Tecumsehs Confederation

Tecumseh was born in March of 1768. His real name was Tecumtha, which meant "panther lying in wait," but to the white men he was called Tecumseh which stood for "shooting star." His father was a Shawnee war chief named Puckeshinwa who was an intelligent man that saw the advantage of keeping friendly relations with the Americans (Patriot 137). When Tecumseh was a young boy, his father was shot by a group of settlers that were in the Shawnee's land. When his father did not come home, Tecumseh went out in search of him. When he found his father dying from the wound and learned what had happened he was filled with rage and animosi

Tecumseh's childhood greatly influenced how he acted as an adult. He knew that the Americans had to be stopped but he did not want to fight them. When fighting was the only choice, he had a reputation for his mercy. He despised the torture of prisoners and other cruel actions done by both sides during warfare. He was an honest man, and was trusted by both the Americans and Indians (Dictionary 1125).

Tecumseh was very young at the time of his father's death, so he was raised by his Mother and his brothers and sisters. His mother taught him to hate the Americans and never let him forget that they had killed his father. His oldest brother Chiksika taught him to be a warrior, and his sister told him to have respect for his elders and to respect all people. A Shawnee chief by the name of Blackfish also adopted Tecumseh into his family, and acted as a father figure. Blackfish saw the Americans as a threat and urged that they had to be stopped. Each of these peoples instilled in him different characteristics which played a large role in the rest of his life (Blodgett). When he was still young he wanted to stop the settlers from further moving into the Indians land, so himself and a group of Shawnee's made the Ohio River so hazardous that the traffic on the river almost completely stopped (Patriot 142).

Tecumseh's Confederation would've succeeded if it were not for the overwhelming problems experienced by Tecumseh. One reason it failed was because many tribes did not want to join. Many tribes did not want to lessen themselves by being under the control of a central authority. Some even couldn't look beyond their past rivalries and refused to join. Also other tribes, particularly in the east, were worn out from previous fighting with the Americans and would not join (Dodson)

Finally when the war of 1812 started between the Americans and the British assisted by the Indians, the hopes of a confederation were almost completely lost. Tecumseh, along with a couple of Indians joined the British army where he was placed at the rank of brigadier-general. But at the Battle of Themes on October 6, 1813 he was killed, forever destroying all hope of there being a Confederation of all the Indian tribes (Dictionary 1127).

Tecumseh was a very courageous and honorable warrior who fought and died for his people. Tecumseh saw himself not as a Shawnee, but as an Indian, and knew that his people had no chance to survive if they

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