The Prophet Shawnee

Shawni culture was in danger in the early 19th century. Clashes with the whites were constant, the hunt had been exhausted, and alcohol consumption made things worse.

Lalawethika, the younger brother of Shawni Chief Tecumseh, had a series of visions during an epidemic in 1805. He was once a vague man, drunk and fanfarron, but visions turned him into a different man. It was said that the "Lord of Life" had shown him a paradise full of hunting and cornfields, and that this was the world of the shawnis before the white arrived. This paradise would re-exist if the Shawnis returned to the path of virtue.

Lalawethika taught many traditional shawnis values, but also some that were inspired by Christian doctrine. Some of the virtues he preached were called Tenskwatawa, which is now called Teskwatawa. Tenskwatawa attracted many followers, mostly non-Shawnis, including Tecumseh himself.

In 1807, the followers established a community called the City of the Prophet, which led the United States government to consider the movement dangerous. The prophet confronted the federal troops at Tippicanoe in 1811, against any council. The Shawnis were defeated and Tenskwatawa lost all influence in the coup. Two years later, Tecumseh died in battle, but continued to take care of his brother until the end of his days.