1587 Scene Three

Among the 105 people that Governor John White has brought with him to Roanoke Island is one who is not a settler but a returnee native. It is Manteo, one of two Indians that Grenville in 1584 persuaded to accompany him back to England and train as an interpreter in future expeditions. So, now Manteo, soon to be baptised as a Christian, is back in his homeland not only to be a go-between with the tribes using his newly acquired knowledge of the English language but also given an elevated status with the title of Chief of the Roanoke and Croatoan Indians, whilst acknowledging Raleigh’s and the Queen’s overlordship. What this really means is that Manteo, together with whatever Indians he can gather around him be recognised by the white colonists, as having supreme authority in Indian matters in the area, under Raleigh and his representatives. Unfortunately it is not known today what arrangements, or bribes were made or given to Manteo to sweeten and keep him on side in the matter of the ‘appropriation’ i.e. theft, of land for the colonists.

However, whatever Manteo’s view on land acquisition White is determined to show that the massacre of Grenville’s garrison and now the murder of George Howe cannot go unpunished. So, learning from a friendly tribe of Croatoan Indians that the remnants of the Roanoke tribe were responsible for both outrages he decides to attack the village of Dasemunkepeuc and, as this scene portrays, this is carried out on August 9.

To the left of this scene is shown the façade of the old Exeter Guildhall depicted to acknowledge that this panel was stitched by the Exeter New World Tapestry team. The Guildhall was also the place that a number of finished panels went on show to the general public for the very first time on 8 June 1989