The Government of the Five Nations

By: Charlotte, Paige, Dominic, Joey and Tyler

Vocabulary Pow wow- A meeting. The Native Americans

went to a meeting called a Pow Wow.The Great Law of Peace- The Great Law of Peace

is the Iroquois Constitution.Sachem-Chief

Did You Know…

When the Mohawk and Seneca were in agreement they sent their decision across the fire to the Cayuga and Oneida. If the Onondaga agreed the chief conducting the meeting announced that the league could now speak with one voice.

The first Democracy

The Iroquois formed a special kind of government called a Democracy.

Leaders

Colonial leaders like Benjamin Franklin and John Handcock admired the laws of the laws of the Iroquois league. They based American Democracy on the same ideas.

Native government today

The Iroquois was like the American government today. There were six nations

Seneca Cayuga Oneida OnondagaMohawk Tuscarora joined later.

The Iroquois believe that more than 400 yearsago, a leader named Deganawida urged his

people to form “ a circle so strong that if a tree should fall upon it, it could not shake or break it.

Did you know…

• The Wampum belt was the Iroquois way of trade and story telling. Sachems would rise to their feet when it was there turn to speak at a council. As one speaker finished, he would pass the wampum to the next speaker.

Did you know…

When somebody committed a crime like a murder the family members would send white wampum to the victims family. If the family forgave the murderer and his/her family they wouldn’t do anything to the murder or the family, but if the victims family did not except the wampum they got to decide what happened to the murderer.

White Wampum

American Bison

The Native Americans used every part of the bison for food, shelter, clothing and weapons. They even used the dung as fuel. In an effort to destroy the Native American culture, Europeans shot and killed nearly 50,000,000 buffalo. Before the Europeans arrived in America, 60,000,000 buffalo roamed the plains. After the Europeans came, only 5,000 remained.

American Bison

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!

From the law group!