This book was originally written in 1851 by a man who was adopted by the Seneca Indians. Note: It is written in the style of 1851 by a man who admired the Indian tribes and wanted their story told truthfully. Morgan obviously discussed what he was doing with many leaders (of Indian tribes) and he offers considerable insights about various tribes.
He starts with an explanation of how the Iroquois became so powerful; by 1700, they had reached their pinnacle. All the other tribes were afraid of them and tended to move away instead of fighting them. Fighting the French explorers, trappers, and soldiers, reduced the Iroquois. However, during the Revolutionary War, the Iroquois sided with the British. In the end, the British left America and the Iroquois were left to deal with the winners of the war -- the Americans.
The Iroquois League that the author talks about were six distinct Iroquoian-speaking nations including the Mohawks, the Cayugas, the Oneidas, the Onondagas, the Senecas, and the Tuscaroras. The Tuscaroras were originally in North Carolina but were pushed out by European settlements. They moved to New York and claimed their origin with the Iroquois. They were accepted and became the sixth member of the League.
The author explains that a leader would gather part of a group and create a new tribe whenever the area was too tightly populated. He states that that policy continued to weaken the Iroquois tribes and so they hit upon the idea of a League. There were 50 sachems distributed amongst the 6 nations. Each tribe was independent in matters of their own tribe, but they gathered to discuss political and group concerns.
This book is an intensive look at the powers of the sachems, chiefs, and anyone wanting to go to war. How they ruled themselves and decided to go to war was quite foreign to the European method. No religious leaders were part of the 50 sachems of the League. Then he explains inter-tribal issues. A man did not marry anyone from his own tribe (and vice versa; the fascinating explanation is too complicated for this summary). The children always followed the tribe of the mother (like the Jewish do).
This book is truly a deep dive into the mysteries of the Iroquois and their League. The person who wrote it was a scholar and spent time comparing the Iroquois with the Greeks, etc. This book has taken me more time than usual because the ideas this man talked about are deep issues that I wanted to ruminate on before going to the next chapter.
The second section is about man's religious tendencies. First, according to the author, gifted people think about a higher power and then they form worship services. As part of their theology, the Iroquois believed that all albino (all white) animals were consecrated to God. They ritualistically killed them (without making them bleed or breaking their bones) and offer them to God.
In 1800, an Iroquois (who said he was inspired by the Creator) came forward to teach the tribes to leave behind fire-water and the white man's ways and stay true to the Creator's wishes. His grandson continued his preaching amongst the tribes (a total of about 48 years).
This book describes in great detail the dances, the clothing selected their national games, and how they compete with other tribes and nations. This discusses their housing, etc. But I want to concentrate on marriage, divorce, and families. The mothers of the young people decide on a spouse (remember, they never choose one in their own tribe). It is considered the gift of the parents to decide on a partner for their children. The young people must go with their mother's choice (fathers have nothing to do with this) or be disowned. Polygamy was forbidden with the Iroquois.
The couple learns to love each other or they may decide to part; divorce brings great shame on both families, so it rarely happens. If there is a divorce, the children go with the mother and the father is no longer concerned about them. The author explains that parental affection was much weaker. Men didn't trouble themselves with their children; adult sons, however, became closer to their fathers. Iroquois valued the truth above all.
Men never ask for food; women are responsible for feeding her family. They have an incredible sense of hospitality; their homes are open always, they will give a stranger anything they need (generally, without having to ask). They are a giving people. Crime was almost an unknown issue. However, witchcraft was punishable by death. Adultery was punishable by whipping (the woman alone). Like the Greeks, if a murder occurred, the harmed family had to be appeased. Sometimes, another's death was required; sometimes, wampum was accepted.
The third, and last section, is about the artifacts of the Iroquois, their language, Indian geography (the fact that Iroquois had multiple names for many places, especially if they were large). All of this led up to the author's belief that there should be more education and Christianization of the Iroquois. Remember, this is 1851. Frankly, I found everything EXCEPT this last chapter to be very interesting and valuable information.
He starts with an explanation of how the Iroquois became so powerful; by 1700, they had reached their pinnacle. All the other tribes were afraid of them and tended to move away instead of fighting them. Fighting the French explorers, trappers, and soldiers, reduced the Iroquois. However, during the Revolutionary War, the Iroquois sided with the British. In the end, the British left America and the Iroquois were left to deal with the winners of the war -- the Americans.
The Iroquois League that the author talks about were six distinct Iroquoian-speaking nations including the Mohawks, the Cayugas, the Oneidas, the Onondagas, the Senecas, and the Tuscaroras. The Tuscaroras were originally in North Carolina but were pushed out by European settlements. They moved to New York and claimed their origin with the Iroquois. They were accepted and became the sixth member of the League.
The author explains that a leader would gather part of a group and create a new tribe whenever the area was too tightly populated. He states that that policy continued to weaken the Iroquois tribes and so they hit upon the idea of a League. There were 50 sachems distributed amongst the 6 nations. Each tribe was independent in matters of their own tribe, but they gathered to discuss political and group concerns.
This book is an intensive look at the powers of the sachems, chiefs, and anyone wanting to go to war. How they ruled themselves and decided to go to war was quite foreign to the European method. No religious leaders were part of the 50 sachems of the League. Then he explains inter-tribal issues. A man did not marry anyone from his own tribe (and vice versa; the fascinating explanation is too complicated for this summary). The children always followed the tribe of the mother (like the Jewish do).
This book is truly a deep dive into the mysteries of the Iroquois and their League. The person who wrote it was a scholar and spent time comparing the Iroquois with the Greeks, etc. This book has taken me more time than usual because the ideas this man talked about are deep issues that I wanted to ruminate on before going to the next chapter.
The second section is about man's religious tendencies. First, according to the author, gifted people think about a higher power and then they form worship services. As part of their theology, the Iroquois believed that all albino (all white) animals were consecrated to God. They ritualistically killed them (without making them bleed or breaking their bones) and offer them to God.
In 1800, an Iroquois (who said he was inspired by the Creator) came forward to teach the tribes to leave behind fire-water and the white man's ways and stay true to the Creator's wishes. His grandson continued his preaching amongst the tribes (a total of about 48 years).
This book describes in great detail the dances, the clothing selected their national games, and how they compete with other tribes and nations. This discusses their housing, etc. But I want to concentrate on marriage, divorce, and families. The mothers of the young people decide on a spouse (remember, they never choose one in their own tribe). It is considered the gift of the parents to decide on a partner for their children. The young people must go with their mother's choice (fathers have nothing to do with this) or be disowned. Polygamy was forbidden with the Iroquois.
The couple learns to love each other or they may decide to part; divorce brings great shame on both families, so it rarely happens. If there is a divorce, the children go with the mother and the father is no longer concerned about them. The author explains that parental affection was much weaker. Men didn't trouble themselves with their children; adult sons, however, became closer to their fathers. Iroquois valued the truth above all.
Men never ask for food; women are responsible for feeding her family. They have an incredible sense of hospitality; their homes are open always, they will give a stranger anything they need (generally, without having to ask). They are a giving people. Crime was almost an unknown issue. However, witchcraft was punishable by death. Adultery was punishable by whipping (the woman alone). Like the Greeks, if a murder occurred, the harmed family had to be appeased. Sometimes, another's death was required; sometimes, wampum was accepted.
The third, and last section, is about the artifacts of the Iroquois, their language, Indian geography (the fact that Iroquois had multiple names for many places, especially if they were large). All of this led up to the author's belief that there should be more education and Christianization of the Iroquois. Remember, this is 1851. Frankly, I found everything EXCEPT this last chapter to be very interesting and valuable information.
