In describing colonial settlement of New England, school textbooks almost never mention that thousands of Native Americans were shipped out of their own homeland as slaves. To understand how that happened, we must go back to 1675 when New England was tearing itself apart during King Phillip’s war. Click here for a 3-minute video posted on November 17, 2025 by Redacted History that explains what happened.

When the English first arrived, Native nations helped them survive winters they weren’t prepared for. They offered food, knowledge, and space. But little by little, the colonies took more land, more control, and more authority than they were ever offered to them by the Indigenous people.

By the time King Phillip’s War began in 1675, native communities were watching the newcomers turn into conquerors. They were fighting to hold on to the only home they had ever known. 

By late 1675, colonial courts approved a policy that changed everything. Native men, women, and children taken in the fighting were labeled war captives. From that moment on, they were enslaved and treated as assets that the colonies could sell and ship away.