Bacon's Rebellion

Views on Nathaniel Bacon have swung from negative to positive and back again since his unsuccessful rebellion in 1676 and 1677. When Thomas Jefferson read Thomas Matthews' account of Bacon's Rebellion in 1803, he drew many comparisons to the recently won American Revolution and re-framed Bacon as a hero. By 1950 historians were once again pointing out Bacon's unprovoked attacks on friendly Indian tribes and his personal grudge against the Virginia Governor.

Bacon was sent to Virginia by his father with 1,800 pounds of sterling ($60 million in 2018 dollars) after being accused of cheating a young man out of his inheritance in England. Bacon was cousin by marriage to governor William Berkley and was soon appointed to the Governor's Council while living in Jamestown. Berkley cut Bacon out of some trade deals and their relationship soured. At the same time a trade dispute was escalating in the Northern Neck between Thomas Matthews and the Doeg Indian tribe. Matthews and his men ended up killing several of the Doeg Indians when they crossed the river into Maryland, they also murdered a party of innocent Susquehannock Indians. This spurred a series of raids and attacks from the Susquehannock tribe all along Virginia's frontier. One of Nathaniel Bacon's overseers was killed at his property near the James River falls.

Bacon formed a volunteer militia to fight the Indians and repeatedly asked for and was denied help by Governor Berkley. Bacon's force chased the Susquehannocks to the Roanoke River where he met with the Occaneechi tribe and made a deal to join forces. After the Occaneechi captured many Susquehannock prisoners Bacon double crossed them, looted their town and killed their women and children. Bacon's use of force against the natives brought him fame among the lower class. Many of these men were indentured servants or freed blacks who had been granted land on the frontier and were struggling with low tobacco prices and no access to the ports on the coast where the wealthy planters operated.

In June of 1676 Bacon arrived at Jamestown with a force of 500 men. After a stand off with the Governor and House of Burgesses, Bacon was named as a legitimate commander in the Indian War and all of his "treasons" were pardoned. But in late July after hearing that Bacon was stealing supplies from citizens and forcing them to join his army, Berkley rescinded the proclamation and named Bacon as a rebel. When Bacon began to march to the capitol again Berkley fled to the Eastern Shore. At a meeting at Middle Plantation (now Williamsburg) Bacon received the sworn allegiance of 70 prominent colonists, he also issued his declaration of grievances. At the same time the property of 20 men loyal to Berkley was seized by the rebels.

Bacon assembled a small navy to hunt down Berkley and turned his attention to destroying the Pamunkey tribe. The Pamunkey had been allies of the colony since 1646, they were forced to abandon their lands at West Point and hide in the woods and swamps to the north. After several weeks they had killed a few Pamunkey, captured 45 and scattered the remains of the tribe. In the meantime Berkley and his followers in Northampton County had captured many of the men and ships sent by Bacon. Five of Bacon's men were hung.

On September 8th Berkley and his men arrived back in Jamestown and resumed control without firing a shot. Bacon's main force returned to the city several days later and laid siege. Berkley was forced to once again abandon Jamestown. On September 19th Bacon's men burned the warehouses, taverns, statehouse and church as Berkley again sailed across the Chesapeake Bay. Bacon resumed his hunt for Indians.

On October 26th, 1676 Nathaniel Bacon suddenly died of dysentery. He was in Gloucester County at the time and according to Thomas Matthews his body was buried at a secret location. The rebel force held the mainland of Virginia for another two months before the Berkley loyalists regained control. As the fighting was winding down an army of 1,000 men sent by the King of England arrived. Berkley was recalled as governor and sent to England to answer for how he had lost control of the colony. Already in poor health the voyage did Berkley in and he died in England before being able to meet with King Charles and tell his side of the story.

As a result of the rebellion slavery was further entrenched in the laws of the colony as a way to separate poor blacks and whites and prevent them from joining forces again. The requirement to own property for voting rights was added as well as a more aggressive Indian policy and taxes on the poor were reduced. Additionally more was done to organize the counties for defense. In a 1679 record in Northumberland County a tithable list was organized to respond to a Virginia Assembly order to "raise men for a fort." For every forty men in the county one from each group was to secure a horse, case of pistols, a carbine, a sword, 80 pounds of dried pork or 100 pounds dried beef, two bushels of meal and five bushels of corn. Those supplies were then ordered to be stored in the houses of Thomas Matthews, Richard Kenner, Peter Presley, Thomas Brereton, William Downing Jr and William Downing Sr. The men then were to report the field of Adam Yaratt to organize.

In his later years Thomas Matthews retired to London. Matthews wrote his account of Bacon's Rebellion almost 30 years after the events took place. In 1705 he addressed the manuscript to Robert Harley, Minister of State to Queen Anne in London. The paper is thought to have been part of Harley's personal library and written at his request. Eventually the document came into the hands of a London book seller who sold it to an American diplomat in 1801. By 1803 the diplomat had given the manuscript to President Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson was so impressed with the account that he began talking of Bacon as a hero and a patriot who led the common men in a revolution against the ruling elite. A stained glass window was commemorated in Williamsburg and a tablet honoring him as "Patriot Leader" was hung in the House of Delegates in Richmond. Jefferson made of copy of Matthews' work and that copy is now kept in the Library of Congress.