Pocahontas was an Indian princess of the Algonquian Indians. Her father was the powerful chief Powhatan who ruled more than 25 tribes when he was alive. Pocahontas was born in 1595 to one of Powhatan's many wives.
Pocahontas probably saw white men for the first time in May of 1607 when Englishmen landed at Jamestown. The one she found most likable was Captain John Smith. According to Smith, he was first welcomed by the great chief and offered a feast. Then he was grabbed and forced to stretch out on two large, flat stones. Indians stood over him with clubs as though ready to beat him to death if ordered. Suddenly a little Indian girl rushed in and took Smith's "head in her arms and laid her own upon his to save him from death." The girl, Pocahontas, then pulled him to his feet. Powhatan said that they were now friends, and he adopted Smith as his son.
English: Portrait of Pocahontas, wearing a tall ha...
English: Artist depiction of Pocahontas saving the...
Rutherford Smith and Romeo PetersActually, this ceremony was traditional with the Indians, and if Smith's story is true, Pocahontas' actions were probably part of a ritual. Anyway, Pocahontas and Smith soon became friends.
Relations with the Indians continued to be generally friendly for the next year, and Pocahontas was a frequent visitor to Jamestown. She delivered messages from her father and accompanied Indians bringing food and furs to trade for hatchets and trinkets. She apparently admired John Smith very much and would also chat with him during her visits. Unfortunately, the relations between the Powhatans and the white men got worse. Trading still went on, but the hostilities were open. While before, Pocahontas had been allowed to come and go almost at will, her visits to the fort became much less frequent. In October of 1609, John Smith was badly injured by a gunpowder explosion...