For some 600 years, Hiawatha has been revered among the Iroquois people as a hero of mythic proportions. His greatest accomplishment lay in founding the Iroquois Confederacy, a league of nations that stresses cooperation, peace, and unity.
In the time of Hiawatha, the Iroquois--comprising the Onondaga, Mohawk, Oneida, Cayuga, and Seneca nations--were embroiled in numerous conflicts, both internal and external. Saddened by the violence, Hiawatha used his great oratory skills to try to convince his people to stop warring. ...
