Final answer:
Tobacco cultivation, introduced by John Rolfe, turned Jamestown from a failing venture to a successful colony due to its high profitability as a cash crop. It attracted settlers and investment, leading to economic growth and westward expansion. Despite this success, it resulted in soil depletion and contributed to the beginnings of a reliance on forced labor.
Step-by-step explanation:
The cultivation of tobacco by John Rolfe and other settlers transformed the Jamestown settlement from a precarious venture teetering on the edge of failure into a prosperous colony. Initially, the English settlers were at a loss, having hoped to discover gold and a passage to the Pacific but finding neither. Leadership disputes, poor relations with the indigenous Powhatan peoples, and a lack of sustainable agriculture left the colony reeling.
However, the introduction of tobacco, particularly the sweeter Orinoco variety, provided a valuable cash crop that brought significant profits upon being exported back to Europe where its use became incredibly popular. This economic boon enticed more investors and settlers, leading to the adoption of the headright policy that granted land to every new immigrant to catalyze the influx of labor needed for the labor-intensive cultivation of tobacco. The growth of the tobacco industry inevitably led to the westward expansion of the colony as settlers sought new fertile lands to meet the ever-growing demand.
While tobacco's influence was pivotal for the colony's economic success, it had detriments too, such as the depletion of soil nutrients and the push towards indentured servitude and eventual reliance on the slave trade for labor. Nonetheless, by the 1620s, Virginia achieved a degree of permanence with cutivated political stability and a profitable economy, largely thanks to its tobacco industry.