 Pocahontas was the Native American princess who saved the life of one Englishman, was taken to England under marriage by another, and believe it or not, she planted a tree in England in 1616 shortly before her death and it has long been believed that the tree still exists. And according to researchers, the tree may still produce fruit. Wait till you hear this. Pocahontas was the princess daughter of the chief Powhatan, leader of the Native American tribe and because of this, her influence was well respected and her position was not mistaken. However, Pocahontas was not her real name. In fact, the name Pocahontas is a pejorative term that translates as natiwan, but for the purpose of this video, we will call the princess Pocahontas as she is now widely known by. During the princesses childhood, the English had arrived in the New World and clashes between the colonizers and the Native Americans were commonplace. In 1607, John Smith, an admiral of New England and an English soldier and explorer, arrived in Virginia by ship with a group of about a hundred other settlers. One day, while exploring the Chick Hamanee River, John Smith was captured by one of Powhatan's hunting parties. He was brought to Powhatan's home and the accounts of what happened next vary from source to source. In John Smith's original writing, he told of having a large feast after which he sat and spoke with the chief. In a letter written to Queen Anne, John Smith told the story of the chief's daughter throwing herself across his body to protect him from execution at the hands of Powhatan. Pocahontas often visited the settlement at Jamestown to help the settlers during times when food was in short supply and on 13 April 1613, during one of these visits, she was taken into captivity by the English to ransom her for some English prisoners held by the chief. She was held at Jamestown for over a year. During her captivity, a tobacco planter called John Rolfe took a special interest in the attractive young prisoner and he eventually conditioned her release upon her agreeing to marry him. The princess was baptized Rebecca and in 1614 she was married to John Rolfe, which was the first recorded marriage between a European and a Native American. John was praised for apparently converting a savage to Christianity as part of a propaganda campaign to support the British occupation. The princess died a year later on her return voyage. Some say she was poisoned, but the true cause of her death at the age of 21 was never established. During her year long stay in England, she planted a tree. The tree is thought to still exist and there are efforts currently in progress to trace the exact location of the legendary planting. Researchers at the Forestry Commission carried out DNA research following claims by a retired Hitcham resident who has extensively researched the Pocahontas legend. It was hoped this might establish a DNA connection between the hotel's trees and other very old mulberry trees at Buckingham Palace, Seon House in West London and Norford Hall, Norfolk. It was thought Pocahontas might have visited one of these trees and collected seeds and research could establish whether they were forbearers of the Hitcham tree. Joan Cottrell from the Forestry Commission said scientists had attempted to fingerprint eight trees but failed to get clear results. She said tests showed the eight trees probably belonged to the same clone, but that the work was not conclusive. The researchers are hopeful, however, of tracing the tree at some stage. The search is on to find the tree that the Native American princess planted in England in 1616. What do you guys think about this anyway? Comments below and, as always, thank you for watching.