The History of Virginia, in Four Parts

In Short

This book provides a comprehensive, four-part survey of Virginia during its formative century. It chronicles the difficult early years of settlement, describes the region’s diverse natural resources, documents the customs of the indigenous tribes, and details the complex administrative structure of the colony. Written by a native Virginian, it is motivated by a desire to correct the inaccuracies of European observers. Its enduring value lies in its candid, firsthand perspective on a society grappling with rapid expansion, internal power struggles, and the profound, often tragic, collision of cultures in the New World.

The Story

The narrative begins with the arduous quest to establish a permanent English presence, tracing the early, failed attempts and the subsequent successes that led to the founding of Jamestown. This history is marked by extreme hardship, mortality, and the relentless search for stability in a wilderness that often proved hostile to European expectations. As the colony takes root, the focus expands to the challenges of governance, the recurring conflicts with the indigenous population, and the internal frictions caused by both colonial administrators and ambitious, restless settlers.

A central thread in the story is the uneasy coexistence and frequent warfare between the English and the native tribes. Figures like the powerful Powhatan and his successor, the shrewd and capable Oppechancanough, represent the formidable resistance the settlers faced. The narrative details how the colonial government struggled to manage these tensions, often undermined by its own internal divisions, such as the period of disorder under Sir John Harvey. This instability reaches a climax with the rise of Nathaniel Bacon, whose charisma and populist rhetoric ignite a rebellion against the governor. Bacon exploits the settlers' collective frustrations regarding Indian policy and economic grievances, leading a volunteer force that fundamentally alters the colony’s trajectory.

Beyond political strife, the book chronicles the slow process of building a permanent society. It describes the evolution of local institutions—the assembly, the courts, and the church—and the transition from a precarious frontier outpost to a structured, agricultural province. The story also touches on the arrival of the Indian princess Pocahontas in England, a moment that captures the cross-cultural fascination of the era. The narrative concludes by detailing the growth of civic projects, such as the establishment of a college, illustrating the efforts of later leaders like Francis Nicholson to bring cultural refinement and permanent infrastructure to the colony. Through this progression, the reader witnesses a volatile, rough-hewn settlement slowly tempering its own character, settling into a life defined by tobacco, class stratification, and the consolidation of political authority. The final portrait is one of a land transformed by the labor and ambition of those who sought to master it, even as they remained shaped by its geography and its original inhabitants.

How It Unfolds

The quest for settlement The narrative recounts the initial, often lethal, struggles of explorers and early colonists to establish a toehold in Virginia. It highlights the reliance on English logistics and the persistent, if sometimes misplaced, hope for quick riches in an unknown environment.

The struggle for survival and order The account moves into the era of fragile government, marked by the arrival of royal officials and the constant threat posed by both natural obstacles and the indigenous resistance. It details the emergence of a legislative tradition and the constant friction between the crown's representatives and the settlers.

The rising tide of rebellion The story shifts to the mid-seventeenth-century upheavals, focusing on the deep-seated grievances that allowed Nathaniel Bacon to unite a disgruntled populace against the established order. This section examines how personal ambition and popular anger combined to challenge the governor’s authority.

The maturation of the colony The final portion describes the slow transition toward stability at the turn of the eighteenth century, emphasizing the development of social institutions like the church and the college. It concludes with an assessment of the colony’s progress, suggesting a society finally beginning to view itself as a permanent, coherent entity.

The People

The book features a cast of figures defined by their roles in shaping the colonial landscape. Nathaniel Bacon emerges as the quintessential agitator, a man of "inviting aspect" and "powerful elocution" who leverages the settlers' widespread discontent into a personal power base. He stands in stark contrast to Sir William Berkeley, the governor who attempts to enforce royal policy and maintain order, only to find himself overwhelmed by the very forces Bacon commands.

Oppechancanough serves as the primary adversary to English expansion; he is depicted as a man of "large stature" and "extraordinary parts," possessing a sophisticated, non-literate skill for governance that earns him the grudging respect of his enemies. Meanwhile, Captain John Smith appears as the bridge between two worlds, his presence in the history serving to ground the narrative in the foundational myths of the colony. The unnamed "deserving wife" of the early years also represents a vital, if generalized, figure—a participant in the vital process of social reproduction, whose arrival brings stability to the lives of the early single planters. Together, these figures illustrate a society defined by a clash of wills, where both colonizers and the colonized are driven by the search for security, authority, and land.

In Its Own Voice

"The Indians having no letters among them, he at his going ashore, provided a stick, in which he was to make a notch for every man he saw; but this accomptant soon grew weary of that tedious exercise, and threw his stick away."

This passage describes an Indian diplomat’s failed attempt to count the population of England during a visit to London.

"He was young, bold, active, of an inviting aspect, and powerful elocution; in a word, he was every way qualified to head a giddy and unthinking multitude."

This assessment captures the character of Nathaniel Bacon, the leader of the armed rebellion against the Virginia governor.

What It's Really About

At its core, the work is a defense of Virginia’s potential and a critique of the mismanagement that plagued its early development. It explores the tension between the "natural conveniences" of the landscape and the human errors of those who sought to govern it. The author is deeply concerned with the concept of truth in history, frequently pausing to debunk the "romantic and untrue" accounts written by outsiders who lacked local knowledge. The book also questions the viability of transplanting English systems into an American environment, noting how geography—from the richness of the soil to the density of the woods—dictates the lives of the inhabitants. Ultimately, it asks whether a colony can ever fully escape the shadow of its turbulent, violent origins.

Why Read It Today

Readers with an interest in the grit of colonial history will find this an essential, if challenging, primary source. The prose is distinct, carrying the formal, measured cadence of the early eighteenth century, which rewards the patient reader with a sense of immersion in a bygone perspective. Its value lies in the author's sharp, argumentative voice; he is unafraid to call out the "unfaithful and frontless" historians who preceded him, and his detailed observations on everything from the specific varieties of Indian corn to the behavior of mosquitoes provide a tangible, sensory history that official documents often lack.

Potential readers should be prepared for the author’s period-typical biases, particularly his detached, clinical, and sometimes patronizing view of indigenous cultures and the necessity of colonial expansion. The text does not shy away from the brutal realities of war, slavery, and political suppression. However, for those looking to look past the myths of Jamestown, this work offers something rare: a contemporary, critical examination of the mechanisms, both environmental and political, that turned a collection of isolated, desperate plantations into the foundation of a new society. It remains a study of how a people construct their own history in real time.