a new life. Once he got to Virginia he bought land and became a planter on the James River. After a while he was appointed to Governor Berkeley’s council, who was his cousin by marriage. Bacon was a good leader, and for this reason he brought his men together and made them stronger (Beverley). That is a short explanation of where Nathaniel Bacon came from and who he was. Now secondly, what Nathaniel Bacon did that makes him so well known. After being appointed to Governor Berkeley’s council Nathaniel Bacon didn’t agree with a lot of Berkeley’s views, along with many other Virginian colonists. When Bacon proposed his plan to Berkeley to retaliate against the Indians who kept attacking them he did not agree. This caused Nathaniel Bacon to go against Berkeley and start his own army to kill or drive every Indian out of Virginia without Berkeley’s approval and against his wishes (Beverley). Nathaniel Bacon was mostly successful in driving Indians out of Virginia. Many people wonder what caused Nathaniel Bacon to want to drive the Indians out of Virginia. He did it because of unsettled politics, trade problems had made tobacco less profitable, economic hardships, and the Americans relationship wasn’t very good with the Indians because they were attacking and killing innocent colonists (Beverley). Another factor was that Governor Berkeley was treating those closest to him better than how he was treating others. Then when Bacon proposed his plan to Berkeley asking permission to march to attack and drive the Indians out of Virginia, Berkeley wouldn’t allow him to do it because he didn’t think it was necessary and didn't want the expenses of such a conflict. That is what caused Nathaniel Bacon to go against Governor Berkeley and lead his own militia which consisted of many of the other men who shared the same viewpoints as him and didn’t agree with Berkeley. He then took his militia to attack, kill, and drive out as many Indians as they could (Bacon). These are a few but the most important reasons which drove Nathaniel Bacon to do what he did. After what Nathaniel Bacon did there were many outcomes.
After he went against Governor Berkeley’s orders, Berkeley declared Bacon a rebel, accusing him of treason, and wouldn’t give him his commission as general. Berkeley then set him free and told him to stop what he was doing. Soon after he was let go he came back to Jamestown along with some of his men and demanded his commission as general. Berkeley then agreed to give it to Bacon, but soon after Bacon left to fight the Indians again, Berkeley said his commission was gone. After hearing this Bacon stopped fighting the Indians so he could go back to Jamestown with more men than before to collect his commission. When Berkeley heard Bacon was on his way back to fight for his commission, he fled along with some of his men to the Virginia coast. After finding out Berkeley fled, Nathaniel Bacon started Jamestown on fire. Before a major battle could take place between Governor Berkeley, and Nathaniel Bacon, Bacon suddenly got sick and died (Berkeley). With Nathaniel Bacon’s death, his strong leadership died with him so his men were lost so they dispersed.
In conclusion, the research included in this essay was put in place to help the reader understand the important aspects of Nathaniel Bacon’s life. The main points of this essay are who Nathaniel Bacon was, what he did that made him so well known today, why he did what he did, and what the results of these actions were. Bacon’s Rebellion was a rebellion in which some would say blazed a trail to the Revolutionary War, a rebellion to end all
rebellions.