Indian massacre of 1622
The Indian massacre of 1622 took place in the English colony of Virginia on 1 April [O.S. 22 March] 1622. English explorer John Smith, though he was not an eyewitness, wrote in his History of Virginia that warriors of the Powhatan "came unarmed into our houses with deer, turkeys, fish, fruits, and other provisions to sell us"; they then grabbed any tools or weapons available and killed all English settlers they found, including men, women, and children of all ages. Opechancanough, chief of the Powhatan Confederacy, led a coordinated series of surprise attacks that ended up killing a total of 347 people — a quarter of the population of the Colony of Virginia.
| Indian massacre of 1622 | |
|---|---|
| Part of the British colonization of the Americas | |
1628 engraving of the massacre by Matthäus Merian the Elder | |
| Location | Colony of Virginia |
| Date | 22 March 1622 |
| Target | English settlers |
Attack type | Massacre |
| Deaths | 347 settlers |
| Perpetrators | Powhatan tribesmen |
| Motive | Colonial encroachment on Powhatan lands |
Founded in 1607, Jamestown, Virginia, was the site of the first successful English settlement in North America, and served as the capital of the Colony of Virginia. The town's tobacco economy, which quickly degraded the land and required new land, led to the settlers' constant expansion and seizure of Powhatan lands, ultimately provoking the massacre.