered his supervisor and so did the Governor, although he may not have attacked the Indians, he believe if he did, the Anglos would then loose trade with them plummeting the new economy (America A Narrative History 68). Due to the malfunction of the riot, Berkeley was then accused of “corruption” and was attempted to be removed from his position, and later reestablished. Bacon’s army, which then became smaller, burned Jamestown enraged against the decision that had been made on September 19, 1676 (Nps.gov). Despite the victory, Bacon ailed and died within a month leaving no time for celebration for what he disputed (America A Narrative History 68). After Bacon’s death, Berkeley hanged twenty-three men of the army that rebelled against the governing authority causing the Governor to forcefully move back to his native land, England, where he too died within a year (America A Narrative History 68).
To continue, Bacon’s Rebellion was possibly the first important riot in history since the colonies were starting to form and the Europeans hadn’t figured out how to live with an ethnic group they have never associated with, just as the Native more than likely felt the same about the colonist (Nps.gov). It is believed that Governor Berkeley intended to make peace with the Natives by keeping the fur trade and exchange gun powder and weapons; however, in a “Long Assembly” of March 1676 they then declared war on all Indians, where the government then took matter into their own hands by placing a defense zone surrounding the colony, as a result the colonist then had to pay higher taxes to support the militia (Nps.gov). Then, Bacon became the general in charge of the defense that was built against the Indians without any interference from the government (Nps.gov). Although the army was small the attention given to general Bacon was powerful enough to create enormous damages to both populations.
Notice how many of the Europeans that came to the New World they came as criminals, for religious freedom, or for riches.

Yet, in this circumstance the colonist came together despite their differences and teamed up against the defenseless natives in Bacon’s Rebellion, since the Europeans had taken the weapons they had first given them, so they wouldn’t be able to fight back. The Europeans looked at the Indians as a completely different species, even though they once populated most of the Americas they soon came to be extinct, when the Europeans arrived and conquered the land as their own they had been the intruders that disturbed the peace that the Natives had once lived together. So, this is when the human’s relations interact but in a negative manner, they fight for the land along with the products. Just as racism, that was noted later in history, Natives were also viewed as savages due to the difference in the skin colors, the way they dressed, ate, their spirituality and other minor things that the Anglos would view as “strange”. The way Europe was set up by social class, the class you were born in was the class that defined you in life, you could not move up, so those that came to the Americas would start fresh, unless you were a land owner then you would be considered as wealthy and anyone who was not European or owned land would be considered lower class. Therefore, they also brought from their homeland their traditions and based them on the way they lived there, the Anglos tried to convert everyone else the same as them. The Bacon’s Rebellion was a method that brought these ethnicities together on contradicting sides, just as it joined forces with more European or Africans who gained their “freedom” after, and the Native Americans when they tried fighting back that way they would combine forces with other tribes (pbs.org). The African and the European appear to behave the same creating a correlation between these ethnicities. During this period was when

the idea of slavery and freedom were fabricated that they were two independent ideas that gave Africans the “same” rights as the Anglos, but it didn’t result in the Africans favor (pbs.org). Slaves were treated worse than indentured servants because servants could still speak up about the violence when they were in public places such as church, but the slaves had to deal with the issues of getting hit with switches or other painful objects. Whether the slaves were Native Americans or Africans they were still viewed identically therefore, this again was another example of human relations. Bacon’s Rebellion was “justice” for the supervisor and many other men who had lost their life as Anglos, but that “justice” later caused the Native men to also die, all over a simple fight over the possession of some hogs. Anglos also were confused on which Native tribe had they first encountered the debate over the hogs and caused a killing spree of many innocent Indians, which they then counterattacked causing the entire Rebellion between communities.
To conclude, history shows us the mistakes humanity has made, it is also there for us to learn from them and not repeat again. As in Bacon’s Rebellion the colonist upraised against the governing body creating a ripple of effects within a year. It is believed that this simple rebellion has nothing to do with the American Revolution nearly one-hundred years later, but it had the same aspects (Nps.gov). In Bacon’s Rebellion it brings the colony together however, it also disrupts the peace between the Natives, that creates an interaction joining both cultures despite all the tragic lives lost due to the prideful leaders.