brant,joseph

Brant, Joseph [Thayendanegea] (1742-1807) Leader of the Mohawk Iroquois: Brother of Mary (Konwatsi'tsiaienni) Brant, he was educated by missionaries among the Iroquois because of the patronage of his sister's companion, British Indian Superintendent Sir William Johnson. Brant also studied with Eleazer Wheelock in Connecticut. Brant's sister ordered him to return home at the outbreak of Pontiac's Rebellion, and he worked as an interpreter for visiting missionaries for about ten years; by 1774, he was interpreting for the British Indian Department as well. The next year, he traveled to London, was presented at court, and even dined with Boswell. After his return to America in 1776, Brant and his warriors supported the loyalists. Brant worked with Iroquois Mohawks in both Canada and what would become the United States, resisting American invasions of Native American homelands. He was a skillful leader but, although he was once called "the most ferocious being" ever born, he was never a butcher. Described by Daniel Claus as "sober, quiet, and good-natured," Brant was actively involved in the political, economic, and religious life of the Canadian Mohawks from 1785 until his death.