In the 1622 massacre of the Virginia settlers, a horrific attack in which the “merciless Indian savages” gained access to English settlements by pretending to be interested in Christianity, then massacred men, women, and children alike The brutal attack wiped out hundreds a settlers, perhaps a quarter or more of the settlers, who had just been managing to move past the Initial rigors of settlement. It also came just at planting time, wreaking agricultural havoc and putting the settlers at risk of starvation The attack was horrific, set the colony back by years, and was savage in the extreme. It also mostly ended Virginian interest in converting the Indians, which up until then had been substantial But fortunately for us the Virginians didn’t give in. Instead they collected themselves behind the walls of Jamestown and then blitzed out and took the fight to the Indians, punishing them in a succession of campaigns and attacks that were so severe the Indian menace was mostly quieted for decades afterwards
