Maintaining a Balance of Power: Michilimackinac, the Anishinaabe Odawas, and the Anglo-Indian War of 1763

• DOI: 10.1353/eam.2015.0001
• Publication Date: 2015-01-25T14:00:22Z
• Authors: Michael A. McDonnell
• Keywords: Independence; Great power

The famous story of the fall Michilimackinac is now part well-known lore war called Pontiac’s. Yet few accounts pause long enough to understand causes, course, and consequences Anglo-Indian War from perspective Anishinaabe people who lived there. Read carefully against long- short-term context, seemingly confused complex course events at in summer 1763 can be seen as a long-running strategy maintain independence region by ensuring balance power—between Europeans Anishinaabeg other Algonquians north, but also between those nations their southern rivals. Thus, straits illuminate some similarities to—but critical differences from—the farther south. They shed much-needed light on inter- intra-Indian relations both across pays d’en haut well Indian-European middle decades century. Indeed, compel us reconsider English French with even very nature extent European imperialism region.