Metacom (Metacón) is the current king of the Alquin tribes and ruler of the territory of the Huámpanos, “the greatest power of the Indians here”, whom the Europeans call Philip.
| Type | Character (king) |
| Seat | Island of Metacón (Limouth) |
| Spanish entry | Metacón |
Names
The Europeans (“europanos” or “uropanos”) named him Philip; he is also called “King Alexander” or “the king the brother”. His predecessor was called Alexander “because the europanos did not like to mention him by his name of Juan”. The series: the father; Alexander/Juan; Metacom/Philip.
History
A younger son of an earlier king and a descendant of Massasoit, the source of his legitimacy, he has reigned “not long, a couple of years”.
Seat
His throne is on the island of Metacón, or Limouth, in “the pink part” of the map. He keeps a court, toward which a company set course.
Relationships
- “His almost-constant rivals”, north of the island (to the left on the map): an old, unnamed enmity.
- The Sofíanos: he “has something like an alliance pact” with them.
- The Europeans: he is suspected, not proven, of dealing with the Dutch or the French; some investigate “whether Metacón is not getting involved with other europanos”, and the accusation is wielded against him.
Conflicting accounts
- The link between Metacom, Alexander/Juan and their father is uncertain: father, brother, or, as some whisper, a single man returning under successive names.
Open questions
- His face, age, voice and dress; the court of Limouth.
- How a younger son reached the throne, and what became of the elder ones.
- Whether the Alquin tribes and the Huámpanos are one people, two, or people and territory.
- What “the king the brother” means; who the Sofíanos are and what the pact obliges.
- Whether the accusation is true, slander, or both.