Compare And Contrast Powhatan And Native Americans

What happens when two societies driven by the same goal come face to face? In early seventeenth century Virginia, the English colonists arrived in North America where they began interacting with a new people know as the Powhatan Indians. Both sides saw the benefits that an alliance with one another could have. The English arrived with a large array of technology, for example guns and metal tools, while the natives had an established center of operation with a thriving people and vast knowledge of the land. This alliance would work well but both societies had ulterior motives that were driving their interactions. In this paper, I plan to prove that Powhatan’s quest for an empire was interrupted by the arrival of the English which fueled distrust and hatred among the two

The best example of this is the way that Werowocomoco, or Powhatan’s capital, was taken control of. Originally known as Payankatank, Smith describes how it became Werowocomoco, “First he sent diverse of his men as to lodge amongst them that night, then the Abuscadoes environed all their houses, and at the hour appointed, they all fell to the spoil, twenty four men they slew.” This description of the attack on Payankatank shows us the way that many of the tribes were captured. It is a planned, organized attack that allows Powhatan’s raiders to swiftly move in and devastate the people who are living there. This shows how Powhatan was building an empire through force and diplomacy. Powhatan only killed and captured what was necessary to gain control of the tribe and as he progressed and grew he began to collect and receive gifts from all the people under his command. Now, there must be an understanding of what the original English colonist were like and why there was a level of distrust among the two