INDIAN TRIBES OF THE EASTERN wOODLANDS ... - Flames of War

More documents

Recommendations

Info

oach hairstyle was almost universal, though there was one section of the tribe who wore their hair long and loose. Other men shaved the head, leaving a tuft running from front to back or side to side, and a scalplock hanging from the crown. The tuft was sometimes shaved, leaving just the scalplock and roach, and the top part of the shaved skull was then painted red. Some Fox warriors wore a turban made of otter fur, and a few sported buffalo horn headdresses captured from enemies like the Sioux and Iowa. They liked red and black pigments, and some chiefs illustrated by a European artist had their faces painted blue. Yellow, red and black stripes could be painted on the lower half of the face. Among the Fox and the Sac, hands painted on the body denoted an enemy killed in hand to hand combat. Sac and Fox figures are available in the Conquest range. SAC Closely related to the Fox and Kickapoo, the Sac were allies of the French. They moved south into the territory of the Illinois Confederacy in the 18th century, occupying the area around the Rock and Mississippi Rivers. Sac men wore the usual breechclout and moccasins in summer, with a robe added in winter. The breechclouts, usually painted red, were of the fitted type without flaps. Hip length leggings of deer or elk skin were also worn. These were whitened with clay and decorated with porcupine quillwork and fringes at the sides. Geometric quillwork and abstract floral moosehair embroidery were used for decoration. Hairstyles and headdresses were similar to those of the Fox. For painting the face and body, white and black pigments were favoured, with the eyes often rimmed in red paint. White stripes were sometimes painted round the arms and legs. OTTAWA The Ottawa lived too far north for agriculture, their land was poor in the wild rice so abundant in the land of the Chippewas, and there were few fur bearing animals in their country. So they had little choice but to become traders. This honed their diplomatic skills, and they eventually produced one of the greatest Native American leaders, Pontiac, who led a great revolt against the British in 1763. The Ottawas had a reputation for cunning, treachery and cruelty, but proved loyal to the French, and became the nucleus of anti-British hostility after the French and Indian War. The French often remarked on the prevalence of nudity among the Ottawas. Men usually wore only a robe and moccasins, though sometimes a fitted leather breechclout was seen with flaps in front and back, decorated with quillwork. Leggings, when worn, were simple thigh length tubes of hide, fringed on the outside seams and gartered just below the knees. Some men favoured the roach, but the head was more often shaved except for a scalplock hanging from the crown, and a central tuft running front to back and decreasing in height towards the back. Hair could also be worn in two or four braids sometimes wrapped in fur or thongs. Yet others allowed the hair to hang loose or shaved it all except for a tuft at the crown. Men were commonly tattooed with designs including lizards, snakes, and geometrical figures, sometimes covering the entire body. The face and body were painted in red, brown, green and black. POTAWATOMI The Potawatomi were close relatives of the Chippewa and Ottawa. They wore tanned leather breechclouts with quillwork bands at the bottom, and flaps hanging down to the knees at front and back. Leggings were deerskin, thigh length, fringed down the side seams and gartered below the knees. Unseamed pieces of tanned skin were worn for shirts. The Potawatomi decorated these garments with quillwork in geometric designs, and with dyed moosehair in modified floral patterns. Warriors generally shaved their heads and wore the roach. The most common style was a tuft of hair from front to back with a scalplock hanging down; a single eagle feather was often added at the back. Warriors painted their faces red and black, the upper face frequently being all black, and the eyes ringed in red and/or black. WINNEBAGO The Winnebago were a Siouan speaking tribe from Wisconsin. Early traditions connect the Winnebagos with the northernmost Mound Builder centre of Azatalan. Perhaps because of this exalted ancestry they were said to be haughty and arrogant, looking down on the surrounding tribes as inferior. They also had a reputation for treachery and cannibalism. The Winnebagos occasionally sent warriors to help the French, but mostly they stayed neutral. They wore breechclouts consisting of an underpiece and two separate apron flaps, or a long, single piece of material ending in flaps. These were of elk or deerskin, painted red or black. Leggings were also made of elk or deer hide. They were usually knee length and gartered below the knees. In cooler weather a poncho type shirt reaching to the hips was worn. Shirts and leggings had short fringes. Men wore their hair either in two braids, or just clumped on either side and fastened with thongs. A few men wore the roach for war, usually with a roach spreader and one or two feathers inserted in a swiveling socket. Headdresses made of rawhide with buffalo horns and grizzly-bear claws could also be worn. Warriors painted their faces and bodies red, black or green. A hand painted on the face or breast signified a man who had killed an enemy, and men who had gone on the warpath in winter commemorated this feat by painting their legs white. THE SOUTHEAST South of the Ohio Valley, and stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic, was a region inhabited by some of the most advanced tribes in North America - so much so that they later became known as the Five Civilized tribes. Despite this the Southeastern peoples were extremely warlike, and bitterly resisted both the incursions of the Iroquois from the north and the advance of White settlement. CATAWBA The Catawba were one of a number of Siouan-speaking tribes inhabiting the Carolina Piedmont country, east of the Appalachians. During the late 17th century they absorbed other tribes which had been weakened by the English colonists and the diseases they had brought with them, so that by the early 18th century they were an agglomeration of many different nations, and a variety of languages could be heard in the Catawba towns. They allied themselves closely to the colony of South Carolina, and fought loyally for the British throughout the Colonial Wars. They helped the British destroy French posts along the Mississippi Gulf Coast, and the French responded by embroiling their Great Lakes allies in constant wars with the Catawba. The Iroquois also raided as far south as the Carolinas, and a bitter and protracted war broke out between the League and the Catawbas, who stubbornly refused to be beaten into submission. This situation was much to the discomfiture of the British,
who relied on both tribes as allies. The Catawbas were ferocious warriors with a fearsome reputation. Early in the 18th century they helped South Carolina destroy the Tuscaroras, and drove the remnants north to become the Sixth Nation of the Iroquois. They also fought the Cherokees, Delawares and Shawnees - driving several bands of the latter from North Carolina into Pennsylvania. However constant warfare and disease steadily reduced their numbers as the 18th century wore on. Already by the early 18th century the Catawbas had long been under British influence. While buckskin garments were still seen, most men wore muslin, calico or linen. Breechclouts and leggings were often made of red or blue wool strouding. Shirts might be decorated with complex patterns. Unlike their neighbours Catawba men wore their hair long, often pulled back into a ponytail style. The roach was apparently not worn, but some chiefs wore headdresses of upstanding turkey feathers. One of the most distinctive features of their appearance was the practice of cranial deformation, which led their enemies to call them “flatheads” - though this custom had probably died out by the mid 18th century. Moccasins were worn on the war trail, although the men often went barefoot at home. The Catawba had a very distinctive style of war paint: the lower face was black or red, with a white circle around one eye and a black circle around the other. Combined with their deformed skulls the effect must have been terrifying. Ignoring the “flat heads”, the Conquest Delaware figures with clothing painted as cloth instead of buckskin would make excellent Catawbas. CHEROKEE The Cherokee were the southernmost of the Iroquoian speaking tribes. Like their Iroquoian cousins they were very warlike, though they fared poorly against both the Catawbas and the Chickasaws. Conflict with their cousins of the Five Nations was common, with the Iroquois usually the aggressors. The Cherokees often responded to an Iroquois raid by sending one warrior north single-handed to collect a scalp. Cherokees and Shawnees also fought constantly, and the honours were about even. The formidable warriors of the Chickasaw, Catawba and Shawnee aside, the Cherokee more than held their own against other Indian enemies. They usually sided with the British, but early in the 19th century it became apparent that the Americans were now too powerful to be resisted, and they reluctantly agreed to be moved west. Skin breechclouts of the apron type were universal. Knee length leggings could also be worn, and in cooler weather a light skin poncho. From the middle of the 18th century European style cloth shirts became available. Quillwork was rare, but some floral beadwork was done on pouches and shoulder bags, with circular motifs being the most popular. Men shaved their heads except for a roach running from front to back on top of the head, often with a fringe of hair along the forehead. The roach was frequently augmented by opossum or deer hair dyed red or yellow. Symbols such as flowers, animals and stars were tattooed on the arms, torso, and thighs. Warriors used red paint to signify success, blue for trouble or defeat, black for death, and white for peace and happiness. Red and black were therefore the most popular war colours.
Page 1 and 2: INDIAN TRIBES OF THE EASTERN wOODLA
Page 3: fringed. Simple mid-length tunics w
Page 7 and 8: wOODLAND LONgHOuSES Words & picture

INDIAN TRIBES OF THE EASTERN wOODLANDS ... - Flames of War

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?