William McIntosh
William McIntosh (* 1775 ; † April 30, 1825 in Carroll County , Georgia ), also known under the name White Warrior ( English for White Warrior ) was an important chief of the Indian people of the Muskogee and one of the signatories of the Treaty of Indian Springs .
ancestry
William McIntosh was the son of William McIntosh, who came from a prominent family in Savannah , Georgia . He was sent to the Muskogee as an officer to recruit warriors for the British during the British-American War . William McIntosh's mother was a Muskogee from the Wind Clan named Senoya (other spelling Senoia ). He grew up with the Muskogee and never met his father. Among the Muskogee, origins were defined through the line of the mother, so the fact that his father was white had little significance for his tribe members. McIntosh was a cousin of William Weatherford and the governor of Georgia George M. Troup .
British-American War and Creek War
During the British-American War , the civil war known as the Creek War broke out between the Upper and Lower Creek. McIntosh was chosen to lead part of the troops created by Benjamin Hawkins , an Indian agent . This he should lead against the as "Red Sticks" (English for "Rotstocks") designated anti-American Upper Creek. The hostility of the Upper Creek he arose when he led the volunteer Muskogee troops under Andrew Jackson against the Upper Creek during the Civil War from 1813 to 1814. As a reward for his service in the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , he was appointed Brigadier General in the US Army .
After the Creek War, McIntosh built a plantation on the Chattahoochee River in Carroll County, Georgia. He called it "Lockchau Talofau" and ran it with 72 slaves . The former plantation is now preserved by the county as a park ("McIntosh Reserve").
Letter to Madison and First Seminole War
In a letter addressed to President James Madison , signed by McIntosh, the President was informed that the influential Cherokee crossbreeds were interested in trading their lands. The purebred and not-so-civilized Cherokee feared that the mixed race would do just that and lose their ancestral land. The Creek feared that the Cherokee would subsequently take over the Muskogee settlement area.
McIntosh also fought on the side of the United States in the First Seminole War . He played an important role in the conquest of Fort Gadsden on the Apalachicola River . The fort was occupied by about 300 African-American men, women and children, as well as about 20 insurgent Choctaws and some Seminole warriors. The fort fell when a red-hot cannonball hit the fort's powder magazine.
Although the Upper Creeks had vowed to kill anyone who should sell or barter additional tribal lands, McIntosh signed the Indian Springs Treaty with eight other chiefs on February 12, 1825. With this contract, all areas of Muskogee went for $ 400,000. Under the fifth article of the contract, McIntosh received $ 200,000 upon signing the agreement. It is unclear whether he accepted the treaty because of this, or actually believed it was the best solution for his people.
execution
Contrary to his cousin George Troup's promise to protect him, Menawa , one of the leaders of the Red Sticks, set fire to McIntosh's plantation together with a group of around 200 Muskogee shortly before dawn. McIntosh was stabbed in the heart with a knife and shot several times. He was scalped and his body thrown into the river.
literature
- Frederick E. Hoxie: Encyclopedia of North American Indians. Houghton Mifflin Company 1996, ISBN 9780585077642
- Benjamin W. Griffith: McIntosh and Weatherford, Creek Indian Leaders. University of Alabama Press 1998, ISBN 0-8173-0340-5 , pages 238, 248-249
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | McIntosh, William |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | White Warrior |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Chief of the Muskogee, signatory of the Indian Springs Treaty |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1775 |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 30, 1825 |
| Place of death | Carroll County , Georgia |