Iroquois

=**The Iroquois: A Perspective on American History**=

by Ms. Brooks (September 30, 2009)


The Iroquois are a Native American group. Pre-1492, they lived in the region now called New York state in the U.S. and Ontario in Canada, which is near Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Geographical features that would have limited this group’s ability to move include: the Appalachian Mountains. Pre-1492, this group probably interacted with its neighbors, especially the Huron, the Oneida, and the Mohawk. Eventually, the Iroquois would shape American history in the following ways: by fighting with the British against the French in the French and Indian War and by splitting to help both the British and Americans in the American Revolution.
 * Introduction:**

The Iroquois believed in a Great Spirit, or Creator, who created the earth and humans, as well as other spirits. Besides the Great Spirit, the Iroquois believed in the god Thunderer and the Three Sisters, the spirits of Maize, Beans, and Squash. Evil Spirit was the evil god responsible for sickness and bad luck. The Iroquois believed they could communicate with the gods by burning tobacco, which carried their prayers to the sky. Their beliefs didn’t focus on human sin, but on evil spirits that caused misfortune. The Iroquois believed that when a person died, the person’s soul had to go on a journey in which they were faced with a series of tests until they ended in the land of the dead in the sky world.
 * Religion (Worldview):**

At the time of contact with Europeans in the 1600s, the Iroquois probably numbered about 12,000. Today, the numbers of Iroquois are estimated to be between 30,000-80,000, depending on the source.
 * Population in the United States:**


 * HISTORY:**

In 1450, the Iroquois government – the Iroquois League – was established. This was a peace-making government established between six nations of people – the Seneca, the Cayuga, the Onandaga, the Oneida, the Mohawk, and the Tuscarora.
 * 1492: Columbus’ Arrival in the Americas**

In about 1535, the Iroquois engaged in significant battles with other nations and were pushed south.
 * 1521: Cortes Encounters the Aztecs in Mexico**

In the 1600s, the Iroquois were trying to control the fur trade with the French and were at the height of their power. They battled the French and the Hurons in the Beaver Wars, and also battled the English.
 * 1607: English Colonists Arrive at Jamestown**

In 1664, the Iroquois signed a peace treaty with France; France broke the treaty and attacked the Iroquois in 1666. In 1677, the Iroquois formed an alliance with the English, then later allied with the English against the French in the French and Indian Wars (1701 and on) The Iroquois bought guns from the Dutch. Besides battling France, they battled the disease of smallpox.
 * 1687: English Colonies Expand**

In 1744, after battles with the English over land rights, the Iroquois sold Virginia to the English colonists. In 1763, the British government made the Royal Proclamation of 1763, which forbade white settlement beyond the Appalachian mountains – however, the settlers ignored that. In 1776, the Iroquois split their loyalties – some sided with the British in the American Revolution and some sided with the Americans. It’s possible that the Constitution writers of 1787 were influenced by Iroquoian government.
 * 1776-1787: American Revolution; U.S. Constitution**

In 1779, American general George Washington ordered an attack against the Iroquois to “destroy” British-Indian alliance. In 1800, the Iroquois nation moved to Canada and northern New York.
 * 1802: Tlingit Battle the Russians at Sitka**

In 1847, European settlers began to move into Iroquoian territory and called it Ontario.
 * 1839: The Amistad; the Trail of Tears**

The Iroquois continue to keep a cultural government of the six nations with fifty chiefs.
 * 2009: Today**



“Iroquois”. Accessed September 30, 2009. [].
 * Works Cited:**