Tecumseh's Vision

Tecumseh was a very significant Native American who gave his life for what he believed. He knew that the Americans were a tremendous threat to all Indian tribes, and realized that the Indians would be destroyed one by one if not united. Tecumseh created a confederation of thirty-two tribes in hopes that the Americans would recognize their borders and thus put a halt to westward expansion. His confederation may have succeeded if it were not for the mistakes made by his brother, Laulewasika, the Americans violent actions towards the Indian tribes, and the unwillingness of the different tribes to cooperate. Chief Tecumseh once uttered these words: “When your time comes to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way. Sing your death song, and die like a hero going home.” Tecumseh died nearly two hundred years ago, yet his story lives on to inspire and intrigue many. You may wonder: Why was this Indian chief so important to our country’s history? Let’s first explore Tecumseh’s early life, which in turn impacted his adulthood and made him one of the greatest Indian chiefs of all time.
Tecumseh, one of seven children, was born on March 9, 1768 just outside of present-day Xenia, Ohio. His father, Pucksinwah, was a Shawnee war chief who was killed at the Battle of Point Pleasant in 1774. Tecumseh was born into the Shawnee Indian tribe, which was located originally in Southern Ohio, West Virginia, and Western Pennsylvania, but is now scattered in South Carolina, Tennessee’s Cumberland Basin, Eastern Pennsylvania and Southern Illinois. When Tecumseh was but a mere child, the Shawnee Indian tribe was displaced by encroaching white settlers and many, including Tecumseh’s mother, relocated first in Indiana, then Illinois, and finally in Missouri. Although Tecumseh was only eleven years of age, he dearly loved the land of his birth and