Love will find the way: the marriage of John Rolfe and Pocahontas.
Caption:
Pocahontas.
Educational Notes:
Pocahontas is a familiar name to almost everyone who grew up in America. She was born the daughter of the chief of the Powhatan people, around 1595. When she was 12, English settlers established Jamestown at the edge of the land belonging to the Powhatan people. The legend says that Pocahontas rescued the leader of Jamestown, John Smith, from Chief Powhatans attempt to have him killed. It goes on to say that this act of bravery was responsible for the improved relations between the Native Americans and the English. In 1613, she was taken prisoner by the British and held for ransom. While she was in captivity, she met and fell in love with English tobacco farmer John Rolfe, and even after her ransom decided to stay and marry him. They eventually moved to England, where she was treated like a celebrity. That part of her life is where this portrait of her depicts her. The legends about Pocahontas often stray far from the truth and the stories surrounding her life have been greatly romanticized. She has become a symbol of cooperation between the early Colonists and the Native Americans, as well as a reminder of the changes brought by Europeans to the New World.
