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144 men sailed to Jamestown to establish a colony, find gold, and find a water passage to the Pacific Ocean for King James and the Virginia Company. There were three ships, the Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery.
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After 4 months, they landed in Cape Henry, Virginia. They didn't want to stay because they thought there would be a Spanish invasion.
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They traveled up the Chesapeake Bay and found a spot that they called, Jamestown in honor of King James. During the months, it had started to get rough because the land was swampy and not good for farming.
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John and 8 other men went up the Chickahominy River to find a shortcut to the Pacific Ocean. It ended up they never did find one.
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John Smith was captured by the Powhatan and was sentenced to die but Pocahontas (Powhatan's daughter) begged her father to spare John's life. Powhatan let him go.
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More than half the people in Jamestown died of sickness. There was also trouble between the colonists and the Indians.
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John Smith is now the president of the colony. He was the most successful leader the colony has had. He said a rule, "He that will not work shall not eat."
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He brought tobacco plants from the West Indies and the colonists grew them as cash crop. John Rolfe married Pocahontas.
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More and more Africans were brought to the colony. They helped plant crops which helped Virginia to grow.
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The Virginia Company thinks that the colonists should have the same rights as people living in England. So colonists decided to make a legislature. Only men who owned property could become members and vote.
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King James I made the Virginia colony a royal colony because the Powhatan were fighting them. The king owned the colony and he picked a governor to run it.
