VanDyke 1John Smith played many key roles in the colonies, which made him a very important person in colonial times. He was a very important person in colonial times because of his perseverance in difficult situations and not giving up on whatever he was doing. John Smith also had fantastic leadership skills that saved the colonies he was leading from numerous disasters. In addition to this, his relationship with the Indians brought great benefits to the colonists and saved them on more than one occasion. John Smith was born in Lincolnshire, England, between 1579 and 1580 (Biography.com page 1). John Smith was a man of many talents. When he was still a boy he was apprenticed to a merchant (shmoop page 1). His father died when Smith was only seventeen. Soon after his father's death he became a soldier for hire in the English army, also known as the "red coats", and achieved surprising success in his military career (biography.com page 1). During his time in the English army, he was captured by the Turks and taken prisoner (biography.com page 1). Not long after being imprisoned he became a slave and killed his master due to the cruel treatment he received (biography.com page 1). He escaped and returned to England in the early 1600s. Subsequently, he became a sailor, explorer, and settler in the New World, and a writer in his later years (Mark Canada pg 1). But among all these things he was best known for founding "Jamestown" and, in doing so, laying the foundation for the United States of America. One of the main reasons John Smith came to the New World was a taste for adventure, but the real main reason was money. Investing in the New World that thought......middle of paper......ke. Np, nd Web. October 20, 2013.2. "John Smith at Jamestown." Shmoop: Homework Help, Teacher Resources, Test Prep. Np, nd Web. 20 October 2013. .3. “John Smith Biography – Facts, Birthday, Life Story – Biography.com.” Famous Biographies and TV Shows - Biography.com. Np, nd Web. 20 October 2013. .4. "John Smith." History.com. A&E and Web television networks. October 26, 2013. .5. "John Smith." John Smith. Np, nd Web. 27 October 2013. .6. "Indians and Smith | Captain John Smith Historic Trail." Indians and Smith | Captain John Smith Historic Trail. Np, nd Web. October 29. 2013. .