Sussman-Laabs

Uncas.jpg

Uncas Age: 95 years15881683

Name
Uncas
Given names
Uncas
Also known as
Sachem Uncas
Birth about 1588 20 20
MarriageWe-Na-Quash MontaukView this family
yes

Death of a paternal grandmotherMukunnup
1600 (Age 12 years)
Death of a paternal grandfatherWoipequund
1605 (Age 17 years)
Birth of a daughter
#1
Mary
about 1627 (Age 39 years)
Death of a fatherOwaneco Tatuphosuwhut
1630 (Age 42 years)
Death of a maternal grandfatherPetoath Wopegwoit
1631 (Age 43 years)
Death of a motherMekunump
1650 (Age 62 years)
Death September 1683 (Age 95 years)
Burial
Family with parents - View this family
father
mother
Marriage:
himself
Family with We-Na-Quash Montauk - View this family
himself
wife
Marriage:
daughter

Note

Uncas (c. 1588 – c. 1683) was a sachem of the Mohegans who made the Mohegans the leading regional Indian tribe in lower Connecticut, through his alliance with the New England colonists against other Indian tribes. Uncas was born near the Thames River in present-day Connecticut, the son of the Mohegan sachem Owaneco.Uncas is a variant of the Mohegan term Wonkus, meaning "Fox". He was a descendant of the principal sachems of the Mohegans, Pequots, and Narragansetts. Owaneco presided over the village known as Montonesuck. Uncas was bilingual, learning Mohegan and some English, and possibly some Dutch. In 1626, Owaneco arranged for Uncas to marry the daughter of the principal Pequot sachem Tatobem to secure an alliance with them. Owaneco died shortly after this marriage, and Uncas had to submit to Tatobem's authority. Tatobem was captured and killed by the Dutch in 1633; Sassacus became his successor, but Uncas felt that he deserved to be sachem. Owaneco's alliance with Tatobem was based upon a balance of power between the Mohegans and Pequots. After the death of Owaneco, the balance changed in favour of the Pequots. Uncas was unwilling to challenge the power of Tatobem; however, Uncas did begin contesting Pequot authority over the Mohegans. In 1634 with Narragansett support, Uncas rebelled against Sassacus and Pequot authority. Uncas was defeated and became an exile among the Narragansetts. He soon returned from exile after ritually humiliating himself before Sassacus. His failed challenges resulted in Uncas having little land and few followers, but Uncas saw that the newly arriving Puritan colonists, though few in number, had better weapons and much courage, so he started to develop a new strategy and alliance to work towards his ultimate goal of Grand Sachem. About 1635, Uncas developed relationships with important figures in the Connecticut Colony. He was a trusted ally of Captain John Mason, a partnership which lasted three and a half decades and several family generations beyond. Uncas sent word to Jonathan Brewster that Sassacus was planning to attack the colonists on the Connecticut River. Brewster described Uncas as being "faithful" to the colonists. In 1637, during the Pequot War, Uncas was allied with the New England colonists and against the Pequots. He led his Mohegans in a joint attack with the colonists against the Pequots near Saybrook and against the Pequot Fort at Mystic River. The Pequots were defeated and the Mohegans incorporated much of the remaining Pequot people and their land. The Mohegans were in continuous conflict with the Narragansetts over control of the former Pequot land. In the summer of 1643, this conflict turned into war... Colonists from the New England Confederation formed an alliance with the Mohegans for their defense. The Narragansett attacks started in June 1644. With each success, the number of Narragansett allies grew. In 1645, Uncas and the Mohegans were under siege in Fort Shantok at Shattuck's Point and on the verge of a complete defeat when the colonists relieved them with supplies, led by Thomas Tracy and Thomas Leffingwell, and lifted the siege. The New England Confederation pledged any offensive action required to preserve Uncas in "his liberty and estate". The New England administration sent troops to defend the Mohegan fort at Shantok. When the colonists threatened to invade Narragansett territory, the Narragansett signed a peace treaty. King Philip's War started in June 1675. In the summer, the Mohegans entered the war on the side of the New England colonists. Uncas led his forces in joint attacks with the colonists against the Wampanoags. In December, a combined New England-Mohegan force attacked a group of Narragansetts. The Mohegans continued to maintain their alliance until the war's end in July 1676. Uncas died sometime between June 1683 and June 1684 in Norwich, New London County, Connecticut. (Wikipedia article)

Media objectUncas.jpg
Uncas.jpg
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Image dimensions: 509 × 1,024 pixels
File size: 115 KB
Type: Photo
Media objectUncas-monument-norwich-connecticut.jpg
Uncas-monument-norwich-connecticut.jpg
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Image dimensions: 387 × 569 pixels
File size: 84 KB
Type: Photo
Note: Monument foundation laid by President Andrew Jackson.
Media objectMarker - Uncas_Norwich.jpg
Marker - Uncas_Norwich.jpg
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Image dimensions: 362 × 460 pixels
File size: 77 KB
Type: Photo