11 - The Redstick War

Summary

While the Seminoles were at war in 1812, Creek leaders had worked to crush dissent, punishing and executing warriors involved in a series of political crimes inspired by Tecumseh. Their actions not only imposed law on an unwilling people but also steered the nation away from the religious renewal sweeping through Indian peoples in the early nineteenth century. The conflict between national leaders and Creek dissidents remained circumscribed within the limited compass of crime and punishment until April 1813 when victims of the national council's police force struck back at their persecutors, killing a number of the nation's warriors. The attack marked the beginning of a violent and devastating civil war in which the United States would play a pivotal role. On one side, Redstick Creeks, named for the red clubs that they wielded, challenged the power and property of Creek leaders. On the other, Creek leaders and their U.S. allies defended the new order. By March 1814, when Andrew Jackson struck a decisive blow against the Redsticks at Tohopeka (Horseshoe Bend), many Creek towns had been completely destroyed and the Muskogee peoples permanently divided.

A year before the conflict, in March 1812, national leaders had assured Hawkins that their people were “now more occupied than ever in our domestic concerns, spining, weaving and farming.” They looked forward to the arrival of a new blacksmith and to the delivery of spinning wheels and cotton cards.