The Great Law of Peace Unites the Haudenosaunee
Near present-day Victor, New York, USA (as described by History.com)
What happened
According to Haudenosaunee tradition, the Peacemaker (Deganawida) and Hiawatha brought a message of peace to nations caught in cycles of war and revenge. The Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga and Seneca nations agreed to the Great Law of Peace, which became their own constitution. Wampum belts, made of shell beads, helped storytellers remember it.
Why it matters
Each nation kept its own government while the league governed together. The Peacemaker also decided that women would have the power to choose chiefs and to remove them. The Great Law is a living tradition today.
What came next
The Tuscarora joined as a sixth nation in 1722.
Did you know?
Scholars still discuss when the league began. Barbara A. Mann and Jerry L. Fields, in a 1997 journal article, matched Haudenosaunee accounts of a solar eclipse to the astronomical record and dated it to August 31, 1142. Some Western historians date it to about 500 years ago.
Timeline
- 1142 (attributed)Date proposed by Mann and Fields from the eclipse accounts.
- 1722The Tuscarora join, making six nations.