British Influence Turned the Indians From Civilized to Savage-Like Essa

British Influence Turned the Indians From Civilized to Savage-Like The average British citizen in America during the 17th Century had a preconceived mental picture of Indians as feral beasts. However, before the arrival of the British, the New England Indians, specifically the Wampanoag tribe, lived a harmonious and interdependent lifestyle. Conflict among the Wampanoag was limited to minor tribal disputes. The state of war methods of the Indians were in fact more civilize than the British methods. The close maintenance quarters of the British and Indians forced the Indians to adopt aspects of British civilization in order to survive, such as the moods of warfare. Douglas Leach in his control Flintlock and Tomahawk New England in the time of great power Philips fight argues that British influence on Indian society turned the Indians from savage to civilized. This paper will argue that British influence turned the Indians from civilized to savage. The examination of Wampan oag behavior from before British influence through male monarch Philips War proves that Wampanoag beliefs became more materialistic, that land ownership became important, and that unnecessary violence became a part of their warfare. The way the Indians conducted war, although it appeared primitive and frightening, in actuality was less barbaric than the Puritans way of warfare. Leach describes the Wampanoag way of battle as unsophisticated and dance some a fire beating drums with their faces painted in order to expose their ferocious manners. Then, using bows and arrows, tomahawks, and knives the Indians would send small groups of warriors against their enemy village. As a form of revenge during war the Indians often scalped their enemies as a prize or captured their enemies for... ... in reality the Indians showed more civility than the British. It was not until the credence of British methods that the Indians behavior became uncivilized, ruthless and cruel. Works Cited An derson, Virginia DeJohn. King Philips Herds Indians, Colonists, and the Problem of origin in Early New England. William and Mary Quarterly 51.(1994) 601-624 Drake, James D. King Philips War Civil War in New England 1675-1676. mama University of Massachusetts Press, 1999. Hirsch, Adam J. The Collision of Military Cultures in Seventeenth-Century New England. The Journal of American History. 74. 4 (1988) 1187-1212. Leach, Douglas E. flintlock and Tomahawk New England in King Philips War. NewYork Norton, 1959 Salisbury, Neal, ed. The reign and Goodness of God by Mary Rowlandson with Related Documents. Boston Bedford Books, 1997.