Jamestown Colony

Jamestown, Virginia Jamestowne, Virginia = Fort (1606-1607) ; Town (1619)
The ruined tower of the 17th century Jamestown Church; the nave was reconstructed in 1907 on the original foundations
Location in Virginia
Jamestown, Virginia Show map of Virginia Jamestown, Virginia Show map of the US Location in the United States
Coordinates: 37°12′33″N 76°46′39″W / 37.20917°N 76.77750°W / 37.20917; -76.77750Coordinates: 37°12′33″N 76°46′39″W / 37.20917°N 76.77750°W / 37.20917; -76.77750
Present Country	United States of America
State	Virginia
Historic Country	Kingdom of England
Colony	Colony of Virginia
Established	May 14, 1607
Abandoned	briefly in 1610; again after 1699
Founded by	Virginia Company of London
Named for	James VI and I

The Jamestownsettlement in the Colony of Virginia was the first permanent English settlement in the Americas. William Kelso writes that Jamestown "is where the British Empire began." Jamestown was established by the Virginia Company of London as "James Fort" on May 4, 1607 (O.S., May 14, 1607 N.S.), and was considered permanent after brief abandonment in 1610. It followed several earlier failed attempts, including the Lost Colony of Roanoke. Jamestown served as the capital of the colony of Virginia for 83 years, from 1616 until 1699.

The settlement was located within the country of Tsenacommacah, which was ruled by the Powhatan Confederacy, and specifically in that of the Paspahegh tribe. The natives initially welcomed and provided crucial provisions and support for the colonists, who were not agriculturally inclined. Relations with the newcomers soured fairly early on, leading to the total annihilation of the Paspahegh in warfare within 3 years. Mortality at Jamestown itself was very high due to disease and starvation, with over 80% of the colonists perishing in 1609–1610 in what became known as the "Starving Time".

The Virginia Company brought eight Polish and German colonists in 1608, in the Second Supply, some of whom built a small glass factory—although the Germans and a few others soon defected to the Powhatans with weapons and supplies from the settlement. The Second Supply also brought the first two European women to the settlement. In 1619, the first documented Africans came to Jamestown—about 50 men, women, and children—aboard a Portuguese slave ship that had been captured in the West Indies and brought to the Jamestown region. They most likely worked in the tobacco fields as indentured servants, but as time went on, they became slaves. The modern conception of slavery in the future United States was formalized in 1640 (the John Punch hearing) and was fully entrenched in Virginia by 1660.