Washington and Gist visit Queen Aliquippa
John McNevin, “Washington and Gist visit Queen Aliquippa,” 1856. The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library.
Background
As the colonial settlements of North America grew, rivalry over land rights and use increased dramatically. Matters were particularly heated along the border of the French and English colonies. French colonists, English colonists, and Indigenous communities all struggled for dominance in the area. In 1754 this struggle boiled over into the French and Indian War.
About the Resources
This image was made over one hundred years after the events it portrays. It depicts the power wielded by Indigenous communities in the years leading up to the French and Indian War. In 1753 George Washington was a major in the Virginia militia. He was sent as an ambassador to the French and Indigenous communities in western Pennsylvania and the Ohio Valley. On his journey west, he passed through the territory of Seneca leader Queen Aliquippa without paying his respects. Aliquippa was a well-respected leader in western Pennsylvania, and the insult put the British alliances in the area in danger. On his return journey, Washington went out of his way to give Aliquippa gifts. The episode demonstrates that the British believed Indigenous communities were critical allies in their settlement endeavors and they were willing to do what it took to keep their allies happy.
Vocabulary
- ambassador: An official representative of a government who meets with foreign leaders.
- commissioned: To be given a job or duty.
- French and Indian War: A colonial war that was fought from 1754 to 1763 between the British and the French. Indigenous communities sided with the colonial power they expected would best protect their sovereignty. The Spanish were allies of the British. Part of the larger global conflict known as the Seven Years’ War. The British triumphed and greatly expanded their territory in North America.
- major: An army officer above captain and below lieutenant colonel.
- militia: A military force of volunteer citizens.
- Seneca: One of the original tribes of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. They inhabited the region of western New York at the time of the American Revolution, although some groups had moved into other territories to escape the pressures of colonial settlement. Most Seneca settlements are still in New York, but there are also some in Oklahoma and Canada.
Discussion Questions
- What does this scene reveal about the British attitude toward Indigenous communities along their colonial borders?
- Who is the figure of power in this image? How has the artist conveyed the power dynamics of this scene?
- Why do you think the artist made this image one hundred years after the event it shows? What are the drawbacks of studying images made long after the events they show?
Suggested Activities
- Pair this resource with Life Story: Mother Esther Marie-Joseph Wheelwright de l’Enfant and Women of the French and Indian War to learn more about this ongoing conflict and its effects on the communities of the North American colonies.
- Images of colonial history made in the 1800s do not accurately represent the Indigenous communities they portrayed. Ask students to research the clothing, homes, and traditions of Seneca Nation, and then redraw a more accurate version of this scene.
- To learn more about the power Indigenous women wielded in western Pennsylvania, see Life Story: Madame Montour.
- For a more comprehensive discussion of how Indigenous leaders across North America strove to assert their sovereignty in the face of colonization and settlement, pair this resource with any or all of the following:
Themes
POWER AND POLITICS; IMMIGRATION, MIGRATION, AND SETTLEMENT
