Peracuta (also spelled ''Perecuta'' or ''Perecute'') (birth year unknown – ca. 1690) was a 17th-century leader of the

Appomattoc The Appomattoc (also spelled Appamatuck, Apamatic, and numerous other variants) were a historic tribe of Virginia Indians speaking an Algonquian language, and residing along the lower Appomattox River, in the area of what is now Petersburg, Co ...

tribe in what is now the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. During his reign, he worked with the English

colony of Virginia The Colony of Virginia, chartered in 1606 and settled in 1607, was the first enduring English colonial empire, English colony in North America, following failed attempts at settlement on Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland by Sir Humphrey GilbertG ...

in an attempt to recapture the former power of past

paramount chief A paramount chief is the English-language designation for the highest-level political leader in a regional or local polity or country administered politically with a chief-based system. This term is used occasionally in anthropological and arch ...

s and maintain peaceful unity among the tribe under his leadership.

Life and rule

Peracuta was a respected warrier within the Appomattoc tribe. By the 1660s, Peracuta had become the new

weroance Weroance is an Algonquian word meaning leader or commander among the Powhatan confederacy of the Virginia coast and Chesapeake Bay region. Weroances were under a paramount chief called Powhatan. The Powhatan Confederacy, encountered by the coloni ...

of the tribe. In September 1671, Peracuta was the guide for settlers and explorers

Thomas Batts Thomas Batts was an early settler in Virginia and an explorer of western Virginia. Early and family life Thomas Batts (also Batte) was born in Yorkshire, England, 1661, and was a son of John Batte of Oakwell Hall and Martha Mallory, daughter of ...

and Robert Fallam on their "Batts and Fallam Expedition" within the borders of present-day

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

. They were acting under a commission granted to

Abraham Wood Abraham Wood (1610–1682), sometimes referred to as "General" or "Colonel" Wood, was an English fur trader, militia officer, politician and explorer of 17th century colonial Virginia. Wood helped build and maintained Fort Henry at the falls of ...

"for finding out the ebbing and flowing of the water behind the mountains, in order to the discovery of the South Sea" and authorized by the

Virginia House of Burgesses The House of Burgesses was the elected representative element of the Virginia General Assembly, the legislative body of the Colony of Virginia. With the creation of the House of Burgesses in 1642, the General Assembly, which had been established ...

. The expedition is credited with discovering Woods River, now called the New River.'America and West Indies: October 1671', Calendar of State Papers Colonial, America and West Indies, Volume 7: 1669-1674 (1889), pp. 263-271. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=70214&strquery=batts Date accessed: 11 January 2009. Before leaving and returning home, the party formally declared the river to be a part of the realm of Charles II. Batts and Fallam branded a series of trees with marking irons representing Governor William Berkeley and the sponsor of the expedition, Abraham Wood. They also branded a tree in honor of their trusted guide, Peracuta. In 1675, the tribe requested that Peracuta be granted permission to plant and clear any land that was note occupied by British Colonists. During this period, the request was granted and Peracuta was formally recognized as "King of the Appomattoc" by the

Virginia General Assembly The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and was established on July 30, 161 ...

and Governor Berkeley. Peracuta's time in leadership was met with severe hardship and persecution for Native peoples. The Appomattoc village was destroyed as a result of

Bacon's Rebellion Bacon's Rebellion was an armed rebellion held by Colony of Virginia, Virginia settlers that took place from 1676 to 1677. It was led by Nathaniel Bacon (Virginia colonist), Nathaniel Bacon against List of colonial governors of Virginia, Colon ...

in 1676, and in the same year, the practice of slavery of Indians was re-introduced in Virginia colony, caused much suffering to the Appomattoc peoples. While Peracuta was present at the ceremony for the signing of the

Treaty of 1677 The Treaty of 1677 (also known as the Treaty Between Virginia And The Indians 1677 or Treaty of Middle Plantation) was signed in Virginia on May 28, 1677, between the English Crown and representatives from various Virginia Native American tribe ...

(also known as the "Treaty Between Virginia and the Indians" or "Treaty of Middle Plantation"), he was originally not allowed to sign it because some of the members of the Appomattoc tribe were accused of murder at the time. Peracuta was permitted by the

British Crown The Crown is the state (polity), state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, British Overseas Territories, overseas territories, Provinces and territorie ...

to sign the 1680 annexure of the Treaty of 1677.

Death

Records indicate that Peracuta died around 1690 and was succeeded by a new weroance by April 1691.Helen C. Rountree, ''Pocahontas's People'', p. 109

References

{{Reflist 1691 deaths People of the Powhatan Confederacy Year of birth unknown Tribal chiefs 17th-century Native Americans Native American leaders