Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
The Shawnee chief and warrior Tecumseh came to prominence leading an Indigenous alliance against the United States in a war waged from 1811 to 1815. In 1805, Tecumseh's younger brother Lalawethika (soon to take the name Tenskwatawa) had had a vision for an Indian revitalization movement that would restore native culture and resist American expansion. The movement was timely because President Thomas Jefferson's "Hammer" in the West, William Henry Harrison, was in the midst of imposing treaties on the Indians that by 1809 would compel them to surrender more than 70,000 square miles of territory in the Old Northwest and beyond the Mississippi River. Tenskwatawa's revitalization movement drew support from Indigenous peoples across the Old Northwest and into the Great Plains, and having become the most powerful spiritual leader in the region, he was now referred to as "The Prophet."
To counter American expansion, Tecumseh organized the movement's followers into a powerful political and military alliance. While Tecumseh was away recruiting Southeast tribes to his confederacy, war with the United States erupted. On November 6, 1811, Harrison, determined to smash the confederacy, camped an army near the center of Native resistance at Prophetstown in present-day northwestern Indiana. In what came to be known as the Battle of Tippecanoe, Harrison's men fought off an Indian attack the next day and then razed Prophetstown. Seven months later, when the United States declared war on Britain, thus initiating the War of 1812, the British and Tecumseh forged an alliance against the United States. Initially, the alliance enjoyed considerable success, forcing the surrender of US forces at Mackinac, Chicago, Detroit, and present-day Monroe, Michigan. These losses, coupled with the slaughter of Americans on the River Raisin and elsewhere in the West, inflamed settlers throughout the region.
The tide in the war began to turn in mid-1813, and in the wake of Commodore Oliver H. Perry's spectacular victory on Lake Erie in September, Harrison invaded Canada. With "Remember the Raisin " as their battle cry, Harrison's men defeated an Anglo-Indian force in the climactic Battle of the Thames. Tecumseh was killed in that battle, and although his confederacy disintegrated, British support ensured that the Indian war would continue. Tecumseh's War ended only in 1815 after the British made peace with the United States and abandoned their native allies. This left the Indians with little choice but to make their own peace, and thereafter they were at the mercy of the United States.
Tecumseh's War: The Epic Conflict for the Heart of America by distinguished historian Donald R. Hickey is the sweeping and engrossing story of this last great Indian war--the last time that Native Americans had a powerful European ally to oppose United States expansion and thus the last chance they had of shaping the future of the continent.
Synopsis
The Shawnee leader Tecumseh came to prominence in a war against the United States waged from 1811 to 1815. In 1805, Tecumseh's younger brother Lalawethika (soon to be known as "the Prophet") had a vision for an Indian revitalization movement that would restore Native culture and resist American expansion. Tecumseh organized the growing support for this movement, which came from Indigenous peoples across the Old Northwest and parts of the Great Plains, into a loose but powerful military alliance.
In late 1811, while Tecumseh was away on a recruiting mission in the South, General William Henry Harrison led an army to the center of Native resistance at Prophetstown in present-day Indiana. In the early morning hours of November 7, in what came to be known as the Battle of Tippecanoe, Harrison's men fought off an Indian attack, which marked the beginning of Tecumseh's War. Seven months later, when the United States declared war on Britain, thus initiating the War of 1812, the British and Tecumseh forged an alliance against the United States.
Initially, the Anglo-Indian alliance enjoyed considerable success at Detroit, Chicago, Mackinac, and elsewhere, exposing much of the Old Northwest to border warfare, but the tide turned in 1813 when Harrison invaded Canada. On October 5 the American army defeated a much smaller Anglo-Indian force in the climactic Battle of the Thames. Tecumseh was killed in this battle, and although his confederacy disintegrated, British support ensured that the Indian war would continue for another two years with the Sauk chief Black Hawk now providing the inspiration and leadership. Tecumseh's War ended only in late 1815 after the British made peace with the United States and abandoned their native allies.
Tecumseh's War: The Epic Conflict for the Heart of America by distinguished historian Donald R. Hickey is the sweeping and engrossing story of this last great Indian war--the last time that Native Americans had a powerful European ally to oppose United States expansion and thus the last chance they had of shaping the future of the continent.
Synopsis
A Comprehensive History of the Most Important Native American Resistance Movement
The Shawnee leader Tecumseh came to prominence in a war against the United States waged from 1811 to 1815. In 1805, Tecumseh's younger brother Lalawethika (soon to be known as "the Prophet") had a vision for an Indian revitalization movement that would restore Native culture and resist American expansion. Tecumseh organized the growing support for this movement, which came from Indigenous peoples across the Old Northwest and parts of the Great Plains, into a loose but powerful military alliance.
In late 1811, while Tecumseh was away on a recruiting mission in the South, General William Henry Harrison led an army to the center of Native resistance at Prophetstown in present-day Indiana. In the early morning hours of November 7, in what came to be known as the Battle of Tippecanoe, Harrison's men fought off an Indian attack, which marked the beginning of Tecumseh's War. Seven months later, when the United States declared war on Britain, thus initiating the War of 1812, the British and Tecumseh forged an alliance against the United States. Initially, the Anglo-Indian alliance enjoyed considerable success at Detroit, Chicago, Mackinac, and elsewhere, exposing much of the Old Northwest to border warfare, but the tide turned in 1813 when Harrison invaded Canada. On October 5 the American army defeated a much smaller Anglo-Indian force in the climactic Battle of the Thames. Tecumseh was killed in this battle, and although his confederacy disintegrated, British support ensured that the Indian war would continue for another two years with the Sauk chief Black Hawk now providing the inspiration and leadership. Tecumseh's War ended only in late 1815 after the British made peace with the United States and abandoned their native allies.
Tecumseh's War: The Epic Conflict for the Heart of America is the first complete story of this major conflict. Distinguished historian Donald R. Hickey detaches it from the War of 1812, moving Tecumseh's confederation to center stage to tell the sweeping and engrossing story of this last great Indian War--the last time that Indigenous Peoples had a powerful European ally to oppose United States expansion and thus the lastchance they had of shaping the future of the continent.