|
The Six Nations of the Iroquois
Norton's account of the Iroquois negotiations Norton's account of meeting Six Nations Iroquois at the Battle of Chippawa
|
By 1812, the political influence
of the Iroquois Confederacy was slipping away as the American and Canadian
colonies continued to grow at a fast rate. The Confederacy found itself
in an increasingly difficult environment. The 1783 Treaty of Paris, which
ended the American War of Independence, has left the Iroquois straddling
a new border between the United States and Canada. This border will eventually
create a physical and political rift between brother tribes. Traditionally, the Iroquois occupied lands in the region that became central New York state, although close to three thousand resided in areas of Lower Canada, and a smaller number in Upper Canadian settlements. The Iroquois chief Thayendanega (Joseph Brant) led many of his people against the Americans during the War of Independence. Following the war Brant established a settlement on the Grand River, in Upper Canada’s Niagara Peninsula. The Grand River community saw itself as part of an independent nation. It was made up mostly of Iroquois tribes, but also included other native peoples as well as some black and white settlers who preferred the Indian lifestyle. As a consequence of being restricted to a given piece of land, the Grand River community became more and more dependent on the white government for the supplies it needed to pursue an increasingly European agricultural lifestyle. The rift between the Canadian and American Iroquois settlements grew as the conflict of 1812 deepened. The Iroquois had good reason to distrust both the British and American governments. Experience taught them that apparent concern for Indian welfare was always directly tied to white interests. Promises made by the white governments were often broken. The Iroquois of New York were determined to remain neutral. Many Iroquois in Canada were also inclined to stay out of the white battles. However, the leading chief of the Grand River Iroquois had a different vision. Teyoninhokarawen (John Norton) believed that the interests of his people were not so easily divorced from the affairs of the white society that surrounded them. He thought his community’s welfare would be best protected in an alliance with the British. Perhaps William Henry Harrison's brutal anti-Indian campaigns in the Michigan and Ohio territories made choosing sides easier for Norton. After much negotiation, the Six Nations made an agreement amongst themselves which allowed the New York Iroquois to remain neutral. The Grand River community would be free to fight alongside the British. Most importantly, no Iroquois warriors would meet their brothers in battle. Initially the agreement held. The Grand River and Kanawake Iroquois contributed greatly to British victories at Beaver Dams and Queenston Heights. When the British however, invaded Black Rock in the summer of 1813, and it was interpreted the nearby Seneca and Iroquois as an attack. The American tribes responded by taking part in a U.S. raid on Fort George where they met their Grand River brothers in battle. Caught up in events beyond their control, the Iroquois fought again on opposite sides at the Battle of Chippawa in July of 1813. When this battle ended, more than eighty Iroquois warriors were dead, almost all killed by their own people. This tragedy lead the Iroquois to withdraw almost entirely from the war in order to salvage their Confederacy. |
