apr 17, 1606 - Jamestown Settlement Established
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Captain John Smith, along with about 100 other English colonists, settled on a low-lying peninsula near the Chesapeake Bay that would become Jamestown. The expedition fell into place the year before when King James I granted a charter to the Virginia Company with the goal of spreading Christianity to Native Americans, but mostly in search of gold and profitable goods. Britain was under pressure to explore and settle the New World with the French and Spanish far ahead of them. Jamestown’s significance lies in its status as Britain’s first successful settlement in North America. While living conditions were brutal and most settlers dying in the Starving Time, Jamestown generated lots of attention back in Britain. This triggered the interest of the crown and investors and resulted in further settlements. Jamestown also laid down a model for indentured servitude and the government of the Virginia Colony.
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