Synopses & Reviews
A vividly drawn portrait of the powerful Iroquois nation during colonial America
In the fourth title in The Penguin Library of American Indian History, Timothy J. Shannon tells the story of the most influential Native American confederacy of the colonial era. The Iroquois occupied a strategic region between Canada and New York and engaged in active trade and diplomacy with their colonial Dutch, French, and British neighbors. While they were famous as fierce warriors, it was actually their intercultural diplomacy that accounted for the span and endurance of their power in early America.
By carefully maintaining their neutrality in the Anglo-French imperial wars in North America, they were able to claim an unrivaled influence in colonial America at a time when other Indian nations experienced dispossession and dispersal. Europeans who wanted to remain in the good graces of the Iroquois had to learn the ceremonies and the use of sacred objects that their diplomacy entailed. Shannonas portrayal contradicts the notion of the anoble savage, a showing just how politically savvyaand at times treacherousathe Iroquois Nation was in the face of colonialism.
Synopsis
In the fourth title in The Penguin Library of American Indian History, Shannon tells the story of the most influential Native American confederacy of the colonial era: the Iroquois.
Synopsis
The newest addition to the Penguin Library of American Indian History explores the most influential Native American Confederacy More than perhaps any other Native American group, the Iroquois found it to their advantage to interact with and adapt to white settlers. Despite being known as fierce warriors, the Iroquois were just as reliant on political prowess and sophisticated diplomacy to maintain their strategic position between New France and New York.
Colonial observers marveled at what Benjamin Franklin called their "method of doing business" as Europeans learned to use Iroquois ceremonies and objects to remain in their good graces. Though the Iroquois negotiated with the colonial governments, they refused to be pawns of European empires, and their savvy kept them in control of much of the Northeast until the American Revolution. Iroquois Diplomacy and the Early American Frontier is a must-read for anyone fascinated by Native American history or interested in a unique perspective on the dawn of American government.
About the Author
Timothy J . Shannon is a professor of history at Gettysburg College. He is the author of Indians and the Colonists at the Crossroads of Empire as well as numerous scholarly articles.
Table of Contents
Iroquois Diplomacy on the Early American Frontier
Prologue. Four Kings and a Queen
1. Peace in the Balance
2. Linking Arms
3. "The Method of Doing Business"
4. Paths and Chains
5. Partners in Empire
6. New Nations
Epilogue. John Norton's American Frontier
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations
Notes
Index