Mayflower: Question 9

In the chaotic, atrocity-filled conflict known as King Philip’s War, does anyone emerge as heroic? If so, what are the actions and qualities that identify him or her as a hero?

To determine whether King Philip's War contained anyone who could be considered "heroic", it is first necessary to define what is meant by the term. At the most rudimentary level, "heroic" could simply refer to a person who rises above the rest and exerts a significant impact on events. Everyone remembers the main characters in a book or movie, so who were the main characters in King Philip's War? Two people with strikingly similar plotlines in the course of the war, and who both influenced the course of events significantly, were King Philip and Benjamin Church.

First consider the case of King Philip. As the name of the war suggests, King Philip's diplomatic connivery was at the very heart of the war's beginning. Of course, foolish decisions by prior leaders practically forced his hand, but Philip managed to organize a significant band of Indian tribes into one scattered but forceful alliance. Without his allure, perhaps the war would have gone down in history as a rather insignificant takeover of the already decimated Pokanokets. That being said, as the war dragged on, and became more violent and ruthless, Philip lost much of his support, and was ironically in hiding during much of the conflict. Without Philip, the war would never have happened, but the war ended not only in utter destruction across New England but also in Philip's own death, so he is more of a failed hero.

Benjamin Church, on the other hand, was an eager, opportunistic man who lived rather independently. As the war broke out, Church eventually convinced the more traditional military leadership to allow him to head a special regiment of troops. After a short while, however, it appeared as though Church would go down as a mere footnote in history, as a combination of defeats, disagreements with other officers, and a pregnant wife forced him to take a hiatus from his rally. However, Church felt a strong sense of duty, and, after his wife gave birth, returned to the scene (in a somewhat clandestine manner) and led an integral part of the army. Church's force was unorthodox, comprising men of both European and native descent (the natives proved useful, knowing the tactics of the enemy), but was determined and resourceful. Though Church could not put his obvious intelligence to its best use (due to frequent overrules by higher ranking officers), it is clear that he was a major reason for the end of the war, symbolically represented by the eventual capture of King Philip himself.

King Philip was the failed hero who caused the war; Benjamin Church was the successful hero who overcame all obstacles and ended the atrocious fighting.