Tecumseh's confederacy
Tecumseh's Confederacy | |
---|---|
Leaders |
|
Headquarters | Prophetstown |
Active regions | |
Ideology | Pan-Indianism Anti-American expansionism Indigenous Religion as preached by Tenskwatawa Communal ownership of land[1] |
Allies | Britain |
Opponents | United States |
Battles and wars |
Tecumseh's confederacy was a
In November 1811, an
Formation
Following the 1795
The Shawnee, who had lost most of their territory during the
Religious revival
In May 1805
Tenskwatawa was influenced greatly by the teachings of
They were invited to northwest Indiana by Pottawatomie Chief Winamac, who was also a religious leader calling for a return to many of the old ways, although he sought access to American agricultural technology. Tenskwatawa accepted the invitation and established the village of Prophetstown near the confluence of the Wabash and Tippecanoe Rivers, land claimed by the Miami. Little Turtle told the Shawnee that they were unwelcome there, but the warnings were ignored.[2][10]
Tenskwatawa's religious teachings became increasingly militant following an 1807 treaty between the Americans,
Willig (1997) argues that Tippecanoe was not only the largest Native American community in the Great Lakes region but served as a major center of Indian culture and final rampart defense against whites. It was an intertribal, religious stronghold along the Wabash River in Indiana for three thousand Native Americans, Tippecanoe, known as Prophetstown to whites, served as a temporary barrier to settlers' westward movement. Led by Tenskwatawa and Tecumseh, thousands of Algonquin-speaking Indians gathered at Tippecanoe to gain spiritual strength. US government attempts, from the George Washington to William Henry Harrison administrations, to rid the area of the numerous Indian tribes eventually met with success as the Indians retreated westward by 1840 to avoid the large numbers of whites entering their territory. [12]
Rise of Tecumseh
By 1808 Tecumseh began to be seen as a leader by his community. He was outraged by the continued loss of land to the Americans and he began to travel around the southern Great Lakes region to visit village leaders and urge them to stop cooperating with the Americans and threatening to kill chiefs who continued to work with the Americans. Tecumseh had possibly as many as 5,000 warriors at his disposal scattered across the northwest.
In late 1808 the British in Canada approached him to form an alliance, but he refused. It was not until 1810 that the Americans first took notice of him. Tecumseh eventually emerged as the leader of the confederation, but it was built upon a foundation established by the religious appeal of his younger brother.[2]
Quickly becoming the dominant Native American leader in the northwestern United States, Tecumseh turned his attention to the south. In 1811 he traveled to meet with leaders of the
Tecumseh's War
Tensions had already been rising rapidly, as people became aware of Tecumseh's war aims. While he was still in the south a preemptive strike was launched against Prophetstown, defeating his brother and a force of 500–700 warriors in the Battle of Tippecanoe. The defeat was a terrible blow for the confederacy, which never fully recovered.[13][14]
Tecumseh returned and began to rebuild the confederacy. Allying with the British in Canada at the outbreak of the War of 1812, Tecumseh now had a supply of rifles, bullets and gunpowder. Tecumseh began a series of coordinated raids, attacking American posts in areas the British had ceded to the U.S. The Americans responded quickly and launched a second campaign, destroying Prophetstown a second time. The American frontiersmen had a grievance that motivated their demand for war in 1812.
Overall, Tecumseh's confederacy played a crucial role in causing the
In 1813, the
See also
- Indiana in the War of 1812
- Indiana Territory
- Western Confederacy, a pan-tribal union that resisted U.S. settlement in the Northwest Indian War(1785–1795)
References
- ^ https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/tecumseh-speech-to-governor-harrison-at-vincennes-indiana-territory
- ^ a b c See (Owens 2007), pg. 211.
- ^ "Tecumseh's Confederation – Ohio History Central". ohiohistorycentral.org. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
- S2CID 144975415.
- ^ See (Sugden 1997), pg. 114.
- ^ See (Sugden 1997), pg. 121–123.
- ^ See (Sugden 1997), pg. 123.
- ^ See (Sugden 1997), pg. 120.
- ^ See (Owens 2007), pg. 210.
- ^ See (Sugden 1997), pg. 117, 167.
- ^ See (Sugden 1997), pg. 168.
- JSTOR 20173677.
- ISBN 9781442205581.
- ISBN 9781440828621.
- ^ Twatio, Bill (September 2009). "Tecumseh Shawnee Shooting Star: The Most Revered of Indian Chiefs, Tecumseh Dreamed of a Vast Confederacy Strong Enough to Resist American Expansion. The Dream Died at Moraviantown on October 5, 1813". Esprit de Corps, Canadian Military Then & Now. pp. 24+.
- JSTOR 20173102.
- ^ Gugin and St. Clair, eds., pp. 347–48.
Further reading
- Cave, Alfred A. (Winter 2002). "The Shawnee Prophet, Tecumseh, and Tippecanoe: A Case Study of Historical Myth-Making". JSTOR 3124761.
- Edmunds, R. David. Tecumseh and the Quest for Indian Leadership (2nd Edition, 2006)
- Edmunds, R. David. The Shawnee Prophet (1985) excerpt and text search
- Owens, Robert M. (2007). Mr. Jefferson's Hammer:William Henry Harrison and the Origins of American Indian Policy. Norman, Oklahoma: ISBN 978-0-8061-3842-8.
- Sugden, John (1997). Tecumseh: A Life. New York: Holt. ISBN 0-8050-6121-5.
- Willig, Timothy D. (October 1997). "Prophetstown of the Wabash: The Native Spiritual Defense of the Old Northwest". JSTOR 20173677.
- Willig, Timothy D. Restoring the Chain of Friendship: British Policy and the Indians of the Great Lakes, 1783–1815 (2008) excerpt and a text search
External links
- "Tecumseh's Confederation". Ohio History Central. Archived from the original on October 17, 2009. Retrieved March 9, 2009.