Tecumseh and Tenskwatawa, Myth and History

I. Tecumseh's Death and His Mythologizing

A. Death's Blessings--in many ways, the death of Tecumseh helped solidify his standing, particularly since his death freed him of the responsibility for the military pursuit he was attempting to promote. This phenomenon can be seen in the careers of many "great Americans."

1. Abraham Lincoln--Lincoln's assassination came just a week after the victory of the Union over the Confederacy, and has meant that he has received much of the credit for that victory. His death also meant that he avoided the difficulties that presented Andrew Johnson so many difficulties, including the political problems with the Radical Republicans (which Lincoln undoubtedly would have faced as well).

2. Contrast with Ulysses Grant--by way of contrast, Grant was a great hero at the end of the war--so much so that the country (or, at least, the Republican Party) turned to him to be president after the conflicts of the Johnson years. But his two terms as President were marked by corruption, which has damaged his reputation.

3. Tenskwatawa--Essentially, Tenskwatawa bore the brunt of Tecumseh's defeat. The Battle of Thames took place in early October 1813. With the defeat, keeping approximately 1,000 Native Americans became the responsibility of Tenskwatawa alone. He was able to accomplish this, but the history books have not seen fit to recognize this as much of an accomplishment. Instead, the post-war narrative of Tenskwatawa's story emphasizes his return to drink, his turn to accommodationist politics after his return to the United States, his failure to realize his dream.

II. Inevitably and Historical Contingency

A. Historical Inevitability--the trend of the study of history until recently was to argue that historical events happened because it was inevitable that they happen that way--that, in fact, there could be no other outcome. This argument has a lot of intuitive power. It is difficult to imagine different outcomes, because those outcomes did not in fact happen--and it is easy to believe that these outcomes were some way destined to happen.

B. Historical Contingency--Most historians today argue for the idea of historical contingency--that events in the past happen for specific reasons, but that at the same time these reasons shift in importance as our relationship to the past changes; we come to see particular causes become more important than others. Historians today also favor arguments that recognize the role that accident plays in historical events

C. Tecumseh and Tenskwatawa--The brothers were reacting to the circumstances that they saw threatening their traditional way of life. To combat this threat, they used both aspects of traditional culture, and innovations they created, to try to achieve this. While recognizing that ultimately this effort failed, it is important to recognize how close it came to working. While circumstances ultimately worked against them, the brothers refused to accept that they could not change those circumstances.