Bradford's history of the Plymouth settlement, 1608-1650 / Rendered into modern English by Harold Paget

by William Bradford

CHAPTER XVIII

The war with the Pequot Indians—Co-operation between the Colonies—The Narragansett Indians allies of the English—The Pequot Fort attacked and taken—The Pequots routed and subdued—The Narragansett Indians jealous of the Monhiggs under Uncas—James Sherley discharged from his agency in London: 1637.

In the early part of this year the Pequots openly attacked the English in Connecticut, along the lower parts of the river, and killed many of them as they were at work in the fields, both men and women, to the great terror of the rest; then they went off in great pride and triumph, with many high threats. They also attacked a fort at the river’s mouth, though strong and well defended; and though they did not succeed there, it struck those within with fear and astonishment to see their bold attempts in the face of danger. This made them stand upon their guard everywhere, and prepare for resistance, and they earnestly solicited their friends and neighbours in Massachusetts to send them speedy aid, for they looked for more forcible onslaughts. So Mr. Vane, who was then Governor, wrote from their General Court to those here, asking them to join with them in this war, which they were cordially willing to do, but took the opportunity to write to them about some previous events, as well as the present trouble, and pertinent to it. The succeeding Governor’s answer I will here insert.

Governor John Winthrop at Boston to the New Plymouth Colony:

Sir,

The Lord having so disposed that your letters to our late Governor have fallen to my lot to answer, I could wish I had more freedom of time and thought so that I might do it more to your and my own satisfaction. But what is wanting now can be supplied later. As for the matters which you and your Council submit to our consideration, we did not think it advisable to make them so public as by bringing them to the cognizance of our General Court. But having been considered by our Council, this answer we think fit to return to you.

1. Whereas you signify your willingness to join us in this war against the Pequots, though you cannot bind yourselves without the consent of your General Court, we acknowledge your good feeling towards us, which we never had cause to doubt, and await your full resolution in due course.

2. Whereas you consider this war concerns us, and not you, except incidentally, we partly agree with you; but we suppose that in case of peril you will not act upon that consideration any more than we should do in like case. We suppose you look upon the Pequots and all other Indians as a common enemy, who though he may vent the first outburst of his rage upon some one section of the English, nevertheless, if he succeed, will thereupon pursue his advantage to the undoing of the whole nation. Therefore, in soliciting your help, we do so with respect to your own safety as well as ours.

3. Whereas you desire that we should bind ourselves to help you on all similar occasions, we are convinced you cannot doubt it; but as we now deal with you as an independent colony, recognizing that we cannot involve you in this campaign against your consent, so we desire the same freedom of decision if at any time you make a similar call upon us; and whereas it is objected that we refused to aid you against the French, we consider the cases are not quite equivalent, though we cannot wholly excuse our failing you on that occasion.

4. Whereas you object that we began the war without consulting you, and have since managed it contrary to your advice; the truth is that our first intentions being only against Block Island and the enterprise seeming of small difficulty, we did not so much as consider taking advice or looking for aid. When we had decided to include the Pequots, we sent to you at once, or very shortly after, and by the time your answer was received it seemed unadvisable for us to change our plans.

5. As for our people trading at Kennebec, we assure you it has not been with our permission; and what we have provided to meet such cases at our last court, Mr. Winslow can inform you.

6. Whereas you object to our trading and corresponding with your enemies the French, we answer you are misinformed. Except for some letters which have passed between our late Governor and them, of which we were cognizant, we have neither traded nor encouraged our people to trade with them; and only one or two vessels taking letters had permission from our Governor to go there.[10]

Several other objections have been made to us privately by our worthy friend, to which he has received some answer; but as most of them concern particular discourtesies or injuries from individuals here, we cannot say more than this: that if the offenders are exposed in the right way, we shall be ready to do justice as the cases require. In the meantime we desire you to rest assured, that such things are done without our knowledge, and are not a little grievous to us.

Now as to joining us in this war, which only concerns us to the same extent as it does yourselves, viz., the relief of our friends and Christian brethren who are now first in danger. Though you may think us able to carry it through without you,—and if the Lord please to be with us, so we may,—nevertheless three things we offer for your consideration, which we think will have some weight with you.

First, if we should sink under this burden, your opportunity of seasonable help would be lost in three respects; you could then only reinforce us or secure yourselves there at three times the risk and expense of the present undertaking; the suffering we should have borne, if through your neglect, would much reduce the acceptableness of your help afterwards; those amongst you who are now full of courage and zeal, would be dispirited and less able to support so great a burden.

Secondly, it is very important to hasten the conclusion of this war before the end of this summer, otherwise the news of it will discourage both your and our friends from coming over to us next year, besides the further risk and loss it would expose us to, as yourselves may judge.

Thirdly, if the Lord please to bless our endeavours, so that we end the war, or succeed in it without you, it may breed such ill thoughts in our people towards yours, that it will be thereafter difficult to entertain such opinion of your good-will towards us as is fitting in neighbours and brethren. What ill consequences might result on both sides, wise men may well fear, and would rather prevent than hope to redress. With hearty salutations to yourself and all your council and our other good friends with you I rest,

Yours most assured in the Lord,
JOHN WINTHROP.

Boston, the 20th of the third month, 1637.

In the meantime the Pequots, especially the winter before, had sought to make peace with the Narragansetts, and used very pernicious arguments to persuade them: the English were strangers, and were beginning to overspread their country, and would deprive them of it in time if they were allowed thus to increase; if the Narragansetts were to assist the English to subdue them, the Pequots, they would only make way for their own overthrow, for then the English would soon subjugate them; but if they would listen to their advice, they need not fear the strength of the English, for they would not make open war upon them, but fire their houses, kill their cattle, and lie in ambush for them as they went about the country—all of which they could do with but little danger to themselves. By these means they easily saw the English could not long hold out, but would either be starved or forced to leave the country. They urged these and similar arguments so strongly, that the Narragansetts were wavering, and half-minded to make peace with them and join them against the English. But when they reconsidered what wrongs they had suffered from the Pequots, and what an opportunity they now had, with the help of the English, to repay them, revenge was so sweet to them that it prevailed over everything else. So they resolved to join the English against them; and they did so.

The court here agreed to send fifty men at their own expense, and with all possible speed got them armed, with sufficient leaders, and a bark to carry their provisions and supply all their needs. But when they were ready to march, with a contingent from the Bay, they had word that the enemy were as good as vanquished, and there would be no need of them.

I shall not take upon myself to describe in detail what had occurred, because I expect it will be done fully by those who best know the circumstances; I will only touch upon them in general. From Connecticut, where they were most alive to the present danger and all that it threatened, they raised a party of men, and another party met them from the Bay at a place where the Narragansetts were to join them. The Narragansetts were anxious to be gone, before the English were well rested and refreshed, especially some of them that had arrived last, for they wanted to come upon the enemy suddenly and undiscovered. A bark belonging to New Plymouth had just put in there, having come from Connecticut, and urged them to profit by the Indians’ keenness, and to show themselves as eager as they were, for it would encourage them, and promptness would result to their great advantage. So they proceeded at once, and arranged their march so that they reached the fort of the enemy, in which most of their chief men were, before day. They approached it in utter silence, and both the English and Indians surrounded it, so that they should not escape. They then made the attack with great courage, speedily forcing an entrance to the fort, and shooting amongst them. Those that entered first met with fierce resistance, the enemy shooting and grappling with them. Others of the attacking party ran to their houses and set them on fire, the mats catching quickly, and, all standing close together, the wind soon fanned them into a blaze,—in fact more were burnt to death than killed otherwise. It burnt their bowstrings and made their weapons useless, and those that escaped the fire were slain by the sword,—some hewn to pieces, others run through with their rapiers, so that they were quickly dispatched and very few escaped. It is believed that there were about 400 killed. It was a fearful sight to see them frying in the fire, with streams of blood quenching it; the smell was horrible, but the victory seemed a sweet sacrifice, and they gave praise to God Who had wrought so wonderfully for them, thus to enclose their enemy, and give them so speedy a victory over such a proud and insulting foe. The Narragansett Indians all this while stood round, but kept aloof from danger, and left the whole execution to the English, except to stop any who broke away; but they mocked their enemies in their defeat and misery, calling out to them when they saw them dancing in the flames a word which in the language of the vanquished Indians signified, O brave Pequots! and which was used by them in their prayers, and in their songs of triumph after victory.

After this attack had been thus fortunately concluded they marched to the waterside, where they met with some of their vessels, by which they were refreshed with food and other necessaries. But during their march the remnant of the Pequots, who had escaped, collected in a body, intending to take advantage of them at a neck of land they had to cross; but when they saw the English prepared for them, they kept aloof, so they neither did any harm nor received any. After refreshing themselves and taking further counsel, they resolved to follow up their victory and make war upon the rest; but most of the Narragansett Indians forsook them, and those that they kept with them for guides they found very unwilling, either from envy, or because they saw the English would profit more by the victory than they were willing they should, or perhaps deprive them of the advantage of having the Pequots become tributary to them.

For the rest of these events, and the further campaign against the Pequots, I will relate them as given in a letter from Mr. Winthrop to the Governor here.

Governor John Winthrop at Boston to the Governor of New Plymouth:

Worthy Sir,

I received your loving letter, and am anxious to express my affection for you, but lack of time forbids. My desire is to acquaint you with the Lord’s mercies towards us, in prevailing against His and our enemies, that you may rejoice and praise His name with us. About 80 of our men coasted along towards the Dutch plantation, sometimes by water but mostly by land, and met here and there with some Pequots, whom they slew or took prisoners. They captured two sachems and beheaded them, and not hearing of Sassacus, the chief sachem, they gave a prisoner his life to go and find him. He went and brought them word where he was; but Sassacus suspecting him to be a spy, fled, after he had gone, with some twenty more, to the Mohawks, so our men missed him. However, they divided themselves, and ranged up and down as the providence of God directed them, for their Indian allies had all gone, except three or four, who did not know how to guide them, or else would not.

On the 13th of the month they chanced upon a large band of the tribe, 80 men and 200 women and children, in a small Indian town close by a hideous swamp, which they all slipped into before our men could get to them. Our captains had not yet come up; but there were Mr. Ludlow and Captain Mason with some ten of their men, and Captain Patrick with some twenty or more of his, the noise of whose shooting attracted Captain Trask with fifty more. Then order was given to surround the swamp, which was about a mile round; but Lieutenant Davenport and some twelve more, not hearing the command, rushed into the swamp among the Indians. It was so thick with shrubwood, and so boggy, that some of them stuck fast, and were wounded by many shots. Lieutenant Davenport was dangerously wounded near the armhole, and another man was shot in the head, and they were so weak that they were in great danger of being captured by the Indians. But Sergeant Riggs and Jeffrey, and two or three more, rescued them, and killed several Indians with their swords. After they had been brought out, the Indians desired parley. Through Thomas Stanton, our interpreter, terms were offered: that if they would come out and yield they should have their lives, except such as had had their hands in English blood. Whereupon the sachem of the place came out, and an old man or two, and their wives and children, and after that some other women and children; and they parleyed for two hours till it was night. Then Thomas Stanton was sent to them again to call them out; but they said they would sell their lives there, and forthwith shot at him so fiercely that if he had not cried out and been rescued at once they would have killed him.

Then our men cleared the swamp with their swords, till the Indians were cooped up in so narrow a compass that they could kill them more easily through the thickets. So they stood all night about twelve feet apart from each other, the Indians coming close up to our men and shooting their arrows so that they pierced their hatbrims, their sleeves, their stockings, and other parts of their clothes; but so miraculously did the Lord preserve them that not one of them was wounded except the three who had so rashly entered the swamp. Just before day it grew very dark, and some of the Indians who were still alive got through between our men, though they stood not more than twelve or fourteen feet apart; but they were soon discovered, and some were pursued and killed. Upon searching the swamp next morning they found nine slain, and some they pulled up whom the Indians had buried in the mire; so they think that of all the band not twenty escaped. Afterwards they found some who had died of their wounds while in flight.

The prisoners were divided, some being sent to the people of the Connecticut River, and the rest to us. Of these we are sending the male children to Bermuda[11] with Mr. William Pierce, and the women and female children are distributed through the towns. In all, there have now been killed and taken prisoners about 700. The rest are scattered, and the Indians in all quarters are so terrified that they are afraid to give them sanctuary. Two of the sachems of Long Island came to Mr. Stoughton and offered themselves as tributaries, under their protection; and two of the Neepnett sachems have been here to seek our friendship. Among the prisoners we have the wife and children of Mononotto, the former a modest looking woman of good behaviour. It was by her mediation that the two English girls were spared from death and used kindly; so I have taken charge of her. One of her first requests was that the English should not abuse her body, and that her children might not be taken from her. Those that had been wounded were soon brought back by John Galop, who came with his shallop in a happy hour, to bring them food and take the wounded to the pinnace where our chief surgeon was, with Mr. Wilson, about eight leagues off. Our people are all in good health, the Lord be praised, and although they had marched in their arms all day and had been in the fight all night, they professed they were so fresh that they could readily have started off on another such expedition.

This is the substance of what I received, though I am forced to omit several considerable circumstances. So, being much pressed for time,—the ships sailing in four days, taking Lord Lee and Mr. Vane,—I will break off, and with hearty salutations, I rest

Yours assured,
JOHN WINTHROP.

P. S.—The captain reports we have killed 13 Sachems; but Sassacus and Mononotto are still living.

28th of the fifth month, 1637.

That I may make an end of the matter, this Sassacus, the Pequot’s chief sachem, having fled to the Mohawks, they cut off his head, and executed some other of their leaders, whether to satisfy the English or the Narragansetts,—who as I have since heard hired them to do it,—or for their own advantage, I do not know; but thus the war ended. The rest of the Pequots were utterly routed. Some of them submitted themselves to the Narragansetts and lived under them; but others betook themselves to the Monhiggs, under their sachem, Uncas, with the approbation of the English of Connecticut, under whose protection Uncas lived, he and his men having been faithful to them in the war, and having done them very good service. But it so vexed the Narragansetts, that they had not the whole sway over them, that they never ceased plotting and contriving how to subjugate them; and when they found they could not attain their ends, owing to English protection, they tried to raise a general conspiracy against the English, as will appear later.

They received letters again from Mr. Andrews and Mr. Beauchamp in England, saying that Mr. Sherley neither had paid nor would pay them any money, nor give them any account. They were very vexed, blaming them still that they had sent everything to Mr. Sherley and none to themselves. Now, though they might have justly referred them to their former answer, and insisted upon it, and some wise advisers urged them to do so, nevertheless, as they believed they were really out substantial sums of money, especially Mr. Andrews, they resolved to send them what beaver they had on their hands; but they delayed doing so till next year. Mr. Sherley’s letters were to this purpose: that as the other partners had abandoned him in the payment of former bills, so now he told them he would abandon them in this; and, believe it, they should find it true. And he was as good as his word, for they could never get a penny from him, nor bring him to account, though Mr. Beauchamp sued him in Chancery. But they all turned their complaints against the New Plymouth partners, where there was least cause; indeed they had suffered most unjustly. They discharged Mr. Sherley from his agency, and forbade him to buy or send over any more goods for them, and urged him to come to an end with their affairs.