Hello and welcome to a history of the United States.

Episode 81, Pirates of the United States. Episode 81.

Pirates of the Chesapeake.

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PayPal subscription button. Last time out, we looked at the arrival of Governor Alexander Spotswood

in 1710. He set out his initial intentions for Virginia with two major objectives.

These were improving the economy of the colony and improving Virginia's defences.

The reasons for this necessity were soon to become obvious as an Indian war broke out along the frontier in September 1711.

There had been a lot of tension in the region for some time, and the Tuska Oro launched an attack

which killed 200 colonists. Spotswood's greatest fear was that the war would escalate quickly,

and so he immediately tried to stop the

Virginian tribes joining in the raid. He managed to calm the situation through a mixture of

carrots and sticks. He announced that trade would be restored with the tribes once they

ended hostilities, and then showed up with his recently improved militia.

This alarmed the Indians, who were not expecting the governor's forces to be so organised.

A treaty was signed, but it didn't appear to have much effect.

By 1712, the Tusca aura were again causing difficulty for the region, specifically in North Carolina.

This time, with support.

Word arrived from New York that the Iroquois were planning to lend their support to the Tusca Ora, with French encouragement.

In response to this, the House of Burgesses voted to provide Spotswood with £1,000, enough to furnish 300 soldiers.

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