Guyasuta

Guyasuta (c. 1725–c. 1794; , "standing crosses", or , "he stands up to the cross" or "he sets up the cross") was an important Native American leader of the Seneca people in the second half of the eighteenth century, playing a central role in the diplomacy and warfare of that era. Although he became friends with George Washington in 1753, he sided with the French against Britain during the French and Indian War and fought against the British in Pontiac's War. He later supported the British during the American Revolutionary War. In his final years, he engaged in peacemaking to end the Northwest Indian War.

Early life and family

Born in a Mingo community in upstate New York, probably on the Genesee River, he and his family migrated along the Allegheny River and after 1725 they settled in Logstown, a mostly-Haudenosaunee village in Pennsylvania. Guyasuta was a maternal uncle to Cornplanter and Handsome Lake. He was distantly related to Governor Blacksnake and Red Jacket.

Journey with Washington, 1753

George Washington (left) meeting with French military commander Jacques Legardeur de Saint-Pierre at Fort Le Boeuf in 1753. In the background are Tanacharison and another Indian from Logstown, possibly Guyasuta. Guyasuta first appears in colonial records when he met the 21-year-old George Washington, who had been assigned to deliver a message to the French commandant at Fort Leboeuf. In late 1753, Virginia Governor Dinwiddie appointed newly-commissioned Major Washington as a special envoy to demand that the French vacate the Ohio Country, which the British had claimed. Arriving with Christopher Gist in Logstown on November 23, Washington held council with Native American leaders, including Shingas, Scarouady, and Tanacharison. Washington explained his mission and received assurances that the Indians and the English "were brothers." Tanacharison told Washington that "he cou’d not consent to our going without a Guard, for fear some Accident shou’d befall us," and volunteered to accompany Washington, along with Kaghswaghtaniunt (White Thunder), Guyasuta, and Jeskakake. Their purpose was to return three belts of wampum sent by the French as a symbol of friendship. Returning the wampum was a gesture intended to show that the sachems at Logstown were allied with the English. Washington wrote in his diary that "I knew that returning of Wampum was the abolishing of Agreements; & giving this up was shaking of all Dependence upon the French." Guyasuta referred to George Washington as "Tall Hunter," and is referred to as "The Hunter," and "one of their best Hunters," in Washington's journal, Journey to the French Commandant.

Washington and his men left Logstown on November 30 and reached Venango at French Creek on December 4, where they were warmly greeted by Philippe-Thomas Chabert de Joncaire, who was in command of the French troops at Venango. Joncaire provided Washington's men with wine and brandy, and when intoxicated, Washington's Native American companions, including Guyasuta, declared their loyalty to the French. It took Washington three days to persuade them to move on to Fort Le Boeuf, where they met the French commander Jacques Legardeur de Saint-Pierre. Tanacharison tried to return the wampum to Saint-Pierre, "who evaded taking it, & made many fair Promises of Love & Friendship; said he wanted to live in Peace & trade amicably with them; as a Proof of which, he wou’d send some Goods immediately down to the Logstown for them.

French and Indian War

Battle of the Monongahela

Native American warriors attacking British troops at the Battle of the Monongahela.In July 1755, as the Braddock Expedition marched towards Fort Duquesne, the French recruited Native American warriors, including Odawas, Ojibwes, Mississaugas, and Ohio Valley Indians including Guyasuta, to assist in its defense. When Guyasuta met Washington again in Ohio in October 1770,

Delegation to Montreal

Guyasuta was recognized for his participation in the victory, and in late 1755 was selected to lead a party of twenty Senecas to visit Montreal accompanied by Philippe-Thomas Chabert de Joncaire, who served as interpreter. At the Château Vaudreuil the Indians were received in the council chamber with much ceremony by the Governor General of Canada, the Marquis de Vaudreuil.

Battle of Fort Duquesne

In September 1758, Guyasuta was again called to defend Fort Duquesne when the Forbes Expedition arrived. A reconnaissance force under Major James Grant had gone ahead, and Grant decided to attack the fort, thinking that the garrison would be easily overcome. Instead, in the ensuing Battle of Fort Duquesne, French marines and Native American warriors overwhelmed Grant's troops, capturing him. James Smith described the battle: "The French and Indians knew not that Grant and his men were there until they beat the drum and played upon the bagpipes, just at daylight. They then flew to arms, and the Indians ran up under cover of the banks of Allegheny and Monongahela, for some distance, and then sallied out from the banks of the rivers, and took possession of the hill above Grant; and as he was on the point of it in sight of the fort, they immediately surrounded him, and as he had his Highlanders in ranks, and in very close order, and the Indians scattered, and concealed behind trees, they defeated him with the loss only of a few warriors; most of the Highlanders were killed or taken prisoners."

Guyasuta's warriors decapitated the bodies of Grant's highlanders and impaled the heads on stakes in front of the fort.

Battle of Loyalhanna

In October 1758, Guyasuta led a force of warriors in the Battle of Loyalhanna, together with 450 French troops under the command of Charles Philippe Aubry and 150 Lenape led by Keekyuscung, but the British, under the command of Colonel James Burd, repulsed the attack. Croghan once referred to Guyasuta as "a Sencable good Tempered Indian." Croghan learned that Guyasuta and Tahaiadoris were planning to incite the tribes around Detroit, the Odawa, Potawatomi, and Wyandot, to surprise the garrison there and take over the fort, giving their warriors access to abundant stores of guns and ammunition. Next, the nations in the Ohio River Valley, the Lenape, Shawnee, and Miami (Twightwee), would attack the smaller forts around Fort Pitt. The Mingo and other League members would attack and capture the French-built forts of Presque Isle, Fort Le Boeuf, and Fort Venango. Finally, the Haudenosaunee Six Nations Confederacy would cut communications between Fort Niagara, Oswego, and the Mohawk Valley.

This scheme assumed that the French would support the uprising with weaponry and hopefully troops. Guyasuta and Tahaiadoris also suggested forming an alliance with the Cherokee, who were traditional enemies of the Haudenosaunee. Guyasuta's interpreter revealed the plot to the commander at Fort Detroit, and an Odawa chief confirmed the allegation, identifying Guysuta as the "bad bird among us." Guyasuta confessed his involvement in the scheme to Croghan several years later.

Guyasuta and Tahaiadoris visited several of the Ohio Valley tribes and sent wampum war belts to tribes in the Illinois country, trying to convene a war conference in Sandusky, but many tribal leaders were skeptical of their plan. Native American communities were still recovering from the French and Indian War and were not ready to make enemies of the British and their powerful armies. Even Jeffery Amherst, Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in the British Army, dismissed the scheme, doubting that the tribes could coordinate such a massive and complex operation. But Amherst then began implementing policies that increased tension among Native Americans. He demanded that captives be returned and that Native Americans accused of committing crimes against white settlers be tried and punished according to British law. He also severely restricted the quantity and types of goods to be sold or given to the Indians, particularly firearms and alcohol. Amherst was opposed to the practice of gift-giving, a traditional part of Native American alliances, as he felt this supported a "culture of dependency." This created a wave of anger and resentment that Pontiac exploited in 1763, after it was announced that France had signed a peace treaty with Britain and the Pays d'en Haut would come under British control, contrary to previous British promises to leave the region.

Although the Seneca remained neutral during the war, Guyasuta and other Seneca warriors took part in the capture of Fort Venango, A few days later, Guyasuta and his warriors joined in the assault on Fort Presque Isle and then participated in the siege of Fort Pitt. They were defeated at the Battle of Bushy Run. |group="Note" Guyasuta signed a preliminary peace agreement on August 12 1764, and participated in the handover of captives,

In October 1774, Guyasuta, passing through Philadelphia while on a mission from the tribes in the Illinois and Ohio country to Guy Johnson, superintendent of Indian affairs for the northern British Indian Department, encountered Washington, who was in the city for the First Continental Congress.

Meetings with David McClure and Sir William Johnson, 1772

The failure of Pontiac's War led Guyasuta, and other Native American leaders, to understand that negotiating with the white man had the potential to improve trade relations and confer some protection, as long as Native Americans adopted ways that Europeans regarded as "civilized." Accordingly, Guyasuta purchased fine clothes and a carriage, and began to learn English, using Simon Girty as his interpreter until he became fluent in 1775. He traveled to cities in Pennsylvania and New York, went to scientific presentations, and promoted values and ideas he knew would be respected by colonial Americans.

On August 18 1772, he met by chance with the newly-ordained Presbyterian missionary David McClure, on a Pennsylvania road. McClure was on his way to preach to the Lenape people, and later described the encounter in his diary: "Aug. 18. Crossed the Laurel hanning, a pleasant stream which runs through Ligonier, & rode to Col. Proctor's. Here we found Kiahshutah, Chief of the Senecas, on his way to Philadelphia & from thence Sr. Wm. Johnson's, who, as his interpreter Simon Girty informed us, had sent for him...He was dressed in a scarlet cloth turned up with lace, & a high gold laced hat, & made a martial appearance. He had a very sensible countenance & dignity of manners. His interpreter informed him of the business on which we were going. I asked him his opinion of it. He paused a few moments, & replied that he was afraid it would not succeed; for said he, 'the Indians are a roving people, & they will not attend to your instructions; but take courage & make trial. The King of the Delawares & the warriors are now at home, & you will see them.'"

On November 11, the Pennsylvania Gazette reported: "On Saturday last Kayashuta, the Great Seneca Chief, returned to this city from Johnson Hall, where he has been on a visit to Sir William Johnson, of the greatest Importance to the Colonies. The Entertainment he received, when last here, at seeing a few Electrical Experiments, has so engaged his attention and admiration, that we are informed, his first Enquiry at his Return was, whether he could have another Opportunity of seeing Thunder and Lightning produced by human art? And we hear he is determined to attend Mr. Kinnersley's lectures at the College on Thursday and Friday Evenings next."

American Revolutionary War

At the outset of the American Revolutionary War, Guyasuta sided with the British, like most Haudenosaunee, although he initially argued that the Seneca should remain neutral. Guyasuta worked to persuade the Mingo to remain neutral, and in recognition of his services, the Continental Congress awarded him a silver gorget and a colonel's commission.

In August and September 1779, Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Brodhead directed a series of raids against the Senecas living in southwestern New York State. Brodhead and a contingent of soldiers and militia went from Fort Pitt, up the Allegheny River into New York, intending to drive the Seneca out of their villages. Most of the warriors were away fighting General John Sullivan, and Guyasuta led thirty Seneca warriors to oppose Brodhead. In a brief skirmish at Brokenstraw Creek, five Seneca warriors were killed before they fled. Guyasuta later appeared at Fort Niagara demanding a hundred soldiers to defend Seneca communities, but the British commander refused, and Brodhead's men killed people, destroyed crops and burned over 130 Seneca homes without meeting any resistance. Guyasuta continued to raid farms and homesteads in the area for several days afterwards.

In October 1790, Guyasuta, Cornplanter, Half-Town, Great Tree, and other Seneca leaders went to Philadelphia, staying until March 1791 while they met with federal and state officials to discuss food aid and other assistance for the Seneca people. During their visit, Guyasuta delivered an address to the Quakers of Philadelphia, seeking assistance and addressing them as the sons of "Brother Onas" (a term referring to William Penn): "When I was young and strong, our country was full of game which the good Spirit sent for us to live upon...Hunting was then not tiresome; it was diversion; it was pleasure. When your fathers asked land from my nation, we gave it to them, for we had more than enough. Guyasuta was among the first people to say, 'give land to our brother Onas for he wants it,' and [Guyasuta] has always been a friend to Onas and his children. But you are too far off to see him. Now he is grown old. He is very old, and he wonders at his own shadow; it has become so little. He has no children to take care of him and the game is driven away by the white people so that the young men must hunt all day long to find game for themselves to eat; they have nothing left for Guyasuta; and it is not Guyasuta only who is become old and feeble, there yet remain about thirty men of your old friends, who, unable to provide for themselves or to help one another, are become poor and are hungry and naked...I have no other friends but you, the children of our beloved Brother Onas." As he saw his dream of a peaceful and strong Native American nation crumble, he turned to alcohol. After the trial, Brady's attorney expressed his surprise to Guyasuta at the forcefulness of his testimony. Placing his hand on his heart, Guyasuta replied, "Am I not the friend of Brady?"

Later life and death

1917 statue of Guyasuta (right) by Charles Keck, on the North Side Point Bridge spanning the Allegheny River at Pittsburgh, before it was dismantled in 1970.Towards the end of his life, Guyasuta lived in poverty in a cabin outside Sharpsburg, Pennsylvania. General James O'Hara purchased much of the land in that area in 1778, He was seriously ill by February 1, 1794, when Cornplanter wrote to Isaac Craig: "He is alive & that is all." According to one account, after Guyasuta had not been seen for several days, O’Hara found him dead on his cabin floor in 1794,

Burial controversy

William McCullough Darlington, who later purchased O'Hara's estate, maintained that Guyasuta was buried there, however other sources claim that he was buried on the Cornplanter Tract (near Corydon, Pennsylvania). There is strong evidence that his grave is at Custaloga Town Scout Reservation, now a Boy Scout camp located along French Creek at the former site of Chief Custaloga's village in French Creek Township, Pennsylvania. A stone monument to Guyasuta was erected by Charles William Heydrick near the supposed site of his burial in 1915. The monument stands in a Native American burial ground, owned by the Heydrick family since 1798. The land was donated to the Mercer County Historical Society in 1965. At the burial site is a broken headstone inscribed with "GUY-A-SOOTER 1810," which was the date of Guyasuta's death and burial, according to Charles Heydrick, who spoke to a local settler in 1819: "John Martin, Jr., who could converse in the Indian tongue, informed me that he made the coffin and assisted in burying a chief. They placed in the coffin his camp kettle, filled with soup; his rifle, tomahawk, knife, trinkets, and trophies. I think they called him 'Guyasooter.'" A statue of Guyasuta, sculpted in 1915 by Charles Keck, was part of the North Side Point Bridge, built in 1917 and demolished in 1970. The sculpture was purchased for $1 million by the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation, which kept it and a matching sculpture of Christopher Gist at the foundation's Pittsburgh headquarters. In 2016 the sculptures were relocated to a plaza on Art Rooney Avenue near Heinz Field.

A statue of Guyasuta stands at the intersection of Main and North Canal Streets in Sharpsburg, Pennsylvania. A brass plaque at the base of the statue states that Guyasuta "was probably buried in the area now occupied by the north end of the Highland Park Bridge."

The Allegheny Reservoir, the artificial lake created by the Kinzua Dam on the Allegheny River, has a beach and camping park named "Kiasutha Recreation Area." Guyasuta Station was the name of the Sharpsburg railroad station, built in 1900. The Laurel Highlands Council of the Boy Scouts of America has a camp property near Sharpsburg named in his honor.

Since 2021, the Heinz History Center has sponsored an exhibit on the life and legacy of Guyasuta, at the Fort Pitt Museum.

Popular culture

Guyasuta is a prominent character in Calvin Boal's 2013 historical novel, St. George's Cross and the Siege of Fort Pitt: Battle of Three Empires.

He is also a character in The King's Orchard, (1968) a historical novel by Agnes Sligh Turnbull.

Guyasuta was portrayed by Boris Karloff in the 1947 film Unconquered.