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trated28, no. 2 (1989): 38–45.BACON, NATHANIEL
Bacon, Nathaniel
(January 2, 1647–October 26, 1676)
Colonial Rebel
B
acon led the quixotic disturbance
known as Bacon’s Rebellion against
Virginia’s colonial authority in 1676, a
miniature civil war interspersed with cam-
paigns directed against friendly Indians. To
this day, scholars are still divided over his in-
tentions and whether or not he should be
viewed as a champion of liberty or simply an
ambitious demagogue.
Nathaniel Bacon was born in Suffolk
County, England, a relative of Sir Francis
Bacon, the noted lord chancellor. He was edu-
cated at St. Catherine’s Hall, Cambridge, and
subsequently studied law at Gray’s Inn. Bacon
possessed both talent and ambition, being de-
scribed by his tutor as a young man of “very
good parts, and a quick wit.” However, he also
displayed a streak of malfeasance that char-
acterized his later life. Bacon apparently
eloped and married Elizabeth Duke in such a
manner that her father, Sir Edward, Duke of
Benhall, disinherited her, and the two never
spoke again. Shortly after, Bacon was impli-
cated in a scheme to defraud a neighbor of his
money, and his father promptly shipped the
listless youth off to the Royal Colony of Vir-
ginia. It was anticipated that there his elder
cousin, Nathaniel Bacon Sr., could oversee his
rise to responsible adulthood.
Once in Virginia, the elder Bacon arranged
the young man’s comfortable transition into
colonial society. In fact, Governor Sir William
Berkeley was related to him by marriage, and
Bacon also received the distinct honor of
being appointed to the governor’s council.
Thus situated, Bacon established himself on a
sizable plantation at Curles, about 50 miles
above Jamestown, where he attempted to set-
tle into the life of a gentleman farmer. Unfor-
tunately, Virginia at this time was experienc-
ing a period of economic and social distress.
Due to a dramatic fall in the price of tobacco,
the colony’s principal export, a severe depres-
sion had lingered for several months. For ten-
ant farmers eking out a marginal existence,
this usually meant the liquidation of one’s
property to pay off debts. Many others were
forced into indentured servitude—with the
accompanying loss of freedom—until their
outstanding debts were paid. Furthermore,
there was growing resentment among many
colonists that Berkeley, and the oligarchy that
ran Virginia, did so for their own exclusive
good. Bacon, despite his many advantages,
was not immune to such hardships, and at
length he tried raising additional money by
trading with the Indians. However, Native
American discontent over white encroach-
ment on their lands led to an outbreak of fron-
tier violence in 1675; this, combined with per-
vasive dissatisfaction among the colony’s
inhabitants, precipitated a major upheaval.