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31-604: At the time of the founding of Gorges' settlement, the English explorer Capt. Francis West was named admiral of the Plymouth Council for New England to advise him, along with another English explorer and naval Captain , Christopher Levett , who was attempting a settlement at Portland, Maine , which also later failed. Levett was named to advise Gorges as the governor of the Plymouth Colony . The arrangement

62-817: A hogshead of tobacco) to build the first windmill in British America. The windmill was an English post design and was transferred by deed in the property's 1624 sale to Abraham Piersey, a Cape Merchant of the London Company . The plantation survived the 1622 onslaught of Powhatan Indians, losing only six people. so the plantation may have been associated with the Flowerdew name before Yeardley's patent. Note that Yeardley named his Mulberry Island plantation " Stanley Hundred ", undoubtedly after his Stanley in-laws. In other words, both of Yeardley's plantations were named in honor of his wealthy in-laws. Clearly,

93-706: A soldier and joined a company of English foot-soldiers to fight the Spanish in the Netherlands. As Captain of the Guard (bodyguard), he was selected to serve Sir Thomas Gates during his term as Governor of Virginia . Yeardley set sail from England on June 1, 1609, with the newly appointed Sir Thomas Gates aboard the Sea Venture , the flagship of the ill-fated Third Supply expedition to Jamestown . After eight weeks at sea, and seven days from expected landfall,

124-641: The Mary and Margaret , which arrived in the summer of 1608. Newport returned to London with a load of iron ore sold to the East India Company. Francis West was selected to the Governor's Council in 1609, and remained such for the rest of his life, although he returned to England many times and the colony's private charter was superseded by a royal charter in 1624 (two years after attacks by native Americans killed many settlers). In November 1609, West used

155-498: The Smithsonian Institution announced the discovery of a prominent burial around 400 years ago in an important spot within the church. Ground-penetrating radar confirmed the presence of a skeleton of the right age and build for Yeardley who died in 1627, aged about 40. The gender, age estimate, the way the body was laid out and its prominent location within the church, support its identity as Yeardley. Another church

186-954: The Virginia General Assembly , although he was not listed as one of the elected burgesses in Jamestown's first Legislative Assembly. In 1622 Captain West was appointed Admiral to New England, where he served alongside Capt. Christopher Levett , Governor of Plymouth, on a three-man council under Capt. Robert Gorges, named Governor General of the Plymouth Council for New England 's venture in Massachusetts. West subsequently served as Deputy Governor of Virginia from 17 November 1627 to 5 March 1629. He also served as Captain General of Virginia. West married three times. His first wife, Margaret Whitney, whom he married circa 16?5,

217-888: The 1609 expedition, aboard the Faulcon , arriving at Jamestown in August 1609. She was one of the few survivors of the Starving Time . The couple had three children: Elizabeth Yeardley was listed as age 6 in the February 1624 Jamestown Muster, so was born about 1618, James City , Virginia , Died: ~1660-1666, Bruton Parish , York County , Virginia, Inherited 1/3 of Mother's Estate: Flowerdew Hundred Plantation ; Some claim she married Major Joseph Croshaw . However, there has been no source ever found or produced to prove this conjecture. His record here does not include her as one of his several wives. Argoll Yeardley - Was listed as age 4 in

248-456: The 30 ton pinnace Patience , arrived at Jamestown on May 23, 1610. The shipwreck survivors found the colonists of Jamestown in desperate condition. Most of the settlers had died from sickness or starvation or had been killed by Indians. Sir Thomas Gates agreed with the Jamestown settlers to abandon the colony and return to England. He ordered Captain Yeardley to command his soldiers to guard

279-473: The February 1624 Jamestown Muster, so was born about 1620. Francis Yeardley - Was listed as age 1 in the February 1624 Jamestown Muster, so was born about 1623. Yeardley died on November 13, 1627. He is buried in Third Jamestown Church at Jamestown, Virginia. His widow, Temperance Flowerdew married Governor Francis West . Their son, Argoll Yeardley would represent Lower Norfolk county in

310-541: The House of Burgesses in 1653, shortly before his death. Argoll Yeardly had married Ann Custis, who brought her brothers John Custis II and William Custis to the colony, where they became planters, served in the House of Burgesses, and founded the Custis family of Virginia. Jason Flemyng plays Sir George Yeardley in a British television show, Jamestown . On July 24, 2018, archaeologists from Jamestown Rediscovery and

341-671: The Virginia colony. His elder brother, Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr (1577–1618), served as a governor of the Virginia Company of London from 1610–1611. His younger brother, John West (1590-ca 1659), served as Acting Governor of Virginia from 1635–1637. A fourth brother, Nathaniel West , died in Virginia in August 1623, aged 30. Francis West was one of the distinguished passengers on Captain Christopher Newport 's third voyage to Jamestown, Virginia , aboard

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372-483: The Yeardley-Flowerdew alliance was as much to do with power politics and social status as with romance. On 18 October 1618, George Yeardley (sometimes written as "Yardley" or "Yearlley" ) married Temperance Flowerdew , daughter of Anthony Flowerdew of Hethersett , Norfolk , and wife Martha Stanley of Scottow , Norfolk . A month later he was appointed to serve three years as governor of Virginia, and

403-609: The church in Jamestown on July 30, 1619. One of the first acts of this representative body was to set the price of tobacco . Yeardley was appointed deputy-governor again in 1625. On September 11, 1626, Yeardley presided over the witchcraft inquiry of Joan Wright , the first legal witchcraft inquiry on record against an English settler in any British North American colony. He served a second time as governor from March 4, 1626/27 until his death on November 13, 1627. In 1619, he patented 1,000 acres (4.0 km ) of land on Mulberry Island . He owned another private plantation upriver on

434-527: The colonists elected West as their "President" in the absence of Sir Thomas Gates or other high official of the London Company, although the following year they elected George Percy to that position. From 1612 to 1617 West was the Commandant of Jamestown. From July 30 through August 4, 1619, based on his position on the Governor's Council, West served in what would later become the upper house of

465-415: The colony from 1618 to 1622. And when Flowerdew Hundred sent representatives to the first General Assembly in Jamestown in 1619, one was Ensign Edmund Rossingham , a son of Temperance Flowerdew's elder sister Mary Flowerdew and her husband Dionysis Rossingham. Yeardley led the first representative Virginia General Assembly , the legislative House of Burgesses , to meet on American soil. It convened at

496-565: The convoy ran into a tropical storm and the Sea Venture was shipwrecked in the Bermuda island chain. Fortunately, everyone survived. The castaways thrived on the uninhabited island. Despite numerous problems (including civil unrest among the former passengers resulting in Gates declaring martial law ) two small ships were built within 10 months. The two ships, the 70–80 ton Deliverance and

527-606: The military is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Francis West Francis West (28 October 1586 – February 1633/1634) was a Deputy Governor of the Colony and Dominion of Virginia . Born in Salisbury , Wiltshire on 28 October 1586, West was one of four sons of Thomas West, 2nd Baron De La Warr (1556–1602) of Wherwell Abbey in Hampshire and his wife, Anne Knollys who made their fortunes in

558-471: The purpose was to encourage settlers to come to Virginia, which included building a college. These instructions come to be known as the Great Charter . On November 24th, Sir George was appointed to serve three years as governor of Virginia, and was knighted by James I during an audience at Newmarket . Before sailing to Virginia with the Great Charter, a great comet appeared over England. It

589-506: The settled portion of the colony the group became known as the House of Burgesses and continued to meet, becoming the Virginia General Assembly . Yeardley was baptized on July 28, 1588, in St. Saviour's Parish, Southwark, Surrey . He was the son of Ralph Yeardley (1549–1604), a London merchant-tailor, and Rhoda Marston (died 1603). He chose not to follow his father into trade, but instead became

620-605: The ship Swallow to trade with the nearby Patawomeck people. During the incident, West and his crew killed several native people and took away corn and grain. Instead of returning to the suffering Jamestown, West and his crew set sail for England. On their journey home they met the supply mission of Francis's brother, Thomas West, in the Azores. Francis West returned to Jamestown on the Mary Ann Margett in 1610. The new colony had been suffering from lack of provisions, and

651-474: The south side of the James River opposite Tanks Weyanoke, named Flowerdew Hundred , and owned several enslaved persons . It is often assumed that Yeardley named this plantation "Flowerdew Hundred" after his wife, as a kind of romantic tribute. However, the land appears to have been in use by Stanley Flowerdew, Yeardley's brother-in-law, before it was patented by Yeardley. Although George Yeardley acquired

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682-489: The thousand acres that he named Flowerdew Hundred in 1619, it seems very likely that some settlement had begun there before that date, for his brother-in-law Stanley Flowerdew took a shipment of tobacco to England in the same year, probably grown on the same property. With a population of about thirty, Flowerdew Hundred Plantation was economically successful with thousands of pounds of tobacco produced along with corn, fish and livestock. In 1621 Yeardley paid 120 pounds (possibly

713-525: The town preventing settlers from setting fire to the structures that were evacuated. Lord de la Warr soon arrived bringing supplies to save the struggling colony. Captain Yeardley was co-commander of the early Forts Henry and Charles at Kecoughtan --present-day Hampton, Virginia. In October 1610, Lord De La Warr ordered Captain Yeardley and Captain Edward Brewster to lead 150 men into the mountains in search of silver and gold mines. In 1616 Yeardley

744-529: Was a planter and colonial governor of the colony of Virginia . He was also among the first slaveowners in Colonial America . A survivor of the Virginia Company of London 's ill-fated 1609 Third Supply Mission , whose flagship, the Sea Venture , was shipwrecked on Bermuda for ten months, he is best remembered for presiding over the initial session of the first representative legislative body in Virginia in 1619. With representatives from throughout

775-482: Was a three-time widow lastly married to Edward Blayney, and who died within two years. In March 1627 West remarried, to the widow of Governor George Yeardley , Temperance Flowerdew . She died in December of the same year, and West unsuccessfully litigated against the former Governor's orphaned children for possession of her estate. He married thirdly Jane Davye. He had one son, Francis West in 16??. In 1632, his estate

806-551: Was built on top but the position indicates a high status burial. Although the head is missing, 10 teeth have been found and tests are being carried out by the FBI and archaeologist and geneticist Turi King , who helped identify the remains of Richard III in 2012. King will assist in tracking down Yeardley relatives to compare DNA found in the remains. The results could take several months but should be available in time for 2019's 400th Anniversary of Sir George Yeardley's Great Reforms and

837-621: Was considered a bad omen for the English, but (apocryphally) a sign of the birth of American freedom. Yeardley was governor of Virginia when, in August 1619, the White Lion landed "20. and odd" Angolans kidnapped in Africa and exchanged them for provisions, thus introducing the trade in enslaved Africans into the English colonies on the North American mainland. A relation from the Flowerdew family, John Pory , served as secretary to

868-495: Was designated Deputy-Governor of Virginia. One of his first accomplishments was to come to an agreement with the Chickahominy Indians that secured food and peace for two years. He served from 1616 to 1617. In November 18th, 1618, The Virginia Company of London issued its "Instructions to George Yeardley," which included the commissioning of a general assembly and the ancient planter / headright system. Part of

899-516: Was in Elizabeth Citie , south of the land of James Knott. According to some records, he died in February 1633/1634, although this is not certain. However, two years later, fellow colonists "thrusting out" royal governor Governor Sir John Harvey selected his brother, John West , who had previously served as a burgess, as the temporary replacement. George Yeardley Sir George Yeardley ( b.  1587 – d.  1627-11-13 )

930-428: Was knighted by James I during an audience at Newmarket on 24 November. This is the date commonly ascribed to the wedding; however, their children were born prior to 1618. While out-of-wedlock children occurred in early Jamestown, it would have been unthinkable for a woman of Temperance Flowerdew's station. It is likely that they got married between 1610 and 1615. Temperance Flowerdew had also sailed for Virginia in

961-586: Was not satisfactory. Apparently frustrated by the pace of settlement and an obdurate attitude of the new colonists towards English interference, Capt. Gorges returned to England in the spring of 1624. Several of his settlers turned up later at the house Levett had built on what is today House Island in Casco Bay , Maine . Gorges died sometime in the 1620s; his brother John had taken over the Gorges claims by 1629. This English biographical article related to

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