What was the involvement of the Native Americans in the American War of Independance?

by The_Manchurian

I think I read before that some fought for the British (the Iriquois maybe?) but I don't know if any fought for the colonists.

Which federations or tribes fought alongside the Crown forces and why? Which federations or tribes fought alongside the colonies and why?

What did other nearby federations or tribes who didn't join one side or the other do? Did they try to take advantage of the war in some way, or flee the area?

DarthNetflix

The Six Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy split on the issue of which side to support during the war. While they initially tried to remain neutral, they were eventually forced to pick sides for several reasons. Firstly, their proximity to the conflict meant that they would feel the effects of the war whether they wanted to or not. Second, Columbian Exchange had created an economic dependence on the colonists and British, so staying neutral could jeopardize their way of life. There were other factors but these ranked the highest.

Siding with the British promised more immediate advantages. The British Proclamation Line of 1763 had restricted the colonists' expansion into Indian territory. If the colonists became independent, that restriction would disappear and the Americans would resume their aggressive acquisition of Indian land. Resentment and revenge cannot be entirely discounted either, as the Iroquois had suffered continuously at the hands of the colonists who saw them as barely human. Though many saw the British and colonists as on in the same, the Iroquois understood that they had been dealing directly with the colonists in most cases, which gave the British a relatively blank slate.

However, if the Iroquois sided with the British and the colonists won, colonial aggression would become even worse. There were concerns that the British, being across the ocean, would not be able to hold up their end of the bargain and protect the Iroquois from American attack. We can actually see the effects coming to life when Washington ordered a retaliation against the British Iroquois with the infamous Sullivan Campaign. Siding with the British also directly jeopardized trade relations with the colonists, as they traded with the colonists far more often than the British.

Ultimately, the Tuscarora and Oneida sided with the Americans while the Mohawk, Seneca, Onondaga, and Cayuga sided with the British.

Sources:

  • Crawford, Neta. "A Security Regime among Democracies: Cooperation among Iroquois Nations"

  • Washington's Orders to Sullivan; May 31, 1779

  • Morgan, Lewis Henry (1995). The League of the Iroquois

  • Graymont, Barbara. The Iroquois In The American Revolution

  • Gail D. MacLeitch. Imperial Entanglements: Iroquois Change and Persistence on the Frontiers of Empire