Printer Friendly
Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus - The Free Dictionary
1,756,305,544 visitors served.
forum mailing list For webmasters
?
New: Language forums
Dictionary/
thesaurus
Medical
dictionary
Legal
dictionary
Financial
dictionary
Acronyms
 
Idioms
Encyclopedia
Wikipedia
encyclopedia
?

Brant, Joseph

   Also found in: Hutchinson 0.02 sec.
Brant, Joseph, 1742–1807, chief of the Mohawk. His Mohawk name is usually rendered as Thayendanegea. He served under Sir William Johnson Johnson, Sir William, 1715–74, British colonial leader in America, b. Co. Meath, Ireland. He settled (1738) in the Mohawk valley, became a merchant, and gained great power among the Mohawk and other Iroquois.
..... Click the link for more information.
 in the French and Indian War, and Johnson sent him (1761) to Eleazar Wheelock's school for Native Americans in Lebanon, Conn. Brant served (1763) under Johnson again in Pontiac's Rebellion Pontiac's Rebellion, Pontiac's Conspiracy, or Pontiac's War, 1763–66, Native American uprising against the British just after the close of the French and Indian Wars , so called after one of its leaders, Pontiac .
..... Click the link for more information.
. In the American Revolution he did much to bind the indigenous people to the British and Loyalist side. He fought (1777) at Oriskany in the Saratoga campaign. In 1778, leading the Native American forces, he joined Walter Butler Butler, Walter, 1752?–1781, Loyalist officer in the American Revolution, b. New York State; son of John Butler . He was an officer in his father's Loyalist troop, Butler's Rangers.
..... Click the link for more information.
, and together they raided Cherry Valley, where they massacred the defenseless inhabitants. He was an able leader in other raids. After the Revolution, failing to get a settlement of the Native American land question in the United States, he got lands and subsidies for his people in Canada around the present Brantford, Ont. A zealous Christian, he preached Christianity, translating the Book of Common Prayer and the Gospel of Mark into the Mohawk language.

Bibliography

See biographies by J. W. Jakes (1969), H. C. Robinson (1971), and I. T. Kelsay (1984).


Brant, Joseph

Enlarge picture
Joseph Brant, portrait by Charles Willson Peale, 1797; in Independence National Historical Park, …
(credit: Courtesy of the Independence National Historical Park Collection, Philadelphia)
(born 1742, banks of the Ohio River—died Nov. 24, 1807, near Brantford, Ont., Can.) Mohawk Indian chief and Christian missionary. Brant was converted to the Anglican church while attending a school for Indians in Connecticut. He fought for the British in the last French and Indian War (1754–63). He led four of the six Iroquois nations on the British side in the American Revolution, winning several notable battles. After the war Brant was granted land along the Grand River in Ontario, Can., where he ruled peacefully and continued his missionary work.


Brant, Joseph (b. Thayendanegea) (1742–1807) Mohawk chief; born along the Ohio River in present-day Ohio. As a young man, he sided with the British in their war against the French and was befriended by Sir William Johnson, who sent him to a school in Connecticut. Brant converted to Christianity, and returned to his people as a missionary; he translated the Episcopal Prayer Book and part of the New Testament into Mohawk. During the American Revolution, now fighting with the British against the colonists, he participated in various raids in New York State's Mohawk Valley—including the infamous Cherry Valley Massacre (1778). He ended the war with the British rank of colonel and had to move with his people into Canada. In 1785 he went to England to obtain compensation for the Indians' losses in the war. He built one of the first Episcopalian churches in Canada and although he became an advocate for peace in the 1790s he was not afraid to stand up against those who tried to take away the Mohawks' land.


How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content.
?Page tools
Printer friendly
Cite / link
Email
Feedback
? Mentioned in
 
Encyclopedia browser? ? Full browser
 
 
Encyclopedia
?

Disclaimer | Privacy policy | Feedback | Copyright © 2009 Farlex, Inc.
All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. Terms of Use.