Native American's Napoleon: Little Turtle of the Miami Indians
The early history of the Miami Indians is veiled in tradition and obscurity and little is known concerning its chiefs or head men prior to July 3, 1748. On that date a treaty of peace and friendship was concluded at Lancaster, Pennsylvania, between commissioners appointed by the English colonial authorities and the chiefs of the several tribes in the interior. In that treaty the name of A-gue-nack-gue appears as "principal chief of the Miamis," and it is said that he then lived at Turtle Village, a few miles northeast of the present city of Fort Wayne, Indiana. Two other chiefs from Wabash country also signed the treaty, which lasted until after the Government of the United States was established.
This chief Augenackgue married a Mohican woman, according to the Indian custom, and one of their sons wa Me-she-ke-no-quah, or Little Turtle, who became the chief leader of the Miami Nation upon the death of his father. Little Turtle was born at Turtle Village about 1747 and at the time he succeeded to the chieftainship, his tribe was regarded as the leading one in all the great West.
Little Turtle was not lacking in any of the essential qualifications of a great chief. He has been described as "short in stature, well built, with symmetrical form, prominent forehead, heavy eyebrows, keen, black eyes and a large chin." From his mother he inherited many of the finer qualities of the Mohicans. Agile and athletic, his physical ability was not to be questioned for a moment. As a youth his influence was made manifest on more than one occasion, even the older warriors listening with respect when he resented his views in council. After he became chief, not only of his own tribe, but also other tribes of the Miami confederacy, he was acknowledged by all as their great leader and they followed him without the slightest jealousy or envy. Wise in council, he was equally brave in battle. No military academy taught him in the art of war, yet in the management of an army he showed the skill and strategy of a Napoleon. His prowess as a commander is seen in the masterly manner in which he handled his warriors in the defeat of General St. Clari, November 4, 1791. Not until he met Gen. Anthony Wayne, whom he designated as "the man who never sleeps" did the chief Little Turtle acknowledge defeat.
As a statesman, Little Turtle was a conspicuous figure in the negotiations of the several treaties with the United States. Having once affixed his signature to a treaty, his honor would not permit him to violate any of its provisions, and in this way he won the confidence and esteem of all the whites, though he incurred the displeasure of many of his tribe, who referred to him as "an Indian with a white man's heart." Gen. George Washington, while President of the United States, resented him with a medal and a handsome sword as tokens of regard. His last years were spent at Little Turtle Village. A few months before his death, afflicted with gout, he went to Fort Wayne to consult a surgeon and died at his abode in the "Old Orchard," not far from the confluence of the St. Joseph and St. Mary's rivers on July 14, 1812.
Brice in his "History of Fort Wayne" says of Little Turtle
"His body was borne to the grave with the highest honors by his great enemy, the white man. The muffled drum, the solemn march, the funeral salute, announced that a great soldier had fallen, and that even his enemies paid tribute to his memory."
Deposited in the grave with him were the sword and medal presented to him by Washington, together with the Indian ornaments and implements of war, according to the custom of his tribe. A monument was afterward erected over his last resting place, and it has been said of him "He never offered nor received a bribe."
Robert M. Waddell, History of northeast Indiana: LaGrange, Steuben, Noble and DeKalb Counties, Chicago: Lewis Pub. Co., 1920, Noble County,
The early history of the Miami Indians is veiled in tradition and obscurity and little is known concerning its chiefs or head men prior to July 3, 1748. On that date a treaty of peace and friendship was concluded at Lancaster, Pennsylvania, between commissioners appointed by the English colonial authorities and the chiefs of the several tribes in the interior. In that treaty the name of A-gue-nack-gue appears as "principal chief of the Miamis," and it is said that he then lived at Turtle Village, a few miles northeast of the present city of Fort Wayne, Indiana. Two other chiefs from Wabash country also signed the treaty, which lasted until after the Government of the United States was established.
This chief Augenackgue married a Mohican woman, according to the Indian custom, and one of their sons wa Me-she-ke-no-quah, or Little Turtle, who became the chief leader of the Miami Nation upon the death of his father. Little Turtle was born at Turtle Village about 1747 and at the time he succeeded to the chieftainship, his tribe was regarded as the leading one in all the great West.
Little Turtle was not lacking in any of the essential qualifications of a great chief. He has been described as "short in stature, well built, with symmetrical form, prominent forehead, heavy eyebrows, keen, black eyes and a large chin." From his mother he inherited many of the finer qualities of the Mohicans. Agile and athletic, his physical ability was not to be questioned for a moment. As a youth his influence was made manifest on more than one occasion, even the older warriors listening with respect when he resented his views in council. After he became chief, not only of his own tribe, but also other tribes of the Miami confederacy, he was acknowledged by all as their great leader and they followed him without the slightest jealousy or envy. Wise in council, he was equally brave in battle. No military academy taught him in the art of war, yet in the management of an army he showed the skill and strategy of a Napoleon. His prowess as a commander is seen in the masterly manner in which he handled his warriors in the defeat of General St. Clari, November 4, 1791. Not until he met Gen. Anthony Wayne, whom he designated as "the man who never sleeps" did the chief Little Turtle acknowledge defeat.
As a statesman, Little Turtle was a conspicuous figure in the negotiations of the several treaties with the United States. Having once affixed his signature to a treaty, his honor would not permit him to violate any of its provisions, and in this way he won the confidence and esteem of all the whites, though he incurred the displeasure of many of his tribe, who referred to him as "an Indian with a white man's heart." Gen. George Washington, while President of the United States, resented him with a medal and a handsome sword as tokens of regard. His last years were spent at Little Turtle Village. A few months before his death, afflicted with gout, he went to Fort Wayne to consult a surgeon and died at his abode in the "Old Orchard," not far from the confluence of the St. Joseph and St. Mary's rivers on July 14, 1812.
Brice in his "History of Fort Wayne" says of Little Turtle
"His body was borne to the grave with the highest honors by his great enemy, the white man. The muffled drum, the solemn march, the funeral salute, announced that a great soldier had fallen, and that even his enemies paid tribute to his memory."
Deposited in the grave with him were the sword and medal presented to him by Washington, together with the Indian ornaments and implements of war, according to the custom of his tribe. A monument was afterward erected over his last resting place, and it has been said of him "He never offered nor received a bribe."
Robert M. Waddell, History of northeast Indiana: LaGrange, Steuben, Noble and DeKalb Counties, Chicago: Lewis Pub. Co., 1920, Noble County,
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