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The Indian Department was established in 1755 to oversee relations between the
British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...
and the
First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...
of North America. The imperial government ceded control of the Indian Department to the
Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report ...
in 1860, thus setting the stage for the development of the present-day Department of Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada. During its existence, the Indian Department served both a diplomatic and a military role. Its daily responsibilities were largely civil in nature, such as the administration of justice, the management of the fur trade, and the employment of blacksmiths, teachers, and missionaries. At the same time, the Department was expected to mobilize and lead Indigenous warriors in times of crisis and conflict. Theoretically, control over the Indian Department rested with the senior-most administrator in British America, initially the Commander-in-Chief of the British forces in North America, and later the Governor General of
the Canadas The Canadas is the collective name for the provinces of Lower Canada and Upper Canada, two British colonization of the Americas, historical British colonies in present-day Canada. The two colonies were formed in 1791, when the British Parliament ...
. In practice, Indian Affairs were managed by the senior officers of the Indian Department themselves, upon whose advice the Governors General depended.


Mission

During the period 1755–1830, the mission of the Indian Department can be summarized as protecting the indigenous peoples from exploitation by traders and land speculators (one of the goals of the
Royal Proclamation of 1763 The Royal Proclamation of 1763 was issued by British King George III on 7 October 1763. It followed the Treaty of Paris (1763), which formally ended the Seven Years' War and transferred French territory in North America to Great Britain. The ...
; negotiations with the
First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...
about boundaries between their land and that of the agricultural colonists (such as the Treaty of Fort Stanwix 1768); distribute the gifts that the government gave to the indigenous people in order to create goodwill. First Nations who lived on American territory in the Midwest received gifts until 1830; in war, induce First Nations to support Britain with auxiliary troops (during the War of 1812, the Department acted in close cooperation with Chief Tecumseh).Kawashima, Yasuhide (1988). "Colonial Government Agencies." ''Handbook of North American Indians, Volume 4: History of Indian-White Relations.'' Washington DC: Smithsonian Institution, pp. 245-254. During the period 1830–1860, the Department's major mission was to administrate the
Indian Reserves In Canada, an Indian reserve () or First Nations reserve () is defined by the ''Indian Act'' as a "tract of land, the legal title to which is vested in Her Majesty, that has been set apart by Her Majesty for the use and benefit of a band." R ...
.Douglas Sanders, "Government Indian Agencies in Canada", ''Handbook of North American Indians, Volume 4: History of Indian-White Relations'' (Washington DC: Smithsonian Institution, 1988): 276-283.


Organization


Subordination

During the period 1755–1796 the Commander-in-Chief, North America issued instructions for the Indian Department and maintained close connections with it. Yet, the Department was not directly subordinated to him, but to the
Home Office The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigr ...
in London. In 1796, the Indian Department of
Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada () was a Province, part of The Canadas, British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the Province of Queb ...
became subordinated to the Lieutenant Governor of that province, while in 1800, the Governor General became responsible for the Department in
Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada () was a British colonization of the Americas, British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence established in 1791 and abolished in 1841. It covered the southern portion o ...
. In 1816, the Indian Department in both Canadas was subordinated to the British commander-in-chief. The Department was again in 1830 divided into two departments; one in Upper Canada under the Lieutenant Governor, one in Lower Canada under the Military Secretary to the Governor General. The two departments were again merged and coming under the Governor General in 1840.


Internal organization

In 1755, there were two departments, the Northern Department and the Southern Department; each having its own superintendent. The boundary between them ran along the
Ohio River The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...
and the Potomac. During the American Revolutionary War, the Southern Department was divided into two; one in the west and one in the east. In 1782 the departments received a common superintendent. After the Treaty of Paris of 1783, the area of responsibility became limited to Canada and the departments were formally merged into one organization. The office of superintendent was abolished in 1844 and the direct leadership was taken over ''ex officio'' by the Civil Secretary to the Governor-General.


History


The early Indian Department, 1755-1774

Before 1755, responsibility for maintaining diplomatic relations with the Indigenous nations of North America rested with the individual British colonies. It was only the outbreak of the
Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...
that impelled the British Empire to centralize the management of Indian Affairs. Accordingly, Sir William Johnson was granted a special commission as Superintendent of Indian Affairs in 1755 in order to mobilize allied Indigenous warriors in the struggle against
New France New France (, ) was the territory colonized by Kingdom of France, France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Kingdom of Great Br ...
, and to win over or neutralize the Indigenous allies of the French. Initially, the administration of Indian Affairs in British America was divided into two geographical departments. The superintendent of the northern department, responsible for negotiations with the Indians living north of the Ohio River, was Sir William Johnson who held the position until his death in 1774. Sir William was succeeded by his nephew and heir, Guy Johnson, who served as superintendent of Indian Affairs for the northern department until 1782. The first superintendent for the Southern Department was Edmond Atkins, starting in 1756. John Stuart became the Superintendent for the Southern Department in 1762, serving until his death in 1779.


American Revolution, 1775-1782

During the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
, the Indian Department proved to be one of the most effective military forces at the disposal of the British Empire. Many Indigenous communities were bitterly opposed to the American settlers who had risen in rebellion, and therefore they made natural allies to the Loyalist cause.
Joseph Brant Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant (March 1743 – November 24, 1807) was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York and, later, Brantford, in what is today Ontario, who was closely associated with Great Britain du ...
rose to prominence as a leader of the Mohawk during the American Revolutionary War, during which he was appointed as a captain in the Indian Department. His sister Molly Brant also played a critical role in the Indian Department during this time, and was afterwards granted a pension from the British government for her services during the Revolution.


Northern Frontier

Fighting was particularly brutal in northern New York, where the homeland of the Six Nations was located.
Sir John Johnson Brigadier-general (United Kingdom), Brigadier-General Sir John Johnson, 2nd Baronet (5 November 1741 – 4 January 1830) was an American-born military officer, politician and landowner who fought as a Loyalist (American Revolution), Loyalist dur ...
and John Butler were among the most active members of the Indian Department on this front. After the major British defeat at the Battles of Saratoga in 1777, warfare in this region consisted mostly of violent raids and counter raids. In 1778, The British Indian Department and its allies secured important victories at the
Battle of Wyoming The Battle of Wyoming, also known as the Wyoming Massacre, was a military engagement during the American Revolutionary War between Patriot militia and a force of Loyalist soldiers and Iroquois warriors. The battle took place in the Wyoming Val ...
and the Raid on Cherry Valley. In the autumn of 1779, the American
Sullivan Expedition The 1779 Sullivan Expedition (also known as the Sullivan-Clinton Expedition, the Sullivan Campaign, and the Sullivan-Clinton Campaign) was a United States military campaign under the command of General John Sullivan (general), John Sullivan duri ...
was largely successful in destroying the corn fields and villages of the Six Nations. In revenge, Sir John Johnson and his Indigenous allies carried out a substantial raid against the settlements of upstate New York in 1780, known as the Burning of the Valleys.


Ohio Country

The Indian Department also saw extensive fighting in the Ohio Valley region, where Alexander McKee, Matthew Elliott, and
Simon Girty Simon Girty (14 November 1741 – 18 February 1818) was an interpreter with the British Indian Department during the American Revolutionary War and Northwest Indian War. As a child he and his brothers James and George were captured and adopted b ...
were among the most effective Loyalist partisans of the war. Major engagements involving the Indian Department on this front included Captain Bird's Invasion of Kentucky, Crawford's Defeat, and the Battle of Blue Licks. The British Indian Department was particularly successful mobilizing warriors against the Americans in the Ohio Country following the massacre at Gnadenhutten of 96 pacifist Christian Munsee by Pennsylvania militiamen on March 8, 1782.


After the Revolution, 1782-1812

file:Thayendanegea (Joseph Brant) by William Berczy - 1802-1812.jpg, upright=1.1,
Joseph Brant Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant (March 1743 – November 24, 1807) was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York and, later, Brantford, in what is today Ontario, who was closely associated with Great Britain du ...
, a leading force in the Department from the era of the American Revolution until his death in 1807 After the end of the Revolutionary War, Guy Johnson was removed from his position as Superintendent General of the Indian Department on suspicion of corruption. He was replaced by his brother-in-law Sir John Johnson, who held the position for nearly half a century until his death in 1830.


Northwest War and Jay Treaty

During much of the period after the Revolution, the Indian Department was deeply concerned with the ongoing struggle between the Indigenous communities of the Ohio Valley and the young American republic. In the 1790s, this conflict flared into the
Northwest Indian War The Northwest Indian War (1785–1795), also known by other names, was an armed conflict for control of the Northwest Territory fought between the United States and a united group of Native Americans in the United States, Native American na ...
. Despite tacit support from the Indian Department, the British Empire never openly sided with the Indigenous warriors. At the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794 the Northwestern Confederacy was defeated, leading the
Treaty of Greenville The Treaty of Greenville, also known to Americans as the Treaty with the Wyandots, etc., but formally titled ''A treaty of peace between the United States of America, and the tribes of Indians called the Wyandots, Delawares, Shawanees, Ottawas ...
in 1795. American victory in the Northwest War was followed by the
Jay Treaty The Treaty of Amity, Commerce, and Navigation, Between His Britannic Majesty and the United States of America, commonly known as the Jay Treaty, and also as Jay's Treaty, was a 1794 treaty between the United States and Great Britain that averted ...
between the United States and the British Empire in 1796. While this treaty stipulated that the British, including the Indian Department, had to withdraw from the posts on American territory that the Empire had continued to occupy in defiance of the Treaty of Paris of 1783, it also contained a clause allowing Indigenous peoples to freely cross back and forth across the newly established international border. This clause allowed the Indian Department to continue to maintain close connections with Indigenous communities living in U.S. territory, such as the Shawnee, the Odawa, the Potawatomi, and the Dakota.


Removal to Canada

Following the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, and again after the signing of Jay's Treaty, many members of the Indian Department removed themselves from their homes in what is today the United States and established themselves in Canada as Loyalists. Sir John Johnson became one of the leading men of the Montreal region, while Alexander McKee was one of the founding settlers in western
Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada () was a Province, part of The Canadas, British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the Province of Queb ...
. The migration of the Six Nations of the Grand River with Joseph Brant and the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte with John Deseronto to the
Province of Quebec Quebec is Canada's largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, New Brunswick to the southeast and a coastal border ...
was part of this movement. A separate head of the Indian Department in Upper Canada, called the Deputy Superintendent General, was created in 1794. Alexander McKee was the first Deputy Superintendent General of Upper Canada, from 1794 until his death in 1799. He was succeeded by William Claus, who served from 1799 until his death in 1826.


War of 1812

The Indian Department again played an important part in the
War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...
, mobilizing warriors to defeat the United States in a number of important battles from Montreal to the Mississippi River. The Indian Department was particularly important in supporting the revival movement led by
Tenskwatawa Tenskwatawa (; also called Tenskatawa, Tenskwatawah, Tensquatawa or Lalawethika) (January 1775 – November 1836) was a Native Americans in the United States, Native American religious and political leader of the Shawnee tribe, known as the P ...
, the Shawnee Prophet, and his brother Tecumseh. Indeed, many members of the Department, like George Ironside Sr. and Matthew Elliott, had family connections to the Shawnee. Other prominent members of the Department during the War of 1812 include Joseph Brant's son, John Brant, Joseph Brant's adopted heir, John Norton, and Sir Willian Johnson's grandson, William Claus. During the War of 1812, a uniform was established for the Indian Department for the first time, consisting of a red jacket faced with green on the collar and cuffs. One of the primary objectives of the British Indian Department and its First Nations allies was the establishment of an Indian barrier state in American territory that would be both an Indigenous homeland free of American settlers and an extra line of defence for British Canada. The defeat of Tecumseh's confederacy at the Battle of the Thames in 1813 was a heavy blow to this project. However, even after this setback the Indian Department won a number of important victories alongside its Indigenous allies, including the Battle of Michilimackinac and the Siege of Prairie du Chien in the summer of 1814.


Treaty of Ghent

During the war, the British Indian Department made repeated promises that the First Nations would not be abandoned in any peace treaty made with the United States. Despite these assurances, the
Treaty of Ghent The Treaty of Ghent () was the peace treaty that ended the War of 1812 between the United States and the United Kingdom. It took effect in February 1815. Both sides signed it on December 24, 1814, in the city of Ghent, United Netherlands (now in ...
that ended the war in 1815 did not contain any provision for an Indian barrier state. Similar to the situation after the Treaty of Paris in 1783, the Indigenous communities that had taken up arms as allies of the British were once again abandoned. There is substantial evidence that this betrayal deeply disturbed the members of the British Indian Department. Lieutenant Colonel Robert McDouall, temporarily in charge of the Indian Department at
Michilimackinac Michilimackinac ( ) is derived from an Ottawa Ojibwe name for present-day Mackinac Island and the region around the Straits of Mackinac between Lake Huron and Lake Michigan.. Early settlers of North America applied the term to the entire region ...
, wrote many lengthy dispatches decrying the abandonment of Great Britain's Indigenous allies.


Post-war period, 1815-1860

Given the increased military importance of the Indian Department following the War of 1812, the separate branches in Upper and Lower Canada were reunified under the military control of the Commander of the Forces in 1816. In 1830, the Indian Department was again divided into separate Upper and Lower Canadian branches. In the upper province,
Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...
Sir John Colborne appointed veteran agent James Givins as Chief Superintendent to oversee the Upper Canadian branch. After Givins retired in 1837, he was replaced by Samuel Peters Jarvis. In Lower Canada, Duncan Campbell Napier became the senior member of the Indian Department following the death of Sir John Johnson in 1830. Napier remained at the head of the Indian Department in what is today Quebec until his retirement in 1857. During the
Rebellions of 1837–1838 The Rebellions of 1837–1838 (), were two armed rebellion, uprisings that took place in Lower Canada, Lower and Upper Canada in 1837 and 1838. Both rebellions were motivated by frustrations with lack of political reform. A key shared goal was r ...
, the Indian Department again mobilized warriors to put down the internal insurrections and the numerous Patriot invasions from American territory.


Transfer to the Canadian government

In 1841, the Canadas were amalgamated into the
Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report ...
, and the Governor General assumed direct oversight of the Indian Department. In practice, his secretary handled most of the day-to-day operations of the department. This situation continued until 1860, when the British government transferred responsibility for the Indian Department to the government of the Province of Canada. During the fifteen years leading up to the transfer of the Indian Department, many of its old practises were discarded, including most prominently the annual giving of presents to those Indigenous communities who were in alliance with the British Crown.


Gallery of prominent members


Rank structure

The Indian Department did not belong to the army but was organized along military lines.Chartrand, Renee (2008). ''American Loyalist Troops 1775-1784.'' Osprey Publishing, pp. 18-19, 22, 24, 43. During wars, the Department's officers in the field acted as instructors and advisers to the auxiliary forces made available by the First Nations.Homfray Irving, L. (1908). ''Officers of the British Forces in Canada during the War of 1812.'' Welland Tribune Print, p. 208-216.


See also

*
Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States List of United States federal agencies, federal agency within the U.S. Department of the Interior, Department of the Interior. It is responsible for im ...
, United States *
Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada Crown''–''Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC; )''Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of Crown''–''Indigenou ...
* The Canadian Crown and Indigenous peoples of Canada * Canadian units of the War of 1812


References

{{Reflist British Indian Department History of Indigenous peoples in Canada Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Development Canada Indigenous affairs ministries Ministries established in 1755 Defunct departments of the Government of the United Kingdom 1755 establishments in the British Empire Canadian military units and formations of the War of 1812 War of 1812