Political Change, Antebellum / Slavery: Tecumseh

Download Political Change, Antebellum / Slavery Word Document

Similar content addressed in SOLs: VS.1a-i; USI.1a-h; USI.8a; USI.8c

During the 1800s, Native Americans experienced significant changes in their ways of life. Government policy forced Native Americans to leave their homes, often sending them westward to reservations. Those who did not leave were either imprisoned or forced to adapt to the European-American culture. In the face of these policies, Native Americans resisted the forced changes in a number of ways. While some took the Government to court to debate whether or not the changes were legal, others took up more drastic means to assert their rights.

  • Life of Tecumseh, and of his brother the Prophet; with a historical sketch of the Shawanoe IndiansOne leader of the Native American was Tecumseh. A member of the Shawneeh tribe, Tecumseh defended Native American rights to land by organizing various tribes of Native Americans against the U.S. Government in the Ohio Valley and Indiana territories. With the aid of his brother, a prophet named Tenskwatawa, Tecumseh led a series of attacks against the United States during the War of 1812. Though his rebellion was defeated, Tecumseh’s War represented the willingness and desire of Native Americans to unite across tribal lines to defend their land, rights, and way of life in the face of changing times.
  • Ceremonial pipe, attributed to TecumsehSmoking pipes was an important part of Native American culture. Often at important meetings, leaders would pass pipes, like this one, around to one another as a symbol of unity.
  • Death of Tecumseh. Battle of the Thomas, Oct. 5th, 1813. Lithograph by N. Currier, 1847, after J. L. McGeeThis drawing sensationalizes the death of Tecumseh.
  • Battle of the Thames and the death of Tecumseh, by the Kentucky mounted volunteers led by Colonel Richard M. Johnson, 5th Oct. 1813Tecumseh made an alliance with the British during the War of 1812 in a similar fashion to what Joseph Brant did during the Revolutionary War. Shown here is a battle between a local militia and the British, with whom Tecumseh had sided.
  • The fall of Washington - or Maddy in full flightAs Tecumseh and his men led attacks on the Western frontier during the War, the British launched a series of battles along the Atlantic coast. They burned the city of Washington, DC in August 1814.