Tecumseh and the Native American Resistance

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0:00 Introduction 1:50 Ceaseless War in Native Lands 8:25 Rise of Tecumseh 16:04 The Prophet 21:01 Tecumseh's diplomatic missions 28:00 Battle of Tippecanoe 36:05 Alliance with the British and Siege of Fort Detroit 46:13 Battle of the Thames #Documentary #Tecumseh #Warof1812

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Tecumseh

Shawnee Native

Transcript

Introduction
In the year 1812, a young United States of America declared war on the British Empire, and launched a full-scale invasion of Canada. No one expected the poorly defended British Colony to hold out against a much larger American
foe, and yet, it did. Canada's salvation came arguably in the form of one man: Tecumseh.
He was fighting for his people, the indigenous tribes of North America.
His alliance with the British was out of convenience alone, and his true goal was simple: to create a united Native nation across the American frontier, and retake the land that had been lost. Welcome to our video on the life of Tecumseh. Shoutout to the Ridge Wallet for sponsoring this video.

Ceaseless War in Native Lands
To tell Tecumseh’s story from the very beginning, we must explain the world he was born into.
Native tribes had inhabited North America for over 12,000 years, but diseases brought
upon them by Europeans had apocalyptic effects on their society.
By the time the first English pilgrims arrived at Plymouth rock in 1620, a smallpox epidemic
had killed 90% of the local population. By the 18th century, the Eastern Seaboard was dominated by Britain’s Thirteen Colonies,
with tribes like the Pequot, Powhatan and Massachusetts all but wiped out and pushed
out of their homes. Now peoples like the Odawas, Shawnees, Lenape and the powerful Iroquois confederacy were
on the border of this expansion. Further inland, the French Empire claimed a vast swath of territory from Labrador to
Louisiana. It was a sparsely populated land where native tribes exercised full autonomy, and were more
or less equal partners in the incredibly lucrative fur trade. The French tended not to impose on Native territory, and their presence provided a buffer
against British expansion. This all changed in 1754, as when the Seven Years’ War erupted in North America.
England and France found themselves in a war for dominance over the new world, and the
natives were forced to pick sides. The six nations of the Iroquois declared for England, but nearly all the other local tribes
fought alongside the French. The French were ultimately defeated, and their territory annexed.
The British now ventured inland, occupying formerly French forts along the Great Lakes
and Ohio. It was well known that unlike the French, the British did not come to trade furs, but
to flatten and tame the land, and displace the natives who hunted and gathered there.
As settlers began to trickle westwards, and British soldiers treated the locals with contempt,
whispers of war began to spread amongst the tribes of the old Northwest.
In 1763, the Odawa Chieftain Pontiac created an alliance of fourteen tribes, and proceeded
to wage a bloody and vengeful war upon the British. His native confederacy raised hell, capturing eight forts along the Great Lakes, killing
over 2,000 settlers and 400 soldiers. Pontiac’s fierce resistance forced the British to pull back, and reaffirm an earlier treaty
in which the thirteen colonies promised not to settle land west of the Allegheny mountains.
Peace was made in 1766, and the tide of the expansion had been stemmed, for now, but war would soon come to native peoples once more. Two years later, the man fated to lead them into battle entered the world.
In March of 1768, Tecumseh was born to the Shawnee people, in a village along the Ohio river. It is said that upon giving birth, his mother looked to the heavens, and saw a comet blazing across the night sky. This is where the child got his name, Tecumseh - the shooting star.
The Shawnee had long been a wandering people, beset by conflict with other tribes.
In centuries past, the Iroquois had pushed them eastward from their old territory.
They had settled in many places before coming to their present spot along the Ohio river, but turmoil and warfare would carry over into Tecumseh’s childhood.
In the same year he was born, the Iroquois sold land in Kentucky and West Virginia to the British. These were plains the Shawnee depended on for hunting, but when they voiced their protests,
they were ignored by both the British and the Iroquois. So, when continental settlers began pouring westward into their newly purchased territory, Shawnee warriors prepared to defend their lands. In 1774, a six-year-old Tecumseh watched his father, Pukeshinwau and eldest brother Cheeseekau partake in a ritual war dance before heading away to battle. They met their foe at Point Pleasant, a force of Virginia militiamen - who the Natives called the “Big Knives” on account of the sabres worn by the colonial officers. Outnumbered and outgunned, the native warriors were driven back.
As a result, the Shawnee were forced to relinquish their hunting grounds, allowing the settlers to move westward with impunity.
Tecumseh’s father was mortally wounded in the battle. With his dying breath, he beseeched his firstborn son to preserve the dignity of his family line, and one day lead his younger brothers into battle. The news of Pukeshinwau’s death devastated Tecumseh’s mother, who was pregnant with
the last of his children. It was no less hard upon the boy himself. Fatherless at six years old, his family was uprooted and forced to move west.
That winter, his mother gave birth to triplets; of the two that survived, one was named Lalawethika.
Initially a useless layabout, the sickly boy would later have a profound impact on Tecumseh’s life. A year later, the Thirteen Colonies declared their independence from the British Empire, plunging the region into war, and imposing a new threat upon native peoples.
As the Revolutionary war raged between patriot and loyalist, many native bands now joined the fray on the side of the British Crown. Among them were the Shawnee, who sought to reclaim the lands lost to the now-rebellious
frontiersmen. This invoked the ire of the Americans, who responded wrathfully, sending soldiers into Shawnee lands. Before long, a large band of Kentucky militia were advancing upon Tecumseh’s village.
Still too young to fight, Tecumseh had fled alongside the women and children to nearby bluffs, while the warriors of the village tried to hold off the militia, to no avail.
It was not the first time Tecumseh was forced to move, but this time, he was there to see his village burn, witnessing with his own eyes the destruction caused by the Big Knives.
Never again would Tecumseh sit idly by while his people’s land was ravaged.

Rise of Tecumseh
In the years that followed, Tecumseh began training to become the warrior his father had wanted him to be.
His eldest brother Cheeseekau took full responsibility for his younger brother’s growth, obeying
his dying father’s last wish. Tecumseh was taught how to hunt, how to fight, and how to live as a Shawnee warrior should.
When he entered adolescence, Cheeseekau blackened Tecumseh’s face, and sent him alone into
the woods to find his guardian spirit. Tecumseh fasted and meditated, and his spirit came to him in a vision.
He never revealed to anyone what form his ethereal guardian took.
Tecumseh soon matured into a strong, intelligent young man. Allegedly, he once slew sixteen bison with only a bow and a single quiver of arrows.
He also drew no small amount of attention from the opposite sex. The women of the Shawnee were very fond of Tecumseh, but he did not indulge in their
attention, often brushing off their advances. Tecumseh’s first taste of battle came in 1786.
The young warrior confronted a host of Big Knives alongside Cheeseekau and a host of Shawnee warriors at Mad River, Ohio.
When the Americans fired a musket volley across the river, Tecumseh’s nerve broke, and he
panicked and ran. He had failed his first test as a warrior.
He was disgusted with himself, and vowed never to show cowardice again.
The following years saw Tecumseh come into his own as a capable warrior, albeit still
in the shadow of his eldest brother. Continued conflict with the United States seemed inevitable; the young nation was burgeoning
and hungry for expansion. Many tribes were resolved to do whatever was necessary to stop colonial encroachment onto
their land. In 1785 this tension evolved into a prolonged frontier conflict known to the Americans as
the Northwest Indian war. Rarely able to take on the US army head on, many native warbands resorted to hit and run
tactics. By 1788, Tecumseh and Cheeseekau were involved in more than their fair share of skirmishes.
Initially camped on the Ohio River, the two brothers and their band of warriors habitually raided the flatboats that traversed the busy thoroughfare.
These boats carried food, provisions and settlers, and their waylaying discouraged many from
entering native land. During this turbulent period of his life, Tecumseh began to see the world in a new way.
He was fighting alongside not just the Shawnee, but also Cherokees, Mingoes and Delawares.
He began to see himself as a native first, and a Shawnee second, and realized that his
people would never be free of the yoke of colonialism unless they banded together as
one. He began to detest the idea that any one tribe could sell land to the whites, whatever the consequences it brought upon other tribes. Tecumseh came to the revelation that land belonged to no one band, but to all native
peoples, thus, he began to dream of a united and independent nation, held together by a shared indigenous identity. In 1791, an alliance of tribes formed to push the Americans back east of the Ohio river.
Led by the Little Turtle of the Miami, and Bluejacket of the Shawnee, they fell upon a force of 1,000 US Soldiers camped at the Wabash river, and massacred them.
It is to this day the single greatest victory won alone by Native peoples against the Americans.
Tecumseh was not at the battle at the Wabash, but certainly took part in the increased back and forth raiding that followed in its wake.
In September of 1792, Tecumseh and Cheeseekau joined a war party of Cherokees and Creeks, and launched an assault upon Buchanan Station in Tennessee. From inside a stockaded blockhouse, twenty frontiersmen were able to hold off 300 native warriors. In this fateful battle, Cheeseekau was slain, shot dead by an American soldier through a
porthole, while Tecumseh managed to retreat with his life. The loss of his older brother fell hard upon the young Shawnee, but Cheeseekau had accomplished what his dying father had beseeched he do all those years ago- he had groomed Tecumseh into a great warrior.
Among many native groups, leadership was not determined through formal appointment, but by earning the respect of one's peers.
In the years that followed Cheeseekau’s death, Tecumseh had become a fighter of great renown, and began to accumulate a small warband loyal to him.
By 1794, The Northwest Indian war was nearing its climax.
Tecumseh and his warriors joined forces with the confederacy led by Little Turtle and Bluejacket, forming a combined army of 1,300 men. Fighting alongside them was a British-led contingent of Canadian militias, who had a vested interest in undermining American influence in the region. Together, they faced an army of 2,000 American Soldiers on the banks of the Maumee river.
In what would later be known as the Battle of Fallen Timbers, the natives were overwhelmed by American gunfire, and attempted to retreat behind the walls of the British held Fort Miami. The British would not let them in, not willing to risk all out war with the US.
Facing a massacre, the natives were forced to scatter. The betrayal Tecumseh suffered at the hands of the British was one he would not forget.
The engagement at the Fallen Timbers ended the ten-year frontier war, and the United States finally managed to impose their sovereignty over the old Northwest.
Native leaders were compelled to sign the Treaty of Greenville, a document that forced them to recognize large chunks of Ohio and the Great Lakes as American soil.
Tecumseh was disgusted by this capitulation, and stubbornly refused to sign the treaty.
Instead, he retreated with his followers to Buck Creek, where he founded a village.
For the next ten years, Tecumseh bided his time, waiting for the opportunity in which
he could make his dream a reality, a dream of a united, self-sufficient native nation.
That opportunity would arrive in 1805, when Tecumseh’s laggard of a younger brother received a vision from the great spirit. The idler known as Lalawethika would transform into Tenskwatawa, the great Prophet, and lead
a religious revival that would bring together tribes from all corners of the American frontier.
By the turn of the 19th century, it was clear that the Americans’ hunger for territory had not been sated.
The Louisiana Purchase, which saw a massive stretch of land sold by the French to the United States, all but confirmed that further ingress into Native inhabited lands was inevitable.
In the aftermath of their victory in the Northwest Indian war, over 600,000 American pioneers would settle in the newly established states of Kentucky and Ohio, as well as the territory of Indiana, land once dominated by Native Tribes. Disunited and outnumbered, the Natives of the frontier were direly outmatched.
Despite this, Tecumseh never gave up his grand ambitions to retake Native territories.

The Prophet
As fate would have it, it would actually be his Brother who would spark the movement that would snowball into the creation of his great confederacy.
This man was “Lalawethika”, meaning “he who makes a loud noise.” He had always been the black sheep of the family, having never become a great warrior like his brothers. A freak accident had taken out his eye when he was young, and he spent the majority of his youth as a perpetually drunk good-for-nothing. In the year 1805, everything changed.
One day Lalawethika was smoking in his wigwam, when suddenly, his body seized up, and he fell into a trance. His stupor was so deep that those around him thought he had died, yet soon he awoke as
a changed man: Lalawethika told everyone that he had received a vision from the Great Spirit, in which he had seen his people led onto a path of doom, and was now convinced that the Great Spirit had sent him on a mission to purify Native culture for their salvation.
He took on a new name, Tenskwatawa- “The Open Door”. In time, he became known to his people as The Prophet.
The Prophet soon began spreading his teachings amongst the Shawnee. He preached that his people were the Great Spirits’ original creations.
In contrast, the White people were children of the evil spirit that grew from the scum of the great waters. As such, natives bore an innate responsibility to keep their way of life pure of colonial influence. To this endeavor, he denounced intermarriage between Natives and Whites, which had become commonplace in the last few decades. He spoke out against alcoholism and forbade the evils of drink.
He renounced European clothing, and other such innovations brought to his lands since first contact, mandating his followers wear the traditional garments of their people.
In the winter of 1805, a familiar calamity struck the old northwest.
Native communities were once more afflicted by an outbreak of smallpox, leaving many communities
crippled, or entirely depopulated. Disease had sadly become old news to the Natives by this point, who often coped by blaming
their misfortune on “Witches”, who supposedly were sinister herbalists capable of brewing
malicious potions and spreading illness. Thus in the Spring of 1806, the Prophet became a major ringleader in a witch hunt that spread
across the old northwest, a hunt he used to further spread the influence of his religious
movement. Tenskwatawa hounded down all who denounced him, and all who embraced the ways of the
White Man. Under his watch, Christian Natives, and Chieftains friendly to the Americans, were captured,
tortured, and killed, all in the name of rooting allegedly evil witches out of Native communities.
The Prophet soon had a growing following not just among the Shawnee, but many neighboring tribes as well.
The growing unrest in the native northwest began to make American settlers on the frontier
uneasy. One such man was William Henry Harrison, Governor of the Indiana territory.
He had fought in the Northwest Indian wars a decade earlier, and a religious uprising centered around resisting colonialism was a threat to the settlers in his jurisdiction.
Seeking to pacify the movement, Harrison denounced Tenskwatawa to the Delawares with conviction,
saying; “Who is this pretended prophet who dares to speak in the name of the Great Creator?
Is he more wise or virtuous than you are yourselves, that he should convey to you the orders of
your god?” To affirm his spiritual powers, the Prophet told his followers of a day of black sun.
He was correct. By accurately predicting a solar eclipse, Tenskwatawa had proven his power in the eyes
of his followers. In 1808, the Prophet joined forces with Tecumseh.
Together, the two brothers founded a village upon the confluence of the Wabash and Tippecanoe
rivers. The Old Chieftain, Little Turtle, who had fought at Fallen Timbers, warned Tecumseh
that he was settling on the lands of the Miami, to which Tecumseh replied devoutly that he
was settling on Native lands. The brother’s village came to be known as Prophetstown, and would serve as the staging
point for their pan-Native resistance movement. In the following years, peoples from all over the old Northwest filtered into Prophetstown,
drawn to Tenskwatawa’s teachings and Tecumseh’s reputation as a warrior.
The community grew quickly from a small village into a bustling multi-tribal township, a hub
of Native American cultural and political activity. In the end, it was Tecumseh who assumed the ultimate chieftaincy of their budding community.

Tecumseh's diplomatic missions
Tecumseh soon set out from Prophetstown, on a mission to convince the tribes of the old Northwest that resistance, not assimilation, was the key to their survival, and to build
a confederacy that stretched across the American frontier. The Chieftain traveled from village to village, dazzling people with his charismatic orations
and legendary strength. Chieftains of the Ojibwe, Wyandots, Fox, Sauk, Odawas, Kickapoos, Lenape, Miami, Seneca,
Onondaga and Delawares all joined his cause, as of course did the Shawnee.
But Tecumseh was not all honeyed words; he imposed himself harshly, threatening death
to any chiefs who collaborated with the Americans. Meanwhile, as more tribes joined Tecumseh’s cause, more and more natives migrated into
Prophetstown, which had evolved into the centre of the Native Confederacy, a swelling city-state
that provided a powerful buffer against white settlers’ westward expansion.
The rapid growth of Tecumseh’s confederacy, its active anti-Colonial rhetoric, and its
existence within lands claimed by the United States, put it on an inevitable collision
course with the Americans. The catalyst of this confrontation came in 1809, when Governor Harrison of Indiana coerced
select chieftains of the Delaware, Potawatomi and Kickapoo to sign the Treaty of Fort Wayne,
which ceded a 12,000 square km piece of land along the Wabash river to the United States
Government. This treaty infuriated Tecumseh, as it flew right in the face of his core belief that
land belonged collectively to all natives. He saw it as theft, a plain and simple attempt to extort weak chieftains whose lands had
been made poor by white settlers. In August of 1810, Tecumseh met with Harrison face to face outside the Governors’ colonial
estate, and the two engaged in a heated parley. Tecumseh insisted that Native land could not be bought or sold, unless done so collectively
by all the tribes acting as one, and that the land ceded to the Americans in the recent
treaties still rightfully belonged to the Natives. Harrison replied that individual tribes were free to make treaties with the United States,
but Tecumseh’s confederacy was not recognized, nor did the local tribes welcome his interference
in their affairs. The back and forth debate inspired a passionate reply from Tecumseh, and his most iconic quote:
“Sell a country! Why not sell the air, the great sea, as well as the earth?
Did not the Great Spirit make them all for the use of his children?”
Tensions soon grew between the two parties. Harrison was quick to point out that the Shawnee themselves had taken land from the Miamis,
so what right had they to dictate the affairs of other tribes? If the tribes were all one nation as Tecumseh claimed, why did the Great Spirit not have
them all speak one language? Tecumseh lost his temper, declaring that everything Harrison said was a lie, and that the Americans
had cheated the Native peoples. He brandished his tomahawk at the governor, prompting Harrison to draw his sabre and point
it at Tecumseh. A tense standoff ensued, but neither side attacked.
Harrison brought the meeting to an end, and demanded Tecumseh and his followers leave.
Tecumseh soon realized he had been wrong to threaten Harrison, and the two met once more
the following day, this time at the Shawnee’s camp. This time, Tecumseh opted for a more diplomatic route, he offered the United States alliance
against Britain, if only they would renounce their claim to Native lands purchased in recent
treaties. Harrison replied cordially, saying he would present Tecumseh’s terms to the President,
but did not expect the Natives’ conditions to be met. To this, Tecumseh replied regretfully, “I hope the Great Chief will give up this land.
He is so far off, he may sit still and drink his wine, whilst you and I will have to fight
it out.” Harrison was impressed by the integrity of his enemy.
He remarked that “If it were not for the vicinity of the United States, he would, perhaps,
be the founder of an empire.” In 1811, Tecumseh travelled southwards to present day Alabama.
The natives of that region were known to the Americans as the “five civilized tribes”, due to their more positive predisposition to adopting European practices.
Tecumseh’s goal was to extend his alliance along the entirety of the American frontier,
but he met fierce resistance in the south. The tribes there rejected his calls for unity more often than not, instead preferring to
abide by the treaties they had signed with the United States. This is exemplified in an exchange between Tecumseh and Pushmataha, a chieftain of the
Choctaws. Pushmataha stood firm against Tecumseh, delivering a pithy statement: “These white Americans
give us fair exchange, their cloth, their guns, their tools, implements, and other things which the Choctaws need but do not make.
It will be seen that the whites and Indians in this section are living on friendly and mutually beneficial terms.”
Tecumseh delivered a vehement reply. “Where today are the Pequot? Where are the Narragansett, the Mochican, the Pocanet, and other powerful tribes of
our people? They have vanished before the avarice and oppression of the white man ... Sleep not
longer, O Choctaws and Chickasaws ... Will not the bones of our dead be plowed up, and
their graves turned into plowed fields?” Unfortunately, his words fell on deaf ears, and the Choctaws refused to join his cause.
Nevertheless, Tecumseh did find limited success in the South. In September, he rode into the Muscogee town of Tuckabatchee.
There, he delivered another impassioned speech about the unity of Natives, and resistance
against the White Man. Thousands of warriors raised their tomahawks and cheered, but one old chieftain remained
silent. One story claims that Tecumseh stalked over to this chieftain, and declared that he would
march to Fort Detroit, stamp his foot unto the earth, and shake down every house in Tuckabatchee
to prove that he had been chosen by the Great Spirit. Tecumseh then ventured back northwards, and sure enough, on December 16th, 1811, the New
Madrid Earthquake rocked the southern United States, and every house in Tuckabatchee was
shaken to its foundations. Many interpreted this as the coming of Tecumseh's’ prophecy, and proof they should join his confederacy.
Henceforth a significant amount of Muscogees declared themselves for Tecumseh, a faction
which became known as the Red Sticks. Meanwhile in Indiana, Governor Harrison was aware that Tecumseh was away from Prophetstown,

Battle of Tippecanoe
which was currently under the administration of Tenskwatawa. Harrison knew that Tecumseh was the main military power in the Native Confederacy, and his absence
made this the right time to strike. Harrison’s goal was to conquer Prophetstown, thereby ripping the heart out of the growing
confederacy and eliminating the threat of a Native invasion of Indiana before it could begin.
Harrison sent the Prophet an ultimatum: All Potawatomis, Kickapoos and Winnebagoes were
to be expelled from Prophetstown; all warriors who had launched raids upon United States
citizens had to be surrendered; and all goods and horses stolen from settlers had to be
returned. These terms served to effectively disband the Native Confederacy and unsurprisingly,
were unilaterally rejected. On September 20th, 1811, Harrison marched northwards with an army of 1000 men.
Comprising this force were 325 army regulars, and 625 volunteers, largely from Kentucky
and the Indiana Territory. The militia was made up primarily of infantrymen, but also featured mounted sharpshooters and
dragoons. The principal weapon used by this expeditionary force was the model 1795 Springfield Flintlock
Musket, a firearm capable of discharging three rounds per minute. The army stopped at present day Terre Haute, Indiana, and constructed a stockade, named
Fort Harrison, which would be a staging point for their upcoming assault.
Within their town, the Prophet’s warriors numbered anywhere between 500 to 700, divided
into tribal contingents of Winnebagoes, Kickapoos, Potawatomis, Wyandots and Shawnees, each numbering
about 125 men. Most of the Natives were armed with British “Brown Bess” muskets, and carried knives,
tomahawks and war clubs. By November 6th, the Americans had advanced out of Fort Harrison and made camp on a high
ridge around a thousand yards west of Prophetstown. Before he had headed south, Tecumseh had warned his brother not to engage in combat, for he
did not want open war before his confederacy was fully mobilized.
Despite this, he was not present, and the warriors of Prophetstown looked to Tenskwatawa for guidance.
The Prophet had made overtures for peace that afternoon, but this was a fruitless endeavor,
as Harrison could not accept any terms short of the abandonment of Prophetstown and the dispersal of its inhabitants.
Meanwhile, the Natives had become deeply uneased by the army at their doorstep, and many itched
for confrontation. The most popular story claims the Winnebago faction denounced any attempt at peace, and
demanded Tenskwatawa send them into battle. Thus, the Prophet sought a vision with the Great Spirit, and returned to his warriors
with a plan: to Assassinate Governor Harrison, thereby beheading the American Army and making
them unable to fight. The Winnebagoes demanded that the attack had to be that night.
Thus, Tenskwatawa invoked his shamanic powers to confer with the Great spirit, promising
that the elimination of Harrison could be carried out via a night-time assault upon the American camp.
Thus, at 4am on the morning of November 7th, the War Chiefs began their attack, having
been given the blessing of their Prophet. They advanced upon the American Camp in a crescent formation.
The right horn was made up of Kickapoos, led by Chief Mengoatowa, the left made up of Winnebagos
led by Chief Waweapakoosa, and the center made up of Potawatomis led by Roundhead and
Wabaunsee. The plan was to have the Kickapoos infiltrate the Camp’s Northwestern corner and slay
Harrison under cover of darkness, at which point they would signal for the rest of the Warriors and massacre the US Soldiers.
This would not come to pass, for Harrison was a shrewd commander and knew well not to
underestimate his Native foes. Remembering all too well how 1,000 U.S Soldiers had been massacred by Ambush at the Wabash
back in 1791, he had ordered the tents in his camp to be set up in a crescent formation,
and for his men to sleep on top of their muskets, which were to be loaded with their bayonets affixed.
The Kickapoos reached the American Camp ahead of the other Native Contingents, crawling on the flats of their stomachs.
At around 4:30 AM, they encountered an advance watchman, who managed to fire off a shot before
being killed. The crack of the rifle caused the Americans to grow alert, with Harrison himself being
awoken by 5:30, by which point the Kickapoos had reached the Northwestern edge of the camp.
At precisely 5:50, one Corporal Stephen Mars managed to train his sights on a Kickapoo
warrior and shoot him dead. The presence of the natives was now known, and they had precious little time before the
entire American stockade was alerted. Realizing that an assassination of Harrison was now impossible, the Kickapoos raised their
weapons, and charged, beginning the battle in earnest. For roughly fifteen minutes, the Kickapoos kept the American’s northwest flank in a
state of chaos, killing a handful of soldiers and forcing the 4th Infantry Regiment and
Kentucky Riflemen to retreat deeper into their Camp. However, Harrisons foresight had paid off, as by 6AM, all hands in the American camp
were alerted and had been assembled into battle positions around the perimeter.
It was around this time that the rest of the Native warriors arrived on the scene, with the Potawatomis launching an assault on the northwest.
The battle had devolved into a slugfest, a contest decided by numbers and firepower;
in this, the Natives were outmatched. As the hour progressed, the tides began to turn.
A company under one Captain Snelling had driven the Potawatomis from the woods, who regrouped
and assaulted the northern center, causing a company led by Captain Robb to collapse and fall back, only to have Snelling’s contingent fall in and beat back the ensuing Potawatomi
advance. Meanwhile, the Winnebagoes struck from the south, engaging in a fierce shootout with
the companies of Captain Spencer and Warrick. This too was futile, as Robb’s reformed unit arrived to reinforce their compatriots
and drive off their enemy. By 7AM, the sun was beginning to rise, and the Natives realized they were outnumbered
two to one. Heavily demoralized, they began retreating back to Prophetstown.
Here, the Americans launched a counterattack, fully mobilized and invigorated after repelling
an attack, they encircled and charged the fleeing Natives, slaying a handful more before
the warriors made it back behind the fortifications of Prophetstown. Upon their return, many warriors were outraged at the Prophet, for he had promised them that
the Great Spirit had ensured him of victory. The powerful shaman was called out for being a fraud, many renounced their loyalty to him
and deserted Prophetstown. Tenskwatawa made desperate pleas to have them stand and fight, but they fell upon deaf ears.
The next morning, the American troops marched into Prophetstown to find it had been abandoned,
and burned it to the ground. The prophet, who had laid the groundwork of Tecumseh’s confederacy, had lost almost
all his influence. The town that served as the heart of Native unity had been burned down.
This was a harsh blow to the Native resistance, but it was not the end. Tecumseh himself still had power, for chieftains of many tribes were still loyal to him.
In the face of this setback, he was forced to turn to an old ally against the American
threat, the British Empire. On June 17th, 1812, The United States Senate voted narrowly in favour of armed conflict

Alliance with the British and Siege of Fort Detroit
with Great Britain. This war had been a long time coming. As a certain Napoleon Bonaparte had been conquering across Europe, the British had imposed themselves
upon U.S. sovereignty, embargoing American trade with France and her allies, while kidnapping
sailors off American ships to supplement the Royal Navy’s perpetual need for manpower.
But these were not the real causes of the war. For decades, the British Empire had been empowering Native Tribes on the U.S. frontier to resist
American expansion. Indeed, most of the muskets used by Tecumseh’s warriors were British-manufactured.
For the Warhawks in Washington, this provided the excuse needed to pursue American territorial
expansion, first by annexing British Canada, then by expanding deeper into the lands of
the Native tribes on their western frontier. One of the main obstacles preventing American expansionism was still alive and well.
Tecumseh had never stopped preparing for war. He had no love for the British, but realized it was only through their manpower and resources
that the reconquest of Native lands annexed by America, and the establishment of an independent
pan-Tribal Native state, was possible. To this end, he mobilized his warriors for battle.
It was the general consensus that if the United States launched an invasion into Canada, the
territory would fall quickly. The ongoing war with Napoleon kept the majority of Britain’s armies in Europe, and the local
Canadian Colonials were unlikely to be willing to fight against a far superior foe.
On July the 12th, 1812, the United States began their invasion when Brigadier General
William Hull marched across into old Sandwich town in present day Ontario, occupying it
without a fight. He offered peace to the locals should they become Americans, but to those who fought
alongside the British or their native allies, he had a much darker promise: “The first
stroke of the Tomahawk, the first attempt with the scalping knife, will be the signal for one indiscriminate scene of desolation.
No white man found fighting by the side of an Indian will be taken prisoner. Instant destruction will be his lot.”
However, Hull proved to be an ineffective general. The main British garrison in the region was isolated in nearby Fort Malden, but Hull refused
to strike, instead holding position in Sandwich town while obsessing over his supply lines
across the Detroit river. On July 17th, 700 native warriors of the Great Lakes nations arrived at Fort St. Joseph on
the shores of the Huron to join the British cause. The local British Commander had only 50 redcoats under his charge, but empowered by his new
allies, he swooped down into Michigan, and besieged nearby Fort Mackinac.
Unaware that the war had been declared, the American Garrison surrendered without a fight.
As Tecumseh’s warriors took arms, the Great Chieftain himself was heading north to join the fray.
At Brownstown Creek, he fell fiercely upon a supply convoy of 200 U.S. soldiers, scattering
them with only 25 warriors at his side. Following this string of humiliating defeats, Hull’s nerve broke, and on August 7th, he
retreated back into American territory to garrison in Fort Detroit, having accomplished
little to nothing. Back in Washington, Thomas Jefferson famously asserted that “The acquisition of Canada
this year will be a mere matter of marching”, but this was no longer the reality.
Tecumseh and his natives had delivered the British a fighting chance, and with that, the inspiration for the local Canadians to resist the conquest.
But in truth, the war had just begun; there was much to do before Tecumseh’s dream could
be realized. It was at this point that the Shawnee Chieftain’s greatest ally enters the story.
Major-General Isaac Brock was a career soldier, and a loyal British subject.
In 1802, he was appointed a station in lower Canada, where he eventually became head of
the Colonial army. Modern Canadians consider him a national hero, but in truth, he resented his outpost.
In comparison with the Napoleonic War, Canada was a sleepy and irrelevant sideshow.
Nevertheless, Brock did his duty well. He reformed the Provincial militia and bolstered the defenses of forts on the American border.
A few months before the war’s outbreak, Brock was offered a posting in Europe.
Despite his personal desires, he refused, believing he now had a duty to defend Canada
against the invasion he knew was soon to come. On the night of August 13th, 1812, Brock arrived at Fort Malden aboard a Flotilla of ships,
by way of lake Erie. Tecumseh was there waiting for him, and the two men were eager to see one another.
Both had heard of the other’s deeds, and both knew that they needed each other.
Brock could not defend Canada without Tecumseh’s aid, nor could Tecumseh retake his people’s
lands without British support. The two leaders soon met face to face, and quickly developed a mutual respect.
They agreed that only through a quick and decisive offense could they hope to win this
war. To that end, they resolved to attack Fort Detroit, the place where the bulk of American
forces in the Northwest were stationed. It was risky, since the allies knew they would be outnumbered two to one.
Most of Brock’s officers were against it, yet the Major-General would not relent.
Tecumseh was impressed by his new partner’s resolve, famously saying: “This is a man!
A more sagacious and a more gallant Warrior does not I believe exist.”
On the morning of the 15th of August, an allied force of Canadian Militias, Redcoats and Natives
made camp in Sandwich town, opposite the river to the American-held Fort Detroit.
Major-General Brock commanded a force about 700 strong, while Tecumseh and his warriors
numbered around 600. Meanwhile, General Hull had 2,500 men garrisoned inside his well-fortified walls, double the
number of his opponent. Brock wrote a letter to his American adversary, demanding his immediate surrender, saying:
“It is far from my inclination to join in a war of extermination, but you must be aware,
that the numerous body of Indians who have attached themselves to my troops will be beyond my control the moment the contest commences.”
In truth, Tecumseh was no butcher, and in fact abhorred unnecessary killing, but through
captured intelligence, he and Brock both knew that General Hull was terrified of Natives
warriors, and that the fear of a savage massacre may be enough to break him. Yet still, no surrender came.
The following night, Brock began to ferry his troops across the river. The British opened fire with their three heavy cannons and two mortars to cover the crossing.
Hull ordered his 24-pounders to return fire. Neither side managed to inflict much damage upon the other, but on the morning of the
16th, a cannon ball struck the Fort’s mess hall and killed two Americans.
Upon crossing the river, Brock organized his troops into two rows a mile out from the fortress
walls, boldly placing himself at the front of the line. An officer pleaded that he not expose himself so plainly, to which he replied: “Many here
follow me from a feeling of personal regard. I will not ask them to go where I will not lead them.”
When news arrived that a force of 400 Ohio militiamen were arriving from his rear, Brock
doubled down and marched his troops to the far-side of the fort, opposite to the river.
Meanwhile, Tecumseh and his warriors had quietly made the river crossing five miles south,
filtering his men into a forest within view of the Fort. Ingeniously, he paraded his men in circles, repeatedly having them pass through a gap
in the tree line within view of the Americans, delivering ferocious war-cries all the while.
This created the illusion that there were far more natives at Detroit’s gates than there actually were, and made the weight of an Indian massacre all the more real.
By now, General Hull had been psychologically broken, with contemporary reports claiming
he sat in a muted daze, saliva and tobacco dripping limply from his chin.
Within his fort there were women and children, including his very own daughter and grandchild.
The man had never had the will of a soldier, and the mind games of Brock and Tecumseh had
broken him. After only a few hours of siege, the gates opened, and Hull’s own son rode out, bearing
a white flag. Fort Detroit had surrendered. It was a stunning defeat for the Americans.
The largest garrison in the northern United States had surrendered without a fight.
2493 soldiers were taken captive by a force barely half their number.
Tecumseh had done his part, and delivered the British a great victory. Now it was time for his Imperial allies to help him push deeper into American territory,
and help him establish a homeland for his people. Unfortunately for him, this would never come to pass.

Battle of the Thames
The United States was determined to avenge their humiliation at Detroit, and thus launched an offensive upon Queenston Heights, managing to capture the town.
This provoked Brock to rally a force of militiamen from nearby York and some native Mohawk allies to once more drive the Americans from Canadian soil. It was in this engagement where the Major-General met his end.
He charged up the heights with his men, wearing a silk sash given to him by Tecumseh.
This made him a conspicuous target, and as he ran up the hill, he was shot fatally through the chest. 300 Mohawk warriors jumped into the fray, holding off a much larger American army until British reinforcements arrived. Queenston was retaken, and nearly 1,000 Americans were captured or killed.
Despite this, with Brock dead, the Native confederacy had now lost its only reliable ally. Meanwhile, an old foe of Tecumseh had come to assume command of the American forces in the northwest: none other than William Henry Harrison, the conqueror of Prophetstown.
Unlike his predecessor Hull, Harrison was a natural leader and a decisive soldier.
His first act was to construct a bastion along the Maumee river, which he called Fort Meigs.
From here, he planned to strike upwards and retake Detroit. Meanwhile, the Governor-General of Canada had promoted an officer by the name of Henry Procter to lead the British army due to Isaac Brock’s untimely death.
Procter and Tecumseh went on the southwards offensive. In January of 1813, the Native-British forces encountered an expeditionary platoon of mounted Kentucky riflemen sallying north from Fort Meigs. They clashed on a battlefield outside the borough of Frenchtown.
For once, the Americans were outnumbered, and suffered a resounding defeat.
Nearly 500 Kentuckians were killed in the fighting, the highest American casualty count of any battle in the war, and yet another 500 were captured.
The American prisoners were put on a forced march back to Fort Malden for detainment.
Native warriors began taking liberties with their captives, robbing and killing the injured, and cutting down any who would not keep pace with the slog. Tecumseh himself had left before the battle’s end, and was not present to see the massacre.
He abhorred needless death, so when he caught wind of the prisoners’ fate, he was outraged.
Confronting Proctor, he demanded to know why the British General would allow such a thing, to which Proctor snidely replied that Tecumseh’s natives were impossible to control.
At this, the Chieftain replied temprously: “Begone! You are unfit to command!
Go and put on petticoats!” From there, cracks continued to form in Tecumseh’s tenuous alliance with the British.
With Brock, the chieftain had built a strong rapport, but he had no such respect for Procter, who refused to fight the war on the Native’s terms, as Brock had. Meanwhile, the Americans would remember the massacre at Frenchtown, their slain prisoners would become martyrs, and the event became a rallying cry for the rest of the war.
Sure enough, the tides began to turn. In the Spring of 1813, Tecumseh convinced a begrudging Procter into launching a joint
assault upon Fort Meigs. Twice, a force of 1200 natives and 900 British soldiers laid siege to the fort, but twice, Harrison managed to repel them, despite suffering heavy casualties. As more Americans fell into British captivity during these battles, Tecumseh continued to prevent massacres he much as he could. It is because of this that many Americans to this day regard him with the respect befitting
a noble foe. The failing relationship between Tecumseh and his allies was further exacerbated when the United States won a decisive naval engagement in September of 1813.
The battle of Put-In-Bay put the entirety of Lake Erie in American hands, and cut off British supply lines, forcing them to abandon Fort Malden and Fort Detroit, thereby erasing all the victories won by Tecumseh and Brock a year earlier. With winter looming, General Procter retreated eastward, banking on the fact that Harrison would not pursue him through the winter snows. This enraged Tecumseh, for the Shawnee chieftain still wanted to go on the offensive.
He felt betrayed. After all, he had delivered the British several victories in their war, only to receive no aid in return for his. As it turned out, Procter’s gamble was incorrect.
Harrison was all too willing to risk a winter campaign to press his advantage.
After retaking Fort Detroit, the American general marched eastwards to pursue the British forces. Still, Procter continued to withdraw, much to the disgust of Tecumseh, who now realized that his unreliable ally could not be further removed from the gallantry and bravery of Brock. Reluctantly, the Shawnee took his warriors joined the British retreat.
But soon he had had enough. Realizing there was no end to Procter’s timidity, Tecumseh stood before the General
and put his foot in the earth, issuing him an ultimatum: The British would withdraw no further, or the alliance between them and his Native Confederacy was over.
In declaring this, Tecumseh had said choice words that would go down in history: “Our lives are in the hands of the Great Spirit. We are determined to defend our lands, and if it be his will, we wish to leave our bones upon them.” With his hand being forced, Procter agreed to face Harrison’s army.
He chose to make his stand on the banks of the Canadian River Thames, near Moraviantown, a village of Christian Delawares.
Procter’s 900 men lined themselves in rows perpendicular to the River.
Exhausted and starving from their forced march, the Redcoats were in no state to fight.
Tecumseh stationed his warriors in a black ash swamp to the British right, where they would have ample cover, and could flank the approaching American army.
The emboldened Grand Chieftain personally shook the hand of each British officer, before rejoining his men.
Before long, the Americans were in sight. Harrison’s force was imposing, nearly 4,000 strong; they more than doubled the numbers
of the British and Natives combined. Procter had made no attempt to build earthworks to fortify his position, so the plains between
him and the Americans remained entirely uncontested. Harrison knew that the best way to break his enemy was to move fast and strike hard, much like he had done at Prophetstown two years earlier. The American general kept the bulk of his militia and infantry in reserve, and organized
a center column of mounted Kentucky riflemen to barrel down towards the British line.
Tecumseh and his warriors opened fire from the swamp, but were unable to stop the cavalry from thundering into their Redcoat allies. This devastating charge broke the British morale.
Gripped by panic, they broke formation and scattered, offering only a token resistance through disorganized and scattered gunfire. General Procter fled the field with 250 of his men, while the remaining 600 British soldiers
were either captured or cut down. When Tecumseh was young, he had taken an oath: to never again flee in the face of battle.
Even now, with his allies abandoning him, and outnumbered eight to one by his enemy, he would uphold that oath. Entrenched deep in the swamps, the Natives fought on without British aid.
Harrison ordered his Kentucky cavalrymen to break their lines, but their initial charge was cut down by a fusillade of Native gunfire.
From there, the battle devolved into a drawn out shootout, with both sides trading fire amidst the cover of the swampy thicket. It is here, in a battlefield of smoky air and muddy mire that the story of Tecumseh ends. As the chaotic shootout continued, an American soldier managed to train his sights on the proud Shawnee Chieftain, and shoot him through the chest. Tecumseh was killed immediately upon the impact.
It didn’t take long for news of Tecumseh’s death to spread among the Native warriors.
Deeply demoralized by this, and afeard by the rest of Harrison’s army descending upon them, they fled the battlefield and scattered.
The Battle of the Thames was a decisive victory for the Americans, and spelled the end of the Great Native Coalition. Tecumseh had been the glue that bound them together; no other warrior among them had
as much respect from so many diverse tribes. After the engagement at Moraviantown, many individual chieftains surrendered to Governor
Harrison and returned to their homes, beholden to the will of the United States.
There would be no more united Native front, and no more attempts to form a unified indigenous nation on North American soil. The confederacy that Tecumseh had spent so many years building in life, inevitably dissolved with his death. The war of 1812 would rage on for another two years after Tecumseh’s passing, but Native Warriors no longer played a major role. Both British and American armies scored later victories, with the British sacking the capital of Washington, and the Americans winning an iconic engagement at New Orleans.
The war ended in stalemate; the British had successfully defended their territory, while the Americans had asserted their sovereignty. Canada would not be annexed, and America would no longer have their economic and territorial interests imposed upon. In the end, the only true losers of the war of 1812 were the indigenous tribes of the
continent. During peace talks, the British had originally negotiated to establish a Native Nation, albeit only to create a buffer state to block further American expansion. Naturally, the Americans outright denied this proposal.
Realizing they did not have the leverage to enforce such a thing, the British quickly abandoned the notion.
When the treaty of Ghent was signed in December of 1814, no provisions existed to stem the tide of American westward expansion, and expand they did.
Without a strong leader like Tecumseh to bind them, the indigenous peoples of the American continent were largely helpless to combat the flood of settlers that came to take their lands. The Red Stick Muskogees who had declared for Tecumseh fought on for a time, engaging the Americans in the deep south. But they too were eventually defeated by future-President Andrew Jackson in a massacre at Horseshoe
bend. In the end, the story of Tecumseh is a tragic tale.
A man of remarkable charisma, integrity, bravery and strength, who spent his whole life fighting for independence and unity, only to have it all taken away upon his death.
Even his greatest foe in William Henry Harrison had remarked that this brave warrior had the makings of an Emperor, and it is easy to wonder what great things he could have done, if only he had lived a little longer. Nevertheless, Tecumseh’s memory is alive and well today.
To the Americans, he was a noble opponent. To Canadians, the saviour of their nation.
But to the indigenous peoples of North America, he is and always will be above all things, an icon of resistance.

===

Comments 2,945 Comments

Pinned by @KingsandGenerals

@KingsandGenerals

4 years ago

8:28 you know what to do.

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61 replies

@thegavin000

4 years ago

My ancestors fought with this man. I am winnebago native. Quite the story. Without these events, perhaps I wouldn't be here. History is amazing to learn from

1 reply

@idipped2521

2 years ago

The part about Tecumseh’s father dying and telling him to protect the tribe with his last breath then Tecumseh growing up to be a badass warrior is like something out of a movie

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4 replies

@mrhanekoma86

4 years ago

I just posted this on your recent video on the Seminole but I’m repeating it here.

I am a native Oklahoman and member of the Shawnee tribe. I learned some of my own history from you. You’d be amazed how many Shawnee don’t even know who Tecumseh was. And virtually none of us are taught about his brother.

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@placebo5466

3 years ago

This is absolutely incredible. There's a reason that the US Naval Academy has a statue in honor of Tecumseh. I can't believe there hasn't been a big budget tv series of this entire epic story.

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@jeff1379

4 years ago

I live in SW Ontario. We have a town named after Tecumseh and multiple monuments/plaques and other dedications. Unfortunately we didn’t learn much about the war of 1812 in public school. Very informative video👍

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@alanpros6950

4 years ago

A entire hour of content full graphic, 100% free, men you are really cool.

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49 replies

@calebsmith7633

4 years ago

This channel is on an absolute roll lately. Amazing content at an insane rate

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@karenwhittaker4418

4 years ago

I grew up near Tecumseh Ontario which is outside of Windsor. This history was never taught in school. Most people knew it was the name of an Indian chief, but not much about what he did in his lifetime. Thanks for a telling his story.

1 reply

@christophersherman1198

4 years ago

Word to whomever put this together. Much like Hiawatha and the peacemaker, Tecumseh wasn't willing to fail. May his story live on out of respect for our elders and all Native races.

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@Catman2123

4 years ago

I’m 30 minutes north from Prophetstown. It’s great to see local history getting the same treatment as the greats of Europe and Asia!

@rorymcclernon4674

4 years ago

Learned more here than from years of boring history classes.

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@Isaiah-tp1nc

4 years ago

Thank you for bringing indigenous stories to a mainstream platform. Introducing people to this side of history is a very important task.

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2 replies

@roymarron7622

4 years ago

Man, I clicked with the idea of watching a couple minutes before going to bed and here I am, 59 minutes later, great work guys! keep up with the hard work!

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1 reply

@maddiehite3502

1 year ago (edited)

This was truly one of the most brilliant films I have seen in my entire life. I am in tears. What a remarkable soul Tecumseh was. What I would give to tell that man exactly how grateful I am for his inspiring legacy. The realest OG of them all. RIP Tecumseh, I will make it central to my life’s mission that we will never forget your name, brave warrior

@simenonhonore

4 years ago

This is a truly impressive an innovative video. Unlike standard histories of America, the native Americans are centre stage in this account, exploring the viewpoint of Tecumseh and other native leaders. Defo a five star video!

@iammrbeat

4 years ago

Thank you for making this!

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Kings and Generals

13 replies

@KingsandGenerals

4 years ago

Thanks for watching! :-)

@keithpeterson5127

4 years ago

Told with American bias.

@koalabear1984

4 years ago

@keithpeterson5127 well.. he wasn't lying

@MaxwellAerialPhotography

4 years ago

Keith Peterson you you order completely irrelevant Italian bias?

@heofthebee

4 years ago

NATIVE AMERICANS ARE SPECIAL AMERICANS. WE ALL

OWE THEM A GREAT DEBT AND HONOR. MANY AMERICANS

HAVE SOME QUANTITY OF NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE.

@Kuwaitisnot_adeployment

4 years ago

@keithpeterson5127 I dont have the slightest clue as to what you are referring to by "American biased". The history of the First Nation people's of North and South American has been a passion of mine since I was a child and my grandmother would tell me stories about our Osage ancestors. I've studied the history for over 25 years and Ive learned damned near everything a person can, especially about this subject in particular. Although more details regarding everything talked about in this video could, without a doubt, be given if time wasn't a factor. Nothing said is untrue or purposefully misleading or taken out of context to promote a false narrative, its nothing but facts. Beside being able to give more details for a more in depth overview (which would of made the video to long) nobody could do a much better job if any better at all. Plus these videos are made to entertain viewers and teach them a very generalized knowledge on said subject. It isnt to turn people into experts on the subject but instead for them to learn enough about a particular subject to maybe spark enough intrest in the individual to want to educate themselves on the matter more on there own. I'd love to know what you think to yourself justifies your comment.

@Bouldah

4 years ago

Tha ks for commenting

@Erik3E

4 years ago

@keithpeterson5127 american bias from a brittish person? lol what drugs you on?

@jonothandoeser

4 years ago

He's gone Viral!!

@bobbyhullfan1077

4 years ago

@Kuwaitisnot_adeployment You would think Harrison, who had the grit to fight and pursue as he did would be a tough man who could survive the elements, but his long acceptance speech in the rain made as president made him sick and he died 30 days later. Tecumseh had his revenge somewhat. I have one book that states 'Tecumtha' was the proper pronounciation. Have you read about the man who cowered in fear when he entered the room, and Tecumseh walked over and patted him on the back and said "Big baby...big baby."?

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@frankwilliams3036

4 years ago

Thank you. This narration and animation brought tears to my eyes. I am Frank Tecumseh Williams IV. His name has been in my family for generations as you can see. Native American blood does flow through my veins, but more than that, the spirit. Thanks again.

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@larryyoung5757

6 months ago

Outstanding and comprehensive story of Tecumseh. My great great grandfather fought at Tippicanoe.

@shaunthesheep1263

4 years ago

Great documentary! Recently had a professor go over how natives dealt with westward expansion and this was a great piece on the more violet aspect. Most think it was one sided but until the war of 1812 confederacies like Tecumseh’s were major power players and won an outright majority of the early conflicts.

@SirSpiderPig

4 years ago

I remember learning about Brock. We honestly do consider him a national hero and were taught of his bravery and willingness to “work with the natives”

1 reply

@allanlank

4 years ago

"In the end the only true losers of the War of 1812, were the indigenous tribes of the continent". Sadly so.

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@craiglarge5925

4 years ago

Started with James Town, 1607'

@Dian_Borisov_SW

4 years ago

Truly sad. And even after all they've went through almost none of their lands were freed.

@antorseax9492

4 years ago

Ron Lewenberg Windows?

@firingallcylinders2949

4 years ago (edited)

Yep no one talks about this. Anytime someone asks who lost the war of 1812. The British or the Americans?

The Indians.

@paveldatsyuk7175

4 years ago

My tribe got to live and keep some land and lots of money . Not to shabby

@sethrepp7268

4 years ago

@jasondiggs6740 We did nothing worse than what they were doing to each other and all throughout history, don't be racist. I would see all that done again if it would meet the same promise that America became, we have done FAR more good than bad.

@sethrepp7268

4 years ago

@jasondiggs6740 What im picking at is your very selective outrage at at White Europeans and America and not crying about say the Spanish invasion and how much more brutal they were along with forcing religion on what natives they let live. Be more broad in your anger or you reveal your anti American agenda...

@muskett4108

4 years ago

@jasondiggs6740 The history of indigenous peoples of all the world is of conflict amongst themselves or from a foreign invader. It is the story of the human race, and considered progress. Nothing new here at all.

The modern difference now is rather than little wars between villages, towns, and cities, its done on a bigger scale with millions (World Wars). Success is that the world populations have gone up. There is more genetic material of American Indians than ever before, so a success.

Progress is that it is now far more likely that an individual will live in peace and to a life expectancy never had before.

Absolutely human history isn't kind, nor pretty, but its what it is. I just don't understand these apologists. Would native american indians have been better off still with stone tools? The fight now is with excess, diabetes, alcoholism., education, finding worth, and wealth creation. Everyone has those problems.

@muskett4108

4 years ago

@jasondiggs6740 17th and 18th Century Black Slavery was 12.5 million shipped. There ended up about 4 million slaves at anyone time. It was an industry where Africans supplied slaves for goods they wanted. Agreed disgusting but thats what was practiced then. The British Empire was prominent to make it an illegal trade.

Slavery in most of the world was pretty normal practice. There was some in North America as there was pretty much everywhere. Some still exists today.

The vast majority of native Americans died of a plague before Europeans arrived in any numbers. Before the horse.

I'm no apologist for anything as I wasn't there.

Take your condescending attitude and do some real historic study. The facts don't make pretty reading but whatever went on did.

I'd like to think we can do better.

If you want some really big numbers then just look at the history of socialism.

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@conservos2349

4 years ago (edited)

One of the top-ten most interesting people in history in my book. So few people really tell the story of the Indian Wars properly. This channel is awesome.

2 replies

@TheJokerx420

4 years ago

As an Ojibwe, I’m proud that we sent contingents to aid Tecumseh during this time. I would’ve gladly gave up my life for our cause and people.

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@nope6908

4 years ago

@s4bc trolling?

@lindadechiazza2924

3 years ago

C. Neb- what are you suicidal

Why give your life away?

@mohammedyassine9263

3 years ago

@s4bc

You have no honor

@Etzellll

3 years ago

@lindadechiazza2924 For freedom and dignity of his people maybe?

@_STNML

3 years ago

@Etzellll symbolic, yet futile.

@RyRy2057

2 years ago

@_STNML futile? how? this video makes clear that at several points in its brutal conquest of the continent the anglo settler United States was nearly forced to retreat due to native resistance. these were not the last hurrahs of a dying civilization, but a time of gradual but incomplete defeat for indigenous peoples in the face of settler conquest. the wars may be over but the struggle continues, after all

@RebelNinja420

2 years ago (edited)

@RyRy2057 late response, but wasn’t here for the original posting.

it was futile, because even if they had wiped out entire states populations, hundreds of thousands more would have just moved in within no time. The more you kill the more we would have killed in vengeance.

why do you think so few Comanche people survived. By 1920 the census listed 1500 Comanche left. They have begun rebounding slowly.

It doesn’t even matter if the United States didn’t want to expand. People continually moved into Indian land regardless of what america said. If america didn’t claim that land, then a new European North American nation would have just formed when immigrating Europeans wanted the valuable lands Native Americans weren’t strong enough to keep. They couldn’t sustain the casualties of war, while America continually received fresh immigrants from a Europe and other nations.

The Native American population never had a chance after the decimation of their civilizations by disease. Their populations were simply too low at that point. They could only slow the process down at best.

The ease of Spain conquering the Incan and aztec empires is both extreme luck but also a inevitable outcome. Disease, our domesticated animals, technology, logistics etc. continually improving Guns and cannons. Those are much more powerful than a bow and arrow. And native Americans could trade for guns and such, but that still wasn’t ever a realistic option. Wars take up huge amounts of ammunition and supplies.

There is absolutely no right for people to rule a land they can’t defend. Native Americans took land from each other for millennia before europe showed up. Native American tribes continually helped America conquer other Native American tribes. Order only exists by using force. Peaceful nations or weaker nations have always been swallowed up by those whom are stronger.this is just as true in Europe as it was in Africa, Asia , or north and South America.

@dannytallmage2971

1 year ago

The better people won. Sometimes you just have to accept you are outclassed.

@Someonelse1224

1 year ago

Same for all the tribes

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@anthonyfrench3169

5 months ago

The Battle of Fallen Timbers is absolutely pivotal and an important part of my hometown. You can still find evidence of that when tilling the soil or doing basic archeological work...super excited you all mentioned this. I am looking forward to more about this part of history

@forbiddencrystalinternet6201

4 years ago

So much better than the History Channel it boggles my mind that this isn't on cable instead. Great video once again.

@gkidcolumbus1806

4 years ago

There’s a neighborhood called “Little Turtle” in Columbus and there is a ski resort called “Mad River Mountain” in Ohio. It’s nice to know where these names came from

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@nikburton9264

4 years ago

In Bellefontaine Ohio, the cornerstone of the courthouse is where the Centerpoint of Blue Jackets lodge once stood. Lots of history here in Ohio.

@InVinoVeratas

4 years ago

Ohio also kinda sounds like “hello” in Japanese.

@nikburton9264

4 years ago

@InVinoVeratas Ohio go zyamas

@MrMarsh263

4 years ago

@InVinoVeratas Ohio actually originated from the Seneca word ohiːyo', meaning "good river", "great river", or "large creek"

@feartheamish9183

4 years ago

The town they mention that Tecumseh watch burn was the Shawnee capital, named Chillicothe. The modern city is a few miles away from the former Shawnee town.

@hestonjimmie2

4 years ago

@nikburton9264 おはようございます. That's in Japanese script - katakana.

@nikburton9264

4 years ago

@hestonjimmie2 thanks! I have a friend I correspond with on Kyushu. I can open my next letter that way. Domo.

@rickb1973

4 years ago

There's our hockey team, the Blue Jackets, as well.....named after the Shawnee war chief who won on the Wabash.

@kotaniyumiko

4 years ago

@hestonjimmie2 thats not katakana, its hiragana, katakana looks like this アメリカ

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@Nonamenobodyman

1 year ago

"It is also possible that Tecumseh had access to an almanac when he was learning to read English" to predict the solar eclipse; but no book predicts earthquakes.

@w4shep

4 years ago

This is the best documentary I've seen on Tecumseh. Outstanding.

Thanks for making and sharing this!

@lippesamsung8878

2 years ago

Simply the best of all kings and generals' productions thus far.

@NoctaKnight

4 years ago

The words "Native Invasion" really don't belong next to one another... Thank you for teaching this history

@theawesomeman9821

4 years ago

So Geromino and Crazy Horse have had their own movies made when is Tecumseh gonna get his own movie?

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@jungleninja-tropic5690

4 years ago

there is a tv movie of tecumseh its very good. it was in parts on youtube

@theawesomeman9821

4 years ago

@jungleninja-tropic5690 name?

@hepcatliz

4 years ago

There was one! Tecumseh The Last Warrior (1995 ‧ Action/Adventure ‧ 1h 30m) it was not great

@theawesomeman9821

4 years ago (edited)

@godkingemperor7685 personally, I think Americans are interested in Native peoples but its not easy working with native tribes, cause they have a lot of creative control over how the movie is presented which may be vastly different from what the director wants, and they often charge a lot of money for participating in.

@theawesomeman9821

4 years ago

@hepcatliz thanks

@tonypollock9900

4 years ago

I think it's because his story would highlight how the European nations deceive indigenous peoples out of their land thru trickery, treaties and straight up lying to them. The Europeans go to war with each other but it's the indigenous who lose everything

@hapaharley1706

4 years ago

I remember when I was a kid TNT put out a bunch of historical movies and Tecumseh was one of them. I'm surprised how much of this story I remember. Very depressing ending now as it was when I watched as a kid

@ItzCoopzFtw

4 years ago

@theawesomeman9821 They should get Sir Peter Jackson on board to work on a native film, he's worked a lot with Maori. Or Taika Waititi.

@d0ubleh559

4 years ago

@hepcatliz thx

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@zrayray3054

4 years ago

My middle school is named after Tecumseh, as are a bunch of the roads in my area in Mississauga Ontario

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@HanzoB

4 years ago

History is amazing, and the incredible way you describe it gives me chills! The heroic story’s are just awesome. Thank you!

@shainedelorme6194

1 year ago

Civilization Vii gameplay showcase happened today and if you pre-order the game you get the Tecumseh and Shawnee playable leaders, here now to educate myself on what Tecumseh had accomplished for our people, I am proud to be Native American!

@eddominates

4 years ago

great presentation, really gives perspective on the battles without deifying any of the people involved as history tends to do

@vevitier

4 years ago

This is so so good. Wow. The music at the end made me tear up. Well done. I’m sharing this with everyone I know. I had no idea.

@SireJaxs

4 years ago

I honestly love this video. The soul reason is because this isn't biased towards natives being hero's and Americans being conquerors nor the opposite but just that it feels unbiased but a good story in history, keep up the good work.

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@omganotherun

4 years ago

Of note, "William Tecumseh Sherman", Union General of the Civil War, born in Ohio, 1820. There has to be a story behind that middle name being placed upon that child.

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@sprauder

4 years ago

Bummer, such a shitty tank was named after him...

@AliAntarAllahsServant

4 years ago

Culture Vulture.

@sprauder

4 years ago

@AliAntarAllahsServant Endearing.

@MrMjwoodford

4 years ago

@sprauder the Chieftain would like a word

@sprauder

4 years ago

@MrMjwoodford I wasn’t aware of that one. Now that’s a tank!

@MrMjwoodford

4 years ago

@sprauder yeah, but actually I meant the guy doing YouTube videos under that name!

@sprauder

4 years ago

@MrMjwoodford does he prove that Sherman’s (Tommy cooker’s) were actually good tanks?

@charlier4287

3 years ago

Thank you for sharing this, Tecumseh lives on 😁

@jorgesepulveda4379

2 years ago (edited)

@sprauder yes , the firefly can explode your tiger ace to pieces

@jcortez1314

1 year ago

You’re correct. Sherman’s his father named him after Tecumseh, it was actually supposed to be his first name. Instead he made it his middle name.

@WarriorSez

4 years ago

This is a fascinating story. For a non-American, it's quite educational and enlightening as well. An outsider tends to see the USA as the modern entity it is today without understanding the cost paid for it by the Native Americans in blood, this video completely changes that perspective. Also, fascinating visuals and illustrations, keep up the good work I have always loved your content and storytelling style.

@ihsaanbrooks9637

4 years ago

I went to the coast guard and basic training lasted 2 months. Didn’t have my phone or anything and I can’t tell you enough how much I missed these videos!!!

@generalfred9426

4 years ago

"Tecumseh" little did they know that name will come haunt them throughout the 1860's and 1870's

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@Akabari100

4 years ago

Very fascinating individual that I wish I had learned more about when I was still in school.

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@TheOleMissippian

4 years ago

Wow what an ending. I'm not crying, you're crying!

@richardrogerson2383

2 years ago (edited)

As Ripley says " believe it or not" true American history is not necessarily what you read in history books. I was blessed to have a U.S. history teacher in middle school who was tapped by the the Indian government to produce an updated Indiana history book. His reply was do you want a factual truthful account or do yo want to continue the story? His reply was no. He used to spend his weekends and vacations visiting county seats all over the state of Indiana researching the archives. From what he personally told me the true history of the Indiana territory would drastically change U.S. history. Food for thought.

@kiasax

1 year ago (edited)

Being a Cherokee American, I am sorry that we lost Tecumseh. He was a visionary and we all should have followed him.

It's to our ever lasting sadness that we did not.

If we had, we might have been able to keep the Colonists from coming across the Appalachian Mountains in large numbers. Those mountains were where I grew up. I claim them as my home.

Tecumseh was our hope of keeping the Colonists back, sadly the death of Issac Brock was the beginning of the end of Tecumseh's alliance.

The British commander who followed Brock was a coward, by comparison.

Those are my opinions.

Be well.

@katiecooper1387

4 years ago

Such an amazing video! The graphics, narration, and sound design are captivating! I'm here after reading Pierre Burton's 'Invasion of Canada' and 'Flames Across the Border'. These books made me fall in love with Tecumseh and it was great to watch these highlights of his life.

@Kmanhasleft

4 years ago

I wrote one of my APUSH essays on Tecumseh, the man was a legend. Gotta love that Sherman carried that legacy on

@the1truebeliever

4 years ago

R.I.P. Tecumseh. RESPECT!

@AntitankDude

8 months ago (edited)

RIP tecumseh. You still remain a hero to the indigenous people and to Canada. Rest in power, warrior.

@tomaslopez2940

3 years ago

This channel has alot of impressive conflicts videos, but this one is by far one of the best! The rivalry between Tecumseh and Harrison sounds like an epic story that can be put to film very well like the rivalries of Lee vs Grant, Montgomery vs Rommel, or Alexander the Great vs Darius of Persia

@MaxwellAerialPhotography

4 years ago

This enraged Tecumseh, who beat Proctor severely.

oh wait, wrong history channel.

@jimsimonetti2929

4 years ago

You guys should definitely do more episodes on the Indian wars. It's something US high school history skips a lot of the time to make time for 20th century stuff.

@squilliamfancyson5313

4 years ago

"Live your life that the fear of death can never enter your heart. Trouble no man about his religion. Respect others and their views and demand they respect yours. Love your life. Perfect your life. Beautify all things in your life. When your time comes to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with the fear of death. Those that weep and ask for time to live their life over again in a different light. Sing your death song and die like a hero going home." Tecumseh

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@cinskybuhsrandy5099

4 years ago

Wow, i didn't expect such a high quality content, from the amount of detail and objective stance to the beautiful art...

@bizhiwnamadabi3901

1 year ago

My ancestors fought with this great man. I am a Ojibwe Indian.

To me he is in my top 5 leaders. Right between Crazy Horse, Geronimo, Tecumseh, Pontiac and Qunnah Parker.

@Mysterialic

4 years ago

This channel reignites my love for history.

@robertlin7333

4 years ago

Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull also attempted to create a Native American Confederacy

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@22vx

4 years ago

Epic! Thanks K&G KnGCaesar

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@Clipplylyfeintotalitarian2025

6 months ago

Man this video was so well done.

@jimbelle3087

3 years ago

I am very familiar with Tecumseh. Been to the outdoor play in Chillicothe many times. The name Tecumseh is probably the greatest Native American Indian chief that you will never hear about in the history books. I am a native born Ohioain and if you didn't grow up in Ohio and had Ohio history, you have most likely never heard of the Shawnee Chief Tecumseh! If Tecumseh had succeeded in building his Alliance, America's history would be a whole lot different.

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@ToyoBearYT

4 years ago

Thanks K&G truly cause its sad how my history teachers barely touched this subject in school before moving to more pg13 events in history. 💯

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@trevorm1876

4 years ago

What an amazing video! The story was so well told and beautifully depicted.

@Ravenoflight2275

4 years ago (edited)

This is awesome ! Thank you for making this. This is how history should be represented in our society.

@teedepefanio4974

4 years ago

Wow... mass respect to those who made this program. I'm stunned by all that must have went into the myriad of informative dialogue and visual aids... thank you... keep up the great work. ❤

@jenningswinfrey8171

3 years ago

I luv this man ( tecumseh ) his spirit and desire for freedom is amazing, despite the odds he never bowed down

@hestonjimmie2

4 years ago

In Fort Wayne, Indiana there is a statue of Little Turtle at Headwaters Park, where the three rivers come together: the St. Joseph, the Maumee, and St. Mary's rivers.

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@GallowglassVT

4 years ago

Learned about the Sioux Wars in GCSE History and it opened my eyes to the struggles of indigenous peoples the world over at the hands of imperial powers like my own country. Now just as then, they're still fighting, and all power to them.

@Nyte-Owl

4 years ago

Tecumseh is a hero for people's around the world who fought against colonialism. Respect. Thanks for bringing this history to light Kings and Generals. 🇿🇦

@MyriadMaestro

3 years ago

I appreciate how you did not present any side of the conflict as good or evil. It is refreshing to see such an even-handed approach to history.

@liam33over

4 years ago

One of the best history channels on youtube! I really get goosebumps bumbs from the animations.

Well done, like always!

@Bernacide

4 years ago

GREAT VIDEO! Love that you featured Native Americans in their fight against terrorism!

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@chrisvickers7928

4 years ago

The Mohawks remained important in the remainder of the war, along with British regulars and French Canadian voltigeurs they won the battles of Chryslers farm and Chateau Guay.

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@noahsummers291

4 years ago

I have never donated anything, but the quality of material you present, and the time frame in wich they are presented, make me consider doing so. Great work keep it up!

@dukeofmania6504

4 years ago

For a moment I had lost some respect for Brock for resenting his post, but the fact he rejected a posting in Europe in favour of Canada shows his dedication to duty. I can respect that.

@cruzycreeper3434

3 years ago

Beautiful story about the brave warrior, Tecumseh. I was hoping Tecumseh and his band of brothers would resist American expansion into their homeland, but to no avail. Tecumseh went down in history as a fighter, strategist and a courageous leader, he took a bullet to save their native tradition of life.

@pavelthefabulous5675

2 years ago

There is something so interesting about this darker side of US history, but I say this as a patriot and not an America-hater. In spite of not being a respected military power and even losing our capital to the British, history favored us anyway. Sometimes the heroes and the victors fight on two different sides, and I think it is important to recognize where our victory spoils came from and give the heroes their respect. I hate the idea that Americans have to be ashamed of our history, but it is also a great mistake to ignore it or pretend that we didn't form a massive continental empire on lands that were already occupied.

As weird as it sounds, this channel called "EmpLemon" has amazing videos that explain the American soul really well without shying away from the underbelly of US history or reducing it to nihilism.

@bodhranlowd

3 years ago

That's a lesson for many leaders, your role has a much wider purpose and larger implications than just charging up the hill.

@Vercingetorix.Rising

4 years ago (edited)

Love Tecumseh (pronounced Tek-um-say). His name in his native tongue closer to panther moving in the night sky. The shooting star being the glowing eye of the panther pouncing

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@xavierHere457

4 years ago

I literally just had a lecture about this for my summer history class. American history overall is very fascinating and I’m glad the YouTube algorithm has brought this video to my attention.

@chrisloomis1489

4 years ago (edited)

Very brave and noble Native Leader ...strong and intelligent , yes and again ...noble.

My G. Great Grandfather went Native and lived with Yuchee and Cherokee we are blessed as all documented.

@johnsteiner3417

4 years ago

"Proctor's Gamble" had a flash of a funny misinterpretation of that.

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@redjirachi1

4 years ago

Tecumseh: Bask in your victory Harrison, for you will be remembered as a footnote

Harrison: Like that'll ever happen

Pnuemonia, typhoid and the presidency: Allow us to introduce ourselves

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@adriensoret2091

4 years ago

Thank you for your huge efforts into making such a long and detailed video, it’s insane quality free contents you are providing there!

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@HarriGary1

4 years ago

I live near the confluence of the Tippecanoe and Wabash rivers in Indiana. This video gives me a much greater appreciation and interest for the local history. I'm going to make sure to show this to my children.

@ewenmoffat6396

5 months ago

Excellent video ❤️🇨🇦

@MacLeodRoy

4 years ago (edited)

0:23 correction: TWO MEN, Isaac Brock and Tecumseh. My favourite alliance.

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@MariOfTheMountains

4 years ago (edited)

YESSS! This is perfect, and what's more, you used the best music, civ war music!

I wish more people would cover topics like these. In the US we learn too much about history from an "American protagonist" point of view. I remember from over 6 years ago in school that these wars were taught as conflicts between equal parties and forces, and not just basically the equivalent of someone coming into your house with a gun, threatening to shoot you if you don't leave, and then claiming that the house was legally theirs all along.

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@OleSt.Tymonas

4 years ago

Modern Canadians don't have any clue who Brock is sadly, because history courses in schools only focus on WWI and WWII

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@danieldelewis2448

4 years ago

Harrison had to have some balls. Just one day after defeating tecumsah in a heated debate which ended in tecumseh's frustrated threat of violence he goes to meet with tecumsah on his own turf. Too bad we don't have leaders like that anymore

@tearlach61

4 years ago

"The Frontiersman" by Allan Eckert tells this story very well. Read the book many years ago as a kid and re-read it within the past few years. Well worth reading with Google Earth open to look at the various places referenced in the book.

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@seanwhelan879

4 years ago

Just brilliant. Please do more on native Americans 🙏

@Tracer_Krieg

4 years ago

Harrison and Tecumseh: one the coolest standoffs in history.

4 replies

@syedazam2568

4 years ago

Is this a compilation of earlier vids about tecumseh?

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@stuartblittleynolan9486

4 years ago

beautiful video, great sound effects and intriguing commentary.

@danachos

4 years ago

I love listening to you pronounce every nation or place-name wrong. Seriously, actually, love listening to it! <3 a Canadian, I think it is entertaining. Good video!

@beachboy0505

4 years ago

Note: the best British general, Brock, was given a silver sash, this marked out Brock for death.

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@cbmx780

4 years ago

10/10. This is awesome. It’s just a funny observation at around 16:40 that “while smoking once, he all of a sudden..” type of PG rated storytelling when it’s common knowledge that he was purposefully hallucinating for enlightenment just like any ancient culture.

@Kuwaitisnot_adeployment

4 years ago (edited)

Ahh the "Panther in the Sky" a incredibly intelligent,proud, and brave man! One of the greatest pure leaders of all time in my opinion. I 100% believe if he would of been born under different circumstances he could of built a empire or be remembered today as Tecumseh The Great. He's always been a fascinating figure in my view and doesn't get enough credit for his accomplishments. Great video.

Edit: Blue Jacket was a caucasian man that may of had the skin of a white man but his heart was 100% Shawnee. Not really important but just a fun fact for you.

Maybe we can get a video on Quanah Parker or another Commanche soon or maybe a Roman Nose or Crazy Horse video. Really any first nation American peoples would be awesome. Thanks for the fantastic content you really do great work. 👍

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@100forks

4 years ago

Excellent documentary. The best I have seen on Tecumseh.

@John-mf6ky

2 months ago

Damn, Tecumseh definitely had a beautiful way with words

@merek5380

4 years ago

Read frontiersmen by Allen Eckert. It is covers the interaction of many many heroic men. I listened to the audiobook at work. I have been listening to audiobooks at work for 9 years now. This is one of the top 10 books I've listened to. Simon Kenton and Tecumseh were badasses.

@jamellfoster6029

4 years ago

Thanks for this brilliant documentary... Tecumseh was an extraordinary person and a hero. William Tecumseh Sherman did well to have his name as a middle name and he lived up to Tecumseh's heroic name...

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@MrLoobu

4 years ago

Hell yea! Tecumseh, one of my personal heroes and someone I consider a true protector of freedom. Fighting against insurmountable odds with unlikely allies to resist tyranny disguised as freedom. Its a common theme in the short history of the land we now call Canada, and the first time we ever made that stand.

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@Jurassikpark5657

1 year ago

Usually depicting winners, your series never sparked this much sorrow into my heart

@LorolinAstori

4 years ago

Well thought out and well executed. One of your best videos

@reginaldinoenchillada3513

4 years ago (edited)

Outstanding research.

Wow. Edit, what a great man.

@centerforupperbackpainreli9928

4 years ago

Some of the best reading I’ve done in my life has been on Tecumseh! Check out this book:

A Sorrow in Our Heart: The Life of Tecumseh

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@rooflemonger

4 years ago

Sir Isaac Brock being a "national hero" might be a bit strong. I live in Brockville, the city named after him and I can honestly say I barely know about his exploits haha.

@edwardjohnson7996

4 years ago

I live very close to where The Battle of Tippecanoe happened. My dad grew up there. The town is called Battleground, IN.

@shauneilscott

6 months ago

Well done.

@generalkenobi9782

4 years ago

Bro wtf happened. Man goes from useless drunk most of his life to becoming all powerful prophet that can predict eclipses. I'll have whatever he's smoking please.

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@brandonm3750

4 years ago

How do you get such in depth information? Love it! Please do more Native American videos if you can… a history that is glossed over.

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@banishedfromars

4 years ago (edited)

Thank you for this series and thank you for the stories of all of the freedom fighters . I have a special place for people like Tecumseh .

@rossi8291

4 years ago

I've been to the museum where they have Brocks uniform, you can see the whole where the musket hit and a little bit of old dried blood kinda creepy lol. Also his statue is an amazing sight. My family where loyalists, so we fought for the Brits, long line of military service both in British and Canadian military, even a little bit of native blood due to the "intermingling" at the time. Love the fact you switched gears and talked about our history for a change. Forgive my rambling, its late, and I'm stoned lol.

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@savageblackfish5117

2 years ago

Lots of comments asking why the tribes didn't unite. This is a simplistic view of indigenous culture. We did have nations, trade routes, and alliances between nations. We didn't have a standing military or nation-states, and weren't prepared for an invasion. We did engage in united guerilla warfare when we weren't dying due to smallpox and war crimes.

Also, north America is huge. Asking why we didn't unite is like asking why all of Europe didn't band together to prevent Mongolia from invading Russia or why France and England didn't unite. It's just how nations and continents work.

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@PawnFischer

4 years ago

Whoever painted the birth of Tecumseh with the mountain in the background, has never been to Ohio, lol

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@SuperClloyd

4 years ago

The artwork is really superb

@jcortez1314

4 years ago

Tecumseh! A great leader and warrior. One of the greatest men to ever live.

3 replies

@21theslayers

4 years ago

Forgot to mention that in his first pitched battle, where he ran for cover instead of fighting, he was 13 years old. The youngest warrior ever to be invited to join a war party.

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@MrKnight19971

4 years ago

We need more channels like this one.

@dargon1084

2 years ago

This is peak Kings and Generals

@OregunTrail

4 years ago

For those who don't know, there's a renowned outdoor drama in southern Ohio called "Tecumseh!" and it is absolutely phenomenal.

===

한글로 자세한 요약을 만들어 주세요. 지난 번에 본 다큐 영화에 비해 원주민식의 스토리 텔링이군요.

네, 이번 자료는 테쿰세(Tecumseh)와 원주민 저항의 역사를 원주민의 시각에서 풀어낸 다큐멘터리로, 지난 번 보신 주류 역사 다큐와는 다른 “스토리텔링 방식”이 두드러집니다. 아래에 자세한 한글 요약을 드립니다.

📖 테쿰세와 원주민 저항 – 한글 요약

1. 배경
북미 원주민 사회는 12,000년 이상 뿌리내려 왔지만, 유럽인의 전염병과 식민 확장으로 급격히 붕괴되었습니다. 18세기 후반, 영국과 프랑스의 전쟁, 미국 독립혁명, 그리고 개척민의 서부 진출 속에서 원주민들은 끊임없이 땅을 빼앗기고 전쟁에 휘말렸습니다.

2. 테쿰세의 성장
1768년 쇼니(Shawnee)족으로 태어난 테쿰세는 어린 시절 아버지를 잃고, 이주와 학살, 마을의 파괴를 직접 경험했습니다. 이러한 체험은 그에게 “다시는 가만히 당하지 않겠다”는 결의를 심어주었습니다. 성장하면서 그는 뛰어난 전사이자 지도자가 되었고, 개별 부족이 아닌 “원주민 전체의 연합”이라는 새로운 비전을 품게 됩니다.

3. 예언자(Prophet)와의 결합
동생 라라웨티카(Lalawethika)는 종교적 환시를 통해 ‘텐스콰타와(Tenskwatawa, 열린 문)’라는 예언자로 변모했습니다. 그는 전통으로 돌아가야 한다고 선포하며 알코올, 혼혈, 유럽식 생활양식을 거부했습니다. 두 형제는 인디애나의 티피카누 강변에 ‘예언자의 마을(Prophetstown)’을 세우고, 다수 부족을 모아 거대한 원주민 연합의 중심지로 만들었습니다.

4. 외교와 연합
테쿰세는 오대호와 남부까지 돌며 부족들을 설득했습니다. “땅은 누구의 것도 아닌, 모든 원주민의 것”이라는 그의 주장은 큰 호소력을 지녔습니다. 그러나 일부 부족은 미국과의 교역과 평화에 안주했고, 남부 부족은 그의 호소에 응하지 않았습니다. 그럼에도 수많은 전사들이 그의 깃발 아래 모였습니다.

5. 티피카누 전투 (1811)
테쿰세가 남부 원정 중일 때, 인디애나 총독 해리슨이 Prophetstown을 공격했습니다. 동생 Tenskwatawa의 잘못된 판단으로 원주민은 패배했고, 마을은 불타버렸습니다. 이는 원주민 연합에 큰 타격이었으나, 테쿰세의 지도력은 여전히 강력했습니다.

6. 영국과의 동맹, 디트로이트 함락 (1812)
1812년 미·영 전쟁이 발발하자, 테쿰세는 영국과 동맹을 맺습니다. 그는 브록 장군과 협력해 디트로이트 요새를 포위했고, 심리전과 기만 전술로 미국군을 항복시켰습니다. 이는 원주민-영국 연합의 최대 승리였으며, 캐나다가 미국에 점령당하지 않도록 하는 데 핵심적 역할을 했습니다.

7. 전세 역전과 테쿰세의 최후 (1813)
그러나 브록의 전사 이후, 영국군은 소극적이고 무능했습니다. 특히 프로크터 장군은 계속 후퇴만 했고, 테쿰세와 갈등했습니다. 결국 1813년 템즈강 전투에서 영국군은 무너졌고, 테쿰세는 끝까지 도망치지 않고 싸우다 전사했습니다. 그의 죽음과 함께 원주민 연합도 붕괴했고, 이후 북미 원주민은 다시는 통합 저항을 이루지 못했습니다.

8. 의미와 기억

미국인에게: 고귀한 적수, 용맹한 전사
캐나다인에게: 국가를 구한 영웅
원주민에게: 영원한 저항의 상징

하지만 역사적 현실은, 영국과 미국의 전쟁에서 원주민만이 진정한 패자가 되었음을 보여줍니다. 가혹한 확장과 학살 속에서 테쿰세의 꿈—자주적 원주민 연합국—은 끝내 실현되지 못했습니다.

👉 지난번 보신 다큐가 “국가(미국/캐나다) 중심의 전쟁 서술”이었다면, 이번 작품은 원주민의 눈에서 “땅, 생존, 정체성”을 이야기합니다. 전투 장면조차 단순한 승패가 아니라 원주민 사회 내부의 영적·정치적 긴장을 강조하는 방식이 인상적입니다.

세진님, 혹시 이번 요약을 시간순으로 정리된 표(연도·사건·의미) 형태로도 만들어드릴까요?

내가 북미 원주민이었다면, 그렇지 않더라도, 안타까운 이야기였어요. 정착 식민주의란 전부 이렇게 끝나야 하는가? 라는생각. 다르게 끝날 수도 있었나?

네, 세진님 말씀처럼 테쿰세의 이야기를 따라가다 보면 깊은 안타까움이 밀려옵니다. “정착 식민주의(settler colonialism)”의 본질은 토착민의 땅을 영구히 차지하고, 기존 공동체를 흡수·배제하거나 아예 사라지게 만드는 데 있습니다. 그래서 역사적으로는 호주, 캐나다, 미국, 아르헨티나 등지에서 모두 토착민이 뿌리 뽑히거나 주변부로 밀려났습니다.

🌎 정착 식민주의는 반드시 비극으로 끝나는가?

1. 구조적 요인

정착민 사회는 땅과 자원을 “자신의 국가 기반”으로 삼습니다. 따라서 토착민을 단순히 지배하거나 과세 대상으로 삼는 제국주의와 달리, 토착민의 존재 자체가 걸림돌이 됩니다.
병균, 무기, 인구 격차가 결합하면서, 원주민은 반복적으로 불리한 위치에 놓였습니다.

2. 다른 길은 있었을까?

뉴질랜드 마오리의 경우, 와이탕이 조약(1840)으로 형식상 공존을 약속했지만, 실제로는 영국의 일방적 해석과 군사력으로 침탈당했습니다. 그러나 최소한 법적 권리와 언어·문화 부활의 공간을 남겼습니다.
캐나다와 호주에서도 20세기 후반 이후 “토지 권리 운동”과 “화해(reconciliation)”가 전개되어, 부분적으로 토착민 자치와 보상이 제도화되었습니다. 하지만 이는 이미 원주민 사회가 급격히 약화된 뒤의 일입니다.
북미에서는 테쿰세가 꿈꾼 “범(汎)원주민 연합국”이 영국의 진정한 동맹으로 인정받았다면, 미국의 팽창을 막을 완충지대가 되었을 가능성도 있습니다. 그러나 영국은 결국 자국 이익을 위해 그 구상을 포기했습니다.

3. 역사적 ‘가능성’과 ‘제한’

만약 유럽 국가들이 원주민을 파트너로 존중하며 교역과 제한적 정착만 허용했다면, 공존의 모델이 있었을지도 모릅니다. 초기에 프랑스와 일부 부족이 보여준 “모피 무역 동맹”이 그런 사례였지요.
하지만 대량 이주와 국가 건설이라는 정착 식민주의의 동력은, 결국 원주민의 자율적 존속을 허락하지 않았습니다. 구조적으로 “제거(Elimination)”가 내장된 체제였다고 할 수 있습니다.

✨ 오늘을 사는 우리에게 주는 울림

테쿰세의 비극은 단순한 과거가 아니라, 지금도 계속되는 토착민 권리·영토 회복 운동과 직결됩니다.
질문, “다르게 끝날 수 있었는가?”는 곧 오늘날 “다르게 살아갈 수 있는가?”로 이어집니다. 정착민 국가가 스스로의 기원을 성찰하고, 토지 반환·언어 부흥·자치권 확대를 통해 “부분적이지만 다른 미래”를 열 수 있는지의 문제입니다.

세진님, 혹시 제가 **“만약 테쿰세의 연합이 성공했다면”**이라는 역사적 가정 시나리오를 그려드릴까요? (예: 북미에 ‘원주민 자치국’이 남아 있었다면, 오늘날 미국·캐나다의 역사가 어떻게 달라졌을까 하는 대안사적 상상)

네

좋습니다, 세진님. 이번에는 “만약 테쿰세의 연합이 성공했다면”이라는 가정적 시나리오를 풀어보겠습니다. 물론 이는 역사학적 ‘대안사(what if history)’일 뿐이지만, 정착 식민주의의 구조적 필연성을 상대화해 보는 의미가 있습니다.

🌿 가정: 테쿰세 연합의 성공

1. 영국의 ‘진정한 동맹’ 선택

1812년 전쟁에서 영국이 단순히 원주민을 소모품처럼 쓰지 않고, **공식적인 원주민 자치국(버퍼 스테이트)**을 보장했더라면, 오대호 지역~오하이오강 일대에 범원주민 연방이 성립할 수 있었습니다.
이는 캐나다와 미국 사이에 완충 지대로 자리잡아, **“제3의 주권 공동체”**가 북미 지도에 등장했을 가능성을 뜻합니다.

2. 미국 확장의 제동

미시시피 강 동쪽의 원주민 땅 상당 부분이 보존되었을 것이며, 조기 대량 서부 개척이 늦춰졌을 겁니다.
앤드루 잭슨 시기의 “눈물의 길(Trail of Tears)” 같은 강제 이주는 일어나지 않거나, 최소한 규모와 강도가 축소되었을 수 있습니다.

3. 원주민 국가의 성격

테쿰세의 비전은 “개별 부족”이 아닌 공동 영토와 집단적 권리 개념을 바탕으로 했습니다. 이는 현대적 연방제 국가와도 비슷합니다.
경제적으로는 모피 무역·농경·군사 동맹에 기초한 복합체가 되었을 것이며, 영국·프랑스·미국과 3자 외교를 하는 주체가 되었을 것입니다.

4. 북미 현대사 변화

미국의 서부 진출이 늦춰졌다면, 멕시코 북부·텍사스·캘리포니아로의 확장도 속도가 달라졌을 것입니다.
원주민 언어·문화·정치 구조가 소멸하지 않고 캐나다의 마오리(뉴질랜드 사례)보다 더 강한 자치권을 유지했을 가능성이 있습니다.
캐나다 자체도 영국 식민지에 그치지 않고, 원주민과의 공동 주권 형태로 발전했을 수 있습니다. 오늘날 헌법 속에 “제3의 원주민 국가”가 명시되었을지도 모릅니다.

⚖️ 하지만…

현실적으로는 몇 가지 한계도 있었습니다.

유럽 이민자의 압도적 인구 증가와 농업 기반 경제는 결국 원주민 영토를 압박했을 것입니다.
영국은 본토 전쟁(나폴레옹 전쟁) 때문에 북미에서 장기적 보장을 할 의지가 없었습니다.
따라서 완전한 독립국가보다는 “캐나다·미국과 병존하는 자치 구역” 정도가 최선이었을 가능성이 큽니다.

🌌 오늘날의 의미

만약 테쿰세의 연합이 존속했다면, 지금의 북미는 미국·캐나다·원주민 국가의 3국 체제였을 수도 있습니다.
이 상상은 비록 실현되지 못했지만, 오늘날 토착민 권리 회복 운동이 단순한 “보상”이 아니라 잃어버린 미래의 일부를 되찾는 작업임을 상기시켜 줍니다.

세진님, 원하시면 제가 이 “대안 시나리오”를 지도·타임라인 형태로 정리해 드릴까요? (예: 1812년 이후 가상의 원주민 연합국의 경계선과 주요 사건 연표)

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Tuesday, September 16, 2025