Captain John Smith

While reading some background information about the colonies and the colonists' realationships with the Native Americans, I was surprised about what I learned about John Smith.  In my history book, Johnson talks about how John Smith did all these things to help the colonists survive their first year, and "He got no thanks for his effort" (25).

At first he was a mercenary, hired to work as a soldier against the Turks.  He was then hired to be part of the Jamestown colony.  After being elected president of their council, he got down to work to organize everyone and lead them to success.  He used "...military discipline on the remaining men, negotiated with the Indians for sufficient food to get the colony through the winter, and in fact kept the mortality rate down to 5%" (Johnson 25).  Two months after his contract changed, he had to go back to England, and later he worked in Cape Cod writing about his discoveries.

If it hadn't been for Captain John Smith, then Jamestown Colony may not have made it through its first winter.  They were lucky to have him, even if he was a strict leader.