William Berkeley

In 1676 Nathanial Bacon led a rebellion against Governor William Berkeley, the rebellion was called Bacon’s Rebellion. This rebellion brought people of similar ideology about class together to fight for what they believed to be justice. Both Africans and Englishmen joined together under Bacon to rebel against the Native Indians having access to more land. This rebellion would eventually be engrained into the to the ideology surrounding America as “White Supremacy.” The rebellion draws upon issues of race, class, and the nation state and the divide between the individuals with differences. Before the hostility that arose during bacons rebellion the people of Virginia had already harbored many ill feelings. Since the founding of the colony in…

A lot of people like me who are captives or who voluntarily agreed to be indentured to wealthy landowners found out that they were not going to be receiving any land as compensation (James Rice 5). A vast majority of these people had come to the new world, hoping to find better lives and they did not see any way it was going to happen with the colony court pandering to the wealthy. It makes sense to us to take control of our enemies land and resources and use it for ourselves. They had…

sent to Virginia to become a better leader and a leader is what he became. Virginia’s Governor, William Berkeley, was a harsh governor towards the land owners. Berkeley monopolized the Indian’s fur trade and refused to retaliate after multiple Indian attacks on frontier settlements. His friendly policy toward the Indians was a main cause for Bacon’s Rebellion. Berkeley’s attempt to find a compromise between the landowners and the Indians did not please the rebels. He wanted to preserve the…

What would you do if your government didn’t want to help you with enemies because they didn't want to risk war? In Bacon’s Rebellion in 1676, backcountry farmers led by Nathaniel Bacon, a British aristocrat, rebelled against tidewater planters who occupied prime real estate and were led by William Berkeley, the governor of Virginia. Bacon’s rebellion was a power struggle between two stubborn, selfish leaders, Nathaniel Bacon and Governor Sir William Berkeley who fought over Indian policy.…

housing, etc. When their terms of service were terminated, these now freemen hoped to receive land ownership and some upward social mobility. Owning land meant that they could have a vote and in turn be a member of the society. By the 1670s, however, there was hardly any good, vacant land left to settle in Virginia, so they began to look towards Indian territories. Nathaniel Bacon, the young, ambitious cousin of Sir William Berkeley, the governor of Virginia, decided to lead this charge. These…

Bacon’s Rebellion In 1673 a man by the name of Nathaniel Bacon came from England to the Virginia colony. He was a well-heeled planter, Aristocrat, and the cousin of William Berkeley, who was the governor of the Virginia Colony at the time (Give Me Liberty an American History 103). William Berkeley had been the governor for over thirty years, and during those years the people had grieved. He was a very corrupt governor who was easily bought. He formed alliances and appointed his friends to…

rebel against Virginia Governor William Berkeley. There were many tensions that led to the rebellion, many people who were included in the rebellion, and a few long term consequences of the rebellion’s failure. During the 17th century, many new settlers and indentured servants came to Virginia, which eventually caused tension between white freed men, indentured servants, and the government. Agriculture became one of the main sources of money, especially growing tobacco. Soon enough, tobacco…

revolution that occurred in Virginia, which started in the year 1676. Nathaniel Bacon was the leader of this revolution who was born in England. Since he was very troublesome, his father sent him to Virginia from England with an expectation that he would mature and have a better life. During that time, William Berkeley was the governor of Virginia and also happened to be bacon’s cousin. The governor, Berkeley, treated Bacon with respect by giving him land and a seat in the council. There are…

Bacon’s Rebellion Bacon’s Rebellion put the self-governed state of Virginia to a test. Virginia was undergoing an economic, political and social transition. Nathaniel Bacon lead the Virginian settlers in 1676 in a rebellion to challenge Governor William Berkeley’s authority. The colonist chose Bacon, “a leader they hardly knew” (Beverley 1), and turned to go against Berkeley, a man “whom they all entirely loved” (Beverley 1). Bacon’s Rebellion was a major event that helped shape America to…

anti-hero for his violent actions; however the more I learn about 17th century Virginia, I see Bacon as more of a misunderstood leader and visionary that controversially took matters of the people into his own hands and built the cultural foundation of America. By the height of the rebellion, Sir (knighted by the throne) William Berkeley had been a resident of the colony for 34 years, owned a coastal plantation, experimented with new crops, and signed a treaty to end the Third Anglo-Indian war…