The History of King Philip, Sovereign Chief of the Wampanoags

Metacomet, younger son of Massasoit of the Wampanoags, was also known as King Philip. In 1662 he succeeded his brother, Wamsutta, as sachem or chief of the Wampanoag Indian tribe. Metacomet earnestly attempted to maintain his father's peaceful policies with the Colonists, but the English pushed ever farther into Wampanoag lands, imposing their laws on the native people. Eventually a reluctant Metacomet united the disparate tribes of the region and led an uprising, later known as King Philip's War that ranged from Rhode Island into Massachusetts. Six hundred colonists and three thousand Native Americans were killed in King Philip's War. The war ended when the Wampanoag leader was surprised and shot by an Indian in the service of Captain Benjamin Church on August 12, 1676. Metacomet's head was on display in Plymouth, Massachusetts for twenty years.This version of the History of King Philip was collected from widely spread materials and condensed into this narrative of his career including incidents the author, John Abbott, considered most interesting and instructive to the general reader.