Iroquois League United Nations

“The United States was the phoenix that arose out of the destruction of the Iroquois.” This statement may seem strange as the Iroquois League, or Iroquois Confederacy as it later became known in 1722 with the addition of the Tuscarora, was one the most dominate Indian presences in North America during the 17th and 18th centuries. It originally consisted of the Five Nations of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga and Seneca. The confederacy referred to themselves as the Haudenosaunee, or the People of the Longhouse with each tribe playing an important role in controlling and protecting Iroquois land. They were viewed as a warring people, for whom warfare served to ease grieving, gain captives, and provide young men opportunity for advancement …show more content…
One example of this middleman approach occurred in 1722, when then New York governor William Burnet asked the Iroquois to, “serve as brokers between the warring Abenakis and New Englanders” in exchange for a reward. This was not uncommon as the Iroquois League was seen as a power by both colonists and other Indian tribes, and so used its role to facilitate trade between western tribes and also alliances between those tribes. Still, this role transformed once again later in the 18th century when the Iroquois took a more active role in European Warfare. They began serving as raiders for the British during the French and Indian War, attacking French and French-Indian settlements as the Iroquois now relied upon British goods and thus tied them to the fortune of the …show more content…
During the early 18th century, the Iroquois had been decimated by constant warring, and therefore needed to turn to treaties with European powers to preserve its status. Yet, as time progressed, Iroquois power grew as it expanded its trade base and influence over other tribes that they then incorporated. The Iroquois often expected weaker nations to defer to them in matters of diplomacy this led to the integration of the “sixth nation” of the Tuscaroras in the Susquehanna Valley into the Longhouse of the Iroquois and with it the change from the Iroquois League to that of the Iroquois Confederacy. This adoption of other tribes, or props as they were known then, into its own nation represents a flexibly that was required to maintain power on the frontier as they were able to adapt to different situations and extend their influence ever outward. In addition, the Iroquois often sided with the powerful colonial as it extended its influence over tribes such as Forks Delaware and then sold the land to the colonists, as they had been enemies with the Pennsylvanians and so had to be defeated as they threatened the Covenant Chain. This change in interpretation of the Covenant Chain under Chief Canastego was skewed to favor the Iroquois’ European allies. This often led to a reinterpretation of Iroquois history and so was used to Canastego’s advantage when negotiating new terms