The Beaver Wars

The Beaver Wars examines the numerous gruelling campaigns fought by the Indians of the Northeastern Woodlands of North America during the seventeenth century. Drawing on contemporary accounts and documents, recorded oral evidence, research papers and published works by Indigenous scholars and others, the book places the motives and actions of Indigenous peoples at the centre of these conflicts.

Although ‘the Beaver Wars’ is perhaps the best-known name for the period, it is used here as a convenient collective title. In reality, these were a series of distinct conflicts fought for differing reasons, many of which had little to do with access to the fur trade. Instead, Indigenous peoples pursued their own political, military and strategic objectives as they sought to maintain security and a balance of power in a rapidly changing world.

Warfare, governed by social and spiritual conventions and conducted largely through small-scale raids, was already a feature of Indigenous life before the arrival of Europeans. As firearms became increasingly available, warfare grew more lethal and the traditional use of armour and shields gradually declined. Epidemics of previously unknown diseases contributed to large-scale raids known as ‘Mourning Wars’, in which captives were taken for adoption to help restore the demographic and spiritual strength of depleted communities. Conflict also arose through relationships with European powers, competition over trade and land, and the obligations created by political and military alliances.

To place these wars in their wider context, The Beaver Wars explores daily life, beliefs and systems of government, as well as the conduct of warfare, from the formation of a war party to its return home. It also examines changing military tactics and the dress and material culture of the period.

Offering a detailed examination of warfare and society during a transformative period in North American history, The Beaver Wars will appeal to military historians, readers interested in Indigenous history and culture and the colonisation of North America, and wargamers looking to explore a less familiar theatre of warfare.