Ethnos

Powhatan

The Powhatan (also spelled Powatan and Powhaten) were a very powerful tribe of Native Americans, speaking an Algonquian language, who lived in what is now Virginia at the time of the first European-Native encounters. Powhatan was originally the name of the town that the chief Wahunsunacock came from. When this chief created a powerful empire by conquering much of Virginia, he called his lands Powhatan and titled himself Chief Powhatan.

In 1619, when John Smith arrived, he was captured by Opchanacanough, the younger brother of Chief Powhatan. According to Smith's account (which in the late 1800s was considered to be fabricated, but since is believed to be mostly accurate—although several highly romanticized popular versions cloud the matter), Pocahontas, Powhatan's daughter, is said to have prevented her father from executing Smith. It is believed that this was a ritual intended to adopt Smith into the tribe. After he left to be treated because of a gunpowder accident, the nervous tribe attacked and killed many of the Jamestown residents. The residents fought back, but only killed twenty. When Smith came back, he made peace and the past was forgotten.

However, both the Chief and Pocahontas were both soon dead from diseases introduced by Europeans, and the British were able to thoroughly subdue the Powhatan. After Wahunsunacock's death, his younger brother Opchanacanough became chief, and in 1622 and 1644 he twice attempted to force the English from Virginia, ultimately resulting in the destruction of the tribe. The Powhatan language is now extinct, although approximately 3000 Powahatan people remain in Virginia. ***