The most recent book in the 'Men-at-Arms' series covers a subject most of us rarely think about. Before Europeans came to North America, there were already indigenous peoples living in almost all parts of the continent. Among those initially impacted were those of New England, where some of the earliest colonial settlements were founded. Initially these contacts were peaceful, but as the lust and greed for more land overtook the Europeans, there became more and more conflicts.

As these peoples were technologically ill equipped to combat Europeans on equal ground and as European diseases ravaged their settlements, the native populations either disappeared entirely or combined into confederations. At other times, groups sided with either the British, Dutch or French and suffered the retributions of the opposing sides in wars between Europeans.

One result of this is that there is actually little known about the customs, dress and lifestyles of many of these peoples.

The author has done a fine job of covering what is known from either period records or the verbal histories passed down to the survivors and told to historians before the particular tribe passed into obscurity.  Each of the tribes have been covered with their known ranges, languages, the wars in which they were part, their leaders, dress, customs and religious beliefs and ceremonies. All of this is superbly illustrated by Jonathan Smith to give a real idea of how these people looked and the way they dressed.

An entirely absorbing book and one that I can easily recommend for something a bit different from the norm.

April 2006

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