Tecumseh at Moraviantown First Nations Tecumseh's Speeches Tecumseh's Brother Battle of Moraviantown

Tecumseh’s death on the battlefield in Moraviantown is a suitably dramatic end for such a powerful figure. Like his elder brother Cheeseekau, he died in combat with his enemies the Longknives. The battle was the final showdown between Tecumseh and his arch-rival William Henry Harrison. Not surprisingly, Tecumseh’s final hours are clouded by legend. On his way to the battlefield, he is said to have taken the time to look after a young white child. “Boy, run away home at once,” he warned. “The soldiers are coming. There is war and you might get hurt.” Tecumseh’s concern for the ordinary people affected by the war also moved him to stop at Christopher Arnold’s mill. The Natives had already burned the mill at McGregor’s Creek. If Arnold’s were to go up in flames, it would be a disaster for the local settlers. Tecumseh guarded the site until the last of his army had safely passed by. American scouts were actually in sight by the time he finally galloped off to catch up to his warriors. Tecumseh is said to have had a premonition that he would not survive the Battle of Moraviantown. While preparing for the conflict he gave away his sword with the instructions that it eventually be passed on to his son. After deploying his warriors in the swamp, Tecumseh went to review the British positions. He was the picture of a competent commander; confident and in good spirits, keeping any misgivings he may have had to himself. He shook hands with the British officers and encouraged the soldiers. Through an interpreter Tecumseh advised Procter on strategy. “Father, have a big heart,” he said before leaving to fight. “Tell your young men to be firm, and all will go well.” Tecumseh’s battle to preserve native lands and culture had taken him far from the rolling green hills of his birthplace along the Scioto River. He died in autumn, on Canadian soil. Several American soldiers claimed to have killed Tecumseh. The most high profile of these was Colonel Richard Mentor Johnson who later used this alleged feat to fuel his political career. In the years after the battle, Shawnee warriors claimed to have carried Tecumseh’s body off the battlefield with them as they retreated. It is more likely that Tecumseh’s corpse was scalped, stripped, and skinned by American soldiers looking for booty. One of them later remembered that he “brought two pieces” of Tecumseh’s “yellow hide home with me to my mother and sweethearts.” Nobody knows where Tecumseh fell. To this day, his final resting place remains shrouded in mystery.