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85-680: Préfontaine is a family surname of French-Canadian origin. All Préfontaines in North America are descended from Antoine Fournier "dit Préfontaine" (born in 1663 in Picardie, France; died in 1702 in Montréal, Canada). He was a French soldier and a barrel cooper by trade in the Compagnie de Troyes, French Marines in Canada . At the time it was common for French soldiers to adopt a nom de guerre often in reference to

170-744: A Seneca war party ambushed a British supply train and soldiers in Battle of Devil's Hole , also known as the Devil's Hole massacre, during Pontiac's Rebellion . After the American Revolutionary War broke out between the British and the colonists, the Seneca at first attempted to remain neutral but both sides tried to bring them into the action. When the rebel colonists defeated the British at Fort Stanwix , they killed many Seneca onlookers. The Seneca Tribe before

255-480: A clan is called the "clan mother". Despite the prominent position of women in Iroquois society, their influence on the diplomacy of the nation was limited. If the "clan mothers" do not agree with any major decisions made by the chiefs, they can eventually depose them. Arrows from the area are made from split hickory, although shoots of dogwood and Viburnum were used as well. The eastern two feather style of fletching

340-624: A covenant belt. The Americans attempted a similar wine and dine method on the Tuscarora and Oneidas. In the end, the Mohawk, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca sided with the British, and the Tuscarora and Oneida sided with the Americans. From this point on, the Iroquois would have a serious role in the American Revolution. The war divided them and now they would be fighting against each other from 1777 till

425-518: A dissolution of their traditional society under pressure of disease and encroachment by European Americans. But fieldwork at the 1715–1754 Seneca Townley-Read site near Geneva, New York , has recovered evidence of "substantial Seneca autonomy, selectivity, innovation, and opportunism in an era usually considered to be one of cultural disintegration". In 1756, the Confederacy directed the Munsee to settle in

510-497: A gradual canadianization of the officer corps. Young Canadians of good family were from 1699 encouraged to become officers in the marines. Retired marine corps officers settling in Canada, also sent their sons into the corps as cadets , although the formal rank of cadet was not introduced until 1731. A Canadian military elite emerged; already in 1690 a quarter of the officers were born in Canada, and in 1720 about half. From 1683 to 1688, 35 marine companies of 50 soldiers each landed in

595-433: A higher organization, a small staff existed above company level, containing a surgeon, a chaplain, a clerk of the muster, and a drum-major. In 1687 the rank of "commandant of the troops in Canada" was created, with a major as his chief of staff added to the organization in 1691. The original 150 marines of 1683 increased the next year to 500, and with the arrival of governor Denonville, bringing an additional 300 men, reached

680-525: A new satellite town in Seneca territory called Assinisink (where Corning developed) on the Chemung River. In this period, they developed satellite towns for war captives who were being assimilated near several of their major towns. The Seneca received some of the Munsee's war prisoners as part of their negotiations. At a peace conference in Easton, Pennsylvania in 1758, the Seneca chief Tagashata required

765-516: A part of this confederacy with the Cayuga , Onondagas , Oneidas , Mohawks , and, later on, the Tuscaroras . However, although the Seneca and Iroquois tribes had ceased fighting each other, they still continued to conduct raids on outsiders, or rather their European visitors. Despite the Iroquois continuing raids on their new European neighbors, the Iroquois tribes struck up profitable relationships with

850-456: A strength of 800 marines in 1685. Two years later an additional 800 marines arrived from France. In 1688 the required strength was 1,750 other ranks, although due to losses the actual strength was 1,418. The 35 substrength companies were consolidated to 28, with 50 other ranks in each. A reduction from 50 to 30 men per company took place in 1699, reducing the required strength to 840 other ranks. The actual strength were always somewhat lower than

935-819: A trade, a place or a military rank. Antoine's nom de guerre was "dit Préfontaine", French for "field ( pré ) with a spring ( fontaine )". He arrived in New France in August 1685 and took part in Chevalier Pierre de Troyes successful raid on several English trading posts in the Hudson Bay and James Bay regions from March to October 1686, a military campaign known as the Hudson Bay expedition (1686) . He married Marie Ronceray in 1688 in Longueuil, Québec. Antoine's only son, Adrien (1693–1760),

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1020-440: A year thereafter be paid as if he still was serving. In 1686, Governor Denonville released 100 marines from service and the following year another 48. King William's War and Queen Anne's War made the authorities less likely to grant early discharges for marriage, but they did not totally cease. A total of more than 700 marines married and settled in Canada. Senecas In the 21st century, more than 10,000 Seneca live in

1105-584: Is now about tumbled down, the stones seem somewhat scattered, and the ground is overgrown with brush. In the early 1920s, the material that made up the Bare Hill fort was used by the Town of Middlesex highway department for road fill. The Seneca historically lived in what is now New York state between the Genesee River and Canandaigua Lake . The dating of an oral tradition mentioning a solar eclipse yields 1142 AD as

1190-623: Is typical from this region. During the colonial period, the Seneca became involved in the fur trade , first with the Dutch and then with the British. This served to increase hostility with competing native groups, especially their traditional enemy, the Huron (Wyandot), an Iroquoian-speaking tribe located near Lac Toronto in New France . In 1609, the French allied with the Huron (Wyandot) and set out to destroy

1275-403: The compagnies franches de la marine , as the infantry of the troupes de la marine were called after 1690, remained unchanged between 1690 and 1761. Through the initiative of governor Denonville , the rank of second ensign was added to the complement in 1699, explicitly in order to recruit young Canadians of good families to the officer corps. Although the free companies per definition lacked

1360-569: The Carignan-Salières Regiment tipped the scale in favour of the French, and the Iroquois sued for peace in 1667. By 1671 all regular army soldiers were back in France, or settled as colonists. When the Iroquois resumed hostilities ten years later, the colony was once again unable to defend itself in spite of the foundation of a militia system in 1669. The minister of marine, also in charge of

1445-770: The Chemung River to the Susquehanna River. At Tioga the Seneca had access to every corner of Munsee country. Seneca warriors traveled the Forbidden Path south to Tioga to the Great Warrior Path to Scranton and then east over the Minnisink Path through the Lorde's valley to Minisink . The Delaware River path went straight south through the ancient Indian towns of Cookhouse , Cochecton and Minnisink, where it became

1530-513: The Lenape Indians, an Algonquian-speaking people whose territory extended deep along the coastal areas of the mid-Atlantic coast, up into present-day Connecticut. They occupied the western part of Long Island as well. The Lenape nation was Algonkian -speaking and made up of the Delaware , Minnisink and Esopus bands, differentiated according to their territories. These bands later became known as

1615-756: The Lenape people (Delaware, Minnisink and Esopus) threatened war from eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey and the Lower Hudson. The Seneca used the Genesee and Allegheny rivers, as well as the Great Indian War and Trading Path (the Seneca Trail ), to travel from southern Lake Ontario into Pennsylvania and Ohio (Merrill, Arch. Land of the Senecas ; Empire State Books, 1949, pp. 18–25). The eastern Seneca had territory just north of

1700-643: The Minsi Path . Using these ancient highways, the Seneca exerted influence in what is today Ulster and Sullivan counties from the Dutch colonial era onward. Historical evidence demonstrating Seneca presence in the Lower Catskills includes: In 1657 and 1658, the Seneca visited, as diplomats, Dutch colonial officials in New Amsterdam. In 1659 and 1660, the Seneca interceded in the First Esopus War , which

1785-662: The Munsee , based on their shared dialect. (Folts at pp 32) The Munsee inhabited large tracts of land from the middle Hudson into the Delaware Water Gap , and into northeast Pennsylvania and northwest New Jersey . The Esopus inhabited the Mid-Hudson valley (Sullivan and Ulster counties). The Minnisink inhabited northwest New Jersey. The Delaware inhabited the southern Susquehanna and Delaware water gaps. The Minnisink-Esopus trail, today's Route 209 , helped tie this world together. To

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1870-643: The Six Nations of the Grand River First Nation . They are descendants of Seneca who resettled there after the American Revolution, as they had been allies of the British and forced to cede much of their lands . The Seneca's own name for themselves is O-non-dowa-gah or Onödowá’ga , meaning "Great Hill People" The exonym Seneca is "the Anglicized form of the Dutch pronunciation of the Mohegan rendering of

1955-546: The animal side, and the Deer, Hawk, Snipe, and Heron are the bird side. The Iroquois have a matrilineal kinship system ; inheritance and property descend through the maternal line. Women are in charge of the clans. Children are considered born into their mother's clan and take their social status from her family. Their mother's eldest brother was traditionally more of a major figure in their lives than their biological father, who does not belong to their clan. The presiding elder of

2040-436: The muster-roll and maintaining the military hospital. Even the recruitment expenses were deducted. Sometimes the marines could work for the civilian population, or as officers servants, earning welcome additional income. Most of the marines were stationed in and around Montreal . A barracks housing 100 marines were built but most of the troops were in wintertime billeted with the inhabitants. In Quebec and Trois-Rivières

2125-486: The American Revolution had a prosperous society. The Iroquois Confederacy had ended the fighting amongst the war-based Iroquois tribes and allowed them to live in peace with each other. Yet, despite this peace amongst themselves, the Iroquois tribes were all revered as fierce warriors and were reputed to control together a large empire that stretched hundreds of miles along the Appalachian Mountains. The Seneca were

2210-748: The American Revolution. Notable raids like the Cherry Valley massacre and Battle of Minisink , were carefully planned raids on a trail laid out "from the Susquehanna to the Delaware Valley and over the Pine Hill to the Esopus Country". In 1778 Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, and Mohawk warriors conducted raids on white settlements in the upper Susquehanna Valley. Although the Iroquois were active participants, Seneca like Governor Blacksnake were extremely fed up with

2295-538: The British as a conflict meant to include only them. The Albany Council occurred in August, and the Iroquois Confederacy debated about the Revolution from August 25 to August 31. The non-Iroquois present at the council consisted of important figures like Philip Schuyler , Oliver Wolcott , Turbutt Francis , Volkert Douw , Samuel Kirkland , and James Dean. The Iroquois at the council were representatives from all

2380-542: The British, were disliked by the Seneca because of their continual disregard for the Treaty of Fort Stanwix. Specifically, the Iroquois were enraged by the Americans movement into the Ohio Territory. However, despite their continual encroachment on established Iroquois land, the Americans respected their skills at warfare and attempted to exclude them from their conflict with the British. The Americans viewed their conflict with

2465-557: The British: "[I]mmediately after arrival the officers came to see us to See what wanted for to Support the Indians with prvisions and with the flood of Rum. they are Some of the ... warriors made use of this intoxicating Drinks, there was several Barrel Delivered to us for us to Drinked for the white man told us to Drinked as much as we want of it all free gratus, and the goods if any of us wishes to get for our own use." Contingent to this generosity

2550-564: The Delaware to trade with the Dutch in New Amsterdam ( Manhattan ). In 1634, war broke out between the Delaware and the Susquehannock, and by 1638, the defeated Delaware became tributaries to the Susquehanna. The Iroquois Confederacy to the north was growing in strength and numbers, and the Seneca, as the most numerous and adventurous, began to travel extensively. Eastern Seneca traveled down

2635-577: The Europeans, especially the English. In 1677, the English were able to make an alliance with the Iroquois league called the "Covenant Chain". In 1768, the English renewed this alliance when Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet signed the Treaty of Fort Stanwix in 1768. This treaty put the British in good favor with the Iroquois, as they felt that the British had their best interests in mind as well. The Americans, unlike

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2720-488: The French colonies, therefore began to deploy Troupes de la marine to Canada in 1683. The object of the first troupes de la marine sent to Canada in 1683 was to defeat the Iroquois, and then return to France. La Barre's failed expedition against the Senecas in 1684 changed this, and from the following year the troupes became a permanent standing force in the colony, the colonial regular troops. The basic structure of

2805-554: The Iroquoian ethnic appellative" originally referring to the Oneida. The Dutch applied the name Sennecaas promiscuously to the four westernmost nations, the Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca, but with increasing contact the name came to be applied only to the latter. The French called them Sonontouans . The Dutch name is also often spelled Sinnikins or Sinnekars , which was later corrupted to Senecas. Seneca oral history states that

2890-579: The Iroquois and other Native Americans as savages and lesser people. An example of this rhetoric came in the Declaration of Independence: "the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes, and conditions." As a result of this terrible rhetoric, many Mohawk, Cayuga, Onondaga, and Seneca prepared to join the British. However, many Oneida and Tuscarora were able to be swayed by an American missionary, Samuel Kirkland . The Iroquois nation began to divide as

2975-507: The Iroquois chose to remain neutral for the time being. They felt it would be best to stand aside while the Colonists and the British battled. They did not wish to get caught up in this supposed "family quarrel between [them] and Old England". Despite this neutrality, the anti-Native American rhetoric of the Americans pushed the Iroquois over to the side of the British. The Americans put forth an extremely racist and divisive message. They viewed

3060-486: The Iroquois. The Iroquois-Huron war raged until approximately 1650. Led by the Seneca, the Confederacy began a near 35-year period of conquest over surrounding tribes following the defeat of its most powerful enemy, the Huron (Wyandot). The Confederacy conducted Mourning Wars to take captives to replace people lost in a severe smallpox epidemic in 1635. Through raids, they stabilized their population after adopting young women and children as captives and incorporating them into

3145-562: The Marines in Canada, something that hurt volunteer recruitment. From 1686, each newly raised company also included a veteran core of 14 non-commissioned officers and men from the Marine guards in French ports. Stoppages were made from the pay for the uniform and for the extra blanket needed in the Canadian climate. Further deductions were for the pay of the drum major and the surgeon , and for keeping

3230-575: The Mid-Hudson valley. By 1712, the Esopus Indians were reported to have reached the east Pepacton branch of the Delaware River , on the western slopes of the Catskill Mountains . From 1720 to the 1750s, the Seneca resettled and assimilated the Munsee into their people and the Confederacy. Historical accounts had noted the difficulties encountered by the Seneca during this period and noted

3315-425: The Munsee and Minnisink to conclude a peace with the colonists and "take the hatchet out of your heads, and bury it under ground, where it shall always rest and never be taken up again". A large delegation of Iroquois attended this meeting to demonstrate that the Munsee were under their protection. In 1759, as colonial records indicate, negotiators had to go through the Seneca in order to have diplomatic success with

3400-580: The Munsee. Despite the French military campaigns, Seneca power remained far-reaching at the beginning of the 18th century. Gradually, the Seneca began to ally with their trading partners, the Dutch and British , against France 's ambitions in the New World. By 1760 during the Seven Years' War , they helped the British capture Fort Niagara from the French . The Seneca had relative peace from 1760 to 1775. In 1763

3485-425: The Revolution continued and, as a result, they extinguished the council fire that united the six Iroquois nations, therefore ending the Iroquois Confederacy. The Iroquois ended their political unity during the most turbulent time in their history. Two powers in the midst of battle pulled them apart to gain their skill as warriors. This divided the Iroquois and the tribes chose sides based on preference. In addition to

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3570-576: The Seneca Nation's economy was based on hunting and gathering activities, fishing, and the cultivation of varieties of corn , beans , and squash . These vegetables were the staple of the Haudenosaunee diet and were called "the three sisters " (työhe'hköh). Seneca women generally grew and harvested varieties of the three sisters, as well as gathering and processing medicinal plants, roots, berries, nuts, and fruit. Seneca women held sole ownership of all

3655-572: The Seneca homelands. In 1650, the Seneca attacked and defeated the Neutrals to their west. In 1653, the Seneca attacked and defeated the Erie to their southwest. Survivors of both the Huron and Erie were subjugated to the Seneca and relocated to the Seneca homeland. The Seneca took over the vanquished tribe's traditional territories in western New York. In 1675, the Seneca defeated the Andaste (Susquehannock) to

3740-503: The Seneca warriors and Continental Army soldiers by noting that Blacksnake "was not unlike" known Revolutionary veterans " Joseph Plumb Martin and James Collins and other white American [veterans] who could never finally resolve whether killing was right or wrong". As the war went on, many more brutal attacks and atrocities would be committed by both sides, notably the Sullivan Expedition , which devastated Iroquois and Seneca lands. The Iroquois were involved in numerous other battles during

3825-472: The Susquehanna River and were assimilated into the Seneca and Cayuga people . In 1694, Captain Arent Schuyler , in an official report, described the Minnisink chiefs as being fearful of being attacked by the Seneca because of not paying wampum tribute to these Iroquois. Around 1700, the upper Delaware watershed of New York and Pennsylvania became home of the Minnisink Indians moving north and northwest from New Jersey, and of Esopus Indians moving west from

3910-429: The United States, which has three federally recognized Seneca tribes. Two of them are centered in New York: the Seneca Nation of Indians , with five territories in western New York near Buffalo ; and the Tonawanda Seneca Nation . The Seneca-Cayuga Nation is in Oklahoma , where their ancestors were relocated from Ohio during the Indian Removal . Approximately 1,000 Seneca live in Canada, near Brantford, Ontario , at

3995-402: The attack, the Seneca moved further west, east and south down the Susquehanna River. Although great damage was done to the Seneca homeland, the Seneca's military might was not appreciably weakened. The Confederacy and the Seneca moved into an alliance with the British in the east. In and around 1600, the area currently comprising Sullivan , Ulster and Orange counties of New York was home to

4080-405: The barracks was big enough to house the marines stationed in those towns. In summer the marines lived in tents. The marines drilled with muskets twice a week, and practiced with grenades once a week. One marine from each company were selected for extended training in handling cannons , mortars and grenades. When trained, these marines were replaced by another set of marines. Standing guard

4165-403: The battle from the viewpoint of the victorious Indians: "as we approach to a firghting we had preparate to make one fire and Run amongst them we So, while we Doing it, feels no more to Kill the Beast, and killed most all, the americans army, only a few white man Escape from us ... there I have Seen the most Dead Bodies all it over that I neve Did see." Author Ray Raphael made a connection between

4250-469: The brutality of the war. He noted particularly on his behavior at Oriskany, and how he felt "it was great sinfull by the sight of God". Warriors like Blacksnake were feeling the mental toll of killing so many people during the American Revolution. As Raphael noted in his book, "warfare had been much more personal" for the Iroquois before the American Revolution. During the revolution, these once proud Iroquois were now reduced to conducting brutal acts such as

4335-595: The central aisle, and two families shared a hearth. Over time they began to build cabins, similar to those of their American neighbors. The main form of social organization is the clan , or ka'sä:te' , nominally each descended from one woman. The Seneca have eight clans: Bear ( nygawai' ), Wolf ( aga̓ta:yö:nih ), Turtle ( ha'no:wa:h ), Beaver( nöganya'göh ), Deer ( neogë ), Hawk ( gaji'da:s ), Snipe ( nödzahgwë' ), and Heron ( jo̙äshä' ). The clans are divided into two sides ( moieties ) – the Bear, Wolf, Turtle , and Beaver are

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4420-421: The city of Quebec and were stationed in the three governments of Canada . Taking into account death and disability leave, at least 1,400 soldiers arrived into a New France which had no more than 11,000 inhabitants in 1685. Before 1715 a total of 3,000 to 3,500 marine recruits arrived in Canada. With the exception of 200 indentured servants that arrived 1684 and 1685, the marines were the only external additions to

4505-413: The end on opposite sides. The Seneca chose to side with the British in the American Revolution. One of the earliest battles the Iroquois were involved in occurred on August 6, 1777, in Oriskany During the Battle of Oriskany , Native Americans led a brutal attack against the rebel Americans where they "killed, wounded, or captured the majority of patriot soldiers". The Seneca Governor Blacksnake described

4590-431: The future Lackawanna and into the land of the Minnisink on the New York /New Jersey border. The Seneca tried to curtail the encroachment of white settlers. This increased tensions and conflict with the French to the north and west, and the English and Dutch to the south and east. As buffers, the Confederacy resettled conquered tribes between them and the European settlers, with the greatest concentration of resettlements on

4675-457: The initial engagement of the Lower Canada Rebellion , the Chambly Road incident of November 17, 1837. The rebels were inspired by the ideals of the American Revolution, republicanism and the desire for responsible and representative government. Alexis, an officer in the militia, resigned his commission the day before joining the Rebellion. When the Rebellion collapsed in November 1838, and after proudly admitting their active participation, even under

4760-495: The intersection of the Chemung , Susquehanna , Tioga and Delaware rivers, which converged in Tioga. The rivers provided passage deep into all parts of eastern and western Pennsylvania, as well as east and northeast into the Delaware Water Gap and the western Catskills. The men of both branches of the Seneca wore the same headgear. Like the other Haudenosaunee, they wore hats with dried cornhusks on top. The Seneca wore theirs with one feather sticking up straight. Traditionally,

4845-596: The land and the homes. The women also tended to any domesticated animals such as dogs and turkeys. Seneca men were generally in charge of locating and developing the town sites, including clearing the forest for the production of fields. Seneca men also spent a great deal of time hunting and fishing. This activity took them away from the towns or villages to well-known and productive hunting and fishing grounds for extended amounts of time. These hunting and fishing locations were altered and well maintained to encourage game; they were not simply "wild" lands. Seneca men maintained

4930-444: The lower Susquehanna. In 1685, King Louis XIV of France sent Marquis de Denonville to govern New France in Quebec. Denonville set out to destroy the Seneca Nation and in 1687 landed a French armada with "the largest army North America had ever seen" at Irondequoit Bay . Denonville struck straight into the seat of Seneca power and destroyed many of its villages, including the Seneca's eastern capital of Ganondagan . Fleeing before

5015-438: The nineteenth century, many Seneca adopted customs of their immediate American neighbors by building log cabins , practicing Christianity, and participating in the local agricultural economy. The Seneca traditionally lived in longhouses , which are large buildings that were up to 100 feet long and approximately 20 feet wide. The longhouses were shared among related families and could hold up to 60 people. Hearths were located in

5100-507: The period 1683–1715. The Marines were first sent to Canada in 1683 after an upsurge of Iroquois hostilities. The basic unit of the Marines in Canada was the company, with three or four officers, two sergeants, four corporals and lance-corporals, and a total complement of 33 to 52 officers and other ranks . The number of marines during the period peaked in 1688 with a total strength of 1,750 officers and other ranks. The other ranks were recruited in France, and were mostly volunteers, although Canada

5185-418: The population of Canada during the period 1683–1715. Integration of the large number of marines arriving was aided by several factors. Canada lacked barracks and the marines were – like their predecessors of the Carignan-Salières Regiment – billeted on the people of the local community, especially during the cold season. Brought about by utter necessity, this probably constituted the principal element in

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5270-655: The possible penalty of death or exile, both brothers were to spend a year in jail along with 1,100 other Patriotes . Two of Toussaint's sons, Raymond and François-Xavier, went on to have notable careers in their respective professions (see below). During the second half of the 19th century, several Préfontaine families emigrated from Québec to New England, the Midwest and the North-West of the United States. Others emigrated to Western Canada, notably to Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Préfontaine may also refer to: United States Canada French Marines in Canada, 1683-1715 The Troupes de la marine served in Canada during

5355-441: The push of American bigoted rhetoric, the British also continued to attempt to sway the Iroquois towards their side. One British attempt to sway the Iroquois was described by two Seneca tribesmen, Mary Jemison and Governor Blacksnake . They both described the grandeur of the lavish gifts that the British bestowed upon the Iroquois. Governor Blacksnake's account held many details about the luxurious treatment that they received from

5440-538: The rapid integration of the marines into the host society. Another factor favorable for integration was the two privileges granted the marines by the Intendant of New France , Jacques de Meulles , in 1685. One was the right for every marine to take work among the inhabitants of the country; the other authorized those who had a trade to practice it for 15 sous daily. The marines, who was paid 6 sous daily, but only had 3 sous left after stoppages, were happy to be able to work for 10-15 sous per day and food in addition, and

5525-646: The recruits were volunteers, but since service in Canada was not attractive, sometimes deception or violence was used to induce young men into the Marines. Wishing to avoid such chicanery, the government removed the height requirement and gradually lowered the age requirement until it was set at 15 in 1706. Catholic prisoners of war from Ireland and Scotland also became available for recruitment. When Canada urgently needed more marines, both deserters and civilian criminals, who had not been subject to corporal punishment , were released if they enlisted for military service in Canada. Sometimes prisoners were sentenced to serve in

5610-440: The required strength. Officer's billets were always filled, but the actual number of private marines were almost always lower than the required strength. With the reduction of the number of companies from 1689, there were a small surplus of officers from the reduced companies, serving as extra officers. Recruits had to be 20–30 years old, 158 cm (5 ft 2 in) tall, and fit for service. Single men were preferred. Most of

5695-441: The settlers and bourgeoisie were glad to be able to hire workers for less than was normally demanded. The captains of the marine companies were in their turn more than happy to give soldiers leave for work, as they then pocketed their military pay; an illegal but common practice. In 1686 the King confirmed, that any soldier who wished to marry and become a settler cultivating uncleared land was to be released from service and during

5780-448: The seventeenth century. Seneca villages were located as far east as current-day Schuyler County (e.g. Catherine's Town and Kanadaseaga ), south into current Tioga and Chemung counties, north and east into Tompkins and Cayuga counties, and west into the Genesee River valley. The villages were the homes and headquarters of the Seneca. While the Seneca maintained substantial permanent settlements and raised agricultural crops in

5865-401: The south and southeast. The Confederacy's hegemony extended along the frontier from Canada to Ohio, deep into Pennsylvania, along the Mohawk Valley and into the lower Hudson in the east. They sought peace with the Algonquian-speaking Mohegan (Mahican), who lived along the Hudson River. Within the Confederacy, Seneca power and presence extended from Canada to what would become Pittsburgh, east to

5950-428: The traditional title of war sachems within the Haudenosaunee. A Seneca war sachem was in charge of gathering the warriors and leading them into battle. Seneca people lived in villages and towns. Archaeological excavations indicate that some of these villages were surrounded by palisades because of warfare. These towns were relocated every ten to twenty years as soil, game and other resources were depleted. During

6035-433: The tribe originated in a village called Nundawao, near the south end of Canandaigua Lake , at South Hill. Close to South Hill stands the 865-foot-high (264 m) Bare Hill, known to the Seneca as Genundowa . Bare Hill is part of the Bare Hill Unique Area, which began to be acquired by the state in 1989. Bare Hill had been the site of a Seneca (or Seneca-ancestral people) fort. The first written reference to this fort

6120-454: The tribes, but the Mohawk, Oneidas, and Tuscaroras had the most representatives. The Iroquois agreed with the Americans and decided at their Albany Council that they should remain as spectators to the conflict. A Mohawk Chief named Little Abraham declared that "the determination of the Six Nations not to take any part; but as it is a family affair, to sit still and see you fight it out". Thus,

6205-415: The tribes. By the winter of 1648, the Confederacy, led by the Seneca, fought deep into Canada and surrounded the capital of Huronia . Weakened by population losses due to their own smallpox epidemics as well as warfare, the Huron (Wyandot) unconditionally surrendered. They pledged allegiance to the Seneca as their protector. The Seneca subjugated the Huron (Wyandot) survivors and sent them to assimilate in

6290-453: The vicinity of their villages, they also hunted widely through extensive areas. They also executed far-reaching military campaigns. The villages, where hunting and military campaigns were planned and executed, indicate the Seneca had hegemony in these areas. Major Seneca villages were protected with wooden palisades . Ganondagan , with 150 longhouses , was the largest Seneca village of the 17th century, while Chenussio , with 130 longhouses,

6375-576: The west of the Delaware nation were the Iroquoian -speaking Andaste/ Susquehannock . To the east of the Delaware Nation lay the encroaching peoples of Dutch New Netherland . From Manhattan, up through the Hudson, the settlers were interested in trading furs with the Susquehannock occupying territory in and around current Lancaster, Pennsylvania . As early as 1626, the Susquehannock were struggling to get past

6460-707: The western Catskill area. The west and north were under constant attack from their powerful Iroquoian brethren, the Huron (Wyandot) To the South, the Iroquoian -speaking tribes of the Susquehannock (Conestoga) also threatened constant warfare. The Algonquian tribes of the Mohican blocked access to the Hudson River in the east and northeast. In the southeast, the Algonkian tribes of

6545-564: The year for the Seneca joining the Iroquois (Haudenosaunee). Some recent archaeological evidence indicates their territory eventually extended to the Allegheny River in present-day northwestern Pennsylvania, particularly after the Iroquois destroyed both the Wenrohronon and Erie nations in the 17th century, who were native to the area. The Seneca were by far the most populous of the Haudenosaunee nations, numbering about four thousand by

6630-649: Was a major village of the 18th century. The Seneca nation has two branches: the western and the eastern. Each branch was individually incorporated and recognized by the Iroquois Confederacy Council. The western Seneca lived predominantly in and around the Genesee River , gradually moving west and southwest along Lake Erie and the Niagara River , then south along the Allegheny River into Pennsylvania. The eastern Seneca lived predominantly south of Seneca Lake . They moved south and east into Pennsylvania and

6715-692: Was a perpetual duty, winter or summer. When living in tents in summertime, the marines were doing road work or working on the colony's fortifications. Transportation of goods to the Western posts, and of fur back to Montreal, was also the task of the marines. Military patrols on the large rivers and through the settled areas in search of hostile Indians were the most important military duty performed outside actual combat. Source: The majority of marines in Canada had been unskilled labourers in civilian life. Yet, there were also skilled craftsmen among them, such as masons, carpenters, and tailors. Several factors led to

6800-585: Was an important businessman and a major figure in the economic development of New France . Adrien in turn had a son by the same name, who was a slave owner and who was killed at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham on September 13, 1759. By the early-to-mid-19th century, the various families descended from Antoine dropped the Fournier part of the surname in favour of Préfontaine. Two brothers from Longueuil, Québec, Alexis and Toussaint Fournier dit Préfontaine, participated in

6885-543: Was going on between the Dutch and Esopus at current-day Kingston. The Seneca chief urged Stuyvesant to end the bloodshed and "return the captured Esopus savages". In 1675, after a decade of warfare between the Iroquois (mainly the Mohawk and Oneida ) and the Andaste/Susquehannock, the Seneca finally succeeded in vanquishing their last remaining great enemy.(Parker at pp 49) Survivors were colonized in settlements along

6970-558: Was made in 1825 by the Tuscarora historian David Cusick in his history of the Seneca Indians. The traces of an ancient fort, covering about an acre, and surrounded by a ditch, and formerly by a formidable wall, are still to be seen on top of Bare Hill. They indicate defenses raised by Indian hands, or more probably belong to the labors of a race that preceded the Indian occupation. The wall

7055-431: Was not an attractive place to serve. Unskilled labourers dominated and almost a third of them came from the western parts of France. On the other hand, the officer corps was the subject of a gradual process of canadianization, with about a third of the officers serving in 1715 born in Canada. The war with the Iroquois forced the French to deploy a regular army regiment to Canada in 1665. The additional military manpower of

7140-439: Was the loyalty of the Iroquois to the British. The Iroquois debated whether to side with the British or not. An argument to remain neutral until further development came from Governor Blacksnake's uncle Cornplanter , but Joseph Brant twisted his recommendation to wait as a sign of cowardice. The British noticed that the Indian warriors were divided on the issue, so the British presented them with rum, bells, ostrich feathers, and

7225-430: Was used, although three radial feathers were also used. The Smithsonian Institution has an example of a Seneca bow, which was donated 1908. It is made of unbacked hickory , and is 56.25 inches (142.9 cm) tip to tip. Although the string is missing for the specimen, when strung it would make a good "D" shape with slightly recurved tips, and was obviously made for bigger game. The tips are irregular in shape, which

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