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The Iroquois are a group of First Nations living on Turtle Island in northeastern North America. During the colonial period, they flourished as the Iroquois League to the French and later as a Confederacy. It was made up of the Five Nations, as the English call them: Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca.
See the fact file below for more information about Iroquois, or download the comprehensive worksheet pack, which contains over 11 worksheets and can be used in the classroom or homeschooling environment.
Key Facts & Information
Iroquois
- Iroquois was originally a language, but it later evolved into a nation. Their society evolved into a political and military organization model in which women’s roles were elevated.
- The five nations that comprised them first fought each other before banding together to form a powerful confederation. They did not work on conquests but fought and captured other indigenous people and European immigrants.
- They joined the French and Native American War because both sides were courting them for support. The Confederacy was split and remained that way for more than 200 years.
Formation of the League
- They were formed as a League before European contact, around 1450 or earlier, presumably for contemporary political purposes.
- Dekanawida the Great Peacemaker, Jigonhsasee the Mother of Nations, and the Onondaga and Mohawk leader Hiawatha were among the founders. The Peacemaker enacted the Great Law of Peace on its people, who initially fought because they came from different groups.
- Tadodaho, an Onondaga chieftain, was said to be the last to give in to the Peacemaker’s ways of peace. He was appointed chair of the League’s Council to represent the League’s unity.
- They established an egalitarian society in which everyone was treated equally regardless of gender, race, religion, or age.
- In 1722, the Iroquoian-speaking Tuscarora people joined the confederacy, and they were instead called the Six Nations.
- A British colonial administrator claimed in 1749 that they did not practice superiority over one another. Instead of raiding each other, they directed their warfare against their adversaries. It effectively increased their numbers while decreasing those of their competitors.
- In the 17th and 18th centuries, they were considered one of the most vital forces in northeastern North America.
- Their council was made up of fifty members who ruled on disputes until a general agreement was reached. Because the confederacy did not speak for all of them, the five nations continued to form their bands.
- The council held more talks with the colonial governments of Pennsylvania and New York in 1678. They demonstrated their intellect in diplomacy by inciting conflict between the French and the British for their benefit.
- They defeated the Ohio Valley people, particularly the Mosopelea, Akansea, and Tutelo, in the early 1670s. Instead, the defeated nations migrated around the Mississippi River.
- They defeated the Susquehannock in 1676 because the nation had already been weakened by three years of epidemic disease, which they exploited.
Society
- Their customs symbolically replaced the dead with captives captured during their so-called “mourning wars.” The bereaved family adopted the captives to replace their lost member. This allowed them to maintain their numbers while dispersing the enemies.
- They first lived in a small number within large villages, scattered throughout their territory surrounded by a barrier, and usually sited in secure areas. They were well-known for living in longhouses that ranged in length from 15 to 150 feet and were constructed with layers of elm bark on a frame of rafters, and standing logs raised upright.
- They included horticulturists, farmers, fishermen, gatherers, and hunters. Farming and gathering were traditionally women’s jobs. During the winter, their hunters hunted deer, wild turkeys, and migratory birds, as well as muskrats and beavers.
- Because of the invention of scissors and needles in the 17th century, their clothing evolved. During the war, women wore topless, while in the winter, they wore buckskin skirts overlapping on the left to cover their upper bodies. By the 18th century, they had merged with men’s traditional clothing, which consisted of blouses and shirts.
Expansion and Wars
- A distinct Iroquoian group was discovered in the St. Lawrence River valley villages of Hochelaga around 1535. By 1608, a French navigator had visited the same location and found no settlements but a hunting ground controlled by the Mohawk.
- In 1609, they led a war party of Senecas and Mohawks that destroyed the Huron village of Wendake. It shattered the Huron nation. After completely dominating the north, they set their sights on the Neutral Nations.
- An Iroquoian nation, which included Erie, was destroyed in 1654 due to competition for the fur trade.
- They also defeated the Mohicans and reigned supreme somewhere between the Mississippi River and the Atlantic Ocean.
- They established fur trades with the Dutch at Fort Orange in exchange for European goods. Their way of life shifted from warfare to beaver overhunting as a result of the economic relationship.
- They had already established seven villages on Lake Ontario before 1670, which became known as the “Iroquois du Nord” villages. These, however, were abandoned after three decades.
- After 1670, they consolidated political power in Virginia and Kentucky.
Beaver Wars
- They began fighting the French in the Beaver Wars in 1609. They attempted to dominate the lucrative fur trade hunt.
- They defeated Huron, Petun, Neutral Nation, Erie Nation, and Susquehannock during the wars.
- Recent scholars speculated that this was an expansion of their so-called “Mourning Wars,” in which they launched massive attacks to avenge the deaths of their people in battles and smallpox epidemics.
French and Native American Wars
- Despite having a peace treaty with the French, they remained neutral in the war between the French and the Native Americans. Queen Anne’s War was the most popular name for the conflict.
- They soon supported the British over the French, hoping to gain favor if the British won. The Canadian Iroquois, on the other hand, backed the French.
- The victorious British government issued the Royal Proclamation prohibiting White settlement beyond the Appalachian Mountains after the war in 1763. Still, they lacked the soldiers to enforce it, so the American colonists ignored the order.
- They agreed to redraw their respective borders through the 1768 Treaty of Fort Stanwix.
American Revolution
- During the American Revolution, they initially attempted to remain neutral.
- Their subgroups were forced to choose sides: the Oneida and Tuscarora fought for pro-American neutrality, while the Mohawk, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca fought for the British.
- The revolution sowed the foundations of the Confederacy’s collapse.
- The immensity of the revolutionary war ended them after hundreds of years.
Modern Community
- Today, several communities of people descended from their confederacy exist.
- They were called as Haudenosaunee Confederacy in the present day.
- Nearly 10,000 Mohawk people lived on St. Regis and Six Nations reserves in Ontario, as well as the Caughnawaga Reserve in Quebec.
- Settlements were also established in the United States, most notably in New York.
- In Canada, approximately 30,000 Iroquois people live in separate communities in Quebec and Ontario, while in the United States, the majority of the 28,000 Iroquois people live in New York, with some also living in Oklahoma and Wisconsin.
- Several descendants of the Confederacy rose to prominence in the modern world, including artist Frederick Alexcee and boxer Henry Armstrong.
Iroquois Worksheets
This bundle contains 11 ready-to-use Iroquois Tribe Worksheets that are perfect for students who want to learn more about the Iroquois, who are a group of First Nations living on Turtle Island in northeastern North America.
Download includes the following worksheets:
- Iroquois Facts
- Land of the Iroquois
- Six Nations
- Iroquois Culture
- Iroquois Clan Symbols
- Beaver Wars
- The Legend of Hiawatha
- Iroquois Longhouse
- Iroquois in Popular Culture
- Haudenosaunee
- Iroquois Today
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Iroquois known for?
They began fighting the French in the Beaver Wars in 1609. They attempted to dominate the lucrative fur trade hunt. They defeated Huron, Petun, Neutral Nation, Erie Nation, and Susquehannock during the wars.
What is the Iroquois called today?
They are called as Haudenosaunee Confederacy in the present day.
Does Iroquois still exist today?
Today, several communities of people descended from their confederacy exist. In Canada, approximately 30,000 Iroquois people live in separate communities in Quebec and Ontario, while in the United States, the majority of the 28,000 Iroquois people live in New York, with some also living in Oklahoma and Wisconsin.
What people made up the Iroquois?
It was made up of the Five Nations, as the English call them: Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca. In 1722, the Iroquoian-speaking Tuscarora people joined the confederacy, and they were instead called the Six Nations.
Who defeated the Iroquois?
The (American) revolution sowed the foundations of the Confederacy’s collapse. The immensity of the revolutionary war ended them after hundreds of years.
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