Assessing The Relationship Between The Indians And English Colonists From 1600 To 1700

Between the years 1600 to 1700, English colonists were just settling the New World and establishing their own colonies, yet this colonization didn’t come without obstacles. Upon entering the seemingly unscathed land, colonists were greeted by Native Americans. At first, the two groups expressed a relationship characterized by amity and cooperation, yet as time went on, the “white superiority” of the colonists and the belief that they were primary owners of land soured the relationship. It was just a matter of time before the colonists would take over and run out the Native Americans. Primarily peaceful and affable, the relationship between the Indians and English steadily depreciated as the English overran the lands of the Indians while the

The Natives wanted to continue making profit through trade such as fur trade, where beaver and otter fur were exchanged for guns, gunpowder, and other such items. As expressed in the Report of the Royal Commission to the Crown in 1677, the Indians were persistent in maintain trade even going so far as to secretly trade with English Governor of Charles County and his elite friends, even though colonists were not permitted to trade with them. This report expresses that the colonists, though they felt superior, still had some support from the Natives for desired goods. The Natives maintained this trade system, even though it upset many of the colonists because they felt the Governor was protecting the Indians rather than them, showing how a peaceful trade system was something that the Indians wanted to maintain at all costs. This document’s intended audience was the British government and King, as this was a report written to the Crown. The purpose of this report was to report back to “Mother Britain” about the happenings in the colonies. During this time period, the colonies were still under the guidance of the British and reported back

By 1637, the Pequot tribe was distraught by the English and arguments arose. This led the English to attack the Pequot in the event known as the Massacre at Mystic, where English colonist, led by John Mason and John Underhill, attacked the Pequot Fort. This attack on the Pequot Fort is depicted by and illustration made by J.W. Barber. In this engraving created in 1830, Barber depicts numerous Englishman, using swords, fire, and guns to attack few Natives. A fire burns in the background and bodies are visible along the bottom of the illustration, presumably belonging to the Pequot casualties. The man with the torch could be John Mason; the man accounted to be responsible for using the Natives torches as weapon to burn down the fort. Behind a Englishman on the right side of the illustration, an Indian is visible, and looking as if he is a part of the English force, he is probably from the Mohegan’s, an ally of the English in fighting against the Pequot’s. This marks disunity among the Natives as some allied with the English and fought against each other. This engraving’s purpose was to depict the events of the Pequot War and the Massacre at Mystic while showing the uneven sides of the attack and its violent nature. Being a famous historical engraver, Barber made a living off his historical books that were illustrated