Iroquois Wars: Extracts from the Jesuit relations and primary sources from 1535 to 1650

This volume chronicles the phenomenal rise of the Iroquois Confederacy during the "Beaver Wars" of the 17th century. In what were perhaps the greatest series of military conquests in Native American history, the Five Nations of the Iroquois subjugated and destroyed enemy tribes stretching over a vast area from eastern Canada to Virginia to Illinois, forever changing the cultural map of Eastern North America.
The accounts included in this volume cover the underpinnings of the wars and the initial conflicts which led to a century of hostilities as the Iroquois emerged as the dominant force that was both respected and dreaded by neighboring tribes and the European colonial powers alike. Additional extracts will touch upon the evolution of Native American fighting techniques, strategy and tactics, treatment of prisoners, and the influence of the various European colonies.