Pocahontas (1995 film) necklace in the process. Smith orders Thomas to leave just before the tribesmen come and capture Smith while Kocoum's body is taken away. Enraged at Kocoum's death, Powhatan declares war on the English, beginning with Smith's execution at sunrise. Thomas reaches Jamestown safely at night and warns the crewmen of Smith's capture. Ratcliffe then rallies his men to battle using this as an excuse to annihilate the tribe and find their non-existent gold. That same night, Powhatan also orders his men to prepare for battle. A desperate Pocahontas visits Grandmother Willow, where Meeko hands her Smith's compass. Pocahontas realizes Smith's
John Ratcliffe (governor) woods. The colonists dubbed the project "Ratcliffe's Palace." Ratcliffe accompanied Christopher Newport when he sailed from Virginia in 1608. In May 1609, he commanded the "Diamond", one of the ships in the Third Supply fleet of Sir Thomas Gates. In December 1609, Ratcliffe and 14 fellow colonists were invited to a gathering with the tribe of Powhatan Indians. The Powhatans promised the starving colonists would be given corn, but it was a trap. The colonists were ambushed. Ratcliffe suffered a particularly gruesome fate: he was tied to a stake in front of a fire. Women removed the skin from his