The Three Charters of the Virginia Company of London. With Seven Related Documents; 1606-1621

20. If you hope to winne them and to provide for your selves by trade you wilbe deceaved, for already your copper is embased by your abundance and neglect of prisinge it and they will never feede you but for feare. Wherefore, if you perceave that they, uppon your landinge, fly up into the countrey and forsake their habitacion, you must seise into your custody half there corne and harvest and their Weroances and all other their knowne successors at once whom, if you intreate well and educate those which are younge and to succeede in the governement in your manners and religion, their people will easily obey you and become in time civill and Christian.

21. If you make freindship with any of these nations, as you must doe, choose to doe it with those that are farthest from you and enemies unto those amonge whom you dwell, for you shall have least occasion to have differences with them and by that meanes a suerer league of amity, and you shalbe suer of their trade partely for covetousnes and to serve their owne ends, where the copper is yett in his primary estimacion which Pohaton hath hitherto engrossed and partely for feare of constrainte. Monocon, to the east and head of our river, Powhatons enemy; and the Manahockes, to the northeast to the head of the River of Moyompo in the necke of the land to the west betweene our bay and the sea; Cathcatapeius, a greater Weroance then he is, also his enemy to the Southeast and South—he hath no freinde to the north; the Masawoymekes make continuall incursions uppon him and uppon all those that inhabite the Rivers of Bolus and Myomps and to the northwest; Pocoughtuwonough infecteth him with a terrible warr. With those you may hold trade and freindeship good cheape for their emotenes [remoteness?] will prevent all offence which must needes happen betweene us and them which we are mingled with to the North. At the head bay is a large towne where is store of copper and furres called Cataaneon that trade and discovery wilbe to greate purpose, if it may be setled yearely.

22. Such trade as you shall finde necessary or profitable for you with the Indians you shall endeavour to drawe them to seeke of you and to bringe their commodities into your forte, which will greatly ease the imployment of many men, and this you may bringe to passe by seeminge to make litle estimacion of trade with them and by pretendinge to be so able to consist within your selves as that you neede care for nothinge of theires, but rather that you doe them a curtesy to spare such necessaries as they want as leetle iron tooles, or copper, or the like such as are convenient for traffique; and so one officer or two in every forte, whom you must onely appointe to be truncmasters, may dispatch the whole busines of trade which els will cost you many mens laboures if you seeke it far from home. And besides these you must, by proclamacion or edicte publiquely affixed, prohibite and forbidd uppon paine or punishement of your discrecion all other persons to trade or exchange for anythinge but such as shalbe necessarie for foode or clothinge; and uppon all such commodities of yours as shall passe away from you whatsoever, you must sett prises and values under which the trunckemaster must not trade, and so you shalbe such to uphold the reputacion of your commodity and to make your traffique rich, desired and certaine; over this truncemaster there must be appointed a cape merchant or officer belonginge to the store or provision house that must deliver by booke all such things as shalbe allowed for trade and receave and take an accounte of whatsover is retourned, accordinge to the prises therein sett, and so beinge booked must store them up, to the publique use of the colony.

23. You must constitute and declare some sharpe lawe with a penaltie thereon to restraine the trade of any prohibited goods, especially of swordes, pikeheads, gunnes, daggers, or any thinge of iron that may be turned against you, and in case of such offence punishe severely; have also especially regard that no arte or trade tendinge to armes in any wise, as smithey, carpentry, of or such like, be taught the savages or used in their presence, as they may learne therein.

24. Havinge deduced your colony into severall seates and plantacions that may commodiously answere and receive one another, you must devide your people into tennes, twenties, & so upwards, to every necessary worke a competent nomber, over every one of which you must appointe some man of care and [skill] in that worke to oversee them and to take daily accounte of their laboures; and you must ordaine that every overseer of such a nomber of workemen deliver once a weeke an accounte of the wholle committed to his charge [to] the cheife governor or captaine of the fourte; and that they also once a moneth make the like accounte to you or your officer and that such goodes or provisions as are advanced or gotten above expence may be receaved and entred into the capemarchantes booke and so stored and preserved to the publique use of the colony. And thus you shall both knowe howe your men are imployed, what they gett & where it is, as also the measure of your provision and wealth.

25. For such of your men as shall attend any worke in or nere aboute every towne, you shall doe best to lett them eate together at seasonable howers in some publique place, beinge messed by sixe or five to a messe, in which you must see there bee equality and sufficient that so they may come and retourne to their worke without any delay and have no cause to complaine of measure or to excuse their idlenes uppon the dressinge or want of diett. You may well allowe them three howers in a somers day and two in the winter, and shall call them together by ringinge of a bell and by the same worne them againe to worke; for such as attend any labouer so farre from the forte, as they cannot returne at seasonable times, there must be a steward appointed that shall oversee there diett and provision, els thoughe you give every one a reasonalbe allowance for many dayes some will eate two meales at one & soe:

26. You shall give especiall order to the cheif commaunder of every forte that the armes, powder and munition be well stored and looked into and that the men be disposed into severall companies for warr and captaines appointed over every fifty to traine them at convenient times and to teache them the use of their armes and weapons and they may knowe whether uppon all occasions and sudden attempts they shall repaire to find them in a readines.

27. You must take especiall care what relacions come into England and what lettres are written and that all thinges of that nature may be boxed up and sealed and sent to first to the Councell here, accordinge to a former instruccion unto the late president in that behalf directed; and that at the arivall and retourne of every shippinge you endeavour to knowe all the particuler passages and informacions given on both sides and to advertise us accordingly.

28. Whensoever you consult of any busines of importance, wee advise you to consider and deliberate all thinges patiently & willingly and to heare every man his oppinion and objeccion, but the resultants out of them or your owne determinacion what you intend to doe not to imparte to any whatsoever, but to such onely as shall execute it, and to them also under the sealle of your commaundement and but at the instant of their partinge from you or the execucion of your will.

29. Next after buildinge, husbandry and manuringe the countrey for the provision of life and conveniency, wee comend unto your care foure principall waies of enrichinge the colonies and providinge returne of commodity, of which you must be very solicitouse that our fleetes come not home empty nor laden with useles marchandize. The first is discovery either of the southe seas or royall mines, in the search of both which we must referre you to the circumstances of your peace and your owne discrecion; the second is trade whereby you recover all the commodities of those countreys that ly far of and yet are accessable by water; the third is tribute, by which you shall advaunce parte of what soever the next lande can provide you can produce; the fourth is labour of your owne men in makinge wines, pitche, tarre, sope, ashes, steele, iron, pipestaves, in sowinge of hempe and flaxe, in gatheringe silke of the grasse, and providinge the worme and in fishinge for pearle, codd, sturgion, and such like.

30. Wee require you to call before you Captaine John Radcliffe and one … Webbe who hath complained by peticion delivered unto you of divers injuries and insolences done unto him in the governement of the said Captaine Radcliffe, and accordingly to heare the cause and doe justice in it as you shall finde reason in it your owne discrecion.

31. Whereas suite hath bine made unto us as for the retourne of Richard Potts, David Wiffin and Post Ginnet, and sufficient reasons declared to move us to graunte the same which hath bine agreed unto by the Councell assembled, wee require you to give them their licence to come backe by the next shippinge with such condicions or limitacions of retorne or otherwise as you shall thinke good.

32. Whereas peticion hath bine made by the friends of John Tavernor, capemarchant of the forte and store in Virginia, for his retorne uppon some urgent occasion and for some time into England, we require you to licence him so to do if it be his desire when you arive there; and we doe nominate and appointe Thomas Wittingham into his roome and office, beinge one in whose sufficiency and honesty we have greate confidence.

33. There beinge one George Liste, servant to John Woodall and sent over by him with a chest of cheurgery sufficiently furnished, we require you to give your licence to William Wilson, his fellowe, if the said George Liste doe stay with you, to come backe in this passage, the better to enfourme us what medicines and drugges are fittest to be provided for the use of the colonie against the next supply.

34. You shall be very wary of grantinge freedomes and of givinge your sealle to any but uppon good consideracion and greate merite, least you make cheape the best way of our recompence; and in those you doe you shall give with such limitacions of retorne in reasonable time as in your discrecion shall seeme good.

35. If it shall please God that you should dy either in your way or in your governement (which his mercy forbid) before other order be taken by us therein, wee requier and commaund that the Councell there established open a blacke boxe, marked with the figure of one and sealed with our sealle, wherein they shall finde our determinacion concerninge the successor to the governement; and do, in His Majesties name, charge and commaund every person within the precincte of the Colony to give and yeild due obedience to him so named and appointed accordinge unto his commission unto him, directed as they will aunswere to the contrary at their uttermost perill.

36. Wee also requier you, the present Governor & all your successors, to keepe secret to your selves, unsealed and unbroken up, all such lettres, schedules and instruments and whatsoever wee shall deliver you soe under our sealle, especially two blacke boxes with divers markes wherein are our commissions in cases of death or other vacacion of the Governor untill such time as you shall find your self unlikely to live or determined to returne, uppon which occasions wee requier you that they be delivered before all the Councell to be opened successively after such death or departure out of Virginia of any Governor.

Provided that in all thinges herein contained, except onely the succession, wee doe by these our lettres instruccions binde you to nothinge so strictely but that uppon due consideracion and good reason, and uppon divers circumstances of time and place wherein we cannot here conclude, you may in your discrecion departe and dissent from them and change, alter or establishe, execute and doe all ordinances or acts whatsoever that may best conducte to the glory of God, the honor of our Kinge and nation to the good and perfect establishement of our Colony. Geven under our hands and Councell sealle the        day of May, in the seaventh yeare of His Majesties ragne of England, Fraunce & Ireland and Scotland the two and fortithe.

Kingsbury, Records of the Virginia Company of London, Vol. III, pp. 12-24.

VIRGINIA COUNCIL. "INSTRUCTIONS, ORDERS AND CONSTITUCIONS … TO … SIR THOMAS WEST, KNIGHT, LORD LA WARR."

1609/10(?)

Instructions, orders and constitucions by way of advise sett downe, declared, propounded and delivered to the Right Honourable Sir Thomas West, Knight, Lord La Warr, Lord Governor and Capten Generall of Virginea and of the Colonies there planted and to be planted and of all other the inhabitants thereof, by us, His Majesties Counsell for the Companie of Adventurers and Planters in Virginea resident in England under the hands of some of us for the direccion of the affares of that countrey for his better disposinge and proceedinge in the government thereof, according to the authoritie and power given unto us by His Majesties lettres patents in that behalf, together with a copie of certaine of the cheifest instruccions which have bene formerlie given to Sir Thomas Gates, Knight, for his direccion, which coppie we have given to his Lordship to peruse and looke into but leave it to his discretion to use and put them in execution or to beare to be advised or directed by them further then in his owne discretion he shall thinke meete.

We, the said Councell, havinge considered the great & zealous affeccion which you, Sir Thomas West, Knight, Lord Lawarr, have many wayes manifested unto us and for the furtherance and advaunceinge of the plantacion of Virginea have therefore by our commission under the handes of some of us, constituted you to be Lord Governor and Captaine Generall of Virginea and for your more safe and deliberate proceedinge in your goverment there, have advised, constituted & agreed uppon divers instructions followinge, vizt:

1. First, we require your Lordship to take into your charge our fleete consistinge of three good shippes with the masters, mariners, sailors and one hundred and fiftie landmen goinge in them to be transported under your commaund with what speed conveniently you maye unto Virginea and with the first winde to sett saile for that place and in your passage thither not to lande or touche uppon anye of the Kinge of Spaine his dominions by him quietly possessed without the licence of the governour of such place first obtained, unles by necessitie of winde and weather you shalbe forced thereunto; in which passage you shall holde councell with the masters, pilates and men of best experience what way is safest and fitt for you to take for your arrivinge in Virginea.

2. Your Lordships beinge landed there, we wishe you should (with what convenientcy you may by proclamacion made) call into some publique place all the governors, officers and other His Majesties subjects, aswell already seated there as transported with you, to whom you shall manifest your commission and cause it to be publiquely read to them, to the end His Majesties pleasure may be knowne as alsoe our choise in establishinge your Lordship Governor of Virginea and of the plantacion there; and that the President, Counsell and Colony there may take notice of our revocacion of all former kindes and formes of goverment, constituted or confirmed, and that they accordingely may yeild due obedience unto you, theire Lord Governor and Captaine Generall, at which time we holde it fitt you tender unto every of them the oath of supremacy to be by them taken whereby they shall manifest theire obedience and loyaltie to His Majestie and you thereby the better assured of theire fidelities as alsoe to be the rather encouraged to comitt matter of counsell and charge unto them; att which time alsoe your Lordship shall, in our opinions, doe well to give generall commaundement that all former private or publique quarels, greivancs or grudgs be from thenceforth from amongest them utterly abbandoned and forgotten and they willingly embrace peace and love as becommeth Christians without discention or hindrance to the common good or quiet.

3. Moreover, your Lordship shall demaunde and resume into your hands all former commissions and all instructions and publique instruments given or sent unto them and all bookes and records whatsoever of all the proceedings untill this time and dispose of all theire offices and places in the future accordinge to your discretion; except the office of Leiuetennante Governor, which your Lordship is by your commission to bestowe upon Sir Thomas Gates, if he shalbe there to execute the same, and office of Marshall uppon Sir Thomas Dale, at this cominge thither, and the office of Admirall upon Sir George Sumers, if he shalbe there, and the office of Viceadmirall upon Capten Newport, he beinge there to supplye the said place.

4. Your shippes beinge discharged of theire provision, we wishe that they, the seamen and soe manie others as shalbe needfull for that worke, be, with what convenient speed you may, employed to theire fishinge for sturgeons and other fish; which done we desier your Lordship should make up the residue of theire fraight with divers of the best severall patternes of the land, commodities that you can gett there havinge regarde more to the goodnes and qualitie of them then to the quantity; and to retorne the said shippes for England with as quick dispatch as you may for easinge of the Companie of Adventurers of the charge both of wages of the said shippes, seamen and victualls which they must be att untill they retorne.

5. After your Lordship is settled in your governement, we thinke it very behofefull that you employ soe many of your people as shalbe needfull in sowing, setting and plantinge of corne and such rootes for foode as you for your better provision, sustentacion and maintennance shall thinke meete to be planted.

6. As touchinge your landmen, we thinke fitt your Lordship should reduce them all into severall bandes and companies of fifties or more when you thinke good and to committ the charge of them to severall officers and captaines to be exercised and trained up in martiall manner and warlike discipline.

7. Your Lordship is to take principall order and care for the true worship and service of God as by havinge the Gospell preched, frequent prayers and the sacraments often administred as becommeth Christians. And that such your ministers and preachers as shalbe with you be had in due respect agreable to theire dignitie and callinge and that your Lordship, with the counsell of your said prechers and ministers, doe, as occasion shall be offered, proceede in punishinge of all atheisme, prophanisme, popery and scisme by exemplary punishment to the honor of God and to the peace and safety of his church over which in this tendernes and infancy your Lordship must be especially solicitous and watchfull.

8. It is very expedient that your Lordship with all diligence indeavor the conversion of the natives and savages to the knowledge and worship of the true God and theire redemer Christ Jesus as the most pious and noble end of this plantacion; which the better to effecte you are to procure from them some of theire children to be brought up in our language and manners and, if you finde it convenient, we thinke it necesserie you first remove from them the iniococks or priests by a surprise of them and detaninge them prisoners and in case they shalbe willfull and obstinate then to send over some three or foure of them into England, we may endevor theire conversion here.

9. We holde it requisite that your Lordship in causes of civill justice, proceede rather as a counsellor then as a judge; that is to saie, rather uppon the right and equitie of the thinge in demaunde then uppon the nicenes and letter of the lawe, which perplexeth in this tender body rather then dispatcheth causes. Soe that a summary and arbitrary way of justice, mingled with discreet formes of magistracy as shall in your discretion seeme aptest for your Lordship to exercise in that place, wilbe of most use both for expedicion and example and for criminall causes, you are to deale therein according to your comission and good discretion.

10. That your Lordship doe not permitt any shippe or vessell to trade or traffique within your precincte to carrie from thence any commodities or marchandizes without warrant brought you or sent to your Lordship from the Councell for the Company of Adventurers under the Councell seale.

11. We doe require your Lordship that with what possible speed and conveniency you may, after you are setled, you appointe a convenient number with guides and some discreete commaunder to discover northwest, south and southwest, beyonde the faulls ten or twelve dayes journey, and that assone as may be your Lordship send unto us the narracion of that voyage what rivers, lakes or seas they finde or here of with the circumstanc there unto belonginge.

12. If Sir Thomas Gates be there arived and Sir George Sommers and Capten Newport, or any of them, that your Lordship doe give unto Sir Thomas Gates the place or office of Leiuetennant Governor to your Lordship duringe the time of your Lordship and his abode there together, and in your Lordships absence he beinge there to be your deputy and cheif generall and commaunder of the whole Colonye and Companie, and to rule and governe according to suche instructions as your Lordship shall limitt and appointe him; and that Sir George Sommers may have the office of Cheif Admirall under your Lordship and that Sir Ferdinando Weyneman may have the office of Master of the ordinance, and that Capten Newport may have the office of Viceadmirall unto your Lordship.

13. Your Lordship must take especiall care what relacions come into England and what lettres are written & that all things of that nature may be boxed up and sealed and sent first to the Counsell here, accordinge to a former instruction unto the late Governor in that behalf directed; and that att the arrival and retorne of every shippinge you endeavor to knowe all the particuler passages and informacions given on both sides and to advertise us accordingly.

14. Last of all, for temporall goverment & perticuler proceedinge in your plantacion, in respect of the shortnes of time, we commende unto your Lordship the copie of some of the cheifest of the old instruccions before mencioned to have bene formerly delivered to Sir Thomas Gates, to be used or refused as you shall in your wisdome thinke fitt, neither is or meanes to tie your Lordship to the stricte perfourmance of theis newe instructions but as occasion of time, place or necessetie shall requir your Lordship may doe therein as shall seeme best in your owne discretion. Southampton, Pembroke, Philip Mountgomery, Edward Cecill, Walter Cope, Dudly Diggs, William Rumney, Thomas Smith, Robert Drewrye, Robert Maunsell, Baptist Hicks, Christofer Brooke.

The copie of the old instruccions which were formerly with others delivered to Sir Thomas Gates, Knight, att his goinge to Virginea for his direccion in his goverment there, and noew are by us, His Majesties Councill for the Companie of Adventurers for Virginea, given to the Right Honourable, the Lord La Warr to looke into and advise on and at his discretion to use [or] forbeare to put them in execucion.

Such of the old instructions which were formerly given to Sir Thomas Gates, Knight, and nowe delivered to the Lord La Warre, beginne att the ninth instruccion in the articles in thi booke which by waye of advise were sett down to the said Sir Thomas Gates and soe are written ontill you come to the thirtith instruccion which 30th, 31, 32 & 33 instructions are not given his Lordship but the 34th is given him, but not the 35 nor 36, but the effect of the provisoe followinge is given.

Kingsbury, Vol. III, pp. 24-29.

THE THIRD CHARTER

March 12, 1612

James, by the grace of God [King of England, Scotland, France and Ireland, Defender of the Faith;] to all to whom [these presents shall come,] greeting. Whereas at the humble suite of divers and sundry our lovinge subjects, aswell adventurers as planters of the First Colonie in Virginia, and for the propagacion of Christian religion and reclayminge of people barbarous to civilitie and humanitie, we have by our lettres patent bearing date at Westminster the three and twentieth daie of May in the seaventh yeare of our raigne of England, Frannce and Ireland, and the twoe and fortieth of Scotland, given and grannted unto them, that they and all suche and soe manie of our loving subjects as shold from time to time for ever after be joyned with them as planters or adventurers in the said plantacion, and their successors for ever, shold be one body politique incorporated by the name of The Treasorer and Planters of the Cittie of London for the First Colonie in Virginia;