The Native American War for Independence: Tenskwatawa, Tecumseh, and the War of 1812

The War of 1812 has been called the "forgotten war," and it's place in American history is ongoing changes as its bicentennial observation gets underway. The War of 1812 may be thought of as three different wars: the naval war against the British (John Paul Jones and the USS Constitution--"Old Ironsides"); the resistance to the war demonstrated in New England (the abortive Hartford Convention, which discussed secession 50 years before the southern slave states temporarily formed the Confederate States); and lastly, but more importantly to us in the Midwest, the war in the interior of the country fought between whites and Native Americans and their British allies. As a result of the outcome of the War of 1812, the Native American confederacy that had been building since the establishment of settlement at Greenville of the Shawnee Prophet Tenskwatawa disintegrated, and active opposition to further white settlement in the Great Lakes region vanished with it.

That opposition was centered on two Shawnee men, brothers we know as Tecumseh and Tenskwatawa. For many years, it was thought by white scholars that Tecumseh was the leader of this movement--Tecumseh was acknowledged by most as a brilliant warrior and leader of men in battle. Tenskwatawa, the Shawnee Prophet, on the other hand, was depicted by whites as  cunning, underhanded usurper, who in his drive to take over Tecumseh's movement undercut his brother's efforts with an ill-fated attack on American militia forces near the confluence of the Tippecanoe and  Wabash Rivers in November 1811--the opening shots of the War of 1812 in the Great Lakes region. During the last thirty years or so, however, this interpretation has undergone extensive revision, beginning with the biography of Tenskwatawa by R. David Edmonds, and most recently with the account of the relationship between William Henry Harrison and Tenskwatawa by Adam Jortner. The reasons for this reinterpretation are various, but are largely due to the re-assessment of the sources that scholars have long relied upon to shape this story.

Before we tackle the reinterpretation, however, we need to lay out the basic facts as best we can. In the Great Lakes region--or the pays d'en haut as French voyageurs called it--was a region in a great deal of flux because of the changes caused by white contact with various native peoples. Those closest to the coast were effected earliest, but eventually most native peoples sought contact with Europeans for the trade goods they were willing to exchange for animal pelts--especially beaver. This desire for trade goods increased conflicts between native peoples; some of the trade goods obtained, in particular firearms, made this conflict more deadly. To escape the violence, many native peoples moved to the interior of the country--where they had to learn to co-exist with the native peoples already living there.

 Among the native peoples already living in the Great Lakes regions were the Shawnee people. The Shawnee, in fact, had recently moved back into what whites were now calling the Ohio country--the had fled the earlier carnage caused by the attack of the Iroquois Confederacy on the Wendot (later known as the Hurons and Wyandottes) people during an earlier conflict. Many scholars believe that Shawnee to be the descendants of the so-called Fort Ancient peoples, responsible for the construction of many of the mound structures around Ohio. Once the group returned to Ohio, many proved reluctant to move again; the Shawnee attempted to make strategic allies with whites that would allow them to continue to control the land on which they lived; the Shawnee allied with the British in the French and Indian War, for example--but were among the earliest allies of the Ottawa chief Pontiac in his attempt to confederate all native groups into a single force to remove white settler from what they considered their land.

We believe that in 1768, Tecumseh was born in Old Piqua, on the Mad River, into a large family headed by Puckshinwa and Methotaske. By 1774, the ongoing conflict claimed the life of Puckshinwa at the Battle of Point Pleasant; the following spring, Methotase gave birth to the last of their children from the relationship--triplets, including one called Lalawethicka (which translates into "the Rattle"). By 1780, the boy's mother had abandoned her children to the care of her eldest daughter, and moved west to escape the constant threat of violence. After abandoning the battlefield in his first conflict in 1782, Tecumseh vowed such an occurrence would never happen again. Tecumseh later took part in the native defeats of American army forces under the command of both of both Josiah Harmar and Arthur St. Clair; Tecumseh and Lalawethicka were both also present at the defeat of native forces at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794. Tecumseh refused to sign the Treaty of Greenville, however, and moved his small band, including his brother, to a settlement near present-day Anderson, Indiana,

Here the group foundered--especially Lalawethicka, who seems to have attempted to drown his troubles in alcohol. Just after one such bout, Lalawethicka became unconscious while attempting to light his pipe in the fire; tradition has it that he had to in fact be lifted out of the fire by his family. Lalawethicka remained unconscious for an extended period of time--long enough, in fact to convince his family that he had passed away. As they were preparing his body for burial, however, he awakened with an astonishing tale of passing into a realm beyond Earth, and having a conversation with the Great Spirit, who told him that all native peoples had to reform their ways or suffer an excruciating eternal damnation.

Tenskwatawa (as Lalawethicka began calling himself--the name means "the Open Door") called for native peoples to give up all European trade goods, especially alcohol, and return to "traditional ways of life." He soon claimed that the Great Spirit had informed him that he should establish a settlement at Greenville, Ohio to proselytize to other native peoples. Greenville was, of course, the site of the treaty signing took place, and despite denials seems to have been an act to provoke a response from both the Ohio state government and the federal government, The move to Greenville coincided with Willliam Henry Harrison's negotiation of the Treaty of Fort Wayne in 1805. Harrison saw this as a means to consolidate his political position in the Indiana Territory (soon to be a state, Harrison hoped). Native peoples saw the treaty in an entirely different light, of course, and sought leaders who promised to put a stop to the cessation of land to whites--just what Tenskwatawa was advocating in Greenville. Soon, many whites in Ohio were in a panic over the number of Native peoples going to  Greenville, and were attempting to persuade both the federal government and the state of Ohio to intervene. Neither governmental body was willing to do so, however, because of the cost involved. Not all whites were convinced that Tenskwatawa was up to some nefarious plan, either; visiting Shakers came away convinced that Greenville had been transformed into a "holy place."

The majority of whites were made uncomfortable by the large numbers of native peoples traveling to Greenville, and continued to pressure the government of Ohio to act. Fortunately, it was about this time that the Great Spirit informed Tenskwatawa that his village should be moved to a new place--on the Tippecanoe River, near where it empties into the Wabash. This moved Tenskwatawa closer to many of his native allies--but also closer to the strongest voice calling for the disbandment of the Prophet's village, William Henry Harrison. The establishment of this new settlement, known to whites as Prophetstown, was a direct challenge to Harrison's plans for the territory--and a threat to his economic well-being, as well, since he had invested a considerable sum in purchasing much of the land his treaty negotiations had "acquired" from Native Americans. It was these conflicts that led to the War of 1812 in the Great Lakes region.

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.

Written Assignment 16

The first written assignment asked you to define "great." Has what you learned in this class caused you to revisit that definition? Do Tenskwatawa and/or Tecumseh meet that definition? Why, or why not?

Written Assignment 15

The assigned readings for this course, particularly R. David Edmunds The Shawnee Prophet and John Sugden's Tecumseh: A Life were the opening of an effort to reinterpret the lives of Tenskwatawa and Tecumseh. As such, they both broke new ground, and re-hashed old arguments. From what you have learned during this course, I would like to to assess both books--what new interpretations did the authors put forth, and what interpretations did they continue to accept as true? Do you agree with their choices? Why?

Written Assignment 14

Primary sources are the life's blood of history, but can often mislead as much as enlighten the study of events. This phenomenon we have discussed at various points in the semester when we talked about the reinterpretation of historical sources. Using primarily the documents provided during lectures on this blog, in what ways have the documents there enlightened our study of Tenskwatawa and Tecumseh--and in what way have they misled historians?

The War of 1812

I. Reasons for the War

A. The War Hawks--a relatively small group of Congressmen--all of them too young to have participated in the War of Independence--forced the issue on the Madison administration.

1. Unpopularity of Madison--Republican politicians did not trust Madison (who was, after all, a reformed Federalist). Madison, while a brilliant political theorist, was far less successful as a politician. A group of War Hawks called on Madison in the new Executive Mansion, and threatened to nominate another candidate against Madison if he did not agree to support the declaration of war.

2.Expansionary Ideology--the War Hawk were among the earliest proponents of the idea of Manifest Destiny, and looked not only to add land in the Northwest and the Southwest--but in Canada, as well.

B. Opposition to the war--the position of the War Hawks was in the minority, compared to the rest of the country.

1. New England--Much of the opposition to the war between the United States and Great Britain was centered in New England. This region had the closest cultural ties with Great Britain, and also the closest economic ties; much of the trade of the region was directly tied to Great Britain, and people in the region realized that a war would disrupt that trade. Religious ties between England and New England led to mutual recriminations against the Roman Catholics/atheists in France, as well.

2. Great Lakes Region--Surprisingly, support for the coming war was rather soft in this region, as well. In part, the reasons for this lack of support was that many thought (rightly) that much of the war would be fought in the region, which threatened their property and lives. The enthusiasm generated for the war in the region mainly came from politicians, who saw a successful conclusion to the war as a means of building political support.

3. The Old Southwest--perhaps the greatest general support for the war among the citizenry was generated in the Old Southwest (Tennessee, western Georgia, Alabama, and Louisiana), who saw this as a mean of expanding slavery, and therefore economic opportunities for whites. The southwest also had a charismatic leader at the head of the militia, Andrew Jackson, who inspired greater confidence in his forces.

II. Rebuilding the Coalition (Again)

A. Re-emergence of Prophetstown--within weeks of its destruction, Prophetstown was being rebuilt, and Native Americans were flocking there to hear what the Prophet had to say--and many were joining the movement. Harrison's attack on Prophetstown had sown the seeds of renewal for the movement, as it became apparent to most observers.

1. Resurgent numbers--before the outbreak of hostilities, there were probably somewhere between 5000 and 8000 Native Americans present at Prophetstown--and this would not have included  the group of warriors now under the command of Tecumseh, who by this time had returned from his southern journey and traveled to Amherstburg to obtain supplies, largely weapons, for this warriors.

III. Fighting the War

A.The Ohio/Kentucky/Michigan militia--most of the US forces were temporary soldiers--members of the militia, who generally elected their officers, and often were not well-schooled in military tactics. During this war, as well, some called into question the authority of the officers--or even the President himself--to send them to fight in a foreign county.

B. Fall of Detroit--a force under the command of William Hull, governor of the Michigan Territory, surrendered the fort and the city to forces under the joint command of Gen. Isaac Brock, in large part because of his fear that defeat (which seemed inevitable to Hull) would mean a general massacre of the residents of Detroit without the British protection that he was able to procure.

C. Battle of Lake Erie--the decisive battle of the entire war. When Perry defeated to naval fleet, it meant that the war in the interior turned in favor of the Americans, who could suddenly supply their army, and the British forces could not obtain supplies

D. Battle of the Thames--Isaac Brock had been killed earlier in the was (after the surrender of Detroit), and was replaced by Colonel Proctor. Proctor, upon hearing about the loss on Lake Erie, decided (rightly, in my opinion), that his position at the western edge of Canada was untenable, and decided o retreat toward York (present day Toronto). Tecumseh challenged Proctor to remain and fight, but to little avail. British forces abandoned their Indian allies, and Tecumseh was killed during the ensuing battle.

The Aftermath of Tippecanoe

I. American Victory?

A. Harrison Defending His Decisions--With the Native American reaction to what they perceived to be an unprovoked attack on Prophetstown, the decision of Harrison to lead a large unit against the settlement there (and not immediately attack) was called into question.



B. Band of Brothers


C. Harrison's Continued Defense


...continues into January 1812...



D. The Disposition of the Native Americans After the Attack on Prophetstown



E. Harrison in Command

The War of 1812

The War of 1812

Written Assignment 13

Students of history often struggle to figure out not only why events happened, but also what exactly took place. This has certainly been the case with the Battle of Tippecanoe. Because this was portrayed as a great victory for the United States from the 1830s on, all evidence that the outcome was a bit more problematic was largely ignored until quite recently. Why is this the case? Is there always only one answer to explain a historical event--or do we need to find ways to incorporate  new narratives of these events? Your 2-3 page answer is due at the beginning of class on Thursday, April 19.

The Battle at Tippecanoe

I. Growing White Dissent

A. Harrison's Continuing Political Problems--the anger the 1809 Ft. Wayne Treaty caused among Native Americans was felt throughout the lower Great Lakes region, and helped fuel the continued opposition to Harrison's policies.

1. Accusations of Unfair Dealing--white opponents of Harrison accused him of dealing unfairly with Native Americans. This was not done out of any real concern for Native Americans; indeed, Harrison's main accuser, William McIntosh, prevailed in a lawsuit in which his attorneys argued (and the Supreme Court agreed) that Native Americans were an "inferior race" whose land was justifiably taken.

2. Accusation of corruption--McIntosh filed suit against Harrison, accusing him of negotiating the Treaty of Fort Wayne to enrich himself. Harrison did indeed benefit economically from the Treaty, but that was actually standard operating procedure at that time.

B. Emergence of an Independent Legislature--during the early years of the Territorial Legislature, members were easily convinced by Harrison to vote according to his policies and proposals. As his political base shrank, however, more opponents found their way into the legislature, and Harrison found it increasingly more difficult to persuade them to follow his lead.

C. Greater Influence of the Prophet--the Treaty of Ft. Wayne so inflamed Native Americans that the Shawnee Prophet was once again successful in gaining adherents to his cause.

1. Prophet's Inability to Control all Native American groups--As we will see in greater detail below, Harrison used reports of Native American depredations in the Illinois treaty to persuade his superiors that action needed to be taken against Prophetstown to ensure the attacks stopped--even though those Native Americans were not under the control of Tenskwatawa or Tecumseh.



2. Harrison attempts to intimidate Tenskwataw and Tecumseh



II. The Coming Conflict

A. Harrison and the Effort to increase his popularity--with the legislature in session, and no longer willing to rubber stamp all of Harrison's proposals, Harrison seems to have felt that it was necessary to abandon diplomacy and take up war. Harrison continually during 1810 and 1811 sent letters to his superiors in government of reports that the forces from Prophetstown was soon be invading Vincennes

B. Tecumseh's Return to Vincennes--in mid-summer of 1811, Tecumseh sent word to Harrison that he would be visiting Vincennes in the near future.



1. Tenskwatawa's Salt Blunder--Tecumseh made this trip to Vincennes in part to smooth Harrison's ruffled feather. Tenskwatawa seized an entire salt shipment to help feed all of the people that were showing up in Prophetstown. Harrison, of course, seized on this opportunity to send off an angry message to that village.

2. Tecumseh and Harrison, Round 2



3. Tecumseh Announces His Southern Trip.

C. Harrison Moves Up the Wabash--Harrison, determined to strike against Prophetstown while Tecumseh was away. In part, this was because Harrison had so little regard for the leadership capabilities of Tenskwatawa, and despite the high regard that a number of Native Americans held for him.



1. We Shall Remain clip.

2. Harrison claims victory



3. Prophetstown Rises from the Ashes

Written Assignment 12-Alternative

The documents presented in class during last week concentrated on the reasons for conflict between whites and Native Americans. After reading the appropriate sections of the documents, what explains the reasons for this conflict? Cite appropriate passages to strengthen your argument. This 2-3 page paper is due at the beginning of class next Tuesday, April 17.

Tecumseh the Diplomat

I. Tenskwatawa, Tecumseh, and Traditional Shawnee Roles

A. War chiefs and diplomacy--in traditional Shawnee culture--as in many other traditional native cultures--the war chief was usually in charge of diplomatic efforts; it was, after all, usually only necessary to obtain allies when one was threatened with war.

Excerpt from Benjamin Drake, The Life of Tecumseh and of His Brother the Prophet


B. Tecumseh and his diplomatic mission--Tecumseh spoke to a wide variety of Native American groups, attempting to convince them to join the confederacy at Prophetstown. While he was able to convince a number of young warriors, older chiefs and sachems were less reluctant to move there, undoubtedly worried about what their role would be there upon arrival.

1.The Travels of Tecumseh--Tecumseh travelled far and wide to make diplomatic overtures to other Native American groups to join the confederacy at Prophetstown. We know that Tecumseh had contact with the Iowa people and Lakota people in the west, and also with some Cherokee peoples in the south (including a number of dissident groups like the Creeks and Red Sticks) in the south. Many of these people the Shawnee had previous contact with in their peripetic travels before their return to Ohio in historic times. Again, these efforts met with some mixed success; Tecumseh was successful in persuading many young warriors to join the effort, but had little success in convincing whole villages to relocate to Prophetstown.

II. The Growing Fear

A. White Sense of Unease--Although depradations on the part of Native Americans was reduced under the influence of Tenskwatawa and Tecumseh, whites were on edge because of the great numbers of Native Americans taking up temporary (and sometimes permanent) residence there. This fear led Harrison to attempt to defuse the situation (one, in part, of his own making).

1. Harrison's communications with the government in Washington--Harrison spent a good portion of 1810 sending communications to Washington to attempt to persuade officials there of the danger that the brothers presented to whites in the region, which is exemplified by the following passages from Harrison's Messages and Letters



2. Harrison's communications with Prophetstown--Harrison attempted to intimidate the brothers by intimating that the US government could easily raise a force that could overwhelm the Native American contingent at Prophetstown.



B. The Prophetstown response--although we've already looked at the speech of Tecumseh last week, this is probably a good time to examine it once again, since it is obvious that Tecumseh fears little that Harrison presents:



C. Beating the drums of war--Harrison, recognizing the reluctance of the American government to act as long as the Native Americans at Prophetstown remained peaceful, began to play up the conflicts between whites and natives, and the continually insist that the Prophet was a grave danger to settlers along the lower Great Lakes.



1. Tecumseh attempts to maintain peace--

Written Assignment 12

This week's lectures revolved around the idea of adaptability in the face of change. Citing at least to examples from the source material used in class, how did Tenskwatawa attempt to adapt his message to meet the challenges to his leadership. Was he successful? Why or why not. Your 2-3 page answer is due next Thursday, April 12, at the beginning of class.

The Second Treaty of Fort Wayne (1809)

The year 1809 started badly of William Henry Harrison. The western region of the Territory of Indiana, tired of Harrison's high-handedness in the political arena, petitioned the federal government to be separated from Indiana; this meant that Indiana would not become a state in 1810, and that Harrison's political career was essentially stalled. The territorial legislature was becoming more independent, and harder for Harrison to control, as well.  For Tenskwatawa, on the other hand, 1809 started out well. His nemesis William Wells was dismissed as Indian agent at Fort Wayne, and his negotiations the previous summer and fall with Harrison had resulted in his gaining a large share of the stipend that had been exclusively the domain of Black Hoof at Wapakoneta. In 1809, after the Quaker William Kirk, was forced to leave the settlement at Wapakoneta, Black Hoof saw very little of the stipend promised the Shawnees.

I. Settlement at Prophetstown

A. Harsh Winter of 1808-1809--the winter of 1808-1809 was particularly harsh; William Well reported that snow 3 feet deep covered most everything, and that natives had been forced to eat nearly all of their cows and horses, because they could not hunt, and that they had consumed almost all of their corn from the fall harvest.

1. Continued boycott--Jefferson's boycott, begun the previous year, had failed to effect British trade much at all--except that it made prices for goods in the interior of the United States much more costly, and made it very difficult for both whites and Native Americans to obtain these trade goods

B. Sources of information--ironically, although Prophetstown was closer to Vincennes than Greenville was, gathering reliable information about the settlement at Prophetstown was more difficult for Harrison--and for historians. In part, this was due to Prophetstown being ensconced in a region where Native Americans were more sympathetic to his message--Tenskwatawa did not have to battle with an influential accommodationist chief like Black Hoof feeding information to white government officials. But it does seem that falling out of favor with the Ojibwas, the Ottowas, and the Pottowatomies also effected Tenskwatawa's influence adversely, and therefore our information about him and his settlement.

1. Threat of Indian attack--Michigan territorial governor William Hull reported that the three nations--Ojibwas, Ottawas, and Pottowatomies--were planning a coordinated attack on Prophetstown in retaliation for the events that occurred there in the fall and early winter of 1808.



Harrison was receiving conflicting information, and sending conflicting reports back to Washington. This made the federal government leery of negotiating further land concessions from Native peoples during this part of the year--another frustration for Harrison, as he saw these negotiations as a way to firm up support by whites in the territory, and a way to attract more white settlers to the region.

C. Treaty of Fort Wayne (1809)--hoping to take advantage of what he perceived to be the Prophet's diminishing influence, and to regain political momentum, Harrison negotiated a new treaty in the fall of 1809--despite constant appeals from the Prophet warning against such a move. Harrison also had to overcome a great resistance among many other native peoples, as well. Miami leader Little Turtle, a prominent accommodationist, was losing influence. A rival Miami chief, who we know as Owl, insisted that the Indians should receive $2 per acre for any land concession--the going price at resale. After strenuous negotiations, hundreds of gallons of whisky, and a promise that the Miami would receive twice what other native peoples received, Harrison was able to secure signatures of a handful of minor chiefs to this treaty.


D. Native Reaction--not surprisingly (to us, anyway--Harrison seems somewhat surprised), Native Americans returned to the message of the Prophet, and the population at Prophetstown again began growing.

E. Harrison's Appeal to Tenskwatawa--Harrison reacted against what he saw was the rehabilitation of Tenskwatawa by attempting to downplay the conflict--but emphasizing the numerical superiority of US forces.

F. Tecumseh Comes to Vincennes--in what I interpret as a serious change to negotiating strategy, Tecumseh travelled with a party of Native Americans to attempt to negotiate with Harrison.

Harrison and Tenskwatawa

I. Organizing Everyday Life at Prophetstown

A. The Village--or, perhaps more appropriately, the villages. Dwellings were set up in a grid pattern, in the European (or American) pattern, and the dwellings themselves utilized both traditional Native American styles and European styles. There was also a kind of temporary shelter for short-term visitors (called the Strangers' House), a granary, and a lodge for the Prophet to commune with the Great Spirit.

B. Popularity of Prophet's Message--the move to Prophetstown did nothing to diminish the popularity of the Prophet's message; in fact, its appeal to western Native Americans created a greater popularity. By 1810, there were probably more than 6,000 people living in the town--which meant that the largest city in the interior of the country outside of New Orleans was an Indian town. This popularity put even greater stress upon finding a way to feed all of the visitors, however, and in the short run undermined the Prophet's message.

1. Lack of Food--the huge numbers of people flocking to Prophetstown meant that food was perpetually in short supply. For those arriving later in the fall of 1808, this left them more susceptible to diseases. Losses were particularly heavy for the Ojibway, Ottowas, and Pottawatomies--but, surprisingly, affected relatively few Shawnee. This led the people who suffered the heaviest losses to suspect the Prophet of practicing some kind of witchcraft on them, and in the spring they fled Prophetstown, moving back to their home villages where they began to undermine the Prophet with their suspicions.


2. Harrison's Reappraisal--despite his lingering suspicions, upon meeting Tenskwatawa Harrison was surprisingly impressed. This was especially true after Harrison witnessed Tenskwatawa preaching (although Harrison was not converted, and in fact attempted to explain Christianity in more detail to the Prophet--at least, as he practiced Christianity)


3. Native Challenge to the Prophet's Authority--several of these new non-believers returned to Prophetstown to directly challenge the Prophet. Finding a Shawnee woman and child outside the confines of the settlement, they murdered and scalped them, to challenge Tenskwatawa's contention that he and the Great Spirit would prevent any harm coming to the residents of Prophetstown.


4. Harrison's Lingering Doubts-despite his initial favorable impression, Harrison continued to believe that Tenskwatawa was plotting with the British to create a buffer state in the Great Lakes region.


5. US Indian Policy Subverts Peace Efforts--Historians of late have placed much blame on Harrison for the continued hostility between the United States and Native Americans in the Great Lakes region--but it was in fact the policies of the United States that caused this rift.

The Move to Prophetstown

I. Greenville

A. Stirring white fears--the large numbers of Native Americans coming from all around the Great Lakes region to Greenville caused a great deal of concern to whites who were living nearby. The pressure these whites put on politicians in Ohio caused greater friction between the Native Americans and the Ohio government, and in part necessitated finding a more accommodating  place to live.

1. Little armed conflict--it should be noted that, although we know that Tenskwatawa preached that whites should be avoided, and in the future removed from Indian lands by the Great Spirit, at the same time he advocated no violence against whites. Despite the hostility to whites displayed in Tenskwatawa's theology, at the same time he expected that the Great Spirit would eventually intervene to remove the whites--if Native Americans returned to traditional ways of living.

2. Intervention by the Great Spirit--Tenskwatawa and Tecumseh both held that they chose to move the location of their village because the Great Spirit told Tenskwatawa to do so.

II. Prophetstown

A. Invitation from Main Poc--Tenskwatawa moved to the Tippecanoe Creek in part because the Great Spirit induced the Potawatomi leader known as Main Poc to invite him to settle on land he gave the group.

1. Main Poc--like both Tenskwatawa and Tecumseh, Main Poc spent much of his time plotting and carrying out plots to stop further white encroachments on Native American land. Main Poc (the name is suppose to be French for "withered hand"--Main Poc's left hand was deformed, having no fingers nor thumb) had little else in common with the brothers, however. Besides being a great war leader and sachem of the Potawatomi's, Main Poc was also a wabeno--one who could change into an animal, and who could carry out black magic. Main Poc also claimed that the Great Spirit had told him that he should continue to regularly get drunk, and to have sex with as many women as he could, as well. Despite these doctrinal differences, Tenskwatawa and Tecumseh were willing to take on Main Poc as an ally, and to accept his invitation to move.

2. Move close to allies--the move to the Tippecanoe Creek also allowed Tenskwatawa to move closer to those most receptive to his message--Native Americans west of the Wabash River. This would not only bring him more converts, but also provide a greater number of warriors to call upon if the new settlement should come under attack.

3. Command of transportation resources--Prophetstown was on the Tippecanoe Creek, which was a tributary of the Wabash River. With no roads, it was faster to canoe a river than to walk or ride horseback if one had to cover any distance.

4. Site of previous settlement--as we will see in the document presented below, this was also the site of another Native American village. The document linked to is from American State Papers, Indian Affairs Volume 1, pages 131-135, published in 1835

 

Written Assignment 11

After reading the document presented March 27 in class (pages 395-403 of John Lambert's Travels through lower Canada, and the United States of North America, in the years 1806, 1807, and 1808 : to which are added, biographical notices and anecdotes of some of the leading characters in the United States : and those who have, at various periods, borne a conspicuous part in the politics of that country ), answer the following question: This account was supposedly given to Lambert by an unnamed source--how have historians come to the conclusion that it is a reasonably accurate description of Tenskwatawa's beliefs? You may want to consult the bibliographies of your textbooks before formulating you answer to this question. Your response (a 2-3 page paper, double-spaced with conventional 1 inch margins) is due on Tuesday, April 3.

Tenskwatawa and His Acolytes

I. Religious Innovations

A. The Creation of Ritual--Shawnees, like many native peoples, used ritual to create a sense of sacredness in places. Tenskwatawa created several new rituals, which both enhanced his message and his status as a "holy man."

1. The Establishment of Patriarchy--although in many ways the Prophet called for a return to traditional Native ways of living, at the same time he sought to limit the political influence of woman in Native society. He did away with the women's council at Greenville, which had in the past been a way of dampening war enthusiasm. This shifted greater power to warriors, which in turn undermined the power of traditional leaders.

2. Public Confession of Sin--one of the first things Tenskwatawa demanded of his followers was that they make a public confession of their sins, or wrong-doing, and to beg for forgiveness from the Great Spirit

3. Offering Regular Prayers to the Great Spirit--Tenskwatawa also demanded that his followers offer daily prayers t the Great Spirit--and only to him. Before the Prophet's movement, most Natives would have asked for intercession from their guardian spirit, which they first perceived on their dream quest.

a. The emphasis on the powers of the Great Spirit were also quite new; traditional Shawnee beliefs held that the Great Spirit (or Master of Life) needed the assistance of other spirits in order to maintain the earth in balance. Traditional beliefs had emphasized the Great Spirit's fallibility--for instance, the Great Spirit needed three tries to locate the genitalia of human beings.

4. Keep an eternal flame--another return to traditional practice. Eternal flames were kept for both ritualistic practice, and because it was easier to start a fire in a new place to live from the glowing embers of an old fire than starting from scratch. It was also a means of bring along something of a former residence that had a spiritual resonance to the new settlement.

5. The Use of Prayer Beads--missionaries were sent to other villages with prayer beads that these missionaries claimed were made from the flesh of the Prophet, and therefore were they next best thing to actually having the Prophet come visit the village. These prayer beads were another appropriation from European religion, since they resembled the rosary of the Roman Catholic faith tradition.

6. Ritual as a Means of Accessing Sacred Power--Tenskwatawa's proscriptions against contact with whites resonated with traditional native practices of avoiding acts that displeased certain spirits. This is another reason why Tenskwatawa's call to break-off contact with whites struck such a strong chord with a number of Native American groups.

7. Tenskwatawa's appearance--when the Prophet appeared in Greenville, he looked very much like a traditional shaman, and regularly preached for extended periods of time with no rest, nourishment, nor drink--that certainly made it seem to followers that he was a true believer in what he was preaching, which was probably the case. This appearance also reinforced the belief that he was a powerful shaman in other Native Americans, as well.

II. The Prophet's Acolytes

A. Beata--Although she rose to prominence among her people the Delaware (o Lenai Lenape) just before the white awareness of Tenskwatawa, Beata was probably actually an early convert to the doctrines that the Prophet was teaching; in fact, it may have been through her recommendation that the Prophet was sent for.

B. Le Maigouis (the Trout)--Recently, historians have compared Le Maigouis favorably to the Christian St. Paul, the disciple of Jesus who worked very hard to convert Gentiles to the religion of the Jewish messiah. It is through his travels that we've come to know the doctrines of the Prophet:


C. Tecumseh?--this argument has not yet emerged, but Tecumseh acts very much like one of the above mentioned missionaries on his trip south to attempt to persuade Native Americans there to join the new Native confederacy.

Written Assignment 10

Much of the conflict between Native Americans and white settlers in the Northwest Territory was caused by the land hunger of these settlers, and the Native reluctance to continue to accede (give in to) that hunger--in large part, because experience taught them that that hunger was insatiable. Yet nowhere in William Henry Harrison's voluminous correspondence is this acknowledged as a factor in the conflicts with the Natives. What are the possible explanations for this fact? Your response should take the form of a 2-3 page paper, double-spaced with conventional 1 inch margins, and is due at the beginning of class on Thursday, March 29.

Harrison's Bad Birds

I. The Growing Threat from Greenville

A. Native Dissatisfaction with the Treaty of Fort Wayne

1. Harrison's Response


B. Alarming Reports from William Wells

C. Wells Recommends Forcing the Prophet to Move--And Convinces Harrison


D. Harrison Demand that the Chiefs of the Shawnee Remove the Prophet


E. The Prophet's Response