"Although the five Indian nations had made
earlier attempts at resistance, many of their strategies were non-violent.
One method was to adopt Anglo-American practices such as
large-scale
farming, Western education, and slave-holding. This earned
the nations the designation of the "Five Civilized Tribes." They
adopted this policy of assimilation in an attempt
to coexist with settlers and ward off hostility. But it only made whites
jealous and resentful.
"Other attempts involved ceding portions of their
land to the United States with a view to retaining control over at
least part of their territory, or of the new territory they received
in exchange. Some Indian nations simply refused to
leave their land—the Creeks and the Seminoles even waged
war to protect their territory. The First Seminole War lasted
from 1817 to 1818. The Seminoles were aided by fugitive slaves who
had found protection among them and had been living with them for years.
The presence of the fugitives enraged white planters and fueled their
desire to defeat the Seminoles.
"The Cherokee used legal means in
their attempt to safeguard their rights. They sought protection from
land-hungry white settlers, who continually harassed them by stealing
their livestock, burning their towns, and squatting on their land.
In 1827 the Cherokee adopted a written constitution declaring
themselves to be a sovereign nation. They based this
on United States policy; in former treaties, Indian nations had been
declared sovereign so they would be legally capable of ceding their
lands. Now the Cherokee hoped to use this status to their advantage.
The state of Georgia, however, did not recognize their sovereign status,
but saw them as tenants living on state
land. The Cherokee took their case to the Supreme
Court, which ruled against them.
"The Cherokee went to the Supreme Court again
in 1831. This time they based their appeal on an 1830 Georgia law which
prohibited whites from living on Indian territory after March 31, 1831,
without a license from the state. The state legislature had written
this law to justify removing white missionaries who were helping the
Indians resist removal. The court this time decided in favor of
the Cherokee. It stated that the Cherokee had the right to self-government,
and declared Georgia's extension of state law over them to be unconstitutional.
The state of Georgia refused to
abide by the Court decision, however, and President Jackson refused to
enforce the law.
"In 1830, just a year after taking office, Jackson
pushed a new piece of legislation called the "Indian Removal
Act" through both houses of Congress. It gave the president
power to negotiate removal treaties with
Indian tribes living east of the Mississippi. Under these treaties,
the Indians were to give up their lands east of the Mississippi in
exchange for lands to the west. Those wishing to remain in the east
would become citizens of their home state. This act affected not only
the southeastern nations, but many others further north. The removal
was supposed to be voluntary and peaceful, and it was that way for
the tribes that agreed to the conditions. But the southeastern nations
resisted, and Jackson forced them to leave.
"Jackson's attitude toward Native Americans was paternalistic and patronizing—he
described them as children in need of guidance,
and believed the removal policy was beneficial to
the Indians. Most white Americans thought
that the United States would never extend beyond the
Mississippi. Removal would save Indian people from the depredations
of whites, and would resettle them in an area where they could govern
themselves in peace. But some Americans saw this as
an excuse for a brutal and inhumane course of action, and protested loudly
against removal.
"Their protests did not save the southeastern nations
from removal, however. The Choctaws were the first
to sign a removal treaty, which they did in September of 1830. Some
chose to stay in Mississippi under the terms of the Removal Act. But
though the War Department made some attempts to protect those who stayed,
it was no match for the land-hungry whites who squatted on Choctaw
territory or cheated them out of their holdings. Soon most of the remaining
Choctaws, weary of mistreatment, sold their land and moved west.
"For the next 28 years, the United States government
struggled to force relocation of the southeastern nations. A small
group of Seminoles was coerced into signing a removal
treaty in 1833, but the majority of the tribe declared the treaty illegitimate
and refused to leave. The resulting struggle was the Second
Seminole War, which lasted from 1835 to 1842. As in the first
war, fugitive slaves fought beside the Seminoles who had taken them
in. Thousands of lives were lost in the war, which cost the Jackson
administration approximately 40 to 60 million dollars—ten times
the amount it had allotted for Indian removal. In the end, most of
the Seminoles moved to the new territory. The few who remained had
to defend themselves in the Third Seminole War (1855-58),
when the U.S. military attempted to drive them out. Finally, the United
States paid the remaining Seminoles to move
west.
"The Creeks also refused to emigrate.
They signed a treaty in March, 1832, which opened a large portion of
their Alabama land to white settlement, but guaranteed them protected
ownership of the remaining portion, which was divided among the leading
families. The government did not protect them from speculators, however,
who quickly cheated them out of their lands. By 1835 the destitute
Creeks began stealing livestock and crops from white settlers. Some
eventually committed arson and murder in retaliation for their brutal
treatment. In 1836 the Secretary of War ordered the removal of the
Creeks as a military necessity. By 1837, approximately 15,000 Creeks
had migrated west. They had never signed a removal treaty.
"The Chickasaws had seen removal
as inevitable, and had not resisted. They signed a treaty in 1832 which
stated that the federal government would provide them with suitable
western land and would protect them until they moved. But once again,
the onslaught of white settlers proved too much for the War Department,
and it backed down on its promise. The Chickasaws were forced to pay
the Choctaws for the right to live on part of their western allotment.
They migrated there in the winter of 1837-38.
"The Cherokee, on the other hand,
were tricked with an illegitimate treaty.
In 1833, a small faction agreed to sign a removal agreement: the Treaty
of New Echota. The leaders of this group were not the recognized
leaders of the Cherokee nation, and over 15,000 Cherokees—led
by Chief John Ross—signed a petition in protest. The Supreme
Court ignored their demands and ratified the treaty in 1836.
"The Cherokee were given two years to migrate voluntarily,
at the end of which time they would be forcibly removed. By 1838 only
2,000 had migrated; 16,000 remained on their land. The U.S. government
sent in 7,000 troops, who forced the Cherokees into stockades at bayonet
point. They were not allowed time to gather their belongings, and as
they left, whites looted their homes. Then began the march known as
the Trail of Tears, in which 4,000 Cherokee
people died of cold, hunger, and disease on their way to the western
lands.
"By 1837, the Jackson administration
had removed 46,000 Native American people from their
land east of the Mississippi, and had secured treaties which led to
the removal of a slightly larger number. Most members of the five southeastern
nations had been relocated west, opening 25 million acres of land to
white settlement and to slavery."
(Also, soldier's
account and a timeline. Some
pictures: 1, 2, 3, 4,
5. Source)
