The Many Meanings of Captivity: Prisoners and the Problem of Communication in Anglo-Indian Warfare, 1754-1765 (2015)

Undergraduates: Emily Kowalczyk, N/A N/A N/A N/A

Faculty Advisor: Wayne Lee
Department: History

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Using the Anglo-Cherokee War (1758-1761) as a case study, this project examines why British and Native American attempts to de-escalate their mid-eighteenth century conflicts frequently failed. Often, a seemingly trivial event ¿¿¿ a Native warrior stealing a few horses from a British colonist, for example ¿¿¿ unleashed widespread violence that destroyed swathes of the frontiers of Britain¿¿¿s mainland North American colonies. British and Native belligerents attempted to forestall this escalation by using prisoners of war, civilian captives, and hostages to communicate their desire for de-escalation to their opponents. Frequently, these communication attempts were unsuccessful, resulting in intensification of the conflict. Based on an analysis of colonial officials¿¿¿ and British officers¿¿¿ letters and campaign journals, Cherokee leaders¿¿¿ speeches, and treaties between the two groups, I conclude that widely differing conceptions of captivity played a large part in the failure of British and Cherokee efforts to communicate and de-escalate violence.