On a mission of peace Hiawatha faced hardship as he united the people of the Iroquois nation.
The Iroquois are a mix of various nations that formed an alliance together. The nations that make up the Iroquois are the Mohawks, Onondagas, Oneidas, Cayugas and Senecas. These tribes were located in upstate New York and are believed to have been a set of unified tribes since before European contact. They were not always a unified group; it took the courage of one man to bring them together in peace.
According to legend the Iroquois had been a unified tribe under Algonquin domination. They escaped and migrated to upstate New York where they broke into various fractions that began to fight amongst each other causing immense devastation. One day the messenger De-ka-nah-wi-da came to the area bearing a message of happiness and peace. He had a plan from the Sky God himself to bring about peace to the people. As he flowed down the river in his stone canoe he saw two men on the shore and went to them. It turns out one was a warrior and the other had run from his village after it had been attacked. He asked them to bring him to his chief for he had a plan to save the people, this chief was Hiawatha.
When Hiawatha heard the plan that De-ka-nah-wi-da had he embraced it and began to work at what he could do to unite the tribes into one peaceful nation. One day De-ka-nah-wi-da took Hiawatha for a walk in private and warned him of the danger that would come from the wizard who was also a tribal chief that enjoyed causing chaos. He would not be on board with their new plan for peace and would do what he could to hinder their attempts at a peaceful nation.
Hiawatha was not just a political leader; he was a family man with three daughters. As he began to work at uniting the tribes he began to suffer some great losses. His first two daughters died of illness. While the warriors and Hiawatha were giving their attention to a lacrosse game used to boost morale, Hiawatha’s youngest daughter wondered off to the river alone. While there she saw a beautiful bird come out of the sky at the same time others saw the bird and began to run towards it. As Hiawatha’s daughter ran back the lodge in fear she was knocked down by the crowd and trampled to death. It was later discovered that the deaths of his daughters were caused by the wizard. Hiawatha mourned his daughters’ death but did not let that deter him from his ultimate goal.
De-ka-nah-wi-da began to travel with Hiawatha after his time with the Mohawks. On their journey they came across the wizard, the first time that they had come face to face. The wizard was a ghastly looking creature; his looks were the consequences he received for using his magic. Instead of seeking revenge he spent time talking to him about peace. After some time the wizard opened up, he accepted the message of peace and his ugly looks, allowing him to look human once again. De-ka-nah-wi-da, Hiawatha and the wizard organized a council of all of the tribes to bring about implementation for the plan. Through the plan they all accepted peace and named Hiawatha the head chief spoke person for the council. From that time on the Confederacy of the Iroquois was established.
