Source S We took up arms with Mr. Bacon not out of hatred for our king or love of disorder, but because Governor Berkeley and his favorites have kept all go...
Question 1 Report
Source S
We took up arms with Mr. Bacon not out of hatred for our king or love of disorder, but because Governor Berkeley and his favorites have kept all good land and trading privileges for themselves while we, who have served our terms of indenture faithfully, are left with nothing. The frontier lands where we might have made farms are declared off limits to protect the governor's fur trade with the Indians, even as those same Indians raid our settlements and murder our families. Bacon promised us land and protection. We ask only for the opportunity to provide for ourselves that we were promised when we crossed the ocean.
From a petition submitted to the Virginia colonial assembly by a group of indentured servants who had joined Bacon's Rebellion, 1677.
How reliable is this source as evidence about the causes of Bacon's Rebellion in 1676? Explain your answer using details from the source and your knowledge. [7]
Answer Details
This question asks you to evaluate the reliability of a source about the causes of Bacon's Rebellion in 1676. You must consider the content, the author's position, and your own knowledge.
What the source says: The petition (1677) by indentured servants who joined Bacon's Rebellion identifies several grievances: Governor Berkeley and his allies monopolised good land and trading privileges; frontier lands were placed off-limits to protect the governor's fur trade with Native Americans; Native American raids threatened frontier settlements; and Bacon promised land and protection. The petitioners stress they acted not from disloyalty but from desperation.
What the source gets right: The grievances described align with historical evidence. Governor William Berkeley did maintain a profitable fur trade and restricted frontier settlement. Land concentration among the colonial elite was a genuine problem in 1670s Virginia. Freed indentured servants increasingly struggled to acquire land, creating a large, discontented class of landless men.
Limitations and bias: The petition was written after the rebellion's failure, when participants faced punishment. The petitioners had strong reasons to present their actions as justified self-defence rather than rebellion. Their claim of loyalty to the king ("not out of hatred for our king") was a deliberate strategy to avoid charges of treason. The source does not mention that Bacon's forces attacked peaceful Native Americans alongside hostile ones, or that Bacon's own motives included personal rivalry with Berkeley over political power and trading opportunities. It simplifies a complex situation into a straightforward narrative of desperate men seeking basic fairness.
Reaching Level 3 (6-7 marks): A top-level answer acknowledges that the economic grievances described are confirmed by other historical evidence, making the source partially reliable on the causes of discontent. However, as a petition from defeated rebels seeking to avoid punishment, it has a clear purpose that shapes its presentation. The strongest answers identify both the reliable elements (genuine economic grievances) and the unreliable framing (self-justification, omission of inconvenient facts), using own knowledge to test the source's claims.
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