Seneca Indians: Allies And Enemies Essay -- essays research papers

Seneca Indians Allies and EnemiesSeneca are among the most respected and feared. The Seneca areculturally similar to their Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, an mohawk confederates.The five tribes were known as the Five Nations or the League of Five Nations.Sometime between 1715 and 1722 the Tuscaroras from North Carolina joined theconfederacy and changed the name to the Six Nations.In their relations with white settlers the Seneca played the role of anindependent power and were this way from the very start. During the colonialperiod they held the balance of power between the French and English.Particulary nearly the Canadian border. The Seneca opposed the extension ofFrench settlement southwards from Canada, and were responsible for preventionthe English colonies from being forced on the west by the French.During the American Revolution the Seneca sided with the British.SOCIETYEach town in the tribe contained several long, bark covered communalhouses that had both tribal and political sig nificance. Inside individually houseseveral families lived in semi-private rooms or areas and the center areas wereused as social and political meeting places. They lived in scattered villagesthat were organized by a system of matrilineal clans.A calendar cycle of ceremonies reflected their agricultural, hunting,and gathering. The men hunted, cleared fields, traded and made war. The womangathered various wild plant foods and tended gardens.They had a great agricultural economy. Their man crop was clavus, butthey also grew pumpkins, beans, tobacco, maize, squash and later on they greworchard fruits like apples and peaches.Crafts were also made. Fine pottery, splint baskets, mats of corn huskand used wampum as a medium of exchange.FAMOUS TRIBE MEMBERSThere were many famous Indians from the Seneca tribe.Ely S. Parker- His Indian ... ...termined the outcome and the ways of our country. refinement PAGEThe Seneca Indians were a great tribe. Through themselves and fiveother tribes they formed the Six Nations. The Six Nations were an almostindomitable clan. They participated in the Revolutionary War and in thecolonial wars. The tried to keep the French from coming down from Canada intothe now United States.The Seneca had a great agricultural and hunting economy. The men andwomen each had unique(predicate) jobs they were to do in order to keep things running.The Seneca was the tribe that was the most intensely studied by thewhite people. It is also believed that their democratic ways were an influenceon the writers of the United States Constitution.Many of the famous Indians came from the Seneca tribe. Some were RedJacket, Ely S. Parker and Cornplanter. There were also many others from theirleague tribes, the Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk, and later joiners theTuscarora.