Creek War of 1813-14 - Encyclopedia of Alabama

Chief Menawa The Creek War of 1813-14 began as a civil war, largely centered among the Upper Creeks, whose towns were located on the Coosa, Tallapoosa, and upper reaches of the Alabama rivers. The struggle pitted a faction of the Creeks who became known as Red Sticks against those Creeks who supported the National Council, a relatively new body that had developed from the traditional regional meetings of headmen from the Creek towns. Under the auspices of federal Indian agent Benjamin Hawkins, the National Council's authority and powers had been expanded. The war broke out against the backdrop of the War of 1812 between the United States and Great Britain. Americans, fearful that southeastern Indians would ally with the British, quickly joined the war against the Red Sticks, turning the civil war into a military campaign designed to destroy Creek power. To prove their loyalty to the United States, contingents of Choctaw and Cherokee warriors joined the American war against the Creeks....