John Smith

On June 21, 1631, John Smith, English explorer and leader of the Virginia Colony at Jamestown, died at the age of 51. From the article:

"Colonizer and publicist. During his two years in America, Smith was principally responsible for the survival of England’s first permanent colony in the New World. His bold leadership, military experience, and determination brought a measure of discipline to the dissolute colonists; his negotiations with the Indians prevented starvation; and his dispersal of the colony from unhealthy Jamestown lowered mortality. After his return to England, his promotional writings contributed significantly to English efforts for an American empire.

Smith’s early career had prepared him for Virginia’s challenges. As a teenager he fought in the Low Countries (“that university of warre”) and survived several remarkable escapades in western Europe before joining a Christian army fighting the Turks in Hungary. After more improbable episodes, including three victories in duels, he was captured and enslaved. Smith killed his master and then wandered through eastern Europe and sailed briefly to Morocco before returning to England in 1604. His years abroad predisposed him to military solutions. “The Warres in Europe, Asia, and Affrica,” he later boasted, “taught me how to subdue the wilde Salvages in … America.” Smith’s military exploits also provided the necessary social distinctions for a position of colonial leadership–a captaincy and a coat of arms."