Wapasha
Encyclopedia
Wapasha was the name of a Mdewakanton
Sioux
chief.
Wapasha was born in present-day Minnesota
in 1718. During his youth he befriended the agents of King Louis XV of France
and was a long time friend to the French against the British. Wapasha and his followers were allies of the French, and aided them in their conflicts with the British. After the British defeated the French, they were both suspicious and fearful of the their Sioux allies. As a result, there were no English trappers and traders among the Sioux. They had become more accustomed to hunting with rifles than bows and arrows. Fur trading with French trappers brought provisions and ammunition and the Dakota found it difficult to survive without this commerce.
Several incidents that took place during the French and Indian War made English trappers apprehensive about returning to the Mississippi River valley. One such incident took place in 1761. A Dakota named Ixkatapay had shot an English trader called Pagonta by the Sioux. The two had quarreled earlier, and Pagonta was reportedly killed while sitting in his cabin smoking. Ixkatapay was turned over to the British for the killing. Wapasha I led the party, composed of 100 men, to the English headquarters in Quebec.
By the time Wapasha had reached Green Bay, Wisconsin
, there were only six of the original 100 left, Wapasha and five warriors. The others had drifted off in small groups. One of these deserting bands had taken Ixkatapay with them and returned to their homelands.
Wapasha and the remaining five continued to Quebec
and offered themselves as surrogates for Ixkatapay in the English court. Because Wapasha said he would have himself executed for Ixkatapay, the British decided to release both Wapasha and the other warriors out of admiration. The Governor of Fort Beauharnois
awarded the Dakota chief a military medal for his noble act, the chief and the Governor became the best of friends.
Wapasha then became a war chief and his forces fought in the American revolutionary war
against the British
allied Ojibwe Indian Army. Wapasha himself was greeted by the salute of a cannon
. Wapasha died of throat cancer
just after the dawn of the 19th century. He was succeeded by his son, Wapasha II
. A poem was written in his honor by Arent DePeyster
, the British commander of Fort Michilimackinac
:
"Hail to the chief! who his buffalo's back straddles, When in his own country far ,far from this fort; whose brave young canoe men here hold up there paddles in hopes that the whizzing balls may give them sport.
Hail! to the great Wapasha
He comes, beat drums, the Sioux chief comes.
They now strain there nerves till the canoe runs bounding
As swift as the Solen goose skims o'er the wave
While on the lake's boarder a guard is surrounding
A space where to land the Sioux so brave.
Hail! to great Wapasha!
Soldiers!your triggers draw!
Guard! wave the colors and beat the drum
Hail! to great Wapasha
Raise the banner, the King's friend has come"
Mdewakanton
Mdewakantonwan are one of the sub-tribes of the Isanti Dakota . Their historic home is Mille Lacs Lake in central Minnesota, which in the Dakota language was called mde wakan .As part of the Santee Sioux, their ancestors had migrated from the Southeast of the present-day United States, where the...
Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
chief.
Wapasha was born in present-day Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
in 1718. During his youth he befriended the agents of King Louis XV of France
Louis XV of France
Louis XV was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and of Navarre from 1 September 1715 until his death. He succeeded his great-grandfather at the age of five, his first cousin Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, served as Regent of the kingdom until Louis's majority in 1723...
and was a long time friend to the French against the British. Wapasha and his followers were allies of the French, and aided them in their conflicts with the British. After the British defeated the French, they were both suspicious and fearful of the their Sioux allies. As a result, there were no English trappers and traders among the Sioux. They had become more accustomed to hunting with rifles than bows and arrows. Fur trading with French trappers brought provisions and ammunition and the Dakota found it difficult to survive without this commerce.
Several incidents that took place during the French and Indian War made English trappers apprehensive about returning to the Mississippi River valley. One such incident took place in 1761. A Dakota named Ixkatapay had shot an English trader called Pagonta by the Sioux. The two had quarreled earlier, and Pagonta was reportedly killed while sitting in his cabin smoking. Ixkatapay was turned over to the British for the killing. Wapasha I led the party, composed of 100 men, to the English headquarters in Quebec.
By the time Wapasha had reached Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
, there were only six of the original 100 left, Wapasha and five warriors. The others had drifted off in small groups. One of these deserting bands had taken Ixkatapay with them and returned to their homelands.
Wapasha and the remaining five continued to Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
and offered themselves as surrogates for Ixkatapay in the English court. Because Wapasha said he would have himself executed for Ixkatapay, the British decided to release both Wapasha and the other warriors out of admiration. The Governor of Fort Beauharnois
Fort Beauharnois
Fort Beauharnois was a French fort built on the shores of Lake Pepin, a wide part of the upper Mississippi River, in 1727. The location chosen was on lowlands and the fort was rebuilt in 1730 on higher ground. It was the site of the first Roman Catholic chapel in Minnesota, which was dedicated to...
awarded the Dakota chief a military medal for his noble act, the chief and the Governor became the best of friends.
Wapasha then became a war chief and his forces fought in the American revolutionary war
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
against the British
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...
allied Ojibwe Indian Army. Wapasha himself was greeted by the salute of a cannon
Cannon
A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...
. Wapasha died of throat cancer
Head and neck cancer
Head and neck cancer refers to a group of biologically similar cancers that start in the upper aerodigestive tract, including the lip, oral cavity , nasal cavity , paranasal sinuses, pharynx, and larynx. 90% of head and neck cancers are squamous cell carcinomas , originating from the mucosal lining...
just after the dawn of the 19th century. He was succeeded by his son, Wapasha II
Wapasha II
Wapasha was the name of a Mdewakanton Sioux chief.The son of Wapasha , Wapasha took the place of his noble father as a mighty war chief, in present day Minnesota....
. A poem was written in his honor by Arent DePeyster
Arent DePeyster
Arent Schuyler DePeyster was a British military officer best known for his term as commandant of the British controlled Fort Michilimackinac and Fort Detroit during the American Revolution...
, the British commander of Fort Michilimackinac
Fort Michilimackinac
Fort Michilimackinac was an 18th century French, and later British, fort and trading post in the Great Lakes of North America. Built around 1715, it was located along the southern shore of the strategic Straits of Mackinac connecting Lake Huron and Lake Michigan, at the northern tip of the lower...
:
"Hail to the chief! who his buffalo's back straddles, When in his own country far ,far from this fort; whose brave young canoe men here hold up there paddles in hopes that the whizzing balls may give them sport.
Hail! to the great Wapasha
He comes, beat drums, the Sioux chief comes.
They now strain there nerves till the canoe runs bounding
As swift as the Solen goose skims o'er the wave
While on the lake's boarder a guard is surrounding
A space where to land the Sioux so brave.
Hail! to great Wapasha!
Soldiers!your triggers draw!
Guard! wave the colors and beat the drum
Hail! to great Wapasha
Raise the banner, the King's friend has come"