born Jan. 2, 1647, Suffolk, Eng.

died October 1676, Virginia Colony

Virginia planter and leader of Bacon's Rebellion. His wife's disinheritance (her father opposed her marriage) and his involvement in a plan to defraud a neighbour of his inheritance contributed to Bacon's decision to migrate to North America. Financed by his father, Bacon acquired two estates along the James River in Virginia. Less than a year after his arrival in the colony he was appointed to Governor William Berkeley's (Berkeley, Sir William) council. When a dispute with Berkeley, who was his cousin by marriage, arose over the Indian policy, Bacon, a proponent of unlimited territorial expansion, organized an expedition against the Indians (1676). The governor, fearing a large-scale war, denounced Bacon's activities as rebellion. In turn, Bacon directed his forces against Berkeley and for a time controlled practically all of Virginia. At the height of his power, however, Bacon died, and the rebellion collapsed.