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{{Short description|Conflict between British forces and Cherokee bands in North America from 1758 to 1761}}
{{Infobox military conflict
|conflict=Anglo-Cherokee War
|partof=the [[Seven Years' War]]
| image= Three Cherokee.jpg
| image_size = 300
|caption=After the Anglo-Cherokee War, bitterness remained between the two groups. In 1762, [[Henry Timberlake]] took three of the former [[Cherokee]] adversaries to [[London]] to help cement the newly declared friendship
|date=1758–1761
|place=present-day [[South Carolina]], [[North Carolina]], and [[Tennessee]]
|coordinates=
|result=British victory
|combatant1=[[Cherokee]]
|combatant2={{flag|Kingdom of Great Britain|name=Great Britain}}
|commander1=[[Attakullakulla]]<br />[[Oconostota]]
|commander2=[[William Lyttelton, 1st Baron Lyttelton|William Henry Lyttelton]]<br />[[Archibald Montgomerie, 11th Earl of Eglinton|Archibald Montgomerie]]<br />[[James Grant (British Army officer, born 1720)|James Grant]]
|strength1=
|strength2=
|casualties1=
|casualties2=
|campaignbox={{Campaignbox Anglo-Cherokee War}}
}}

The '''Anglo-Cherokee War''' (1758–1761; in the [[Cherokee language]]: the ''"war with those in the [[Red coat (British army)|red coats]]"'' or ''"War with the English"''), was also known from the Anglo-European perspective as the '''Cherokee War''', the '''Cherokee Uprising''', or the '''Cherokee Rebellion'''. The war was a conflict between [[Kingdom of Great Britain|British]] forces in [[North America]] and [[Cherokee]] bands during the [[French and Indian War]].

The British and the Cherokee had been allies at the start of the war, but each party had suspected the other of betrayals. Tensions between British-American settlers and Cherokee warriors of towns that the pioneers encroached on had increased during the 1750s, culminating in open hostilities in 1758.

==Background==
{{Further|Great Britain in the Seven Years' War}}
After siding with the [[Province of Carolina]] in the [[Tuscarora War]] of 1711–15, the Cherokee had turned on their British allies at the outbreak of the [[Yamasee War]] of 1715–17. Midway through the war, they switched sides and allied again with the British, ensuring the defeat of the [[Yamasee]]. The Cherokee remained allies of the British until the French and Indian War.

At the 1754 outbreak of the war, Cherokee warriors took part in British campaigns against the French [[Fort Duquesne]] (at present-day [[Pittsburgh]], Pennsylvania) and the [[Shawnee]] of the [[Ohio Country]]. In 1755, a band of 130 Cherokee under [[Ostenaco]] (or ''Ustanakwa'') of [[Tomotley|''Tamali'']] (Tomotley) became the garrison in a fortified town at the mouth of the [[Ohio River]] at the behest of the [[Iroquois League]] (most of these Six Nations were also British allies).<ref>Tanner, p. 95</ref>{{Full citation needed|date=September 2021}}

For several years, French agents from [[Fort Toulouse]] had been visiting the [[Overhill Cherokee]] on the [[Hiwassee River|Hiwassee]] and [[Tellico River|Tellico]] rivers and had made inroads into those places. The strongest pro-French Cherokee leaders were Mankiller (''Utsidihi'') of [[Great Tellico|''Talikwa'']] (Tellico Plains), Old Caesar of Chatuga (or ''Tsatugi'', Chatooga), and Raven (''Kalanu'') of [[Great Hiwassee|''Ayuhwasi'']] (Hiwassee). The "[[Principal Chiefs of the Cherokee|First Beloved Man]]" (or ''Uku'') of the nation, [[Conocotocko I|Conocotocko]] (called "Old Hop"), was pro-French, as was his nephew, [[Conocotocko II|Conockotocko]] ("Standing Turkey"), who succeeded him after the death of the elder man in 1760.<ref>Brown, ''Eastern Cherokee Chiefs''</ref>{{Full citation needed|date=September 2021}}

The former site of the [[Coosa chiefdom]] had been abandoned for some time. It was reoccupied in 1759 by a [[Muscogee]] contingent under Big Mortar (''Yayatustanage'') in support of the pro-French Cherokee residing in Great Tellico and Chatuga. This was a step toward Yayatustanage's planned alliance of Muscogee, Cherokee, Shawnee, [[Chickasaw]], and [[Catawba people|Catawba]] peoples (which would have been the first of its kind in the South). Although such an alliance was not organized until the days of [[Dragging Canoe]], Big Mortar still rose to become leading chief of Muscogee bands after the French and Indian War.{{sfnp|Heard|1993|p=255}}{{sfnp|Adair|1971|pp=254–256, 268–272}}

==Prelude==

The Anglo-Cherokee War broke out in 1758 when the [[Virginia militia]] attacked [[Moytoy of Citico|Moytoy]] (''Amo-adawehi'') of [[Citico (Cherokee town)|Citico]] in retaliation for the alleged theft of some horses by the Cherokee. Moytoy led retaliatory raids against colonial towns along the [[Yadkin River|Yadkin]] and [[Catawba River|Catawba]] rivers in North Carolina.{{sfnp|Oliphant|2001|pp=72–78, 110–111}} This began rounds of retaliation. After 16 Cherokee hostages at [[Fort Prince George (South Carolina)|Fort Prince George]] near [[Keowee]] were killed by the panicked garrison during an attempt to move them, the Cherokee attacked and massacred the British garrison of [[Fort Loudoun (Tennessee)|Fort Loudoun]] near [[Chota (Cherokee town)|Chota]] (''Itsati'').

This conflict did not end until 1761. The Cherokee were led by [[Oconostota|''Aganstata'']] of Chota, [[Attakullakulla]] (''Atagulgalu'') of [[Tanasi]], Ostenaco of Tomotley, Wauhatchie (''Wayatsi'') of the Lower Towns, and Round O of the Middle Towns. During the second year of the French and Indian War, the British had sought Cherokee assistance against the French and their Indian allies. The British had reports, which proved accurate, that indicated the French were planning to build forts in Cherokee territory. (They had already built Fort Charleville at Great Salt Lick (now [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]]) on the [[Cumberland River]]); Fort Toulouse near present-day [[Montgomery, Alabama]]; Fort Rosalie at [[Natchez, Mississippi]]; Fort St. Pierre at modern-day [[Yazoo City, Mississippi]]; and Fort Tombeckbe on the [[Tombigbee River]]), extending their reach from some of their colonial settlements along the Gulf Coast.

Once the Cherokee agreed to be their allies, the British hastened to build forts of their own in Cherokee lands, completing Fort Prince George near [[Keowee]] in South Carolina (among the Lower Towns); and Fort Loudoun in 1756. Once the forts were built, the Cherokee raised close to 700 warriors to fight in western [[Colony of Virginia]] under Ostenaco. Oconostota and Attakullakulla led another large group to attack Fort Toulouse. In 1758, the Cherokee participated in the taking of Fort Duquesne. However, they felt their efforts were unappreciated. While traveling through Virginia on their way home, several Cherokee were murdered by Virginians. The Cherokee had been promised supplies but misunderstood where they were to get them from. After the Cherokee took some horses they believed were rightly theirs, several Virginians killed and scalped between 30 and 40 of the Cherokee warriors. Later, the Virginians claimed bounties for the scalps, saying they were Shawnee.{{sfnp|Mooney|1982|p=41}}{{sfnp|Anderson|2000|p=458}}

==War==
While some Cherokee leaders still called for peace, a few led retaliatory raids on outlying English pioneer settlements. A number of Muskogee under Big Mortar moved up to Coosawatie. These people had long been French allies in support of the Cherokee pro-French faction centered in Great Tellico.

[[Province of South Carolina|South Carolina]] Governor [[William Lyttelton, 1st Baron Lyttelton|William Henry Lyttelton]] embargoed all gunpowder shipments to the Cherokee and raised an army of 1,100 men which marched to confront the Lower Towns of the Cherokee. Desperate for ammunition for their fall and winter hunts, the nation sent a delegation of moderate chiefs to negotiate. The 38 chiefs were taken prisoner{{sfnp|Anderson|2000|p=460}} as hostages and sent to [[Fort Prince George (South Carolina)|Fort Prince George]], escorted by the provincial army.{{sfnp|Anderson|2000|p=460}} Lyttleton thought this would ensure peace.

Lyttleton returned to Charleston, but the Cherokee were angry and began to attack frontier settlements into 1760. In February 1760, they [[attacked Fort Prince George]] in an attempt to rescue their hostages. The fort's commander was killed. His replacement massacred{{sfnp|Anderson|2000|p=461}} all of the hostages and fended off the attack. This resulted in the Cherokee declaring open war against the British colonies. The Cherokee also attacked [[Ninety Six, South Carolina|Fort Ninety Six]], but it withstood the siege.

By February 1760, the Cherokee expanded their retaliatory campaign into North Carolina, as far east as modern day Winston-Salem. An attack on [[Fort Dobbs (North Carolina)|Fort Dobbs]] in North Carolina was [[repulsed]] by Colonel [[Hugh Waddell (general)|Hugh Waddell]]. However, lesser settlements in the North and South Carolina back-country quickly fell to Cherokee raids.

[[File:Draught of the Cherokee Country.jpg|thumb|250px|Timberlake's "Draught of the Cherokee Country"]]

Lyttleton appealed for help to [[Jeffery Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst|Jeffery Amherst]], the British commander in North America. Amherst sent [[Archibald Montgomerie, 11th Earl of Eglinton|Archibald Montgomerie]] with an army of 1,200 troops (the [[Royal Scots]] and [[77th Regiment of Foot (Montgomerie's Highlanders)|Montgomerie's Highlanders]]) to South Carolina. Montgomerie's campaign razed 10 Cherokee Lower Towns, including Keowee. It ended with a [[Battle of Echoee|defeat at Echoee (''Itseyi'') Pass]] when Montgomerie tried to enter the Middle Towns territory. Later in 1760, the Overhill Cherokee defeated the British colonists at a [[siege of Fort Loudoun]] and took it over.

In 1761, a second expedition against the Cherokee under [[James Grant (British Army officer, born 1720)|James Grant]] was planned. He led an army of 2,800 men (the largest force to enter the southern [[Appalachians]] to date) against the Cherokee. His army moved through the Lower Towns, defeated the Cherokee at [[Echoee Pass]], and proceeded to raze about 18 Middle Towns while burning fields of crops along the way. The army of British Regulars, Provincial Soldiers, and allied Catawba, Chickasaw, Mohawk, and Stockbridge Indians destroyed the homes and food of approximately 5,000 Cherokee people.

==Treaties==
In November 1761, the Cherokee signed the Treaty of [[Long Island (Tennessee)|Long Island on the Holston]] with the Colony of Virginia. They made peace with South Carolina in December with the Treaty of Charlestown. During the [[Timberlake Expedition]], Lt. [[Henry Timberlake]], Sgt. [[Thomas Sumter]], John McCormack (who served as their interpreter), and an unknown servant traveled into the [[Historic Cherokee settlements#Overhill settlements|Overhill settlements]] area to deliver a copy of the treaty with Virginia to the Cherokee. Timberlake's diary and map of his journey (''see above''), were published in 1765. His diary contained what historians assessed was an accurate description of Cherokee culture.

Pro-French leader Standing Turkey was deposed and replaced as "First Beloved Man" with the pro-British Attakullakulla. [[John Stuart (loyalist)|John Stuart]] became British Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Southern District, based out of [[Charlestown, South Carolina]], and was the main liaison between the Cherokee and the British government. His first deputy, Alexander Cameron, lived among the Cherokee, first at Keowee, then at Toqua on the [[Little Tennessee River]], while his second deputy, John McDonald, resided a hundred miles to the southwest on the west side of [[Chickamauga Creek]] where it was crossed by the [[Great Indian Warpath]].

During the war, many Cherokee towns had been destroyed under General Grant and were never reoccupied. The most notable of these was [[Kituwa]], the inhabitants of which migrated west, taking up residence at [[Mialoquo (Cherokee town)|Great Island Town]] (on the Little Tennessee), living among the Overhill Cherokee.<ref>Klink and Talman, p. 62</ref>{{Full citation needed|date=September 2021}} As a result of the war, Cherokee warrior strength estimated at 2,590 before the war in 1755<ref>{{harvp|Mooney|1982|p=39}}, 2,590 in 1755; 5,000 in 1739 before the great [[smallpox]] epidemic.</ref> was reduced by battle, smallpox and starvation to 2,300.{{sfnp|Mooney|1982|p=45}}

==Aftermath==
In the aftermath of the war, French [[Louisiana (New France)|Louisiana]] east of the [[Mississippi River|Mississippi]] went to the British, along with Canada, while Louisiana west of the Mississippi went to Spain; in return, [[Spanish Florida]] went to Britain, which divided it into [[East Florida]] and [[West Florida]].

After the signing of the treaties and the conclusion of the Timberlake Expedition, Henry Timberlake visited [[London]] with three Cherokee leaders: Ostenaco, Standing Turkey, and Wood Pigeon (''Ata-wayi'').{{sfnp|Evans|1976}} The Cherokee guests visited the [[Tower of London]], met the playwright [[Oliver Goldsmith]], drew massive crowds, and had an audience with King George III. On the voyage to England, their interpreter William Shorey died. This made communication nearly impossible.

Hearing of the Cherokees' warm welcome in London, South Carolinians viewed their reception as a sign of imperial favoritism at the colonists' expense, especially in view of the [[Royal Proclamation of 1763]] (which prohibited settlement west of the Appalachian Mountains), and was a foundation of one of the major irritants for the colonials leading up to the [[American Revolution]].

==See also==
* [[Cherokee–American wars]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==References==
{{Library resources box|onlinebooks=yes}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.ricehope.com/history/CherokeeWar1760.htm |title=Cherokee War 1760–1762 |publisher=Rice Hope Plantation Inn |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021012214056/http://www.ricehope.com/history/CherokeeWar1760.htm |archive-date=October 12, 2002 |url-status=dead}}
* {{cite book |last=Adair |first=James |author-link=James Adair (historian) |year=1971 |title=History of the American Indian |place=Nashville |publisher=Blue and Gray Press}}
* {{cite book |last=Anderson |first=Fred |author-link=Fred Anderson (historian) |year=2000 |title=Crucible of War: The Seven Years' War and the Fate of Empire in British North America, 1754–1766 |place=New York |publisher=Knopf |isbn=0-375-40642-5}} See ch. 47, "The Cherokee War and Amherst's Reforms in Indian Policy", pp.&nbsp;457–471.
* {{cite book |last=Brown |first=John P. |year=1938 |title=Old Frontiers: The Story of the Cherokee Indians from Earliest Times to the Date of Their Removal to the West, 1838 |place=Kingsport |publisher=Southern Publishers}}
* {{cite journal |last=Evans |first=E. Raymond |date=Summer 1976 |title=Notable Persons in Cherokee History: Ostenaco |journal=Journal of Cherokee Studies |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=41–54}}
* {{cite journal |last=French |first=Christopher |date=Summer 1977 |title=Journal of an Expedition to South Carolina |journal=Journal of Cherokee Studies |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=275–302}}
* {{cite book |last=Hatley |first=Thomas |year=1993 |title=The Dividing Paths: Cherokees and South Carolinians Through the Era of Revolution |place=New York |publisher=Oxford University Press}}
* {{cite book |last=Heard |first=J. Norman |year=1993 |title=Handbook of the American Frontier, The Southeastern Woodlands: Four Centuries of Indian–White Relationships |place=Metuchen |publisher=Scarecrow Press}}
* {{cite journal |last=Kelly |first=James C. |date=Winter 1978 |title=Notable Persons in Cherokee History: Attakullakulla |journal=Journal of Cherokee Studies |volume=3 |issue=1 |pages=2–34}}
* {{cite journal |last=Kelly |first=James C. |date=Fall 1978 |title=Oconostota |journal=Journal of Cherokee Studies |volume=3 |issue=4 |pages=221–238}}
* {{cite book |last=King |first=Duane H. |author-link=Duane H. King |year=1979 |title=The Cherokee Indian Nation: A Troubled History |place=Knoxville |publisher=University of Tennessee Press}}
* {{cite book |last=Maass |first=John R. |year=2013 |title=The French and Indian War in North Carolina: The Spreading Flames of War |place=Charleston |publisher=The History Press |isbn=1-609-49887-9}}
* {{cite book |last=Mooney |first=James |author-link=James Mooney |year=1982 |title=Myths of the Cherokee and Sacred Formulas of the Cherokee |place=Nashville |publisher=Charles and Randy Elder-Booksellers}} Also Dover, 1995.
* {{cite book |last=Oliphant |first=John |year=2001 |title=Peace and War on the Anglo-Cherokee Frontier, 1756–63 |place=Baton Rouge, LA |publisher=Louisiana State University Press}}
* {{cite book |last=Timberlake |first=Henry |author-link=Henry Timberlake |year=2007 |editor-last=King |editor-first=Duane H. |title=The Memoirs of Lt. Henry Timberlake: The Story of a Soldier, Adventurer, and Emissary to the Cherokees, 1756–1765 |place=Cherokee, N.C. |publisher=Museum of the Cherokee Indian Press}}
* {{cite book |last=Tortora |first=Daniel J. |year=2015 |title=Carolina in Crisis: Cherokees, Colonists, and Slaves in the American Southeast, 1756–1763 |place=Chapel Hill |publisher=University of North Carolina Press |isbn=1-469-62122-3}}
* {{cite book |last=Williams |first=Samuel Cole |author-link=Samuel Cole Williams |year=1928 |title=Early Travels in the Tennessee Country, 1540–1800 |place=Johnson City |publisher=Watauga Press}}

{{Cherokee}}
{{British colonial campaigns}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Colonial American and Indian wars]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1758]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1759]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1760]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1761]]
[[Category:French and Indian War]]
[[Category:18th-century Cherokee history]]
[[Category:Pre-statehood history of South Carolina]]
[[Category:Pre-statehood history of Tennessee]]
[[Category:Wars involving Great Britain]]
[[Category:Wars involving the Indigenous peoples of North America]]