A Clash of Cultures

A Clash of Cultures. . The out break of the Revolutionary War in 1775 inflamed existing divisions within the Mohawk Valley's European communities and eventually affected individuals as well as tribes of the Iroquois Confederacy of the Six Nations. Forced to choose sides in the conflict, neighbors fought against neighbors and brothers against brothers. Men suspected of supporting the King were required to sign oaths of loyalty to Congress and the Revolutionary cause. Those who refused were harassed and sometimes badly beaten. Many fled with their families to Canada for safety., As European tensions rose, debate within the Iroquois Confederacy tore at the centuries-old tradition of the Great Peace that bound the tribes together. Unable to remain neutral, the Iroquois Confederacy split over which side to support. Most of the Oneida and Tuscarora supported the Revolution and fought with the New York militia. Most Mohawk and Seneca warriors fought with the British. The Cayuga and Onondaga remained neutral until 1779. Individuals throughout the Iroquois Confederacy, however, were free to follow their own convictions., A great majority of militiamen were of Palatine German descent and had strong historic reasons for disliking the British and fighting for greater personal freedoms, The Iroquois Confederacy of Six Nations included the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Tuscarora, Oneida, and Mohawk., Iroquois clan mothers urged their tribes not to get involved with the Revolution as it was a white man's war. . This historical marker is Near Oriskany in Oneida County New York