Historiography Essay on the First Creek War



Historiography Essay on the First Creek War

Introduction

In early sixteenth century some white explorers who visited the territory which now is known as the southeastern United States came across the settlements of the tribes of native Indians who had been living there for centuries. Many tribes lived there who were Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw and the Creeks. When these white explorers started settling in the areas that were occupied by these native Indians it caused a lot of conflict, contention and then the forced removal of these tribes from their homelands.

In the nineteenth century white people started moving in the region to make settlements and colonies. The Creeks saw this as a threat to themselves and their culture and they became very hostile towards this move. The then President of United States of America George Washington made new Indian policies and appointed government agents to urge the Indians to adopt the ways of the whites. As a friendly gesture the agents were suppose to train the Indians in how to do farming, raise cotton, spin, weave, and become master in the skills of black smithing or carpentry. Gaining the trust was of importance for the government and the policy did the trick. The Indians allowed the whites to maintain horse paths through their territory which later became the major settlement areas in Indian territory.

As the settlements increased with more white settlers coming in, the Creeks began to split and segregate in to two portions. One who supported the whites and the others that were highly against the whites because they were seen as encroaching their lands, known as the traditionalists. The Shawnee Indian leader named as Tecumseh was also against the white encroachment and so he set out to other Indian tribes to unite them in the fight against the whites. Most of the upper Creeks were with him but the lower Creeks that were in comparison more used to whites were also inclined towards peace.

In the discussion section below I will present my analysis along with the summaries of the various research articles and books that have been written over the years on the topic of Creek wars of 1813 to 1814.

Discussion

Before starting the main discussion it is important to note what were the reasons that actually led to the First Creek War.

The Creek War that took place in 1813 and 1814 actually had its roots from an event that took place in the spring of 1812. It all started when a party of Creek warriors who were returning from Canada to visit the British attacked a small settlement of white people. These Creek warriors killed several people and took a hostage to their Creek country. When United States government took notice of this event it insisted that the perpetrators be caught and executed for their crimes. The Creek council agreed to the demands and the warriors were executed. This move sparked a revolt by the Red Sticks, the ...