by Laurence Burrows.
Hardback (7.0×10.0 inches). 394 pages. 2025.
Subtitle: Indigenous Peoples During the Period of the Seven Years War in North America 1752-1766
Most books on the Seven Years War in North America, which we on this side of the pond call the French & Indian War, don’t spend a lot of time on the Native Americans, which we on this side of the pond used to call Indians. Both the British and French sides appealed to Native Americans to join them against the enemy and many did, maybe even with the name of the tribe, too.
This book offers a far more comprehensive accounting of the diplomacy and the tribes’ participation as well as the social and political interactions among the tribes. The text navigates these complex relationships with insight, providing explicit explanations about what tribes did as well as why they chose to take various actions.
The use of belts as the equivalent of passports, for peace or war, was a surprise to me. Yet it shows the tribes had a great organization among themselves.
Hundreds of skirmishes, including Jumonville, Monogahela, and many more, receive ample detail to set up a tabletop battlefield, although terrain will often need a bit more work to uncover in other sources. The warriors excelled at woodland skills, mostly because when they warred with other tribes, the other tribes had similar skills. The use of L- or V-shaped ambushes were specialties of most warriors, who fought less under orders and more under suggestions from a war-chief. Sieges, often with European troops, are also discussed.
One surprise is that while certain tribes tortured and slaughtered captives with ruthless disdain, other tribes treated their captives well and even transferred them to the French or British for eventual exchange. Some were claimed and kept as members of the tribe, later encountered as part of trading expeditions or as translators.
The book contains 14 black and white maps (no scale), four black and white illustrations, 14 color illustrations (including uniformed figures), 28 color photos, and four color maps.
As someone who knew few details about Native American participation in the French & Indian War, this book was quite the eye-opener. I admit I stumbled over the tribe and warrior names, but this book provides a fantastic launching point to learn about Native American contributions during the war — on both sides.
Enjoyed it.
— Reviewed by Russ Lockwood
