Argall: The True Story of Pocahontas and Captain John Smith Argall: The True Story of Pocahontas and Captain John Smith Argall is a historical novel by American writer William T. Vollmann, which was first published in 2001. It is the third book in a planned seven-book cycle entitled . (As of 2015, five of the seven books have been published.) "Argall" is a retelling of the founding of the Jamestown Colony and the legend of Pocahontas and Captain John Smith. The novel is primarily written in flowery Elizabethan language, which was met with mixed critical reception; "The New York Times" found the language "endlessly distracting and often silly", whereas the
Powhatan had with the Spanish prior to their arrival). Within two weeks of the English arrival at Jamestown, deaths had occurred. The settlers had hoped for friendly relations and had planned to trade with the Virginia Indians for food. Captain Christopher Newport led the first English exploration party up the James River in 1607, when he met Parahunt, "weroance" of the Powhatan proper. The English initially mistook him for the paramount Powhatan ("mamanatowick"), his father Wahunsunacawh, who ruled the confederacy. On a hunting and trade mission on the Chickahominy River in December 1607, Captain John Smith, later president of the colony,