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LifestyleOfTruth on February 5, 2025

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Unreconstructed

Stand Watie Leader of the Cherokee Nation's pro-southern wing, Stand Watie earned legendary status as a Confederate sympathizer and brilliant field commander, but observed the dissolution of his tribal nation and the Confederacy. Born in December, 1806 i... View MoreStand Watie Leader of the Cherokee Nation's pro-southern wing, Stand Watie earned legendary status as a Confederate sympathizer and brilliant field commander, but observed the dissolution of his tribal nation and the Confederacy. Born in December, 1806 in Georgia, Watie was raised as a Moravian by two Cherokee parents. Educated in white schools and educated in western ways, Watie lived in financially well-off surroundings. He was a clerk of the Cherokee Supreme Court as a young man and for more than 40 years was a practicing attorney. Watie's security was disrupted, however, by the 1830 Indian Removal Act to negotiate the removal of Indians west of the Mississippi. He was one of the signers of the 1835 treaty in which Cherokees gave up their Georgia lands for Oklahoma holdings. This controversial treaty set the stage for intense internal strife within the tribe. When the Cherokee Nation divided politically, Watie became leader of the minority faction that sided with the Confederacy, and raised a Cherokee volunteer regiment. The only Native American to become a brigadier general in the Confederate Army, Watie was considered a genius in guerilla warfare. He was a skilled and daring cavalry rider. His successful capture of the Union steamer J.R. Williams and raids in the west bolstered morale throughout the Confederacy. Watie was the last Confederate general to surrender his command, two months after Appomattox. Although undisputed for his bravery and military skill, Watie's allegiance to the Confederacy was another divisive move that was blamed for the loss of many Cherokee lives during the war and unfavorable treatment of Native Americans in general. After the conclusion of the Civil War, bitter argument over compensation and property rights overtook Cherokee tribal affairs. Watie moved away to Breebs Town on the Canadian River, resettling his family and forming a tobacco company with a nephew. A federal excise tax imposed the next year on tobacco and distilled spirits did not exempt Indian territory. Watie refused to pay, lost his case in Federal court, and fell into bankruptcy after the plant was impounded for tax foreclosure. The landmark case established legal precedent that a law of Congress could supercede provisions of a treaty. Watie died in September, 1871 emotionally and financially ruined.

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February 5, 2025

Unreconstructed

Had the Confederacy won, it would have honored the rights of the Indians to their tribal lands. Unlike what the U.S. did.

1 February 5, 2025