All language subtitles for Pocahontas.Beyond.the.Myth.2017.720p.WEB.h264

Narrator: POCAHONTAS HAS BEEN
A LEGEND FOR SO LONG,

IT'S ALMOST HARD TO BELIEVE
SHE WAS AN ACTUAL PERSON.

Woman:
POCAHONTAS WAS A REAL GIRL

WHO WALKED AROUND THE SAME WAY
WE WALK AROUND TODAY.

Narrator: SHE GREW UP

TO BECOME THE MOST FAMOUS
AMERICAN INDIAN WOMAN

IN HISTORY.

Woman:
AND THAT PUTS HER IN THE CLASS

OF, YOU KNOW,
CLEOPATRA AND JOAN OF ARC.

Narrator: BUT HOW MUCH
OF THE STORY WE KNOW IS TRUE?

Woman:
DID THEY REALLY UNDERSTAND

WHAT THEY WERE SEEING?

Man: WAS POCAHONTAS A TRAITOR
TO HER OWN PEOPLE?

Man: MAYBE SHE WAS
A DOUBLE AGENT.

Narrator: AND WHAT KEEPS
HER MEMORY ALIVE

OVER FOUR CENTURIES?

Actress: POCAHONTAS ASKS HIM
TO GIVE HER THIS MAN'S LIFE.

Woman: ONCE A WHOLE GENERATION
IS TOLD A STORY THAT THEY LOVE,

IT TENDS TO LAST,

AND THIS ONE LASTED.

Man: WE CAN TELL YOU EXACTLY
WHERE IN THE CHURCH SHE STOOD.

THAT GIVES ME THE GOOSEBUMPS.

Narrator: HERS IS A STORY
WE TELL OURSELVES ABOUT AMERICA,

A FOUNDING MOTHER
WHO STILL DEFINES US TODAY.

♪

FOR 400 YEARS, POCAHONTAS
HAS BEEN A HOUSEHOLD NAME.

WE MAY THINK OF HER STORY
AS ANCIENT HISTORY,

BUT HER PEOPLE ARE STILL
VERY MUCH ALIVE.

Terry McAuliffe:
THIS IS A HISTORIC YEAR FOR US.

THE PAMUNKEY TRIBE HAS RECEIVED

FROM THE BUREAU
OF INDIAN AFFAIRS,

THEY HAVE BEEN JUST RECOGNIZED
AS A FEDERAL TRIBE,

SO CONGRATULATIONS...

[APPLAUSE AND CHEERING]

David Penney: THE INDIANS
THAT WE PROJECT ROMANTICALLY

INTO OUR KIND OF PAST,

FOR MANY AMERICANS TO LEARN
THAT, WELL, WAIT A MINUTE,

THE DESCENDANTS OF THOSE SAME
SO-CALLED MYTHICAL INDIANS

THAT ARE SUPPOSED TO HAVE
FADED AWAY

ARE STILL WITH US TODAY.

Narrator:
THE MOST FAMOUS AND MYTHIC

AMERICAN INDIAN STORY OF ALL

IS POCAHONTAS.

Paul Chaat Smith: SHE WAS SEEN
AS A REALLY CONSEQUENTIAL PERSON

IN AMERICAN HISTORY
FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.

Narrator: SHE'S BEEN CELEBRATED
AS AN AMERICAN PRINCESS.

Smith:
SHE WAS SEEN AS ROYALTY.

SHE WAS FAMOUS ON TWO CONTINENTS
WHILE STILL A TEENAGER.

Narrator:
SHE'S EVEN A DISNEY PRINCESS.

THE STORY THAT'S BEEN PASSED
DOWN THROUGH THE CENTURIES

IS A ROMANCE,

A LOVE THAT UNITES TWO CULTURES

AND CREATES LASTING PEACE...

FORGING TWO WORLDS INTO ONE.

BUT EVEN WRITTEN HISTORY

CAN HAVE A CURIOUS HABIT
OF GETTING IT ALL WRONG.

Penney: THE KIND OF
ROMEO AND JULIET STORY,

THE JOHN SMITH
AND POCAHONTAS STORY,

VERY LIKELY NEVER HAPPENED.

Narrator: THE TRUE STORY
IS LESS OF A FAIRY TALE.

[YELLING]

KIDNAPPING...

CONFLICT...

[GUNFIRE]

STARVATION...

CANNIBALISM...

AN OCEAN JOURNEY...

AND THE FUTURE
OF AN ENTIRE CIVILIZATION

MAKE UP THE REAL STORY
OF POCAHONTAS.

THE STORY STARTS
YEARS BEFORE THE PILGRIMS

ARRIVE AT PLYMOUTH ROCK

WHEN THREE BRITISH SHIPS
MAKE LANDFALL

IN WHAT IS TODAY
THE STATE OF VIRGINIA.

THEY ARE THERE TO FOUND
THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY

IN THE NEW WORLD.

James Horn: I'D SAY
IT'S A PRETTY WIDESPREAD BELIEF

THAT THE PURITANS--

MORE ACCURATELY THE PILGRIMS--

WHO ARRIVED AT PLYMOUTH
IN 1620,

WAS THE FIRST PERMANENT
ENGLISH COLONY,

UH, BUT IT WAS ACTUALLY
PRECEDED BY JAMESTOWN

13 YEARS EARLIER, IN 1607.

Narrator: 104 SETTLERS,
FINANCED BY LONDON INVESTORS

AND WITH THE PERMISSION
OF KING JAMES I,

HAVE COME TO SEARCH FOR GOLD

AND A WATER PASSAGE
TO THE PACIFIC OCEAN.

THEY ARE EXPLORERS,
MERCENARIES AND TRADESPEOPLE

LOOKING TO MAKE THEIR FORTUNES.

OF COURSE, IT'S ONLY
THE NEW WORLD TO THEM.

THE INDIAN ALGONQUIN PEOPLE

HAVE LIVED HERE
FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS.

Ashley Atkins:
WHEN THE ENGLISH ARRIVED,

THEY WERE STEPPING INTO
A REALLY INTRICATE LANDSCAPE

THAT INVOLVED AN EXTREMELY
LARGE AND POWERFUL CHIEFDOM.

Narrator:
THE CHIEF, WAHUNSENACAWH,

OR CHIEF POWHATAN,

WAS POCAHONTAS' FATHER.

AS HIS DAUGHTER, SHE HAS GONE
DOWN IN HISTORY AS A PRINCESS.

Smith: WE KNOW THAT THE PRINCESS
ISN'T VERY ACCURATE

BECAUSE SHE HAD TONS
OF SISTERS AND BROTHERS,

AND NONE OF THEM WERE CALLED
PRINCES OR PRINCESSES.

BUT SHE WAS A DAUGHTER
OF A POWERFUL LEADER.

I THINK AMERICA
WANTS ROYALTY, RIGHT?

THERE'S AN ENVY OF ROYALTY.

SO IT'S KIND OF COOL
THAT, YOU KNOW, OUR ROYAL

WILL BE LIKE AN INDIAN.

Narrator: POPULAR CULTURE
IMAGINES HER AS A GROWN WOMAN.

BUT IN 1607, POCAHONTAS
WAS A GIRL OF 9 OR 10.

Camilla Townsend:
POCAHONTAS WAS A REAL GIRL

WHO WALKED AROUND
THE SAME WAY WE WALK AROUND.

WHAT MADE HER LAUGH
MAY HAVE BEEN DIFFERENT

FROM WHAT MAKES US LAUGH,

BUT THAT SPARK OF JOY
WHEN SHE WAS GIGGLING

WAS THE SAME AS THE SPARK OF JOY
IN ANY YOUNG GIRL TODAY.

Narrator:
HER REAL NAME WAS MATOAKA.

POCAHONTAS WAS JUST A NICKNAME.

DEPENDING ON WHO YOU ASK,

IT EITHER MEANT "SPOILED CHILD"
OR "PLAYFUL ONE."

EITHER WAY, IT SUGGESTS
A CAREFREE CHILDHOOD

FOR THE CHIEF'S DAUGHTER.

BUT THE ARRIVAL OF THE COLONISTS

WOULD PUT THAT REALITY
TO THE TEST.

Horn: I THINK THE ENGLISH
GET MIXED MESSAGES.

THERE WERE SOME INDIAN PEOPLES
ALONG THE JAMES RIVER

WHO WELCOMED THEM.

UM, TRADE.

AND THERE ARE INDIAN PEOPLES
THAT ARE MORE HOSTILE.

Narrator: JUST A MONTH
AFTER MAKING LANDFALL,

THE SETTLERS ARE ATTACKED
BY 200 INDIANS.

TWO COLONISTS ARE KILLED,

AND 11 ARE WOUNDED.

[BIRD CALLS]

[GUNFIRE AND YELLING]

THE ATTACK
WAS JUST THE FIRST SIGN

THAT LIFE IN JAMESTOWN MIGHT NOT
LIVE UP TO EXPECTATIONS.

IT WAS SWAMPY,
MOSQUITO-INFESTED,

AND THE WATER WAS IMPURE.

BEFORE LONG, THE COLONISTS WERE
BATTLING DISEASE AND HUNGER.

Horn: FINDING FOOD
AND FINDING PROVISIONS

TO KEEP THAT COLONY ALIVE

WAS ONE OF THE TOUGHEST JOBS.

UM, NOT JUST
FOR JAMESTOWN, ACTUALLY.

MOST EUROPEAN COLONIES FAILED
WITHIN 12 MONTHS.

Narrator: THEY SOON REALIZE
THEY ARE WOEFULLY UNPREPARED.

Townsend: THE ENGLISH
HAVE BEEN LAUGHED AT,

IN A SENSE, BY HISTORIANS

FOR ARRIVING
WITHOUT ANY CLEAR SENSE

OF HOW THEY WERE GOING
TO SUPPORT THEMSELVES.

Narrator: DESPITE ABUNDANT
FISHING AND HUNTING,

THE ENGLISH SIMPLY LACK
THE REQUISITE KNOW-HOW

TO MAKE THEIR FOOD SUPPLY
MEET DEMAND.

Atkins: HERE THEY'RE
SURROUNDED BY FOOD.

LIKE, I GO TO JAMESTOWN ISLAND,

AND I'M LIKE YOU
COULD HAVE EATEN THAT,

YOU COULD HAVE EATEN THAT.

I MEAN, MAYBE IT WASN'T THERE,
YOU KNOW, 400 YEARS AGO,

BUT I'M PRETTY SURE IT WAS.
[LAUGHS]

Narrator: AS WINTER SETS IN,
THE PROBLEM INTENSIFIES.

TO THE POWHATAN, THEY HARDLY
SEEM LIKE A THREAT.

Smith: FOR A LONG TIME,
INDIANS IN VIRGINIA

ACTUALLY THOUGHT THE ENGLISH
CAME TO LOOK FOR FOOD,

BECAUSE THEIR EXPERIENCE
OF SEEING THE ENGLISH

WAS THEY WERE DESPERATELY
HUNGRY ALL THE TIME,

THEY WERE CLUELESS
ABOUT FISHING,

THEY WERE
CLUELESS ABOUT FARMING.

SO MAYBE THEY CAME HERE

BECAUSE WHERE THEY'RE FROM,
IT'S EVEN WORSE.

Narrator: JAMESTOWN WAS LED BY
A SHORT, BRASH SOLDIER-FOR-HIRE

NAMED JOHN SMITH.

SMITH ACTUALLY ARRIVED
IN THE NEW WORLD A PRISONER

AFTER A CONFLICT AT SEA
LANDED HIM IN THE BRIG.

BUT THE COLONY QUICKLY REALIZES
THEY NEED HIM TO SURVIVE.

IT IS HIS SEARCH FOR FOOD

THAT BRINGS THE ENGLISH
INTO CONTACT WITH POCAHONTAS.

Townsend: IT WAS JOHN SMITH,
IN FACT, WHO MET HER.

HE HAD GONE UP
THE CHICKAHOMINY RIVER,

HOPING TO BE ABLE
TO TRADE FOR SOME CORN

BECAUSE THE COLONISTS
WERE SO HUNGRY.

Narrator: WITH JAMESTOWN
ON THE VERGE OF STARVATION,

A DESPERATE SMITH TRAVELS
THROUGH UNEXPLORED TERRITORY

AND IS SET UPON BY A GROUP
OF POWHATAN WARRIORS.

Horn: JOHN SMITH WAS SOMEONE

WHO NEVER LACKED
FOR, UM, SELF-CONFIDENCE.

UM, HE BELIEVED HE KNEW BEST,
UH, ALMOST IN ANY SITUATION.

HE'S TRYING TO HOLD THEM OFF
WITH HIS PISTOL.

Narrator: DESPITE THE WEAPON,
HE'S FAR OUTNUMBERED.

[GUNSHOT]

[YELLING]

THEY CAPTURE SMITH,
AND OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL WEEKS,

MARCH HIM FROM
VILLAGE TO VILLAGE,

DISPLAYING HIM LIKE A CURIOSITY.

[CHEERING AND YELLING]

Townsend: HE WAS PARADED
AROUND AT VARIOUS VILLAGES

BEFORE BEING TAKEN
TO WEROWOCOMOCO,

WHICH MEANS KING'S HOUSE
OR CHIEF'S HOUSE.

THAT'S WHERE POWHATAN,
POCAHONTAS' FATHER, LIVED

AND WHERE SHE LIVED, TOO.

♪

Narrator: AT POWHATAN'S
WEROWOCOMOCO LONGHOUSE,

HE IS BROUGHT BEFORE
THE GREAT CHIEF.

IT'S A HISTORIC MEETING
OF CULTURES.

Horn:
HE IS THE FIRST SETTLER

TO REALLY, UM, INVOLVE HIMSELF
WITH, WITH THE CHIEFS.

NO ONE HAD DONE IT
BEFORE HIM, NO.

Narrator: AS A EUROPEAN,

HE LIKELY WOULD HAVE
UNDERESTIMATED POWHATAN.

Townsend:
WE HAVE EVERY REASON TO BELIEVE

THAT A MAN LIKE, LIKE POWHATAN

WAS EXTREMELY INTELLIGENT,

EXTREMELY SHARP,

WOULD HAVE HAD A HIGHER IQ THAN
YOUR AVERAGE PERSON ANYWHERE,

INCLUDING YOUR AVERAGE PERSON
IN ENGLAND.

♪

Narrator: WHAT SMITH
SAYS HAPPENED NEXT

IS THE GENESIS
OF THE POCAHONTAS LEGEND.

John Smith: TWO GREAT STONES
WERE BROUGHT BEFORE POWHATAN.

THEN AS MANY AS COULD
LAID HANDS ON HIM,

DRAGGED HIM TO THEM,

AND THERE ON LAID HIS HEAD,

AND BEING READY
WITH THEIR CLUBS

TO BEAT OUT HIS BRAINS.

Narrator:
IT WAS TO BE AN EXECUTION.

BUT JUST WHEN DEATH
SEEMED LIKE A CERTAINTY,

HE WAS SAVED.

John Smith: POCAHONTAS,
THE KING'S DEAREST DAUGHTER,

WHEN NO ENTREATY COULD PREVAIL,

GOT HIS HEAD IN HER ARMS,

AND LAID HER OWN UPON HIS
TO SAVE HIM FROM DEATH.

Narrator: SHE SAVES SMITH,

AND WITH HIM,
THE COLONY ITSELF.

THE LEGEND LASTS
THROUGH THE AGES.

BUT IS IT EVEN TRUE?

[DRUMMING]

FOR THROWING HERSELF

BETWEEN THE LEADER
OF THE JAMESTOWN COLONY

AND A WARRIOR'S CLUB,

POCAHONTAS BECOMES A BRIDGE
BETWEEN CULTURES

AND A SAVIOR
OF THE FUTURE NATION.

OR AT LEAST THAT'S HOW THE STORY
PLAYS IN THE MOVIES.

AND THAT'S HOW IT'S ENSHRINED
IN THE VERY HEART OF DEMOCRACY,

THE U.S. CAPITOL BUILDING.

Cécile Ganteaume:
THE ROTUNDA OF THE U.S. CAPITOL

WAS BUILT TO EVOKE
THE ROMAN PANTHEON,

AND IT'S A VERY MAJESTIC PLACE.

AND IN THE TOP OF THE DOME

IS THE PAINTING, THE APOTHEOSIS
OF GEORGE WASHINGTON.

AND THEN THREE IMAGES
OF POCAHONTAS

ARE UNDER THAT PAINTING
OF GEORGE WASHINGTON.

SO SHE'S IN A VERY, VERY
SIGNIFICANT PLACE.

Narrator: MOST FAMOUSLY,

SHE APPEARS IN THE FRIEZE
THAT ENCIRCLES THE DOME.

Ganteaume: THE COLONY IS
THE FIRST PLACE IN THE NEW WORLD

THAT REPRESENTATIVE FORM
OF GOVERNMENT TAKES ROOT.

AND SO THAT MORPHS
INTO POCAHONTAS SAVING

THE BIRTHPLACE OF DEMOCRACY.

Narrator: ACCORDING TO LEGEND,

WITHOUT POCAHONTAS, THE CAPITOL
ITSELF MIGHT NOT EXIST.

THE STORY IS PART
OF THE COUNTRY'S DNA.

BUT DID IT REALLY HAPPEN?

Townsend: JOHN SMITH SENT
A REPORT HOME TO ENGLAND

AS SOON AS HE WAS RELEASED,
A COUPLE MONTHS LATER,

AND HE NEVER SAID
ANYTHING ABOUT THAT AT ALL.

IN FACT, HE SAID
THAT THEY TREATED HIM

WITH WHAT KINDNESS THEY COULD,
WAS A QUOTE,

AND CLEARLY WANTED
TO NEGOTIATE WITH HIM,

FORM SOME SORT OF
TRADE RELATIONSHIP.

Narrator: IT'S POSSIBLE

THAT SMITH MISINTERPRETED
AN ADOPTION CEREMONY

AS AN EXECUTION.

Horn: ANOTHER THEORY
IS THAT HE WAS BEING TESTED BY,

BY INDIAN PRIESTS AS TO WHETHER
HE WAS WORTHY OF BEING SAVED.

AND THIS CULMINATES
WHEN HE REACHES WEROWOCOMOCO

BECAUSE POWHATAN OFFERS
TO ADOPT HIM AS A POWHATAN,

THE ELITE GROUP
OF THIS CHIEFDOM.

Penney: HIS CAPTURE
AND THEN HIS RELEASE

WAS AN ATTEMPT TO MAKE HIM
A KIND OF CAPTAIN

OR A MEMBER OF THE CONFEDERACY

TO TRY TO BRING JAMESTOWN
UNDER THE RULE OF POWHATAN.

Atkins:
AFTER JOHN SMITH IS SAVED,

POWHATAN REFERS TO HIM AS "SON."

AND SOME HAVE ARGUED
THAT THAT WAS HIS WAY

OF INITIATING SMITH

INTO THIS KIND OF
POWHATAN SYSTEM OF HIERARCHY

WHERE JOHN SMITH IS NOW HIS SON,

POWHATAN IS HIS FATHER.

YOU ARE SUBSERVIENT
TO YOUR FATHER, RIGHT?

Narrator: ADOPTING SMITH
WOULD MAKE PERFECT SENSE

FOR A SHREWD LEADER
LIKE POWHATAN.

Horn: JOHN SMITH IS GOING TO BE
A VALUABLE ALLY OF THE POWHATANS

WITHIN JAMES FORT.

THEY WANT TO TURN, IF YOU LIKE,

ONE OF THE LEADERS
TO THEIR CAUSE.

Narrator: CEREMONY OR EXECUTION,

HISTORIANS DON'T BELIEVE

POCAHONTAS
WOULD HAVE BEEN PRESENT.

Penney: EXPERTS INSIST

THAT SHE WAS FAR TOO YOUNG
AS A YOUNG WOMAN

TO PARTICIPATE
IN CEREMONIES LIKE THAT.

UM, SO VERY LIKELY,
FROM THEIR PERSPECTIVE,

SHE DIDN'T PARTICIPATE.

Narrator: IF IT HAPPENED AT ALL,

SMITH KEPT THE LIFE-SAVING STORY
UNDER WRAPS FOR DECADES.

ALTHOUGH HE PUBLISHED ABOUT
HIS VIRGINIA ADVENTURES

IN 1608 AND 1612,

IT DOESN'T APPEAR IN PRINT
UNTIL HIS 1624 BOOK,

"GENERALL
HISTORIE OF VIRGINIA."

Townsend: ONLY YEARS LATER,

WHEN ALL THE PRINCIPALS
WERE DEAD,

DID HE COME UP WITH THAT STORY.

NOBODY WAS LEFT
TO CONTRADICT IT.

Narrator: HE ALSO SPINS
THE ROMANTIC TALE.

Smith: WOULDN'T IT BE COOL IF
THE DAUGHTER OF THE INDIAN GUY

FELL IN LOVE WITH THE LEADER
OF THE ENGLISH COLONY

AND THEY HAD THIS HOT ROMANCE
AND LIVED HAPPILY EVER AFTER?

Narrator:
FROM A LITERARY POINT OF VIEW,

IT MAKES A MUCH BETTER STORY.

OF COURSE,
SHE WAS AROUND 11 YEARS OLD.

HE WAS 27.

Penney: THEY CERTAINLY
KNEW OF EACH OTHER,

BUT THE ROMANCE BETWEEN THEM

VERY LIKELY WAS TOTAL FICTION
ON JOHN SMITH'S PART.

Narrator: IN FACT,

SMITH HAS A HISTORY OF
FICTIONALIZING HIS ADVENTURES.

Ganteaume: TODAY, CAPTAIN SMITH
IS CONSIDERED A FABULIST,

THAT HE EXAGGERATED
A LOT OF HIS TALES.

Narrator: HE'D TOLD
THE IDENTICAL STORY

MORE THAN ONCE BEFORE.

Ganteaume:
TALES ABOUT PRINCESSES,

YOUNG WOMEN
IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

ALSO COMING IN
AND SAVING HIS LIFE

JUST WHEN HE WAS
ABOUT TO BE DISPATCHED.

Narrator:
BUT TRUTH OR INVENTION,

THE STORY OF POCAHONTAS
SAVING HIS LIFE

TAKES ON A LIFE OF ITS OWN.

A CENTURY AND A HALF LATER,

WHEN AMERICA ACHIEVES
INDEPENDENCE FROM BRITAIN,

IT'S BACK IN THE SPOTLIGHT.

Penney: THE UNITED STATES
WANTED TO DEFINE THEMSELVES

IN CONTRAST TO
THEIR EUROPEAN ORIGINS.

HOW ARE WE AMERICAN
AND HOW ARE WE DIFFERENT

FROM OUR EUROPEAN FOUNDATIONS?

AMERICAN INDIANS
PROVIDED, YOU KNOW,

A KIND OF A ROUTE, A PATHWAY.

Narrator: FROM THEN ON,

IT IS TAUGHT TO
GENERATION AFTER GENERATION

OF AMERICAN SCHOOLCHILDREN.

Townsend: NOAH WEBSTER
WROTE NOT ONLY A DICTIONARY

BUT ALSO A TEXTBOOK.

AND THAT TEXTBOOK WAS USED
IN MOST OF THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS,

AND SO THEY ALL GOT TO KNOW
THE STORY OF THIS POCAHONTAS

WHO HAD LOVED WHITE MEN SO MUCH,
ESPECIALLY JOHN SMITH,

AND HAD THROWN HERSELF
OVER HIS BODY TO SAVE HIM.

AND ONCE A WHOLE GENERATION
IS TOLD A STORY THAT THEY LOVE,

IT TENDS TO LAST.

AND THIS ONE LASTED
ALL THROUGH THE YEARS.

Narrator: SO IS THE STORY
OF POCAHONTAS ALL A MYTH?

NOT EXACTLY.

SHE PROBABLY
DIDN'T SAVE SMITH'S LIFE,

BUT SHE DID HELP SAVE
THE COLONY ITSELF.

SHE FREQUENTLY DELIVERS
MUCH-NEEDED FOOD TO THE FORT.

AND SHE QUICKLY
BECOMES BILINGUAL.

Townsend:
THERE IS REAL EVIDENCE

THAT SHE WAS FUNCTIONING
AS A TRANSLATOR,

AS A USEFUL AND SUCCESSFUL
TRANSLATOR WITHIN MONTHS.

Horn: LANGUAGE IS CRITICAL.

EARLY ON THERE, THERE WAS
A GOOD DEAL OF MISUNDERSTANDING.

UH, SIGN LANGUAGE HAS GOT
LIMITS, OBVIOUSLY.

Townsend: JOHN SMITH RECORDED A
SORT OF SET OF LANGUAGE LESSONS

THAT HE HAD HAD WITH HER--

SIMPLE PHRASES
AND THEN SIMPLE SENTENCES

IN THE ALGONQUIAN LANGUAGE
THAT THE POWHATANS SPOKE.

AND IN THESE SENTENCES,
HE MENTIONS POCAHONTAS.

SO HE WILL SAY, POCAHONTAS SAYS
BRING ME TWO BASKETS.

AND THEN HE WILL WRITE
THOSE SAME WORDS

IN THE ALGONQUIAN LANGUAGE
THAT SHE WAS TEACHING HIM.

[POCAHONTAS
SPEAKS ALGONQUIAN WORD]

[SMITH REPEATS
ALGONQUIAN WORD]

[POCAHONTAS
REPEATS ALGONQUIAN WORD]

Narrator: THE WRITTEN RECORD
OF THEIR LANGUAGE LESSONS

ARE THE ONLY SENTENCES OF THE
NOW EXTINCT ALGONQUIAN LANGUAGE

THAT SURVIVE.

IT WAS ALSO A MATTER OF SURVIVAL
FOR JOHN SMITH.

Horn: SMITH IS LEVERAGING
THIS POSITION

WHEREBY HE'S THE ONLY ONE WHO
CAN TALK TO THE GREAT CHIEF

AND THEREFORE LEVERAGE HIS
POSITION AMONGST THE ENGLISH.

SO THE RISE AND FALL
OF JOHN SMITH

IS INTIMATELY
CONNECTED WITH LANGUAGE

AND HIS ABILITY
TO SPEAK ALGONQUIAN

AND HIS RELATIONSHIP
WITH, WITH POWHATAN

AND WITH POCAHONTAS.

Narrator: FOR HER PART,

POCAHONTAS BECOMES A CRUCIAL
FIGURE IN JAMESTOWN--

A CHILD AMBASSADOR
FROM THE TRIBE

WHOSE GOODWILL
IS KEEPING THE COLONISTS ALIVE.

Townsend:
ALL THE ENGLISH AT THE FORT,

AT THE JAMESTOWN FORT,

KNEW HER, KNEW ABOUT HER.

SHE WAS A FAMOUS INDIAN TO THEM.

NOT QUITE SO FAMOUS
AS HER FATHER, FATHER, POWHATAN,

BUT WELL KNOWN TO THEM
NONETHELESS.

Narrator: FOR ONE THING,

NUMEROUS ACCOUNTS
FROM JAMESTOWN COLONISTS

TELL US SHE WAS FAMOUS
FOR HER CARTWHEELS.

BUT THE DAYS OF PLAYING
IN THE SUNSHINE WON'T LAST.

FROM THE ORIGINAL 104 SETTLERS,

ONLY 38 REMAIN
BY THE END OF 1607.

A RESUPPLY SHIP
BRINGS NEW BLOOD AND FOOD,

BUT MUCH IS LOST IN A FIRE
IN EARLY 1608.

A YEAR AFTER ARRIVING
IN JAMESTOWN,

THE ENGLISH STILL DON'T SEEM
LIKE A THREAT TO THE POWHATAN.

BUT THEY ARE ONE.

♪

Narrator:
JOHN SMITH AND POCAHONTAS

HAVE BECOME POP CULTURE ICONS.

Al Jolson: ♪ NOW HERE'S
WHAT I'D LIKE TO KNOW ♪

♪ WHO PLAYED POKER
WITH POCAHONTAS ♪

♪ WHEN JOHN SMITH WENT AWAY?

♪

Narrator:
BUT WHAT REALLY SEPARATES THEM

IS NOT VERY FUNNY.

IN 1608, SMITH BECOMES
PRESIDENT OF THE COLONY.

HE RUNS A TIGHT SHIP.

John Smith: HE THAT
WILL NOT WORK SHALL NOT EAT.

Narrator: HE HAS NEGOTIATED
A TENUOUS PEACE

AND THE ALL-IMPORTANT SUPPLY
OF FOOD WITH THE POWHATAN.

BUT HE CAN'T GIVE THE INDIANS
THE ONE THING THEY REALLY WANT.

Horn: WHAT THEY WANT
FROM THE ENGLISH

IS ENGLISH WEAPONRY.

COPPER AS WELL,
BUT PRIMARILY WEAPONRY,

AND NOT JUST
STEEL-EDGED WEAPONS.

UM, NOT JUST SWORDS
AND POLEAXES AND SO ON.

THEY WANT FIREARMS.

[GUNSHOT]

THEY WANT CANNON, AND THEY WANT
MUSKETS AND PISTOLS.

Narrator: NATURALLY,

THE VIRGINIA COMPANY'S CHARTER
FORBIDS THIS.

Horn: BECAUSE HE CAN'T DELIVER,

THOSE PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS

THAT SMITH HAD BUILT
HIS FORTUNES AROUND BROKE DOWN.

THAT WAS THE END
OF HIS PREEMINENCE, REALLY,

IN THE COLONY.

Narrator: NEVER WELL-LIKED,
HIS HARD-LINE LEADERSHIP

RESULTS IN MORE THAN
ONE ATTEMPT ON HIS LIFE.

HE SURVIVES BUT IS INJURED.

Townsend: HE WAS LOSING
POPULARITY AMONG THE MEN.

IT WAS TIME TO GO HOME
FOR POLITICAL REASONS.

Narrator: NURSING HIS WOUNDS,
HE SETS SAIL TO ENGLAND.

POCAHONTAS IS TOLD HE HAS DIED,

AND HER VISITS TO JAMESTOWN
COME TO AN END.

FOLLOWING SMITH'S DEPARTURE,

CONDITIONS IN JAMES FORT
AGAIN GROW DESPERATE.

Townsend: THE WHITE PEOPLE
HAD WORN OUT THEIR WELCOME.

THE INDIANS WERE
NO LONGER BRINGING CORN

AND OTHER FOODSTUFFS,
EITHER AS GIFTS OR EVEN TO SELL.

UM, AND IN FACT THE INDIANS
SOMETIMES WERE ATTACKING THEM

WHEN THEY LEFT THE FORT.

SO THE ENGLISH
COULDN'T EVEN PLANT CROPS

AND TRY TO LIVE ON THAT.

Narrator: IN 1609,

THEIR SALVATION SETS SAIL
FROM ENGLAND--

A GREAT FLEET
CARRYING 500 MORE SETTLERS

AND SUPPLIES FOR ALL.

BUT NOTHING GOES
ACCORDING TO PLAN.

Horn: THIS FLEET WAS CAUGHT
IN A HURRICANE IN THE ATLANTIC.

MANY OF THE SHIPS WERE DAMAGED,
AND STORES WERE DAMAGED.

SO 500 PEOPLE
ARRIVE AT JAMESTOWN

WITHOUT SUFFICIENT PROVISIONS.

AT THE SAME TIME,
THERE'D BEEN PLAGUE

IN ONE OF THOSE SHIPS
THAT ARRIVED,

SO YOU HAVE LACK OF PROVISIONS,

DISEASE THAT SWEPT
THROUGH JAMESTOWN,

AND THEN INDIAN PEOPLES
CHOOSE THAT MOMENT

TO...TO ATTACK THE ENGLISH
TO GET RID OF THEM.

SO YOU HAVE A TRIFECTA,
REALLY, OF DISASTERS.

Narrator:
AS COLD TURNS TO FREEZING,

HUNGER TURNS TO STARVATION.

THEY EAT RATS.

THEY BOIL AND EAT
THEIR BELTS AND SHOES,

AND WHEN THOSE ARE GONE,

THEY ARE FORCED
INTO A DARKER CORNER.

♪

THE 2012 DISCOVERY
OF A COLONIST'S SKULL--

A TEENAGE GIRL--

LED JAMESTOWN ARCHEOLOGISTS
TO A GRISLY REALITY.

SHE HAD BEEN EATEN.

Doug Owsley:
I'VE SEEN CANNIBALISM

IN MANY DIFFERENT
SITUATIONS, ACTUALLY,

IN NORTH AMERICA, PREHISTORIC
NORTH AMERICA, FOR INSTANCE,

AND THERE'S JUST NO DOUBT
THAT THAT OCCURRED.

Narrator: THIS WASN'T MURDER.

THE GIRL, RECONSTRUCTED HERE,
WAS ALREADY DEAD

WHEN SOME UNKNOWN
STARVING SETTLERS CONSUMED HER.

Owsley: THERE ARE CHOPS HERE,
FOUR TO THE FOREHEAD,

THAT ARE VERY TENTATIVE

IN THE SENSE THAT
THEY DO CUT INTO THE BONE,

BUT THEY DON'T GO VERY DEEP.

IT'S NOT SOMETHING
THAT THE PERSON WAS ALIVE,

BECAUSE YOU WOULD NEVER GET
SUCH CLOSELY SPACED CHOPS.

Narrator: IT'S THE FIRST KNOWN
EVIDENCE OF SURVIVAL CANNIBALISM

IN NORTH AMERICA.

Owsley: IT COMPLETELY SPEAKS TO
JUST HOW HORRIBLE THE TIME WAS

AND THE FACT THAT THEY
JUST HAD NOTHING TO EAT.

[SOBBING]

Narrator: BY THE END OF WINTER,

MORE THAN 150 ENGLISH--
NEARLY 75% OF THE COLONY--

ARE GONE.

60-SOME DESPERATE COLONISTS
ABANDON THE FORT,

ONLY TO BE TURNED AROUND
BY ANOTHER SHIP FROM ENGLAND

AND A NEW GOVERNOR,

LORD DE LA WARR.

HIS SUPPLIES
RESURRECT THE COLONY,

BUT OPEN WARFARE
WITH THE INDIANS

NOW THREATENS ITS SURVIVAL.

Man: AND FIRE!

[GUNFIRE]

IN 1613, POCAHONTAS,
NOW A GROWN WOMAN OF 16,

ONCE AGAIN BECOMES THE COLONY'S
UNLIKELY SAVIOR.

♪

SHE'S VISITING
THE NEARBY PATOWOMECK TRIBE

WHEN HER INDIAN HOSTS,

THREATENED WITH WAR
BY AN ENGLISH SHIP CAPTAIN,

LURE HER ONTO HIS VESSEL
AND BETRAY HER.

Penney:
THE KIDNAPPING OF POCAHONTAS

IS PLOTTED AND ACHIEVED

AS A PART OF CREATING
THIS KIND OF LEVERAGE

OVER THE POWHATAN CONFEDERACY

IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN A CERTAIN
AMOUNT OF STABILITY AND PEACE

AND ALSO TO MAINTAIN THE TRADE,
WHICH FOR JAMESTOWN MEANS FOOD.

Narrator:
POCAHONTAS IS THE CURRENCY

THAT PAYS FOR
THE COLONY'S SURVIVAL.

SHE IS HELD PRISONER
ABOARD SHIP FOR DAYS,

THEN MARCHED FROM THE PORT
THROUGH THE GATES OF JAMES FORT.

THE PLACE SHE PLAYED AS A CHILD

IS NOW A VILLAGE
OF UNFAMILIAR FACES.

♪

THE ENGLISH DEMAND A RANSOM
OF HOSTAGES AND STOLEN WEAPONS,

WHICH GOES ONLY PARTIALLY PAID.

NEGOTIATIONS WILL DRAG ON
FOR MORE THAN A YEAR.

INSIDE THE FORT WALLS,
IN THIS ENGLISH WORLD,

POCAHONTAS, THE POWHATAN WOMAN,
IS REMADE,

AT LEAST ON THE SURFACE.

Ganteaume: WE DON'T KNOW
WHAT WAS GOING ON IN HER HEAD.

SHE WAS INVOLVED
IN ALL THESE INCREDIBLE EVENTS

DURING A VERY
MOMENTOUS TIME IN HISTORY,

BUT WE DO NOT KNOW
WHAT SHE WAS THINKING.

Narrator: WE DO KNOW
WHAT SHE MEANT TO THE COLONY.

Horn: POCAHONTAS,

HER STATUS AS THE DAUGHTER
OF THE GREAT CHIEF

IS, IS HUGELY IMPORTANT
TO THE ENGLISH.

Narrator: SHE'S IMPORTANT
AS A PIECE OF COLLATERAL,

BUT SHE'S ALSO SEEN
AS A SOUL RIPE FOR CONVERSION.

Horn: THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND
WAS ONLY 50 YEARS OLD

AT THE TIME
OF THE FOUNDING OF VIRGINIA.

IT WAS WELL KNOWN
THAT THE SPANISH

HAD CONVERTED MILLIONS
OF INDIAN PEOPLES TO CATHOLICISM

IN SOUTH AMERICA
AND MIDDLE AMERICA.

NORTH AMERICA WAS TO BE ENGLISH,
AND IT WAS TO BE ANGLICAN.

IT WAS TO BE PROTESTANT.

BUILDING THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND

BY BRINGING IN
THE ENTIRE POWHATAN NATION

WAS THE FIRST STEP

TO CONVERTING ALL INDIAN PEOPLES
IN NORTH AMERICA

TO THE ANGLICAN CHURCH.

Narrator: BAPTIZING POCAHONTAS
WAS THE FIRST STEP

IN CONVERTING
THE POWHATAN NATION.

Horn: THAT'S WHY
IT WAS IMPORTANT

THAT SHE WAS DIRECTLY RELATED
TO THE GREAT CHIEF.

Narrator:
OVER THE MONTHS IN CAPTIVITY,

SHE'S INSTRUCTED
IN THE ANGLICAN FAITH,

AND SHE BECOMES
THE FIRST INDIGENOUS PERSON

TO CONVERT TO CHRISTIANITY
IN THE ENGLISH NEW WORLD.

SHE IS BAPTIZED "REBECCA."

A SOUL SAVED
THAT HELPED THE ENGLISH JUSTIFY

THE MORAL CORRECTNESS
OF COLONIZATION.

Pocahontas: ...UPON THE EARTH.

Chief Robert Gray:
EUROPEANS AND CHRISTIANS

LOVED THE IDEA
OF COMING OVER HERE

TO SAVE THE POOR HEATHEN INDIANS
FROM THEMSELVES,

SPREAD CHRISTIANITY,

AND STEAL OUR LAND
AT THE SAME TIME.

Narrator: WAS POCAHONTAS
HELPING THEM DO IT?

WAS SHE TRULY DEVOUT?

OR WAS SHE BRAINWASHED
BY HER KIDNAPPERS?

Townsend: WAS SHE EXHIBITING

SOMETHING LIKE
THE STOCKHOLM SYNDROME?

THAT IS THAT SHE WAS, HAD BECOME
SO DISEMPOWERED, SO VICTIMIZED,

THAT IN HER
PSYCHOLOGICAL DEVASTATION,

SHE WAS IDENTIFYING

WITH THE PEOPLE
WHO HAD POWER OVER HER.

Narrator: THE SAME QUESTIONS
ARE ASKED AGAIN

MORE THAN THREE CENTURIES LATER

WITH THE KIDNAPPING
OF ANOTHER IMPORTANT DAUGHTER.

WHEN HEIRESS PATRICIA HEARST
IS CAPTURED

BY A RADICAL LEFTIST GROUP
IN 1974,

SHE APPEARS
TO JOIN THEIR CAUSE--

EVEN HELPING THEM ROB A BANK--

AND RAISES COMPARISONS
TO POCAHONTAS.

Smith: THERE BECOME
THESE ANALYSES IN THE PRESS

THAT TALK ABOUT, WELL, GEE,
POCAHONTAS WAS A DAUGHTER

OF A REALLY RICH
AND POWERFUL LEADER.

SHE WAS KIDNAPPED,

AND THEN WE DIDN'T QUITE KNOW
WHAT SIDE SHE WAS FOR.

WAS SHE STILL WITH HER PEOPLE?

WAS SHE FOR THE ENGLISH?

[BELL TOLLING]

Narrator: WE STILL DON'T KNOW,

BUT THE WOMAN WHO IS BOTH
REBECCA AND MATOAKA,

NICKNAMED POCAHONTAS,

IS ABOUT TO MEET ANOTHER
ENGLISHMAN NAMED JOHN.

UNLIKE JOHN SMITH,
THIS WOULD BE A REAL LOVE STORY.

OR WOULD IT?

[CROWD CHEERING]

Narrator: ON THE SILVER SCREEN,

THE ROMANCE OF POCAHONTAS
AND JOHN SMITH

PLAYS LIKE A FAIRY TALE.

♪

IN REAL LIFE, THERE MAY
ALSO HAVE BEEN ROMANCE,

BUT WITH AN ENTIRELY
DIFFERENT SUITOR.

WHILE A HOSTAGE IN JAMESTOWN,

SHE MEETS A WEALTHY PLANTER
NAMED JOHN ROLFE.

♪

IN 1614, ROLFE WRITES
TO SIR THOMAS DALE,

GOVERNOR OF THE COLONY,

DECLARING AND DEFENDING
HIS LOVE FOR POCAHONTAS.

♪

John Rolfe: TO WHOM MY HEART
AND BEST THOUGHTS ARE,

AND HAVE LONG TIME BEEN
SO ENTANGLED,

AND ENTHRALLED IN SO INTRICATE
A LABYRINTH.

Narrator:
ROLFE IS CLEARLY SMITTEN.

POCAHONTAS
MAY HAVE BEEN MOTIVATED

BY MORE DIPLOMATIC THINKING.

HER FATHER
RULED OVER A CONFEDERACY

FORMED BY MATRIMONIAL ALLIANCES,

AND HE READILY AGREED
TO THE MATCH.

Atkins:
THIS ALLIANCE THROUGH MARRIAGE

WAS, I THINK, TWOFOLD:

TO END THE WARFARE,

BUT TO ALSO HELP POWHATAN HAVE

MORE OF AN INFLUENCE
OVER THE COLONY.

Horn: WAS IT A MARRIAGE
OF CONVENIENCE,

THAT IT GUARANTEED HER SAFETY?

DID SHE LOVE JOHN ROLFE?

WHO KNOWS, REALLY?

Narrator: THE GOVERNOR
GRANTS HIS PERMISSION,

AND THEY MARRY ON APRIL 5, 1614.

[APPLAUSE]

IN 2010,

ARCHEOLOGISTS DISCOVERED
THE SITE OF THE WEDDING.

William Kelso:
IN OUR EXCAVATIONS IN THE FORT,

WE FOUND VARIOUS BUILDING SITES,

ONE OF WHICH
WAS THE FIRST CHURCH.

AND IT WAS THERE THAT POCAHONTAS
WAS MARRIED IN 1614,

AND ACCORDING TO THE CEREMONY,

WE CAN TELL YOU EXACTLY
WHERE IN THE CHURCH SHE STOOD.

NOW, I THINK THAT...
THAT GIVES ME THE GOOSEBUMPS.

Narrator: TODAY, VISITORS CAN
STAND ON THE ACTUAL SPOT

WHERE THE CEREMONY TOOK PLACE.

♪

ONCE VIRGINIA
IS FIRMLY ESTABLISHED,

THIS KIND OF INTERRACIAL UNION
WILL FIRST BECOME UNTHINKABLE

AND THEN,
AFTER THE ABOLITION OF SLAVERY,

ILLEGAL.

THREE AND A HALF
CENTURIES LATER,

LESS THAN 100 MILES
FROM JAMESTOWN,

ANOTHER COUPLE
WILL INVOKE POCAHONTAS

AND CHALLENGE THAT LAW.

MILDRED JETER,

OF AFRICAN AMERICAN
AND NATIVE AMERICAN DESCENT,

MARRIES RICHARD LOVING,
WHO IS WHITE.

LIKE REBECCA AND JOHN ROLFE,

THEIR WEDDING WILL MAKE HISTORY.

Smith:
THESE ARE TWO OF THE MOST FAMOUS

INTERRACIAL MARRIAGES,
YOU KNOW, IN NORTH AMERICA,

AND WITH SUCH CONSEQUENCES.

Narrator: THE LOVINGS
WERE JAILED FOR MARRYING

AND FORCED TO LEAVE
THEIR HOME STATE.

AT TRIAL, THE JUDGE DECLARED:

Man: "ALMIGHTY GOD
CREATED THE RACES,

WHITE, BLACK, YELLOW,
MALAY AND RED,

AND HE PLACED THEM
ON SEPARATE CONTINENTS.

THE FACT THAT HE SEPARATED
THE RACES

SHOWS THAT HE DID NOT INTEND
FOR THEM TO MIX."

Narrator: THE COUPLE TOOK THEIR
CASE TO THE SUPREME COURT,

AND IN 1967, THE DECISION
IN LOVING V. VIRGINIA

INVALIDATED THE PROHIBITION OF
INTERRACIAL MARRIAGE NATIONWIDE.

Smith: IT'S REALLY POWERFUL
THAT, UM, HOW CENTRAL THAT WAS

AND HOW APPROPRIATE IT WAS THAT
DECISION HAPPENED IN VIRGINIA.

I THINK THAT'S REALLY
KIND OF PERFECT.

Narrator: POCAHONTAS' MARRIAGE

ALSO HAD POLITICAL
RAMIFICATIONS.

AS GOVERNOR THOMAS DALE
WROTE IN 1614,

IT USHERED IN A PERIOD KNOWN
AS "THE POCAHONTAS PEACE."

Thomas Dale: POWHATAN'S DAUGHTER
IS SINCE MARRIED

TO AN ENGLISH GENTLEMAN
OF GOOD UNDERSTANDING,

ANOTHER KNOT TO BIND
THIS PEACE THE STRONGER.

♪

Narrator: THE ROYAL HOSTAGE
HAD BECOME A BRIDE

AND A DIPLOMAT PUTTING
THE COLONY ON STEADY GROUND.

Townsend: WHEN JOHN ROLFE
AND POCAHONTAS MARRIED,

THE ENGLISH AGREED
TO STOP DEMANDING TRIBUTE,

PAYMENTS IN CORN FROM POWHATAN,

AND TO STOP DEMANDING

THAT THEY RETURN ALL THE WEAPONS
THEY HAD STOLEN.

AND THE INDIANS AGREED
THAT, FOR A WHILE AT ANY RATE,

THEY WOULD STOP
ATTACKING THE ENGLISH

WHENEVER THEY LEFT THE FORT.

Narrator:
DURING THIS HONEYMOON PERIOD,

REBECCA AND JOHN ROLFE
HAVE A BABY BOY.

THEY NAME HIM THOMAS.

Townsend: JOHN ROLFE
WROTE IN ECSTATIC TERMS

BOTH ABOUT THE PEACE

AND ABOUT THE LIFE
HE WAS LIVING ON THE FARM

WITH, WITH POCAHONTAS.

Narrator: ON THAT FARM,
ROLFE EXPERIMENTS WITH A CROP

THAT WILL REVERSE
THE FORTUNES OF THE COLONY

AND DETERMINE
THE FUTURE OF THE COUNTRY:

TOBACCO.

Penney: NORTH AMERICAN TOBACCO,
NICOTIANA RUSTICA,

UM, WAS MUCH HARSHER

AND NOT AS PLEASANT
TO SMOKE SOCIALLY

AS SOUTHERN TOBACCOS--

UH, NICOTIANA TOBACUM,
FOR EXAMPLE,

WHICH WAS THE TOBACCO THAT
THE SPANISH WERE EXPORTING.

THE SPANISH GUARDED THEIR ACCESS
TO THAT SPECIES OF TOBACCO

VERY CAREFULLY.

IT WAS A CAPITAL OFFENSE

TO SELL TOBACCO SEEDS
FROM THE SOUTH.

Narrator: WE DON'T KNOW
HOW ROLFE ACQUIRED

THE PRECIOUS SEEDS,

BUT HE INTRODUCES
THE SOUTHERN TOBACCO

TO JAMESTOWN.

AND ACCORDING TO ORAL TRADITION,

HE LEARNS POWHATAN METHODS FOR
CURING TOBACCO FROM POCAHONTAS--

HANGING IT TO DRY RATHER THAN
LAYING IT ON THE GROUND.

♪

Townsend: IT GREW SO WELL

AND SOLD FOR SO MUCH MONEY
BACK IN LONDON

THAT PRETTY SOON ALMOST
ALL OF THE VIRGINIA COLONISTS

WERE PLANTING TOBACCO,

EVEN WHEN THEY SHOULD
HAVE BEEN PLANTING FOOD.

Narrator: DESPITE HIGH HOPES
FOR GOLD OR A ROUTE WEST,

JAMESTOWN HAS NEVER DELIVERED ON
THE INVESTMENT OF ITS BACKERS...

UNTIL NOW.

BUT ROLFE'S TOBACCO
IS A DEVIL'S BARGAIN.

Smith: YOU KNOW,
THIS INCREDIBLY ADDICTIVE DRUG

THAT'S KILLED MILLIONS OF PEOPLE
AROUND THE WORLD, UM,

DEPLETES SOIL, EVERYTHING ELSE.

Narrator: IT WILL CREATE
A DEMAND FOR LABOR

THAT WILL KICK OFF
THE SLAVE TRADE

AND FORCE INDIANS
OFF THEIR LAND.

BUT IN THE 16-TEENS,

THE GOLDEN LEAF
WAS SIMPLY A MONEY MAKER.

THE FIRST OF ITS KIND
IN VIRGINIA.

ITS SUCCESS WILL ALSO PROPEL
POCAHONTAS' FAME.

Ganteaume:
HER ASSOCIATION WITH TOBACCO,

WHICH NEVER GOES AWAY,

IT STARTS BEING USED
TO SELL TOBACCO.

Narrator: IN HER LIFETIME,

SHE'S GOING TO BE USED
TO SELL SOMETHING ELSE--

AMERICA ITSELF.

[BELL RINGING]

[YELLING IN DISTANCE]

Narrator: IN 1616,

POCAHONTAS
BOARDS AN ENGLISH SHIP

FOR THE SECOND TIME.

IT IS CAPTAINED
BY THE VERY SAME MAN

WHO KIDNAPPED HER
JUST THREE YEARS BEFORE.

BUT ON THIS VOYAGE,

SHE IS AN HONORED GUEST
OF THE VIRGINIA COMPANY,

SETTING SAIL FOR LONDON.

Townsend: SHE WAS PRESSURED
TO GO WITH HER HUSBAND

AND HER THEN VERY YOUNG
TODDLER CHILD TO ENGLAND

BY THE VIRGINIA COMPANY
BECAUSE THEY NEEDED,

DESPERATELY NEEDED
TO USE THE MARRIAGE,

HER MARRIAGE TO JOHN ROLFE,

AS PROOF THAT
THE SETTLEMENT WAS VIABLE,

THAT THE INDIANS
WEREN'T GOING TO ATTACK,

AND THAT IT WAS SAFE
TO SETTLE THERE.

Narrator: SHE IS VERY POSSIBLY
THE PERFECT PERSON FOR THE JOB.

Ganteaume: SO,
ALL THROUGHOUT THE 1500s,

EUROPEANS WERE THINKING OF
INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AS CANNIBALS,

AS IDOLATERS,

AS BRUTISH,

AND MOST OF ALL AS BEING
IRREDEEMABLY NON-CHRISTIAN.

OK. ENTER POCAHONTAS.

SHE IS NONE OF THESE THINGS.

Narrator: IN LONDON,

ALL THINGS VIRGINIA
ARE THE RAGE.

THE 1609 BERMUDA SHIPWRECK
OF THE SEA VENTURE--

THE SHIP JOHN ROLFE SAILED ON
TO THE NEW WORLD--

INSPIRED SHAKESPEARE'S
"THE TEMPEST"

AND ROMANTICIZED THE PROMISE
OF VIRGINIA.

POCAHONTAS ARRIVES TO FIND
HERSELF VERY MUCH IN FASHION.

Ganteaume:
SHE TOOK EUROPE BY STORM.

SHE SHOWS UP SPEAKING ENGLISH
IN ELIZABETHAN GARB.

SHE SHOWS UP
AS A CHRISTIAN WIFE.

SHE SHOWS UP AS SOMEBODY
WHO WAS INVITED

TO THE COURT OF KING JAMES.

SO, POCAHONTAS RIGHT AWAY

BECOMES SOMEBODY
THAT EUROPEANS CAN RELATE TO

AND THEY CAN UNDERSTAND.

♪

Narrator:
TO ADVERTISE HER VISIT,

THE VIRGINIA COMPANY
COMMISSIONS HER PORTRAIT.

Townsend: SIMON VAN DE PASSE,
AN ARTIST AT THE TIME,

WAS ASKED
BY THE VIRGINIA COMPANY

TO SKETCH HER

AND THEN MAKE AN ENGRAVING
FOR A BROCHURE.

Narrator: IT'S THE ONLY PICTURE
OF HER MADE FROM LIFE.

Townsend: IT IS NOTEWORTHY
THAT HE DID NOT, AT THAT TIME,

ATTEMPT TO MAKE HER LOOK LIKE
YOUR AVERAGE WHITE ENGLISH GIRL

OR GERMAN GIRL OR FRENCH GIRL.

RIGHT. SHE IS VERY CLEARLY
IN THAT IMAGE

A NATIVE AMERICAN PERSON.

Narrator:
WHAT DID SHE THINK OF IT ALL?

THE IMAGE CONTAINS CLUES.

Townsend: THEY WANTED
TO PROVE TO THE LONDON PUBLIC

THAT THE INDIANS LOVE US,

THE INDIANS WANT US
TO GO TO VIRGINIA.

SO THEY NEEDED AN IMAGE
OF A HAPPY INDIAN

DRESSED IN ELIZABETHAN
CLOTHES, OKAY.

BUT SOMETIMES I WONDER
IF IT WAS PARTLY HER DECISION

TO PUT ON THAT FIERCE EXPRESSION
STARING STRAIGHT OUT.

Narrator: AND THEN THERE IS THE
ALGONQUIAN WORD FOR VIRGINIA,

PHONETICALLY SPELLED OUT
IN ENGLISH.

Townsend: AROUND THE BAND
OF THE PICTURE THERE IS TEXT.

THEN UNDERNEATH,
IT SAYS VIRGINIA,

THAT IS CALLED TSENACOMMACAH.

SO WHERE COULD
SIMON VAN DE PASSE, THE ARTIST,

HAVE GOTTEN HIS INFORMATION?

CLEARLY FROM HER.

Narrator: SHE MAY WELL HAVE BEEN
CAREFULLY CONTROLLING HER IMAGE,

EVEN AS SHE PROMOTED
COLONIZATION.

Gray: WAS POCAHONTAS A VICTIM?

A PAWN?

THERE'S EVEN BEEN TALK,
YOU KNOW,

SOME PEOPLE EVEN EQUATE HER
WITH BEING A TRAITOR

TO HER OWN PEOPLE.

Narrator: WAS SHE SELLING
THE POWHATAN OUT?

OR JUST PLAYING BOTH SIDES?

Smith:
MAYBE SHE WAS A DOUBLE AGENT.

SHE'S THERE TO GATHER
INTELLIGENCE,

TO SEE THIS THING THAT
HAD TO BE SEEN TO BE BELIEVED.

Narrator:
WE KNOW SHE MADE THE TRIP

WITH HER FATHER'S BLESSING.

Townsend: IN FACT, HE SENT
HIGH-RANKING PEOPLE WITH HER

IN ORDER THAT THEY SHOULD
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE ENGLISH

AND BRING BACK THAT INFORMATION.

Atkins: I HAVE NO DOUBT

THAT POWHATAN
WAS ALSO BEING STRATEGIC

ABOUT HER GOING TO THIS PLACE

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT WHO THESE,
YOU KNOW, INTERLOPERS WERE,

THESE INVADERS WERE.

Narrator:
A MEETING WITH AN OLD FRIEND

RETURNED FROM THE DEAD

REVEALS SOMETHING
OF HER ALLEGIANCES.

John Smith: POCAHONTAS.

Townsend: JOHN SMITH LOVED FAME,

AND HE CHASED IT
IN ANY WAY THAT HE COULD.

AND HE CERTAINLY WORKED HARD
WHEN POCAHONTAS CAME TO LONDON

TO ADVERTISE HIS OWN
PRIOR CONNECTION WITH HER.

Narrator: IF SMITH ANTICIPATED
A HEARTFELT REUNION,

HE WAS DISAPPOINTED.

TO POCAHONTAS,
HE WAS THE SELL-OUT.

Townsend: SHE FELT LIED TO

IN TERMS OF HAVING PROMISED
NOT TO TAKE THEIR LAND,

TO TREAT THEM RESPECTFULLY,
ET CETERA.

AND SHE SAID THAT
VERY VOCIFEROUSLY

IN FRONT OF A NUMBER OF PEOPLE.

Narrator: REJECTING SMITH
AS A TRAITOR TO HER PEOPLE

SUGGESTS THAT SHE WAS
STILL LOYAL TO THE POWHATAN,

DESPITE HER POSITION
AMONG THE ENGLISH.

WHAT WOULD HAPPEN
TO THE POWHATAN

SEEMS OBVIOUS TODAY,

BUT THAT WAS NOT SO
IN THE MOMENT.

Smith: WE'RE BLINDED
BECAUSE WE KNOW THE ENDING.

SO EVERYTHING ABOUT POCAHONTAS

IS KNOWING THAT
THE ENGLISH SETTLEMENT

WAS DISASTROUS
FOR INDIAN PEOPLE.

AND WE'RE COLLAPSING
A CENTURY OF HISTORY

INTO, YOU KNOW, THESE MOMENTS.

Narrator: AFTER ALL, IN 1616,

JAMESTOWN
WAS A STRUGGLING COLONY,

ALWAYS ON THE VERGE
OF STARVATION.

Smith: YOU WOULD
HAVE BEEN THE TOWN FOOL

TO COME IN AND SAY, OH,
THIS IS WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN,

AND IT'S GOING TO BE TERRIBLE,

AND WE SHOULD KILL THEM ALL NOW
WHILE THEY'RE SLEEPING.

Narrator: THE WORK
OF PROMOTING THE COLONY DONE,

IN MARCH OF 1617,

THE ROLFE FAMILY
CASTS OFF FROM LONDON

AND SAILS DOWN THE THAMES
EN ROUTE TO VIRGINIA.

BUT THEY NEVER EVEN
REACH THE OCEAN.

SEVERAL PASSENGERS,
INCLUDING POCAHONTAS,

ARE TOO ILL TO GO ON.

Penney: WE DON'T KNOW, UM,
WHAT SHE WAS AFFLICTED WITH.

SOME EVEN ARE AFRAID THAT
SHE MIGHT HAVE BEEN POISONED,

THAT THEY DIDN'T
WANT HER TO GO BACK.

WE DON'T KNOW.

Narrator: AT JUST 22 YEARS OLD

AND AN OCEAN AWAY
FROM HER HOME,

POCAHONTAS DIES.

[BABY CRIES]

JOHN ROLFE LEAVES THEIR SON

TO BE RAISED BY HIS BROTHER
IN ENGLAND.

[CRYING]

THE TWO WILL NEVER MEET AGAIN.

BUT POCAHONTAS' IMPACT
DOES NOT END WITH HER DEATH.

HER SON, THOMAS ROLFE,
GROWS UP IN BRITAIN,

BUT RETURNS TO AMERICA
AS AN ADULT IN 1635.

Penney: HE HAS THE ESTATES
THAT JOHN ROLFE CREATED,

AND HE IS VERY WEALTHY
AS A RESULT,

AS A TOBACCO PLANTATION
OWNER AND MANAGER.

Narrator: HIS BECOMES
ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT

FIRST FAMILIES OF VIRGINIA.

HIS MOTHER'S BLOODLINE QUITE
LITERALLY FOUNDS AMERICA.

Penney: NOT ONLY
THOMAS JEFFERSON'S SISTER

MARRIED A DESCENDANT
OF POCAHONTAS,

BUT HIS DAUGHTER MARRIED
A DESCENDANT OF POCAHONTAS

FROM A DIFFERENT BRANCH
OF THE FAMILY AS WELL.

Narrator: TODAY THERE ARE
MORE THAN 30,000

DOCUMENTED DESCENDANTS
OF POCAHONTAS

THROUGH THOMAS ROLFE.

Townsend: IT SEEMS TO BE
APPEALING TO MANY AMERICANS

TO SAY THAT THEY ARE DESCENDED
FROM AN INDIAN PRINCESS.

Narrator:
DESCENDANTS OF POCAHONTAS

INCLUDE ROBERT E. LEE

AND FIRST LADY
EDITH BOLLING GALT WILSON.

IT'S LINEAGE
THAT CONFERS STATUS,

LIKE BEING RELATED
TO PASSENGERS ON THE MAYFLOWER.

BUT IS IT TRULY MEANINGFUL?

Townsend: MANY OF THE PEOPLE WHO
CLAIM TO BE DESCENDANTS OF HER

CAN'T EVEN SAY
WHEN THEY'RE ASKED

WHAT TRIBE OR TRIBES
SHE WAS AFFILIATED WITH,

KNOW ALMOST NOTHING
ABOUT HER LIFE.

Narrator:
IT'S A COMPLICATED LEGACY

THAT WOULD TAKE
A SURPRISING TURN.

Smith: IN THE 1920s,

THIS IS WHEN THESE IDEOLOGICAL
CHICKENS COME HOME TO ROOST.

Narrator: IN 1924,

VIRGINIA'S REGISTRAR
OF VITAL STATISTICS,

AN AVOWED WHITE SUPREMACIST,
WALTER PLECKER,

LEADS AN EFFORT TO
"PURIFY" THE WHITE RACE.

HE CLASSIFIES ANYONE WITH
ONE DROP OF NON-WHITE BLOOD

AS "COLORED,"

WHICH INCLUDES
POCAHONTAS' DESCENDANTS.

Smith: UH-OH.

I BRAG ABOUT
MY POCAHONTAS ANCESTRY.

SO HOW DOES THAT GET FIXED?

Narrator: IT'S FIXED

BY WHAT COMES TO BE KNOWN
AS THE POCAHONTAS EXCEPTION.

Atkins: IT BASICALLY PROTECTS
THESE WHITE INDIVIDUALS

WHO CLAIM DESCENDANCY
FROM POCAHONTAS

FROM BEING MOVED
INTO THE COLORED CATEGORY.

Narrator: AT THE SAME TIME,

THE COLORED CATEGORY
LUMPS EVERYONE TOGETHER,

AND ON PAPER, NATIVE AMERICANS
LOSE THEIR UNIQUE HERITAGE.

LESS THAN A HUNDRED YEARS LATER,

THE PAMUNKEY, THE SURVIVING
MEMBERS OF POCAHONTAS' TRIBE,

TAKE ON THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
TO GET THAT RECOGNITION BACK.

AT LAST, THE POCAHONTAS
EXCEPTION DOES SOME GOOD.

Gray: PLECKER, ALL HIS EFFORTS
TO FIGHT AGAINST US,

BASICALLY HELPED
OUR RECOGNITION

BECAUSE IF HE WAS FIGHTING
SO HARD AGAINST US,

THEN WE MUST HAVE EXISTED.

IF, UH, IF WE DIDN'T EXIST,
WHY WAS HE FIGHTING?

WE MAINTAINED OUR IDENTITY.

IT WAS TOUGH,

BUT WE CAME OUT OF IT
JUST KNOWING WHO WE WERE.

Narrator:
POCAHONTAS' FAME IS ETERNAL.

WE HAVE BEEN
TELLING OURSELVES HER STORY

FOR 400 YEARS.

Actress: POCAHONTAS ASKS HIM
TO GIVE HER THIS MAN'S LIFE.

Smith: IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT
FOR THE COUNTRY

TO SEE INDIANS IN SOME WAY
PARTNERS TO THE UNITED STATES.

POCAHONTAS WAS THERE,
SHE WAS PART OF THINGS,

AND WE LOVE POCAHONTAS.

PEOPLE ARE SAYING
IT STILL MATTERS

AND INDIANS ARE FUNDAMENTALLY
PART OF THE COUNTRY.

Narrator: JOHN SMITH AND DISNEY
MAY HAVE MADE HER FAMOUS...

BUT BEYOND THE MYTH,

HERS IS A STORY AT THE CORE
OF THE FOUNDING OF AMERICA.

♪