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Pontiac's Rebellion, also known as Pontiac's Conspiracy or Pontiac’s Uprising, was a revolt, beginning in 1763, by Native Americans against British rule. It is named after its most famous participant, the Ottawa leader Pontiac.
Origins
After the French and Indian War, Native Americans who had been allies of the defeated French found themselves increasingly dissatisfied with the attitudes and policies of the victorious British. In essence, while the French had treated certain Indian tribes as allies, the British approach was to treat them as subjects.
The architect of the new Indian policy, British General Jeffrey Amherst, decided to cut back on the gifts and provisions customarily distributed to the Indians, which he considered to be “bribes.” Amherst also outlawed the sale of alcohol to Indians, which created much resentment. Additionally, the French had made gunpowder and ammunition readily available, which were needed by the Indians to hunt to provide food for their families and skins for trade. However, Amherst did not trust his former Indian adversaries, and restricted the distribution of gunpowder and ammunition. Pontiac and other Indian leaders were certain that the British intended to enslave or destroy them.
At the same time, a religious awakening was sweeping through Indian settlements in the Ohio Country and Great Lakes region. At the center of this phenomenon was Neolin, called the Delaware Prophet, who called upon Indians to shun the trade goods, alcohol, and weapons of the whites. Merging elements from Christianity into his traditional religious beliefs, Neolin told his followers that the Master of Life was unhappy with the way that the Indians had been living, and that changes needed to be made. It was a powerful message for people who had fallen on hard times.
The “Rebellion”
The rebellion began at Fort Detroit under the leadership of Pontiac, and quickly spread to other British forts in the region. Eight forts fell to Indian attackers; others, including Fort Detroit and Fort Pitt, were unsuccessfully besieged. While it is tempting to conclude that this uprising was coordinated as part of a grand operation, historian Gregory Dowd argues that there is no reliable evidence of this. Likewise, although it was widely assumed at the time that Frenchmen were involved in the “conspiracy,” this is a matter of speculation as well. Rather than the product of a master plan, it is possible that Pontiac’s Rebellion evolved spontaneously, as Pontiac’s actions at Detroit inspired other already discontented Indians to similarly take up arms against the British.
Siege of Fort Detroit
On April 27, 1763, Pontiac spoke at a council about 10 miles below Detroit. Using the words of Neolin to inspire his listeners, Pontiac convinced a number of Ottawas, Ojibwas, Potawatomis, and Hurons to join him in an attempt to seize Fort Detroit. On May 7, Pontiac entered the fort with about 300 men, armed with sawed-off muskets and other weapons hidden under blankets, determined to take the fort by surprise. However, the British commander had apparently been informed of Pontiac’s plan, and the garrison of about 120 men was armed and ready. Pontiac withdrew and, two days later, laid siege to the fort. A number of British soldiers and settlers in the area outside the fort were captured or killed. Eventually more than 800 Indian warriors joined the siege.
Late in July, British reinforcements arrived at Fort Detroit. On July 31, 1763, about 250 men attempted to make a surprise attack on Pontiac’s encampment. Pontiac was ready and waiting, and defeated the British at the Battle of Bloody Run. However, the situation at the fort remained a stalemate, and Pontiac’s influence among his followers began to wane. Groups of Indians began to abandon the siege, some of them making peace with the British before departing. On October 31, 1763, finally convinced that the French in Illinois would not come to his aid, Pontiac lifted the siege and removed to the Maumee River, where he continued to scheme against the British.
Siege of Fort Pitt
Other Forts
- Fort Sandusky (on the site of Sandusky, Ohio) was taken on May 16, 1763 by Wyandot Indians, using the same stratagem that had failed in Detroit. The Indians had gained entry to the fort under the pretense of holding a council, and then seized the commander and killed the fifteen-man garrison. A great number of British traders were put to death as well, and the fort was burned.
- Fort St. Joseph (on the site of the present Niles, Michigan) was captured by the same method on May 25, 1763. The commander was seized by Potawatomis, and most of the fifteen-man garrison was killed outright.
- The third fort to fall was Fort Miami (on the site of Fort Wayne, Indiana), on May 27, 1763. The commander was lured out of the fort by his Indian consort and shot dead by Miami Indians. The nine-man garrison surrendered after the fort was surrounded.
- Fort Ouiatanon (about 5 miles southwest of the present Lafayette, Indiana) was taken by Indians on June 1, 1763. Soldiers were lured outside for a council, and the entire twenty-man garrison was taken captive without bloodshed.
- Fort Michilimackinac (Mackinac), Michigan, was the largest fort taken by surprise. On June 4 1763, local Ojibwas had staged a kind of lacrosse game with visiting Sauks. The soldiers watched the game, as they had done on previous occassions. The ball was hit through the open gate of the fort, and the teams rushed in, only to be handed weapons previously smuggled into the fort by Indian women. About fifteen men of the 35 man garrison were killed outright; five more were later executed.
- Fort Presque Isle (on the site of Erie, Pennsylvania) was surrounded by about 250 Ottawas, Ojibwas, Wyandots, and Senecas on June 19, 1763. After holding out for two days, the garrison of approximately sixty men surrendered on the condition that they could return to Fort Pitt. Most were instead murdered after emerging from the fort.
Fort Niagara saw no action during the uprising.
The British Response
In 1764, British forces launched a two-pronged offensive. One went into the Ohio Country area and the other into the Great Lakes region. This offensive brought about the end of the war as the Native forces without resupply of ammunition had no way to fight on. The result was a treaty forcing natives to return all captives. Pontiac, failing to rally support from southern or western tribes, surrendered in 1766.
Aftermath
This war worsened Britain's financial health and resulted in the Proclamation of 1763, preventing the colonists from moving westward.
Further Reading
- Dowd, Gregory Evans. War Under Heaven: Pontiac, the Indian Nations, & the British Empire. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins, 2002.
- Parkman, Francis. The Conspiracy of Pontiac. 2 vols., Boston, 1851; 10th ed., 1896.
- Peckham, Howard H. Pontiac and the Indian Uprising. Originally published 1947, reprinted several times.
- White, Richard. The Middle Ground: Indians, Empires, and Republics in the Great Lakes Region, 1650-1815. Cambridge University Press, 1991.
External Links
de:Pontiac-Aufstand
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