Nathaniel Bacon, 1647 – 1676, was a colonist of the Virginia Colony, instigator of the Rebellion of 1676.
Claiming to lead “the people,” Bacon defied the government at Jamestown and demanded reform….
Endangered by their leader’s vacillation, Berkeley’s supporters chose to scatter…. but not Richard.
Richard Lee II 1647-1714
He had the courage of his convictions. Richard believed all social order, including Virginia’s, was imposed by God and should be maintained, no matter the “zealous inclination of the multitude.” It was the public’s “hopes of leveling” which drew it to Bacon, Richard contended. Otherwise, he insisted, “all his [Bacon’s] specious pretences would not have persuaded them.” Were it not,” Lee said, “for the evil in the hearts of the populace, Bacon’s rebellion would never have occurred.”
Since he refused to keep his views to himself, Richard was carried off in chains by those who paid no heed to his insistence that the lawfulness imposed by the King and his representatives came from heaven. Anyone acquainted with Richard’s library knew his choice of books preached that Englishmen, whether they lived along the Thames or along the Potomac, owed absolute fidelity to the Crown and to the structure of society endorsed by God and Sovereign.
Warner Hall served for a time as Nathaniel Bacon's headquarters during “Bacon's Rebellion” in 1676.
Richard became a prisoner and was forced on a grueling four-day ride to Bacon’s headquarters at the village of Middle Plantation, about five miles from Jamestown. There he was held for nearly two months, suffering hardships which impaired his health. Somehow he survived, while Bacon was less fortunate. After burning Jamestown and taking other drastic steps which raised doubt and confusion among his followers, Bacon fell ill and died suddenly in late October 1676. The agitation ended soon afterwards.
Nobility.org Editorial comment: —
At the core of being a member of the nobility lie certain virtues: loyalty, honor, unyielding attachment to principle.
Is it surprising that we see these virtues shine in Gen. Robert E. Lee in the 19th century, when his great-great grandfather suffered imprisonment for them in the 17th? While individual virtue is always precious, the most solid of all is that virtue that becomes habitual in a family and is handed down from one generation to another. It is dependable. It can be relied on for it does not break easily.
Paul C. Nagel, The Lees of Virginia: Seven Generations of an American Family (New York: Oxford University Press, 1990), pp. 24-25.
Short Stories on Honor, Chivalry, and the World of Nobility—no. 183
