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The Powhatan Confederacy was a group of Native American tribes in 17th century Virginia, including the Powhatan, Arrohateck, Appamattuck, Pamunkey, Mattaponi, and Chiskiack. They spoke the Powhatan Eastern Algonquian language and were skilled in agriculture. Relations with English settlers worsened under Opechancanough’s leadership, leading to a 14-year war. The Confederacy dissolved in 1646 when they gave land to English settlers, and by the end of the 17th century, they were no longer present in Virginia.
The Powhatan Confederacy is the name of a group of Native American tribes that were a powerful force in 17th century Virginia. They are also sometimes called Virginia Algonquin. The six original tribes were the Powhatan, Arrohateck, Appamattuck, Pamunkey, Mattaponi, and Chiskiack. These were Native Americans who lived in the area around the first permanent English colony at Jamestown, and were among the first affected by the arrival of European settlers in North America.
Their territory included the Virginia tidewater, Virginia counties east of the Chesapeake Bay and as far inland as Richmond, Virginia. The territory may also have included some tribes in southern Maryland. It is estimated that there were 14,000 to 21,000 people living in this region when the English settled Jamestown in 1607.
The Powhatan Confederacy spoke the Powhatan Eastern Algonquian language. They were skilled in agriculture and grew multiple varieties of corn and beans. Many scholars believe that they also cultivated fruit trees. Their shelters were built by bending and weaving young trees to form houses with rounded roofs.
Wahunsonacock, known as Powhatan or Chief Powhatan to English colonists, was the leader of the Powhatan Confederacy in 1607. He had inherited control of six tribes and expanded his power to include more than 30. While early contact between Native Americans and the British settlers are thought to have been mostly civilians, the settlers put pressure on the native food supply and threatened the ability of the tribes to survive. Wahunsonacock’s daughter Pocahontas married Englishman John Rolfe in 1614 and relations between the English and the tribes improved temporarily. Pocahontas and Wahunsonacock both died soon after from illness.
Opechancanough became the leader of the Powhatan Confederacy in 1618 and relations with the English worsened. An attack on English villages in March 1622 killed 347 settlers. For the next 14 years, the British and the Powhatan Confederacy fought in Virginia. Many Native Americans and English settlers died and their villages were burned.
In 1646, the Powhatan Confederacy gave the land between the York River and the Blackwater River to English settlers. This separated the tribes geographically and effectively dissolved the Powhatan Confederacy as a united group. Some tribes moved north and others fled south. In 1665, the Virginia government passed laws requiring the remaining Powhatans to nominate their leader from the governor of Virginia. By the end of the 17th century, the Powhatan Confederacy was no longer present in Virginia.
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