The Name of War

Passed in 1641, this Massachusetts law legalizes slavery within the colony, stipulating that slaves must be spoils of war, voluntary indentures, purchased from elsewhere, or sentenced to servitude. Colonists use this law as an argument for enslaving rebellious Indians. 

The first New England colonists are Puritan pilgrims from England who, beginning in 1620, emigrate to America to escape religious persecution. They establish farms in Indian regions of the Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Plymouth colonies. Their attitude toward the Algonquian Native Americans is of veiled contempt mixed with the desire to convert them to English religion and culture. This exacerbates tensions between the two groups. The colonists manage to overcome an Indian rebellion, King Philip’s War, which helps to crystalize their view of themselves, not merely as English subjects, but also as tough-minded Americans. 

Located in Boston Harbor, one of several isles where Christianized Indians are confined to keep them out of King Philip’s War, Deer Island becomes infamous when Indians there suffer from cold and starvation, escapees are shot, and many are taken away and sold into slavery. The Massachusetts Council grudgingly orders humanitarian efforts on the Indians’ behalf, but these are few and paltry. More than half the detained Indians die of exposure, starvation, and disease. In May 1676 the remaining Indians, many seriously ill, are freed. 

A term of convenience to describe Native Americans of many cultural and linguistic groups, Indians belonging to the Algonquian peoples already reside in New England when the first European colonists arrive. Both groups try awkwardly to live together, but mutual resentments boil over during King Philip’s War, and thousands of Indians are killed, decimating the Algonquian populations of the region. 

Wampanoag chief Massasoit establishes peaceful relations with the Pilgrims in 1620; after his passing and the death of his son Alexander, the chiefly role of sachem falls to Alexander's younger brother, Philip. “King” Philip tries to get along with the English but feels increasingly frustrated with their incursions onto Indian land, their intransigence in dealing with Philip’s people, and their persistent efforts to replace Native religious beliefs with Christianity.

In 1675 he leads his Wampanoag people and the Nipmucks and Pocumtucks, along with a handful of Narragansetts, in attacks against the settlements, killing colonists, firing their homes and farms, and slaughtering cattle. The colonists fight back, and over 14 months they kill thousands of Indians but lose half their towns. The war ends in late summer 1676 with the death of Philip; by then, the settlers, having achieved victory with no outside help, begin to think of themselves not merely as British subjects but as pioneering Americans.

Massachusett is the language of the Massachusett and Wampanoag Indians who live in Eastern Massachusetts colony. It also serves as a second language for nearby Algonquian groups. Preacher John Eliot learns the language and translates the Bible and other religious tracts into a written form of Massachusett, hoping to convert the natives. Devastated by King Philip’s War, the Massachusett community withers, the translated books become scarce, and the language dies out in the 1800s. Lately it has been revived and is spoken among some Natives of the region. 

Located on the shores of Rhode Island, in 1835 the large flat rock is found to be inscribed with strange symbols that strongly resemble letters of the Cherokee alphabet. Spoken aloud, these letters sound out, in the Wampanoag dialect, “Metacomet, Great Sachem.” Whether this is a coincidence or a deliberate effort to connect the memory of King Philip with early nineteenth-century Indian campaigns to save their homelands remains a matter of dispute. 

The Narragansett people, linguistically related to the Massachusett and Wampanoag, live alongside settlers in Rhode Island Colony and are, at first, neutral in King Philip’s War, but they begin to take action against settlements. One of their own fortified towns is burned down by English soldiers; as many as one-third of the 3,000 or more inhabitants dies during the battle. Centuries later, Narragansett descendants achieve federal designation as a nation. 

A Native group in western and central Massachusetts Colony, the Nipmucks ally themselves with Philip’s Wampanoags, raiding and destroying colonial towns in their area. They capture Mary Rowlandson, who records her experiences in a famous book, and Indian James Printer, who helps Rowlandson go free, later helps her publish her memoir. 

A powwaw is a shaman or healer in a Native group in New England. Powwaws read signs and portents from the spirit world to help them determine the best decisions for their groups, including strategies taken during war.

A powwaw is a shaman or healer in a Native group in New England. Powwaws read signs and portents from the spirit world to help them determine the best decisions for their groups, including strategies taken during war.

A sachem is a high-ranking leader of Indian groups, informally considered a Native king by European settlers. Massasoit is the Wampanoag sachem who cooperates with the first English colonists; his son, Alexander, becomes sachem but dies within a year; Alexander’s younger brother, Philip, inherits the office. When Philip is killed, his son is sent away into slavery to prevent him from becoming sachem and leading his people once again in a war against the English. After the war, some sachems become directors of Indian churches. 

A town in Plymouth Colony, Swansea on June 20, 1675 is the first attacked by King Philip’s Indian coalition, which lays siege to and finally destroys the town. On June 28, colonists retaliate with an attack on Mount Hope, Philip’s headquarters.