MAY 7, 1763

PONTIAC’S REBELLION BEGINS WITH SIEGE OF FT. DETROIT

With the end of the French and Indian War in February 1763, lands formerly controlled by the French came under British control.  Indians in the Great Lakes region, fearing an influx of colonists from east, united under Ottawa chief Pontiac against the British.  Joining the Ottawa were the Ojibwa, Potawatomi, Huron, Miami, Weas, Kickapoo, Mascouten, Piankashaw, Delaware, Shawnee, Wyandot, Seneca, and Seneca-Cayuga.  Pontiac initially led his warriors to take Fort Detroit and its arsenal under the guise of negotiating a peace treaty.  The British were aware of the plot when Pontiac arrived on May 7.  Thus, Pontiac was forced to siege the fort while his allies in Pennsylvania were sieging Fort Pitt.  The British held on at Forts Detroit, Pitt, and Niagara, though the united tribes captured 8 other forts.   In autumn 1764, the British military took the offensive and surpressed the rebellion.  Pontiac, however, did not formally surrender until July 1766. 

Sources:  “Pontiac’s Rebellion,” Ohio History Central.  Retrieved 3/5/2020, https://ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Pontiac%27s_Rebellion
 “Ottowa Chief Pontiac’s Rebellion against the British begins,” This Day in History.  Retrieved 3/5/2020, https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/pontiacs-rebellion-begins,
Engraving:  Alfred Bobbett (1824-1888), pre-1888.  Public Domain.