 Replica of the Covenant Chain Wampum presented by Sir William Johnson at the conclusion of the Council of Niagara. Created by Ken Maracle. | |
| Signed | 1 August 1764 |
|---|---|
| Location | Fort Niagara,Niagara County,New York, USA |
| Negotiators | Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet |
| Parties | |
The 1764Treaty of Fort Niagara is one of the first treaty agreements made betweenFirst Nations andThe Crown. It is a notable example ofThe Crown's recognition ofIndigenous sovereignty in the years preceding theAmerican Revolution.[1][2] However, the agreement was recorded inwampum and no paper document was signed;Canadian law does not recognize thelegality of the agreement.[2]
Following theRoyal Proclamation of 1763,the Crown planned to solidify its presence inNorth America in relation to the land ofIndigenous peoples.[3]
After weeks of discussion and ceremonial activities, the 1764 Treaty of Niagara was agreed to betweenSir William Johnson forthe Crown and 24 independentFirst Nations.[2] Johnson was largely aided by hisMohawk consort,Molly Brant, who advised Johnson on how to appropriately negotiate the treaty.[3] The Indigenous nations present included theHaudenosaunee,Seneca,Wyandot ofDetroit,Menominee,Algonquin,Nipissing,Ojibwa,Mississaugas, and others who were part of theSeven Nations of Canada and theWestern Lakes Confederacy.[citation needed]
The treaty was concluded on 1 August 1764 and transferred possession of a narrow four-mile strip of land by the Niagara River's western shore, as well as established the relationship that was supposed to be honoured by the new settlers moving into what would become Canada. This treaty signaled the assembled Indigenous Nations ratification of the Royal Proclamation of 1763 and extended the Silver Covenant Chain of Friendship into the Great Lakes Region of the continent.[4]
The Royal Proclamation of 1763 established the British definition ofIndian Country. On those lands, the Crown claimed sovereignty but also decreed that the land was to be considered in the possession of the Indigenous peoples who occupied them. Consequently, to transfer ownership of the land to the Crown through the surrendering of the land from the indigenous peoples, Great Britain began formalizing the Treaty of Niagara with theFirst Nations on 8 July 1764, through this Treaty Council. In protest, theOttawa ofDetroit, theWyandot ofSandusky, and theLenape andShawnee of theOhio refused to attend the Treaty Council. The treaty created a newCovenant Chain betweenBritain and theFirst Nations of the westernGreat Lakes. During theWar of 1812, nations involved with this treaty allied themselves with the British, as the nations believed the treaty bound them to the British cause.[citation needed]
Journals of the Board of Trade and Plantations, Volume 12: January 1764 - December 1767 (1936), pp. 109-120,[5] list only two treaties negotiated at this time:
Following the 1764 treaty, two additional agreements were made at Fort Niagara in the following decades:[1]
The treaty area ceded in the second treaty was expanded to includeNiagara Township, and portions ofStamford,Willoughby andBertie Townships.
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