USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -The winter of 1609-1610 in Jamestown is referred to as the “starving time.” Disease, violence, drought, a meager harvest followed by a harsh winter, and poor drinking water left the majority of colonists dead that winter.

Detailed explanation-2: -“The starving time” was the winter of 1609-1610, when food shortages, fractured leadership, and a siege by Powhatan Indian warriors killed two of every three colonists at James Fort. From its beginning, the colony struggled to maintain a food supply.

Detailed explanation-3: -On June 7, 1610, the survivors boarded ships, abandoned the colony site, and sailed towards the Chesapeake Bay. There, another supply convoy with new supplies, headed by newly appointed governor Francis West, intercepted them on the lower James River and returned them to Jamestown.

Detailed explanation-4: -In the autumn of 1609, after Smith left, Chief Powhatan began a campaign to starve the English out of Virginia. The tribes under his rule stopped bartering for food and carried out attacks on English parties that came in search of trade.

Detailed explanation-5: -The remaining 240 settlers retreated to Jamestown, not counting 30, under Captain James Davis, who remained at Fort Algernon near the mouth of the James. At this point, in November 1609, Powhatan ordered a siege of Jamestown, a move that initiated, finally, the period known as the Starving Time.