Pocahontas never saved John Smith’s life

In May 1607, Captain John Smith and around 100 other English immigrants made their way to Virginia. They established a fort on a peninsula along the James River, and while they were cordial with certain Indians, they were hostile to others. Opechancanough, the younger brother of Powhatan, seized Captain John Smith in December 1607 when he was on a hunting expedition near the Chickahominy River. The chief was waiting for him when he was taken to Werowocomoco. The historical community vigorously disputes and debunks what happened thereafter. Smith said that his brain was going to be bludgeoned and that his head was resting on a stone. To prevent his death, Pocahontas, the chief's closest daughter, "took his head in her arms and lay her down upon his." After that, Chief Powhatan determined Smith should live.

Many movies have recreated this sequence, and some people think it is a particularly endearing aspect of Pocahontas' persona. However, historians who focus on Native American culture at the time had a very difficult time accepting the idea that Pocahontas would have risked her life to save a white man. It was so far outside the bounds of what was seen as usual at the time that she was a very young girl. The majority of contemporary historians think that Smith's story is a hoax.

Numerous accounts in John Smith's publications about discovering New York were subsequently revealed to be embellishments of the facts. For instance, he claimed to have seen mermaids and maintained that they were genuine, but they were manatees. Historiographers argue that he crafted tales that he was aware would generate substantial book sales.