Back Hawk

Posted by Jeffrey R Gudzune Aug 11, 2007

Although I indicated that this week we would take a closer look at Tecumseh's motivations, it appears that everything that needed to be said was already presented in the series. Since to present extraneous information would be non productive, I have elected instead to move onto another topic. This week, I chose the leader of the last major war in the "Old Northwest" as the subject of consideration. A proponent of the traditional ways of his people, Black Hawk refused to adhere to what he saw as an illegal treaty and commited his forces to repelling an invader. While history had often presented him as the agressor, by his own understanding he was responding to a threat. Some have labelled him a rebel, while others have held him up as a heroic figure. Since it is in no way proper for me as an objective historian to chose either point of view, I will simply present the facts.