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Tenskwatawa

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The Resume

    (January 1775-November 1836)
    Born in Clark County, Ohio
    Birth name was Lalawethika (‘Rattling Noise’)
    Shawnee Indian
    Younger brother of Tecumseh
    Had a series of religious visions and declared himself a prophet (1805)
    Changed his name to Tenskwatawa (‘Open Door’)
    Name also spelled Tenskatawa, Tenskwatawah and Tensquatawa
    Preached a return to traditional tribal ways
    With Tecumseh, led a pan-Indian movement to resist white settlement
    With his followers, founded the village Prophetstown near modern-day Lafayette, Indiana (1808)
    Went into exile in Canada (1811)
    Fought on the British side in the War of 1812
    Returned to the United States and settled on a Shawnee reservation in Kansas (1824)

Why he might be annoying:

    When his siblings went hunting, he was left behind because of his incompetence.
    He blinded himself in the right eye with an arrow.
    He responded by making up stories about his importance and drinking heavily.
    He tried to become a medicine man without success.
    He had his first religious vision during an alcoholic stupor.
    He accused his detractors of witchcraft.
    When William Henry Harrison led an army towards Prophetstown, Tecumseh left to gather additional allies and Tenskwatawa agreed to avoid a confrontation with Harrison’s force until Tecumseh returned.
    Instead, he ordered an attack against the Americans despite being outnumbered and short on ammunition, leading to the Indians’ defeat at the Battle of Tippecanoe (November 7, 1811).

Why he might not be annoying:

    His father was killed by a British soldier at the Battle of Point Pleasant before Tenskwatawa was born.
    He successfully transformed himself from a hapless drunk into an influential religious leader.
    William Henry Harrison attempted to undermine him by denouncing him as a fraud and demanding that he perform a miracle if he were truly a prophet.
    He responded by using his knowledge of an upcoming eclipse to announce he would make the sun disappear (June 16, 1806), establishing his bona fides to many tribal leaders.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 81.82% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 21 Votes: 52.38% Annoying