Bacon, Nathaniel (1647-1676)

American colonial leader and wealthy plantation owner. An advocate of social reform in Virginia and an opponent of Governor William Berkeley, he gained wide public support and was proclaimed ‘General of Virginia’. In 1676 he organized Bacon's Rebellion, forcing Berkeley to flee from the capital at Jamestown. Bacon's sudden death ended the uprising but Berkeley was removed from power for his brutal treatment of the rebels.

Born in Suffolk, England, Bacon emigrated to Virginia 1673 and soon began making demands that frontier settlements be protected against American Indian attacks. He led colonist forces in raids against local peoples 1675.

Bacon and his supporters demanded a reduction of taxes and an extension of the suffrage.