Roanoke - England's attempt at an American colony
In 1584, Elizabeth gave Walter Raleigh a charter, allowing him to form a colony in America. Raleigh and Elizabeth hoped that the colony would:
- provide riches from the New World
- act as a base for disrupting Spanish treasure ships
Establishing the colony
Raleigh didn't go to America himself, but he sent Philip Amadas and Arthur Barlowe to find a suitable site for a colony. They arrived on Roanoke Island in July 1584 and met the native tribes, the Secotans and the Croatans. Barlowe came back to England, bringing two Croatoan tribesmen, who told Raleigh all about the area. Raleigh thought it sounded good and sent a second expedition of five ships, led by Richard Grenville.
More settlers arrive
Bad weather separated the ships, but eventually a group of settlers made their way to Roanoke. In August 1585, 107 colonists landed and constructed a fort on the island. Grenville promised to come back in April 1586 with more colonists and supplies, but the reinforcements didn't arrive. Many of the colonists returned to England and brought back tobacco and potatoes with them, but some of them stayed behind.
In 1587, Raleigh sent another group of colonists to set up a colony on Chesapeke Bay and asked them to visit Roanoke and check on the settlers there. When they arrived, the settlement was deserted. They found a skeleton, but no sign of anyone.
Instead of going on to Chesapeke, the fleet's commander made the settlers stay on Roanoke to re-establish the colony. Nobody knows why he did this. It soon became clear that the colony's relations with some of the native tribes had not been friendly. Fearing for their lives, they begged the governor, John White, to go back to England and ask for help. 115 colonists stayed on the island - including White's grand-daughter, Virginia Dare. She was the first English child to be born in the New World.
The Lost Colony
Unfortunately, it was some time before help could be sent to Roanoke - the weather was too bad to cross in the winter, and then there were further delays caused by the Spanish Armada and the war with Spain. It was three years before they could try again.
When White returned in August 1590, he found the settlement deserted. The 90 men, 17 women and 11 children - including his granddaughter, Virginia - had vanished. There was no sign of a battle. The weather was worsening, so White was unable to find out what happened. Nobody went back to Roanoke until 1609.
Where did everyone go?
| Theory | For | Against |
| Relocation: White's only clue was the word 'Croatoan' carved into a fence post. Did this mean the colonists had moved to Croatoan Island? The island was 50 miles from Roanoke | In 1998, archaeologists on Croatoan (now Hatteras) Island found a gun, some English farthings and a signet ring. The ring had the Kendall coat of arms, and a man named Kendall lived in the Roanoke colony. | These items don't prove that there was a settlement on Croatoan, however. The items could have got there another way. Coastal erosion means that any settlement will be underwater now, so it's unlikely that we'll find more evidence. |
| Conflict with local tribes: One theory is that the colonists were slaughtered by a local tribe | John Smith, who led the Jamestown colony in the early 17th century, was told by Powhatan, a native leader, that he had killed the colonists. | Recent research suggests that the massacre carried out by Powhatan was not of the colonists. And there is no archaeological evidence of the massacre and no bodies have been discovered. |
| Integration with local tribes: Some historians believe that the settlers gave up on reinforcements coming from England, and integrated with local tribes | A Spanish traveller mentioned four men from 'roonock' living among the Iroquois tribe. There were also sightings of English captives held by the Eno tribe and later colonists reported meeting Native Americans with grey eyes, fair skin or blond hair - who claimed to be descended from the Roanoke settlers. | |
| Spanish: Some people believe that the colony was wiped out by the Spanish | The Spanish destroyed two French colonies, and there is evidence that they were looking for the Roanoke colony. | The Spanish were still looking for the colony in 1600, so they can't have destroyed it in 1590. |
| Theory | Relocation: White's only clue was the word 'Croatoan' carved into a fence post. Did this mean the colonists had moved to Croatoan Island? The island was 50 miles from Roanoke |
|---|---|
| For | In 1998, archaeologists on Croatoan (now Hatteras) Island found a gun, some English farthings and a signet ring. The ring had the Kendall coat of arms, and a man named Kendall lived in the Roanoke colony. |
| Against | These items don't prove that there was a settlement on Croatoan, however. The items could have got there another way. Coastal erosion means that any settlement will be underwater now, so it's unlikely that we'll find more evidence. |
| Theory | Conflict with local tribes: One theory is that the colonists were slaughtered by a local tribe |
|---|---|
| For | John Smith, who led the Jamestown colony in the early 17th century, was told by Powhatan, a native leader, that he had killed the colonists. |
| Against | Recent research suggests that the massacre carried out by Powhatan was not of the colonists. And there is no archaeological evidence of the massacre and no bodies have been discovered. |
| Theory | Integration with local tribes: Some historians believe that the settlers gave up on reinforcements coming from England, and integrated with local tribes |
|---|---|
| For | A Spanish traveller mentioned four men from 'roonock' living among the Iroquois tribe. There were also sightings of English captives held by the Eno tribe and later colonists reported meeting Native Americans with grey eyes, fair skin or blond hair - who claimed to be descended from the Roanoke settlers. |
| Against |
| Theory | Spanish: Some people believe that the colony was wiped out by the Spanish |
|---|---|
| For | The Spanish destroyed two French colonies, and there is evidence that they were looking for the Roanoke colony. |
| Against | The Spanish were still looking for the colony in 1600, so they can't have destroyed it in 1590. |