Samuel Wiseman's Book of Record: The Official Account of Bacon's Rebellion in Virginia, 1676-1677 [Hardcover]

Michael Leroy Oberg (Author), Samuel Wiseman (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0739107119 | ISBN-13: 978-0739107119 | Publication Date: March 22, 2005

In 1676, Nathaniel Bacon led a well-known colonial uprising against the authority of King Charles II, in the person of Virginia's governor Sir William Berkeley. Bacon and other colonists identified as their chief concern Berkeley's non-aggressive policies toward local Native Americans. Bacon's revolt dramatically altered relations between Chesapeake colonists and Native Americans, and also induced late Stuart imperialists to crack down on colonial autonomy. Despite the widely recognized significance of Bacon's Rebellion, the most important documents chronicling this event have been scattered in several archives and repositories, impeding students' access. Michael Leroy Oberg has transcribed, edited, and introduced the official record left by Samuel Wiseman, King Charles II's scribe assigned to this uprising's investigation—making this history widely available for the first time in book form.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Michael Oberg's edition of Samuel Wiseman's 'Book of Record' makes available to student and scholar what may well be the most important and wide-ranging document of early American history hitherto unpublished. The crisis of Indian relations, the beginnings of African slavery, the roots of popular politics, even the origins of the American Revolution, all are illuminated here. (Stephen Saunders Webb )

Michael Oberg has performed an invaluable service for historians by transcribing and editing Samuel Wiseman's never-before-published 'Book of Record.' Oberg's introduction deftly situates the text within the history and historiography of seventeenth-century Virginia. Anyone writing on Bacon's Rebellion will benefit from Oberg's edition. (Erik R. Seeman )

By making accessible Samuel Wiseman's lengthy, contemporary investigation of Bacon's Rebellion, Michael Oberg makes a signal contribution to our understanding of a critical event in early Anglo-American history, whose meaning and legacy has long divided historians. Wiseman's account goes beyond the rebellion and its suppression to shed light on Anglo-Indian relations, pre-existing political and social tensions, subsequent imperial strategies to more closely integrate Virginia within an emerging English Atlantic, and the personal cost of revolt to many ordinary Virginians. Oberg's edition provides ample new material for students and scholars alike to debate the course and significance of Bacon's Rebellion... (Michael J. Jarvis )

Samuel Wiseman's 'Book of Record' provides unparalleled insight into the conflict known as Bacon's Rebellion, an event that altered the course of American history. Michael Oberg's excellent edition of the text makes this a must read for anyone with a serious interest in the Anglo-American colonies in the seventeenth century, particularly those concerned about relations between Native Americans and European colonists. (Peter Mancall )

Samuel Wiseman's manuscript 'Book of Record' is essential reading for all who would comprehend Bacon's Rebellion and its consequences. Oberg deserves congratulations for bringing this invaluable source within easy reach of students and scholars alike. (Warren M. Billings )

By making accessible Samuel Wiseman's lengthy, contemporary investigation of Bacon's Rebellion, Michael Oberg makes a signal contribution to our understanding of a critical event in early Anglo-American history, whose meaning and legacy has long divided historians. Wiseman's account goes beyond the rebellion and its suppression to shed light on Anglo-Indian relations, pre-existing political and social tensions, subsequent imperial strategies to more closely integrate Virginia within an emerging English Atlantic, and the personal cost of revolt to many ordinary Virginians. Oberg's edition provides ample new material for students and scholars alike to debate the course and significance of Bacon's Rebellion. (Michael J. Jarvis )

About the Author

Michael L. Oberg is professor of history at the State University of New York, Geneseo.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Lexington Books (March 22, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0739107119
• ISBN-13: 978-0739107119
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,438,429 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A real eye-opener on an enigmatic moment in American history, July 20, 2007

By 

Justin T. Moore "Sarcen" - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Samuel Wiseman's Book of Record: The Official Account of Bacon's Rebellion in Virginia, 1676-1677 (Hardcover)

To be perfectly honest, I don't expect anybody to read this review. This book is about as obscure as it gets. Even American history professors aren't exactly lined up to get this volume.

That said, this rare primary source is an enlightening look at Bacon's Rebellion. Today, people tend to read all sorts of modern political agendas into the facts of the rebellion and most domestic primary sources are a bit too far after the fact to be reliable. Out of an intense curiosity regarding the true events and circumstances of the rebellion, I purchased this book to get the story unfiltered by centuries of historians' commentaries or half-truths parroted through generations of textbooks and historical compilations.

I was not disappointed. Though most of the record is uninteligible to a lay reader (agonizing details regarding the specific grievances of individual counties of the Virginia Colony, etc.), the narative is chilling in its detail. This is not the story as told by Governor Sir William Berkeley, nor is it from the perspective of Bacon's apologists. Rather, it is the official report to the English Crown of an investigation into the events conducted by the Royal Privy Council within weeks of the end of the insurrection.

The narative is interesting in that it damns Bacon for his actions at the same time that it paints a not-unsympathetic picture of Bacon. One gets the sense that the author was somewhat hostile toward Berkeley for reasons explained elsewhere in the record. Still, it cronicles Bacon's brutal transgressions against peaceful Native Americans with unflinching honesty and one sees the event as far more complex than most present-day students of history are likely to be taught.

Is this book worth the $80 I paid for it? Well, not if you can find it in a library. But the best most libraries have to offer on the subject is Washburn's somewhat tainted _The Governor and the Rebel_ so if colonial-era history is your professional specialty or just a beloved hobby, it very well may be your only option to get the story right fron the horse's mouth.