4.2 Major treaties and their implications

Major treaties shaped Native American-U.S. relations, defining boundaries and rights. Early agreements like Fort Stanwix and Hopewell established precedents, while later treaties like Indian Removal Act led to forced relocations and land loss.

These treaties created a complex legal framework still debated today. Doctrines like Discovery and Reserved Rights continue to influence tribal sovereignty, resource rights, and federal responsibilities in ongoing negotiations and court cases.

Early Treaties

Foundational Agreements with Native Nations

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• Treaty of Fort Stanwix signed in 1768 between British and Iroquois Confederacy
  • Established boundary line between colonial settlements and Native American territories
  • Allowed colonists to settle lands east and south of the Ohio River
  • Iroquois received goods and promises of protection in exchange for land cessions
• Treaty of Hopewell negotiated in 1785-1786 between United States and Cherokee, Choctaw, and Chickasaw nations
  • Defined boundaries between tribal lands and U.S. territory
  • Established trade relations and regulations
  • Promised peace and friendship between signatories
  • Included provisions for extradition of criminals across borders
• Treaty of Fort Laramie signed in 1851 between United States and multiple Plains Indian nations
  • Aimed to reduce inter-tribal warfare and conflicts with white settlers
  • Defined territorial boundaries for participating tribes (Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho)
  • Granted right-of-way for roads and military posts through Indian lands
  • U.S. promised annuities and protection in exchange for safe passage of settlers

Impact and Significance of Early Treaties

• Established precedent for formal nation-to-nation relationships
• Created legal framework for future negotiations and land cessions
• Often resulted in significant loss of Native American lands and resources
• Frequently violated or reinterpreted by U.S. government to favor settler interests
• Laid groundwork for later conflicts and treaty revisions (Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868)

Removal and Relocation

Indian Removal Act and Its Consequences

• Indian Removal Act passed by Congress in 1830 under President Andrew Jackson
  • Authorized negotiation of treaties to exchange Native lands in eastern U.S. for lands west of Mississippi River
  • Resulted in forced relocation of Five Civilized Tribes (Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee, Seminole)
  • Led to infamous Trail of Tears, causing thousands of deaths due to disease, starvation, and exposure
  • Opened millions of acres for white settlement and expansion of slavery
• Treaty of New Echota signed in 1835 between U.S. government and minority faction of Cherokee
  • Ceded all Cherokee lands east of Mississippi in exchange for lands in Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma)
  • Opposed by majority of Cherokee, including Principal Chief John Ross
  • Used as legal justification for forced removal of Cherokee in 1838
  • Resulted in deep divisions within Cherokee Nation and loss of ancestral homelands

Post-Civil War Treaties and Continued Displacement

• Medicine Lodge Treaty comprised series of three treaties signed in 1867
  • Negotiated with Southern Plains tribes (Kiowa, Comanche, Plains Apache, Southern Cheyenne, Arapaho)
  • Aimed to end conflicts between tribes and white settlers on the Southern Plains
  • Established reservations in Indian Territory for participating tribes
  • Promised annuities, supplies, and education in exchange for land cessions
  • Ultimately failed to prevent further conflicts (Red River War of 1874-1875)
• Continued pressure for Native land cessions and confinement to reservations
  • Breakdown of treaty system in favor of Congressional acts and executive orders
  • Allotment policy introduced by Dawes Act of 1887, further reducing tribal land base

Legal Doctrines

Foundational Principles in Federal Indian Law

• Doctrine of Discovery originated from European colonial era
  • Asserted European nations' right to claim lands occupied by indigenous peoples
  • Incorporated into U.S. law through Supreme Court decisions (Johnson v. M'Intosh, 1823)
  • Established federal government as ultimate title holder of Native American lands
  • Limited tribal sovereignty and property rights
• Canons of treaty construction developed by U.S. Supreme Court
  • Interpret treaties as Native Americans would have understood them at time of signing
  • Resolve ambiguities in favor of tribes
  • Liberal construction in favor of Native American rights
  • Applied in cases involving treaty rights and interpretation (Worcester v. Georgia, 1832)

Rights and Responsibilities in Tribal-Federal Relations

• Reserved rights doctrine established through Supreme Court decisions
  • Recognizes tribes retain all rights not explicitly ceded in treaties
  • Applies to hunting, fishing, water rights, and other traditional practices
  • Exemplified in cases like Winters v. United States (1908) regarding water rights
  • Continues to influence modern legal disputes over natural resources and land use
• Trust responsibility of federal government toward Native American tribes
  • Stems from treaty obligations and Supreme Court decisions
  • Requires government to act in best interests of tribes and protect tribal resources
  • Includes provision of services (healthcare, education) and protection of tribal lands
  • Often contested and reinterpreted in ongoing legal battles