For Kids
Not far from Jamestown, there was a tribe of Indians led by great Indian chief, King Powhantan. The chief loved his little daughter, Princess Pocahontas, and gave her everything she asked for.
One day, a group of warriors returned to the village with someone they had captured - Captain John Smith! They were going to kill him when they first captured him, but the Captain pulled out his compass and showed the Indians the needle trembling under the glass. They did not know what a compass was - perhaps a weapon or perhaps magic? It worried them. They decided to take their prisoner to their village and give him to their king. Certainly their king would know how to protect them from this powerful weapon.
The Captain was kept prisoner for days. Each day, and into the night, the Captain told the Indians stories of the sun and the moon, and of the great cities and the amazing inventions that could be found on the other side of the ocean. While he told his stories, he watched the Indians carefully, looking for a way to escape. The Indians loved his stories. There were always several Indians in attendance, listening to his tale, especially one little girl named Pocahontas,which left him no chance to escape. Pocahontas was only twelve years old. She had already learned to admire the colonists. She had hidden and watched them many times. Although Pocahontas did not tire of his stories, the warriors did. The day came when Captain John Smith's fate was decided by the chief.
The Captain was brought into the chief's tent. The chief was dressed in racoon skins. Around him were his warriors, some of whom held clubs. His wives were there as well. In front of him, a fire burned. Two warriors entered the tent, each carrying a large stone. Captain John Smith was forced to lie down and put his head on the stones. The warriors with clubs moved slowly toward him. Pocahontas rushed forward. She took the Captain's head in her arms and begged her father to spare his life.
Her father denied her nothing. He ordered the Captain to be released. Much to the Captain's amazement, instead of being slowly clubbed to death, he was adoped by Chief Powhatan as his son.
After some time, the Captain was allowed to return to the Jamestown colony. The Princess frequently visited the colony. She always brought vegetables with her, or blankets, or something else the colonists would enjoy. She played with the other children. She was greatly loved. When she grew up, she was baptized a Christian and given the name Rebecca. The colonists called her Lady Rebecca because she was a princess, the daughter of a king.
One of the colonists, John Rolfe, fell in love with her. He asked Chief Powhantan if he could marry her, and the chief said yes. Both the Indians and the colonists attended the wedding. The young couple traveled to England, where they were received at court. They spent some time there, but missed home. They were about to return to Jamestown, when Rebecca (Pocahontas) became very sick and died. She left behind a little son. Her husband and her son returned to Jamestown, where her son spent some of his time with his father and the colonists and some of his time with his grandfather, the great chief Powhantan, and the Indians.
Sounds like a fairytale, doesn't it? But it's the true story of Pocahontas, the Indian princess.
