Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

North American Indian Chief’s Medal 1814, George III, by T. Wyon, Junior (Jamieson Fig. 26) silver, 38mm, lacking original ornamental suspension loop and fitted with small ring, two small edge bruises, overall contact marks and wear, otherwise nearly very fine and extremely rare in this size £2,000-£3,000

As Indian Chiefs of various ranks had accorded their help during the War of 1812-14, most notably at Fort Detroit, Chateauguay, and Chrystler’s Farm, it was decided to present a medal as a reward to those Indian Chiefs who had, by their loyalty and co-operation, assisted the British to win a decisive victory over the American forces. It was struck in three sizes of which the above is the smallest, being for ‘minor’ Chiefs. They were very much ‘war’ medals rather than commemorative medals, and they attracted influential Indians throughout what is now Canada and the United States of America to the British cause, and were worn with great pride by the recipients and their descendants. It is interesting to note that as the smaller sizes are considerably scarcer than the largest 76mm variety, the minor Chiefs must have been in the minority amongst the recipients.

During the War of 1812 the British in Canada became allies with Indians under Tecumseh's leadership against the United States. When the War of 1812 began, the weakness of America's hold over the Midwest was apparent. A combined Indian and British military force left their fort on St. Joseph's Island and conquered the American fort at Mackinac Island without firing a shot. Meanwhile, the Potawatomi slaughtered the entire American garrison at Chicago. British fur trader Robert Dickson organised Wisconsin Indians to fight the United States. The Menominee, Ho-chunk, Ojibwa, Ottawa, Santee Dakota, Sauk, and Fox all fought on the side of the British during the War and fended off American attempts to regain control of the region.

In 1814, the United States established a small post at Prairie du Chien called Fort Shelby, but the Indians and British militia quickly conquered it, renaming it Fort McKay, and defeated two American relief expeditions sent up the Mississippi River from St. Louis to retake it. That same year, Indians from Wisconsin and Michigan repelled an American military force that attempted to retake Mackinac Island. The United States found the area of Wisconsin and northern Michigan virtually unassailable, and throughout the War of 1812, it remained firmly in the hands of the British and their Indian allies.