Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet
Encyclopedia
Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet (c. 1715 – 11 July 1774) was an Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish was a term used primarily in the 19th and early 20th centuries to identify a privileged social class in Ireland, whose members were the descendants and successors of the Protestant Ascendancy, mostly belonging to the Church of Ireland, which was the established church of Ireland until...

 official of the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...

. As a young man, Johnson came to the Province of New York
Province of New York
The Province of New York was an English and later British crown territory that originally included all of the present U.S. states of New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Vermont, along with inland portions of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maine, as well as eastern Pennsylvania...

 to manage an estate purchased by his uncle, Admiral Peter Warren, which was located amidst the Mohawk
Mohawk nation
Mohawk are the most easterly tribe of the Iroquois confederation. They call themselves Kanien'gehaga, people of the place of the flint...

, one of the Six Nations of the Iroquois League
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...

. Johnson learned the Mohawk language and Iroquois customs, and was appointed the British agent to the Iroquois. Throughout his career as a British official among the Iroquois, Johnson combined personal business with official diplomacy, acquiring much Native land and becoming very wealthy.

Johnson commanded Iroquois and colonial militia forces during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...

. His role in the British victory at the Battle of Lake George
Battle of Lake George
The Battle of Lake George was fought on 8 September 1755, in the north of the Province of New York. The battle was part of a campaign by the British to expel the French from North America in the French and Indian War....

 in 1755 earned him a baronetcy; his capture of Fort Niagara from the French in 1759 brought him additional renown. In 1756, Johnson was commissioned as the British Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the northern colonies. Serving in that role until his death, Johnson worked to keep American Indians attached to the British interest.

Early life and career

William Johnson was born in County Meath
County Meath
County Meath is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Mide . Meath County Council is the local authority for the county...

, in the Kingdom of Ireland
Kingdom of Ireland
The Kingdom of Ireland refers to the country of Ireland in the period between the proclamation of Henry VIII as King of Ireland by the Crown of Ireland Act 1542 and the Act of Union in 1800. It replaced the Lordship of Ireland, which had been created in 1171...

, around 1715. His parents were Christopher Johnson and Anne Warren, members of the Irish Catholic
Irish Catholic
Irish Catholic is a term used to describe people who are both Roman Catholic and Irish .Note: the term is not used to describe a variant of Catholicism. More particularly, it is not a separate creed or sect in the sense that "Anglo-Catholic", "Old Catholic", "Eastern Orthodox Catholic" might be...

 gentry
Gentry
Gentry denotes "well-born and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past....

 who had, in previous generations, lost much of their status to Protestant English
Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish was a term used primarily in the 19th and early 20th centuries to identify a privileged social class in Ireland, whose members were the descendants and successors of the Protestant Ascendancy, mostly belonging to the Church of Ireland, which was the established church of Ireland until...

 colonists. Christopher Johnson was descended from the O'Neill of the Fews dynasty of County Armagh
County Armagh
-History:Ancient Armagh was the territory of the Ulaid before the fourth century AD. It was ruled by the Red Branch, whose capital was Emain Macha near Armagh. The site, and subsequently the city, were named after the goddess Macha...

. William Johnson's paternal grandfather was originally known as William MacShane, but changed his surname to Johnson, the English translation of the Gaelic
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...

 Mac Seáin. Some early biographers portrayed William Johnson as living in poverty in Ireland, but modern studies reveal that his family lived a comfortable, if modest, lifestyle. Although his family had a history of Jacobitism
Jacobitism
Jacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...

, William Johnson's uncle Peter Warren was raised as a Protestant to enable him to pursue a career in the British Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

, which proved to be highly successful and lucrative.

As a Catholic, William Johnson's opportunities for advancement in the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...

 were limited. Never particularly religious, Johnson converted to Protestantism when offered an opportunity to work for his uncle in British America
British America
For American people of British descent, see British American.British America is the anachronistic term used to refer to the territories under the control of the Crown or Parliament in present day North America , Central America, the Caribbean, and Guyana...

. Peter Warren had purchased a large tract of undeveloped land along the Mohawk River
Mohawk River
The Mohawk River is a river in the U.S. state of New York. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson River. The Mohawk flows into the Hudson in the Capital District, a few miles north of the city of Albany. The river is named for the Mohawk Nation of the Iroquois Confederacy...

 in the province of New York
Province of New York
The Province of New York was an English and later British crown territory that originally included all of the present U.S. states of New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Vermont, along with inland portions of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maine, as well as eastern Pennsylvania...

. Warren convinced Johnson to lead an effort to establish a settlement there, to be known as Warrensburgh, with the implied understanding that Johnson would inherit much of the land. Johnson arrived in about 1738 with twelve Irish Protestant families and began to clear the land. The work was done with the labor of African slaves, the first of many slaves that Johnson would acquire.

Warren intended Johnson to become involved in trading with American Indians
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

, but Johnson soon discovered that the trade routes were to the north, on the opposite side of the river from Warrensburgh. Acting on his own initiative, in 1739 Johnson bought a house and small farm on the north side of the river, where he built a store and a sawmill. From this location, which he called "Mount Johnson", Johnson was able to cut into Albany's
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...

 Indian trade. He supplied traders with goods who were going to Fort Oswego
Fort Oswego
Fort Oswego was an important frontier post for British traders in the 18th century. A trading post was established in 1722 with a log palisade, and New York governor William Burnet ordered a fort built at the site in 1727. The log palisade fort established a British presence on the Great Lakes....

, and he bought furs from them when they returned downriver. He dealt directly with New York City merchants and cut out the previous middlemen at Albany. The Albany merchants were irate, and Warren was not pleased that his nephew was becoming independent.

Johnson became closely associated with the Mohawk
Mohawk nation
Mohawk are the most easterly tribe of the Iroquois confederation. They call themselves Kanien'gehaga, people of the place of the flint...

, the easternmost nation of the Six Nations of the Iroquois
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...

 League. By the time Johnson arrived, their population had collapsed to only 580, due to infectious disease
Infectious disease
Infectious diseases, also known as communicable diseases, contagious diseases or transmissible diseases comprise clinically evident illness resulting from the infection, presence and growth of pathogenic biological agents in an individual host organism...

 and warfare related to the beaver trade. The Mohawks saw in Johnson someone who could advocate their interests in the British imperial system. Sometime around 1742, they adopted him as an honorary sachem
Sachem
A sachem[p] or sagamore is a paramount chief among the Algonquians or other northeast American tribes. The two words are anglicizations of cognate terms from different Eastern Algonquian languages...

, or civil chief, and gave him the name Warraghiyagey, which he translated as "A Man who undertakes great Things".

King George's War

In 1744, the War of the Austrian Succession
War of the Austrian Succession
The War of the Austrian Succession  – including King George's War in North America, the Anglo-Spanish War of Jenkins' Ear, and two of the three Silesian wars – involved most of the powers of Europe over the question of Maria Theresa's succession to the realms of the House of Habsburg.The...

 spread to colonial America, where it was known as King George's War
King George's War
King George's War is the name given to the operations in North America that formed part of the War of the Austrian Succession . It was the third of the four French and Indian Wars. It took place primarily in the British provinces of New York, Massachusetts Bay, New Hampshire, and Nova Scotia...

. Because of his close relationship with the Mohawks, in 1746 Johnson was appointed as New York's agent to the Iroquois, replacing the Albany-based Indian commissioners. The newly created "Colonel of the Warriors of the Six Nations" was instructed to enlist and equip colonists and Indians for a campaign against the French. Recruiting Iroquois warriors was difficult: ever since the so-called Grand Settlement of 1701, the Iroquois had maintained a policy of neutrality in wars between France and Great Britain. Working with the Mohawk chief
Tribal chief
A tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ...

 Hendrick Theyanoguin, Johnson was able to recruit Mohawk warriors to fight on the side of the British.

Johnson organized small raiding parties, which were sent against the settlements of the French and their Indian allies. In accordance with New York's Scalp Act of 1747, Johnson paid bounties for scalps
Scalping
Scalping is the act of removing another person's scalp or a portion of their scalp, either from a dead body or from a living person. The initial purpose of scalping was to provide a trophy of battle or portable proof of a combatant's prowess in war...

, although he realized this encouraged the scalping of non-combatants of all ages and both sexes. In June 1748, Johnson was made "Colonel of the New York levies", a position that gave him additional responsibility for the colonial militias at Albany. In July 1748, word was received of a peace settlement. The Mohawks had suffered heavy casualties in the war, which lessened Johnson's prestige among them for awhile.

In 1748, Johnson built a new stone house upriver from Mount Johnson, which became known as Fort Johnson
Old Fort Johnson
Old Fort Johnson, or Fort Johnson, was a two-story stone house enclosed in fortifications built by Sir William Johnson about 1749 in the town of Amsterdam, Montgomery County, New York, United States. The fort served as Johnson's home, business office and trading center until 1763 when he moved to...

. The home was heavily fortified when the next war approached. In 1755, Johnson shifted the primary meeting place for diplomatic councils between the British and the Iroquois from Albany to Fort Johnson. He also bought houses in Albany and Schenectady
Schenectady, New York
Schenectady is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 66,135...

 to stop at on his business trips to New York City.

After King George's War, Johnson was caught in the middle of two rival New York political factions. One faction was led by Governor George Clinton
George Clinton (British politician)
Admiral of the Fleet The Hon. George Clinton was a British naval officer and political leader who served as the colonial governor of Newfoundland in 1731 and of New York from 1743 to 1753....

, who had appointed Johnson as New York's Indian agent and, in 1750, appointed him to the Governor's Council. Governor Clinton urged the New York Assembly to repay Johnson's outstanding wartime expenses, which amounted to £2,000. Repayment was blocked by Clinton's political rivals, a faction led by Lieutenant Governor James De Lancey, which was connected to the Albany Indian commissioners whom Johnson had supplanted. De Lancey was also the brother-in-law of Admiral Peter Warren, which added to the strain in the relationship between Johnson and Warren. An exasperated Johnson resigned as New York's Indian commissioner in 1751. When Warren died in July 1752, he left nothing to Johnson in his will. Although Warren died a very wealthy man, in his will he required that Johnson repay the expenses incurred while settling Warren's land.

French and Indian War

In June 1753, Hendrick and a delegation of Mohawk traveled to New York City where they announced to Governor Clinton that the Covenant Chain
Covenant Chain
The Covenant Chain was a series of alliances and treaties involving the Iroquois Confederacy , the British colonies of North America, and a number of other Indian tribes...

—the diplomatic relationship between the British and the Iroquois—was broken. Clinton was ordered by the British government to convene the Albany Congress
Albany Congress
The Albany Congress, also known as the Albany Conference and "The Conference of Albany" or "The Conference in Albany", was a meeting of representatives from seven of the thirteen British North American colonies in 1754...

 of 1754 to repair the Covenant Chain. At the Congress, the Mohawk insisted that the alliance would be restored only if Johnson was reinstated as their agent.

Johnson's reinstatement as Indian agent came the following year, just as the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...

 was escalating. In 1755, Major General Edward Braddock
Edward Braddock
General Edward Braddock was a British soldier and commander-in-chief for the 13 colonies during the actions at the start of the French and Indian War...

, sent to North America to direct the British war effort, appointed Johnson as his agent to the Iroquois. Although Johnson had little military experience, he was commissioned as a major general
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...

 and instructed to lead an expedition against the French fort
Fort St. Frédéric
Fort St. Frédéric was a French fort built on Lake Champlain at Crown Point to secure the region against British colonization and to allow the French to control the use of Lake Champlain....

 at Crown Point
Crown Point, New York
Crown Point is a town in Essex County, New York, USA. The population was 2,119 at the 2000 census. The name of the town is a direct translation of the original French name, "Point au Chevalure."...

. His troops were provincial soldiers paid for by the colonies, and not regular soldiers of the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...

, which meant that he had to deal with six different colonial governments while organizing the expedition.

Johnson initially had nearly 5,000 colonials at his command, but General William Shirley
William Shirley
William Shirley was a British colonial administrator who served twice as Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay and as Governor of the Bahamas in the 1760s...

, the governor of Massachusetts who had been commissioned to lead a simultaneous expedition to Fort Niagara
Fort Niagara
Fort Niagara is a fortification originally built to protect the interests of New France in North America. It is located near Youngstown, New York, on the eastern bank of the Niagara River at its mouth, on Lake Ontario.-Origin:...

, shifted some of Johnson's men and resources to his own campaign. Tensions escalated as the two generals worked against each other in recruiting Native allies. The dispute was complicated by the unusual command structure: as Braddock's second-in-command, General Shirley was Johnson's superior officer, but when it came to Indian affairs, Johnson was theoretically in charge. In time, Shirley would blame the failure of his expedition on Johnson's refusal to provide him with adequate Indian support. According to the Johnson biographer Milton Hamilton, historians usually portrayed Johnson as acting unreasonably in the controversy with Shirley, but Hamilton argued that Johnson was reacting to Shirley's clumsy Indian diplomacy, which harmed the British relationship with the Six Nations.

Crown Point expedition

Marching north into French territory, in August 1755 Johnson renamed Lac du Saint-Sacrement to Lake George
Lake George (New York)
Lake George, nicknamed the Queen of American Lakes, is a long, narrow oligotrophic lake draining northwards into Lake Champlain and the St. Lawrence River Drainage basin located at the southeast base of the Adirondack Mountains in northern New York, U.S.A.. It lies within the upper region of the...

 in honour of his king. On 8 September 1755, Johnson's forces held their ground in the Battle of Lake George
Battle of Lake George
The Battle of Lake George was fought on 8 September 1755, in the north of the Province of New York. The battle was part of a campaign by the British to expel the French from North America in the French and Indian War....

. Johnson was wounded by a ball that was to remain in his hip or thigh for the rest of his life. Hendrick Theyanoguin, Johnson's Mohawk ally, was killed in the battle, and Baron Dieskau
Jean Erdman, Baron Dieskau
Jean Erdman, Baron Dieskau or Jean-Armand Dieskau, Baron de Dieskau or Ludwig August von Dieskau was a German-born soldier remembered mostly as a French general and commander in America for a part of the French and Indian War.-Biography:He was aide-de-camp of Marshal Maurice de Saxe, and visited St...

, the French commander, was captured. Johnson prevented the Mohawk from killing the wounded Dieskau, a compassionate rescue that would become famous in paintings of the event.
The battle brought an end to the expedition against Crown Point, and so Johnson built Fort William Henry
Fort William Henry
Fort William Henry was a British fort at the southern end of Lake George in the province of New York. It is best known as the site of notorious atrocities committed by Indians against the surrendered British and provincial troops following a successful French siege in 1757, an event which is the...

 at Lake George. In December, tired of army life, Johnson resigned his commission as major general. General Shirley, who had become the commander in chief upon Braddock's death, sought to have Johnson's commission as Indian agent modified so that Johnson would be placed under his command. But Shirley was soon replaced both as governor and commander in chief, and Johnson's star was on the rise.

Although the Battle of Lake George was hardly a decisive victory, the British needed a military hero in a year of major setbacks, and Johnson became that man. Claims that Johnson had been disabled by his wound early in the battle, and thus did not participate in the victory, did not reduce the recognition given to him. As a reward for his services, Parliament voted Johnson £5,000 and King George
George II of Great Britain
George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death.George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain. He was born and brought up in Northern Germany...

 made him a baronet
Johnson Baronets
There have been three Baronetcies created for persons with the surname Johnson, one in the Baronetage of Great Britain and two in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom...

. "Never was such an insignificant encounter so generously rewarded", wrote the historian Julian Gwyn.

In January 1756, the British government made Johnson sole Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the northern colonies. This position gave him great influence and power, since he would report directly to the government in London and would not be controlled by provincial governments. Of all the Indian nations in the northern colonies, Johnson was most knowledgeable about, and most closely connected to, the Iroquois Six Nations, especially the Mohawk. As superintendent, he would make the Iroquois the focus of British diplomacy, promoting and even exaggerating the power of the Iroquois Confederacy. Johnson also began a long process of trying to control Iroquois diplomacy, attempting "nothing less than the refurbishment of the Iroquois confederacy with himself as its centre".

Capture of Fort Niagara

Although Johnson was no longer a British general, he continued to lead Iroquois and frontier militia. In August 1757, after the French began their siege of Fort William Henry, Johnson arrived at Fort Edward
Fort Edward (village), New York
Fort Edward is a village in Washington County, New York, United States. It is part of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The village population was 3,141 at the 2000 census...

 with 180 Indians and 1,500 militia. Greatly overestimating the size of the French army, British General Daniel Webb decided against sending a relief force from Fort Edward to Fort William Henry. The British were compelled to surrender Fort William Henry, after which many were killed in an infamous massacre. Stories circulated that Johnson was enraged by Webb's decision not to send help, and that he stripped naked in front of Webb to express his disgust.

With the war going badly for the British, Johnson found it difficult to enlist the support of the Six Nations, who were not eager to join a losing cause. In July 1758, he managed to raise 450 warriors to take part in a massive expedition led by the new British commander, General James Abercrombie. The campaign ended ingloriously with Abercrombie's disastrous attempt to take Fort Carillon
Battle of Carillon
The Battle of Carillon, also known as the 1758 Battle of Ticonderoga, was fought on July 8, 1758, during the French and Indian War...

 from the French. Johnson and his Indian auxiliaries could do little as British forces stormed the French positions in fruitless frontal assaults.

In 1758, with the capture of Louisbourg
Siege of Louisbourg (1758)
The Siege of Louisbourg was a pivotal battle of the Seven Years' War in 1758 which ended the French colonial era in Atlantic Canada and led directly to the loss of Quebec in 1759 and the remainder of French North America the following year.-Background:The British government realized that with the...

, Fort Frontenac
Battle of Fort Frontenac
The Battle of Fort Frontenac took place on August 26–28, 1758 during the Seven Years' War between France and Great Britain. The location of the battle was Fort Frontenac, a French fort and trading post which is located at the site of present-day Kingston, Ontario, at the eastern end of Lake...

, and Fort Duquesne
Battle of Fort Duquesne
The Battle of Fort Duquesne was a British assault on the eponymous French fort that was repulsed with heavy losses on 14 September 1758, during the French and Indian War....

, the war's momentum began to shift in favor of the British. Johnson was able to recruit more Iroquois warriors. In the summer of 1759, he led nearly 1,000 Iroquois warriors—practically the entire military strength of the Six Nations—as part of General John Prideaux
John Prideaux (general)
John Prideaux was a brigadier-general in the British Army.He was born 1718 in Devon, England the second son of Sir John Prideaux, 6th Baronet, of Netherton Hall, near Honiton...

's expedition to capture Fort Niagara. When Prideaux was killed, Johnson took command.

He captured the fort after ambushing and defeating a French relief force at the Battle of La Belle-Famille
Battle of La Belle-Famille
The Battle of La Belle-Famille occurred on July 24, 1759, during the French and Indian War along the Niagara River portage trail. François-Marie Le Marchand de Lignery's French relief force for the besieged French garrison at Fort Niagara fell into Eyre Massey's British and Iroquois ambush...

. Johnson is usually credited with leading or at least planning this ambush, but the historian Francis Jennings
Francis Jennings
Francis Jennings was an American historian, best known for his works on the colonial history of the United States.Jennings taught at Cedar Crest College....

 argued that Johnson was not present at the battle, and that he exaggerated his role in official dispatches. The conquest of Niagara drove the French line back from the Great Lakes. Once more, Johnson was celebrated as a hero, although some professional soldiers expressed doubts about his military abilities and the value of the Iroquois in the victory. Johnson commanded the "largest Native American force ever assembled under the British flag."

Johnson accompanied General Jeffrey Amherst in the final campaign of the war, the capture of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

 in 1760. With the fall of New France
New France
New France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period beginning with the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Spain and Great Britain in 1763...

 to the British, Johnson and his deputy George Croghan
George Croghan
George Croghan was an Irish-born Pennsylvania fur trader, Onondaga Council sachem, land speculator, British Indian agent in colonial America and, until accused of treason in 1777, Pittsburgh's president judge and Committee of Safety Chairman keeping the Ohio Indians neutral...

 spent much time negotiating with the former Indian allies of the French. In 1761, Johnson made a 1,000 mile (1,600 km) round trip to Detroit to hold a conference with the regional American Indians. Johnson confronted the assembled chiefs about the anti-British rumors that were in circulation among the Natives, and managed, for the time being, to forestall outright resistance to the British military occupation of the West. Normand Macleod
Normand Macleod
Normand MacLeod was a British army officer, merchant, and official of the British Indian Department.He was born on the Isle of Skye, in Scotland, about 1731. At age sixteen he joined the Forty Second Highlanders Regiment, and went with his unit to the Netherlands and what is now Belgium...

 met Johnson at this conference and returned with him to New York. Macleod was later appointed as commander of Fort Oswego
Fort Oswego
Fort Oswego was an important frontier post for British traders in the 18th century. A trading post was established in 1722 with a log palisade, and New York governor William Burnet ordered a fort built at the site in 1727. The log palisade fort established a British presence on the Great Lakes....

, on Lake Ontario.

Postwar development

After the French and Indian War, Johnson hoped to concentrate on expanding and improving his land holdings. In December 1760, the Mohawk of Canajoharie
Canajoharie
Canajoharie was the name of a Mohawk village.It may also refer to:* Canajoharie , New York* Canajoharie , New York* Canajoharie Central School District* Canajoharie and Catskill Railroad...

 gave Johnson a tract of about 80000 acres (323.7 km²) north of the Mohawk River. This grant proved to be controversial because other land speculators had already obtained licenses to purchase lands that the Mohawk released for sale, but Sir William had not. In 1769, after years of maneuvering and lobbying, Johnson finally gained royal approval for the grant. This was one of several large tracts of land that Johnson acquired from the Mohawk and Iroquois using his position as a royal Indian agent. By the time of his death, Johnson had accumulated about 170000 acres (688 km²) and was the second-largest land owner in British America
British America
For American people of British descent, see British American.British America is the anachronistic term used to refer to the territories under the control of the Crown or Parliament in present day North America , Central America, the Caribbean, and Guyana...

, surpassed only by the Penn family. According to historian Julian Gwyn:

In all this he acted no differently from dozens of other speculators in Indian lands. He was distinguished only by the great advantages he possessed through his office and through his long intimacy with the Indians. He was indeed one of their principal exploiters....


In 1762, Johnson founded the city of Johnstown
Johnstown (city), New York
Johnstown is a city and the county seat of Fulton County in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2000 Census, the city had population of 8,511. Recent estimates put the figure closer to 8,100. The city was named by its founder, Sir William Johnson after his son John Johnson...

 on his grant, about 25 miles (40.2 km) west of Schenectady
Schenectady, New York
Schenectady is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 66,135...

, New York, north of the Mohawk River. He named the new settlement, originally called John's Town, after his son John. There, at Crown expense, he established a free school for both white and Mohawk children.
Outside the town, in 1763 he built Johnson Hall
Johnson Hall State Historic Site
Johnson Hall State Historic Site was the home of Sir William Johnson an Irish pioneer who became the influential British Superintendent of Indian Affairs in the Province of New York, known for his strong relationship especially with the Mohawk and other Iroquois League nations.The house was built...

, where he lived until his death. He recruited numerous Irish immigrant tenant farmers for his extensive lands, and lived essentially as a feudal landlord. He also purchased African-American slaves to work as laborers, especially in his lumber operations. Johnson had some 60 slaves working for him, making him the largest slaveholder in the county and likely in the province, comparable to major planters
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...

 of the South
The South
-Geography:* Southern United States* South of England* South of France* South Italy* South Korea* Republic of Ireland* South Province * Global South, the developing nations of the world-Other uses:* The South , by Victor Erice...

. In 1766, Johnson organized St. Patrick's Lodge, No. 4, a Freemason lodge, at Johnson Hall, and was installed as its master. His nephew Guy Johnson
Guy Johnson
Guy Johnson was an Irish-born military officer and diplomat for the Crown during the American War of Independence. He had migrated to the Province of New York as a young man and worked with his uncle, Sir William Johnson, British Superintendent of Indian Affairs of the northern colonies. He was...

 succeeded him as master of this lodge in 1770.

Johnson was a strong supporter of the Anglican Church in the colony. To counter the influence of French Catholic missionaries in western New York, in 1769 he paid for the construction of an Anglican church for the Mohawk of Canajoharie
Canajoharie
Canajoharie was the name of a Mohawk village.It may also refer to:* Canajoharie , New York* Canajoharie , New York* Canajoharie Central School District* Canajoharie and Catskill Railroad...

, a village also known as the "Upper Castle". The building, later used by European-American congregations and known as Indian Castle Church
Indian Castle Church
Indian Castle Church is a historic mission church at Indian Castle in Herkimer County, New York. The church is located on NYS Route 5S near Danube. It is a one-story, rectangular wood frame structure, clad in clapboard with a gable roof and steeple. To the rear of the church is a burial ground...

, still stands near Danube, New York
Danube, New York
Danube is a town in Herkimer County, New York, United States. The population was 1,098 at the 2000 census. Early Palatine German immigrants in the eighteenth century named the town after the Danube River in Europe....

. It is part of the Mohawk Upper Castle Historic District
Mohawk Upper Castle Historic District
Mohawk Upper Castle Historic District is a historic district in Herkimer County, New York that was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1993...

, a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...

. In 1771, Johnson built St. John's Episcopal Church in Johnstown, but soon complained that it was "small and very ill built." Within five years, he arranged for a larger church of stone to be constructed to accommodate the growing congregation in Johnstown. The historic church is still operating.

Pontiac's War and final years

In 1763, Pontiac's War resulted from Native American discontent with British policy following the French and Indian War. For several years prior to the uprising, Johnson had advised General Jeffrey Amherst to observe Iroquois practices, for instance, awarding gifts to Native leaders, a practice they considered and important cultural symbol of respect and significant to maintaining good relations. Amherst, who rejected Johnson's advice, was recalled to London and replaced by General Thomas Gage
Thomas Gage
Thomas Gage was a British general, best known for his many years of service in North America, including his role as military commander in the early days of the American War of Independence....

. Amherst's recall strengthened Johnson's position, because a policy of compromise was required with the Indians, and this was Johnson's domain. Johnson negotiated a treaty with Pontiac in 1766, which finally ended the war.

From July to August 1764, Johnson negotiated a treaty at Fort Niagara
Treaty of Fort Niagara
The Treaty of Fort Niagara is one of several treaties signed between the British Crown and various indigenous peoples of North America.-Treaty of Fort Niagara :...

 with about 2,000 American Indians in attendance, primarily Iroquois. Although most Iroquois had stayed out of the war, the Seneca from the Genesee River
Genesee River
The Genesee River is a North American river flowing northward through the Twin Tiers of Pennsylvania and New York. The river provided the original power for the Rochester area's 19th century mills and still provides hydroelectric power for downtown Rochester....

 valley had taken up arms against the British, and Johnson worked to bring them back into the Covenant Chain
Covenant Chain
The Covenant Chain was a series of alliances and treaties involving the Iroquois Confederacy , the British colonies of North America, and a number of other Indian tribes...

 alliance. Johnson convinced the Iroquois to send a war party against the Seneca involved in the uprising, but otherwise the Iroquois did not contribute to the war effort as much as Johnson had desired.

Johnson was a proponent of the Royal Proclamation of 1763
Royal Proclamation of 1763
The Royal Proclamation of 1763 was issued October 7, 1763, by King George III following Great Britain's acquisition of French territory in North America after the end of the French and Indian War/Seven Years' War...

, which called for tighter imperial control and restraint of westward colonial expansion. Johnson negotiated the details of the boundary defined in the Fort Stanwix Treaty of 1768. Against instructions from London, Johnson pushed the boundary 400 miles (643.7 km) to the west, enabling him and other land speculators to acquire much more land than originally authorized by the British government. Johnson was strongly criticized for exceeding his instructions, but many of the land speculators were well-connected in the government, and the expanded boundary was allowed to stand.

Native American discontent continued to grow in the west in the 1770s. Johnson spent his final years attempting to prevent another uprising like Pontiac's War. Pursuing a policy of divide and rule
Divide and rule
In politics and sociology, divide and rule is a combination of political, military and economic strategy of gaining and maintaining power by breaking up larger concentrations of power into chunks that individually have less power than the one implementing the strategy...

, he worked to block the emergence of inter-tribal Native American alliances. His final success was his isolation of the Shawnee
Shawnee
The Shawnee, Shaawanwaki, Shaawanooki and Shaawanowi lenaweeki, are an Algonquian-speaking people native to North America. Historically they inhabited the areas of Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Western Maryland, Kentucky, Indiana, and Pennsylvania...

s before Dunmore's War
Dunmore's War
Dunmore's War was a war in 1774 between the Colony of Virginia and the Shawnee and Mingo American Indian nations....

 in 1774.

Marriage and family

In his lifetime, Johnson gained a reputation as a man who had numerous children with several European and Native American women. At the time, men were not ostracized for having illegitimate children, as long as they could afford it and supported them. One 20th-century scholar estimated that Johnson had perhaps 100 illegitimate children, but the historian Francis Jennings argued that "there is no truth in wild stories that he slept with innumerable Mohawk women." In his will, Johnson acknowledged children by Catherine Weisenberg and Mary Brant, German and Mohawk, respectively, with whom he had long-term relationships. He implicitly acknowledged several other children by unnamed mothers.

In 1739, shortly after arriving in America, William began a relationship with Catherine Weisenberg (c. 1723–1759), a German Palatine
Palatine
A palatine or palatinus is a high-level official attached to imperial or royal courts in Europe since Roman times...

 immigrant. She originally came to the colonies as an indentured servant
Indentured servant
Indentured servitude refers to the historical practice of contracting to work for a fixed period of time, typically three to seven years, in exchange for transportation, food, clothing, lodging and other necessities during the term of indenture. Usually the father made the arrangements and signed...

, but had run away, perhaps with the help of friends or relatives. According to tradition, she was working for another family near Warrensburgh when Johnson purchased the remainder of her indenture contract, perhaps initially to have her serve as his housekeeper. There is no record that the couple ever formally married,; Weisenberg was Johnson's common-law wife. The couple had three children, including daughters Nancy and Mary (Polly), and a son John, first christened under only Weisenberg's name at Fort Hunter. The senior Johnson later arranged for his son John to inherit his title and estates as John Johnson.

At the same time, Johnson had a relationship with Elizabeth Brant, a Mohawk woman by whom he had three children: Keghneghtago or Brant (born in 1742), Thomas (1744) and Christian (1745); the latter two boys died in infancy. About 1750, Johnson had a son named Tagawirunta, also known as William of Canajoharie, by a Mohawk woman, possibly Margaret Brant, Elizabeth's younger sister. Johnson may have also been intimate with the sisters Susannah and Elizabeth Wormwood, and an Irish woman named Mary McGrath, by whom he appeared to have had a daughter named Mary. Mary, Keghneghtago (Brant), and Tagawirunta (William) received inheritances in Johnson's will.

In 1759, Johnson began a common-law relationship with Molly Brant, a Mohawk woman who moved into Johnson Hall
Johnson Hall State Historic Site
Johnson Hall State Historic Site was the home of Sir William Johnson an Irish pioneer who became the influential British Superintendent of Indian Affairs in the Province of New York, known for his strong relationship especially with the Mohawk and other Iroquois League nations.The house was built...

 and lived with Johnson as his consort for the rest of his life. Molly was the sister of Joseph Brant
Joseph Brant
Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York, who was closely associated with Great Britain during and after the American Revolution. He was perhaps the most well-known American Indian of his generation...

; her younger brother joined her and Johnson when he was young. Johnson's relationship with Molly gave him additional influence with the Mohawk. The couple had eight children, all of whom received land from Johnson in his will.

Death and legacy

William Johnson died from a stroke at Johnson Hall on 11 July 1774 during an Indian conference. Guy Johnson
Guy Johnson
Guy Johnson was an Irish-born military officer and diplomat for the Crown during the American War of Independence. He had migrated to the Province of New York as a young man and worked with his uncle, Sir William Johnson, British Superintendent of Indian Affairs of the northern colonies. He was...

, William's nephew and son-in-law, reported that Johnson died when he was "seized of a suffocation." His funeral in Johnstown was attended by more than 2,000 people. His pallbearers included Governor William Franklin
William Franklin
William Franklin was an American soldier and colonial administrator. He served as the last Colonial Governor of New Jersey. Franklin was a steadfast Loyalist throughout the American War of Independence, despite his father Benjamin Franklin's role as one of the most prominent Patriots during the...

 of New Jersey and the justices of the New York Supreme Court. He was buried beneath the altar in St. John's Anglican
St. John's Episcopal Church (Johnstown, New York)
St. John's Episcopal Church is a historic Episcopal Church church at 1 North Market Street in Johnstown, Fulton County, New York. It consists of a rectangular, gable roofed main block and an attached parish hall wing. The main block of the church was completed in 1837 and consists of tall random...

 church, the church he founded in Johnstown. The next day chiefs of the Six Nations performed the traditional Iroquois condolence ceremony, and recognized Guy Johnson as Sir William's successor.

During the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...

, the rebel New York legislature seized all of Johnson's lands and property, as his heirs were Loyalists. In 1960 Johnson Hall was named a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...

. It is a designated Johnson Hall State Historic Site
Johnson Hall State Historic Site
Johnson Hall State Historic Site was the home of Sir William Johnson an Irish pioneer who became the influential British Superintendent of Indian Affairs in the Province of New York, known for his strong relationship especially with the Mohawk and other Iroquois League nations.The house was built...

 and open to the public.

Old Fort Johnson
Old Fort Johnson
Old Fort Johnson, or Fort Johnson, was a two-story stone house enclosed in fortifications built by Sir William Johnson about 1749 in the town of Amsterdam, Montgomery County, New York, United States. The fort served as Johnson's home, business office and trading center until 1763 when he moved to...

, his first home, built in 1749 is on the Historic American Buildings Survey
Historic American Buildings Survey
The Historic American Buildings Survey , Historic American Engineering Record , and Historic American Landscapes Survey are programs of the National Park Service established for the purpose of documenting historic places. Records consists of measured drawings, archival photographs, and written...

. It is currently the home of the Montgomery County Historical Society
Montgomery County Historical Society
The Montgomery County Historical Society, located in Dayton, Ohio, USA, was designated as official historian of Montgomery County, Ohio, and of the cultural heritage of Ohio's Miami Valley...

, which operates a museum, gift shop, and holds events. Guy Park
Guy Park
Guy Park, also known as Guy Park State Historic Site, is a house built in 1774 in the Georgian architectural style for Guy Johnson, nephew and son-in-law to Sir William Johnson, the British Superintendent for Indian Affairs in colonial New York...

 Manor, built in 1773, for Sir William's daughter Mary (Molly)and her husband, his nephew Guy Johnson, is also open to the public.

External links

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