Totopotomoi
Encyclopedia
Totopotomoi was a grandson of a sister of Chief Powhatan
, the father of Pocahontas
. He became the Chief of the Pamunkey
Tribe in 1649 when he succeeded Nectowance
as chief sometime after the death of Opechancanough. He married Cockacoeske
the daughter of Opechancanough.
Totopotomoi's community controlled the modern area of New Kent including that part of New Kent which is now Hanover. After the death of Opechancanough the once mighty chiefdom had disintegrated and the English
had grown much stronger in the Virginia Colony. He became a staunch ally of the English and often sided with them in conflicts. The allied Monacan and Manahoac
confederacies were constantly at war with the Powhatan
and the Iroquois
who were their mortal enemies. After banding into a league late in the sixteenth century, the powerful Iroquois began a gradual descent upon these weaker tribes of the south, annihilating some and causing others to flee, and eventually to merge for protection.
About 1656, six or seven hundred members of the Shackoconian tribe of the Manahoac confederacy in search of a new dwelling place, moved down near the falls of the James River (Virginia)
. In an attempt to remove them the English Colonists, joined by the Pamunkey Tribe under Totopotomoi, precipitated what was perhaps the bloodiest Native American
battle ever fought on the soil of Virginia
, and the last great fight between the Siouan and the Algonquian
tribes. Colonel Edward Hill was put in command of the Colonial Rangers and ordered to dislodge them. He was reinforced by Totopotomoi, with 100 warriors.
The resulting battle known as the Battle of Bloody Run took place at a point in the eastern limits of Richmond, Virginia
, now known as Bloody Run spring. So many were slain in the battle, (Totopotomoi being among them) that the tradition is that the streamlet from the spring ran with blood. Hill was so disgraced that he had to personally pay for the cost of the battle and was stripped of his rank.
Totopotomoi's widow Cockacoeske then became the Weroance
of the Pamunkey Tribe. Over the thirty year span of her leadership, she worked within the English system to recapture the former power of Opechancanough and maintain a peaceful unity among the several tribes under her control. The Powhatan, who had suffered even more at the hands of the English than at those of the Iroquois, became by 1665 mere dependents of the colony, submissive to the stringent laws enacted that year, which compelled them to accept chiefs appointed by the governor. After the Treaty of Albany in 1684, the Powhatan Confederacy all but vanished.
Chief Powhatan
Chief Powhatan , whose proper name was Wahunsenacawh , was the paramount chief of Tsenacommacah, an alliance of Algonquian-speaking Virginia Indians in the Tidewater region of Virginia at the time English settlers landed at Jamestown in 1607...
, the father of Pocahontas
Pocahontas
Pocahontas was a Virginia Indian notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. She was the daughter of Chief Powhatan, the head of a network of tributary tribal nations in Tidewater Virginia...
. He became the Chief of the Pamunkey
Pamunkey
The Pamunkey nation are one of eleven Virginia Indian tribes recognized by the Commonwealth of Virginia. The historical tribe was part of the Powhatan paramountcy, made up of Algonquian-speaking tribes. The Powhatan paramount chiefdom was made up over 30 tribes, estimated to total about...
Tribe in 1649 when he succeeded Nectowance
Nectowance
Nectowance was the Weroance of the Pamunkey tribe following the death of his uncle Opechancanough. After his death he was succeeded by Totopotomoi as Weroance of the tribe...
as chief sometime after the death of Opechancanough. He married Cockacoeske
Cockacoeske
Cockacoeskie was a 17th century leader of the Pamunkey Tribe of Native Americans in what is now Virginia in the United States....
the daughter of Opechancanough.
Totopotomoi's community controlled the modern area of New Kent including that part of New Kent which is now Hanover. After the death of Opechancanough the once mighty chiefdom had disintegrated and the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
had grown much stronger in the Virginia Colony. He became a staunch ally of the English and often sided with them in conflicts. The allied Monacan and Manahoac
Manahoac
The Manahoac, also recorded as Mahock, were a small group of Siouan-language American Indians in northern Virginia at the time of European contact. They numbered approximately 1,000 and lived primarily along the Rappahannock River west of modern Fredericksburg and the fall line, and east of the...
confederacies were constantly at war with the Powhatan
Powhatan
The Powhatan is the name of a Virginia Indian confederation of tribes. It is estimated that there were about 14,000–21,000 of these native Powhatan people in eastern Virginia when the English settled Jamestown in 1607...
and the Iroquois
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
who were their mortal enemies. After banding into a league late in the sixteenth century, the powerful Iroquois began a gradual descent upon these weaker tribes of the south, annihilating some and causing others to flee, and eventually to merge for protection.
About 1656, six or seven hundred members of the Shackoconian tribe of the Manahoac confederacy in search of a new dwelling place, moved down near the falls of the James River (Virginia)
James River (Virginia)
The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is long, extending to if one includes the Jackson River, the longer of its two source tributaries. The James River drains a catchment comprising . The watershed includes about 4% open water and an area with a population of 2.5 million...
. In an attempt to remove them the English Colonists, joined by the Pamunkey Tribe under Totopotomoi, precipitated what was perhaps the bloodiest Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
battle ever fought on the soil of Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, and the last great fight between the Siouan and the Algonquian
Algonquian peoples
The Algonquian are one of the most populous and widespread North American native language groups, with tribes originally numbering in the hundreds. Today hundreds of thousands of individuals identify with various Algonquian peoples...
tribes. Colonel Edward Hill was put in command of the Colonial Rangers and ordered to dislodge them. He was reinforced by Totopotomoi, with 100 warriors.
The resulting battle known as the Battle of Bloody Run took place at a point in the eastern limits of Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
, now known as Bloody Run spring. So many were slain in the battle, (Totopotomoi being among them) that the tradition is that the streamlet from the spring ran with blood. Hill was so disgraced that he had to personally pay for the cost of the battle and was stripped of his rank.
Totopotomoi's widow Cockacoeske then became the Weroance
Weroance
Weroance is an Algonquian word meaning tribal chief, leader, commander, or king, notably among the Powhatan confederacy of the Virginia coast and Chesapeake Bay region. The Powhatan Confederacy, encountered by the colonists of Jamestown and adjacent area of the Virginia Colony beginning in 1607,...
of the Pamunkey Tribe. Over the thirty year span of her leadership, she worked within the English system to recapture the former power of Opechancanough and maintain a peaceful unity among the several tribes under her control. The Powhatan, who had suffered even more at the hands of the English than at those of the Iroquois, became by 1665 mere dependents of the colony, submissive to the stringent laws enacted that year, which compelled them to accept chiefs appointed by the governor. After the Treaty of Albany in 1684, the Powhatan Confederacy all but vanished.
Sources
- "Middle Peninsula Historic Marker "Cockacoeske"
- "The Powhatan Indians of Virginia: Their Traditional Culture. Rountree, Helen C., University of Oklahoma Press, 1989.
- "Cockacoeske, Queen of Pamunkey: Diplomat and Suzeraine." W. Martha W. McCartney.
- "Powhatan's Mantle: Indians in the Colonial Southeast by Peter H. Wood.