Big Warrior or Tustanagee Thlucco (Tvstanagi Rakkē in Mvskokē «Big Warrior» < ''rak·kē'' «big») was a principal chief of the

Creek Nation The Muscogee Nation, or Muscogee (Creek) Nation, is a federally recognized Native American tribe based in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The nation descends from the historic Muscogee Confederacy, a large group of indigenous peoples of the South ...

until his death in 1826. The name ''Tustanagee Thlucco'' is actually a war title, "great warrior," given to the man who led all the warriors of a town. No other Creek name is recorded for Big Warrior. Big Warrior was from the town of

Tukabatchee Tukabatchee or Tuckabutche ( Creek: ''Tokepahce'' ) is one of the four mother towns of the Muscogee Creek confederacy.Isham, Theodore and Blue Clark"Creek (Mvskoke)." ''Oklahoma Historical Society's Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture.'' ...

. It is said that his father was of Piankashaw descent and his mother was Tukabatchee. He married the abandoned wife of Efa Haco, a Tukabatchee woman named Tefvhoe. He spoke little, to no English. General Thomas Woodward described Big Warrior as the largest man that he had ever seen among the Creeks and as spotted as a leopard. He would become Mekko (chief) of Tukabatchee in the early 1800s and Principal Chief of the Upper Creeks. He did not like or trust the Americans, but believed it was in the Nations best interests to ally themselves with them. Big Warrior's policies made him a target of the Red Sticks during the Creek Civil War. Tukabatchee was surrounded by Red Sticks in 1813 and its inhabitants had to find asylum in Koweta, among the Lower Creeks. Tukabatchee would be rebuilt following the end of the Creek Civil War in 1814. Big Warrior was one of the signees of the Treaty of Fort Jackson and was angered to find that his loyalty to the United States had meant nothing and that the U.S. was demanding the secession of even more land from the Creeks. He died in February 1825, while in Washington D.C. with delegation of Creeks. He had two sons, Tuskenea and Yargee and at least two daughters. Tuskenea would replace Big Warrior as Mekko of Tukabatchee who would be succeeded by Opothleyahola a few years later. In 1811 Big Warrior welcomed

Tecumseh Tecumseh ( ; October 5, 1813) was a Shawnee chief and warrior who promoted resistance to the expansion of the United States onto Native American lands. A persuasive orator, Tecumseh traveled widely, forming a Native American confederacy and ...

to Tukabatchee to deliver his message of pan-tribal unity and hostility to the United States. Nevertheless, Big Warrior remained firmly on the U.S. side during the

Creek War The Creek War (1813–1814), also known as the Red Stick War and the Creek Civil War, was a regional war between opposing Indigenous American Creek factions, European empires and the United States, taking place largely in modern-day Alabama ...

of 1813-14. The

Treaty of Fort Jackson The Treaty of Fort Jackson (also known as the Treaty with the Creeks, 1814) was signed on August 9, 1814 at Fort Jackson near Wetumpka, Alabama following the defeat of the Red Stick (Upper Creek) resistance by United States allied forces at t ...

forced harsh settlement terms on the entire Creek Nation. In the following decade Big Warrior became an opponent of further land cessions. Big Warrior, representing the Upper Towns of the Creek Nation, shared the leadership of the

Creek National Council A creek in North America and elsewhere, such as Australia, is a stream that is usually smaller than a river. In the British Isles it is a small tidal inlet. Creek may also refer to: People * Creek people, also known as Muscogee, Native Americans ...

with Little Prince, principal chief of the Lower Towns.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Big Warrior 1826 deaths Native American leaders Native American people of the Indian Wars Year of birth unknown Muscogee people 18th-century Native Americans 19th-century Native Americans