William Claus (1765–1826) was a member of the

Executive Council of Upper Canada The Executive Council of Upper Canada had a similar function to the Cabinet in England but was not responsible to the Legislative Assembly. Members of the Executive Council were not necessarily members of the Legislative Assembly but were usually ...

, a colonel of the Canadian militia during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

, and the head of the

Indian Department The Indian Department was established in 1755 to oversee relations between the British Empire and the First Nations of North America. The imperial government ceded control of the Indian Department to the Province of Canada in 1860, thus setting ...

in Upper Canada from 1799 until his death.

Family Background

William Claus's father, Daniel Claus, was born in

Bönnigheim Bönnigheim () is a town in the German administrative district ( Kreis) of Ludwigsburg which lies at the edge of the areas known as ''Stromberg'' and ''Zabergäu''. The nearest large towns are Ludwigsburg and Heilbronn. Geography District ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in 1727 and came to

British America British America comprised the colonial territories of the English Empire, which became the British Empire after the 1707 union of the Kingdom of England with the Kingdom of Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain, in the Americas from 16 ...

in 1749. With the outbreak of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

, Daniel Claus was appointed to the newly created Indian Department by Sir William Johnson in 1755. In 1762, Daniel Claus strengthened his connection to the powerful Johnson family by marrying Sir William's daughter, Ann Weisenberg. Their son, William Claus, was born three years later. In 1782, William Claus's maternal uncle

Sir John Johnson Brigadier General Sir John Johnson, 2nd Baronet (5 November 1741 – 4 January 1830) was an American-born military officer, magistrate, landowner and colonial official in the British Indian Department who fought as a Loyalist during the America ...

became the head of the Indian Department, and it was largely through Sir John's influence that Claus later secured his own appointment. His descent from Sir William Johnson also meant that Claus had blood ties to the extended Brant family through the children of

Molly Brant Molly Brant ( – April 16, 1796), also known as Mary Brant, Konwatsi'tsiaienni, and Degonwadonti, was a Mohawk leader in British New York and Upper Canada in the era of the American Revolution. Living in the Province of New York, she was the c ...

, with whom he shared a grandfather.

Career

Claus was appointed superintendent of the Indian Department at the post of Niagara following the death of

John Butler John Butler may refer to: Arts and entertainment *John "Picayune" Butler (died 1864), American performer * John Butler (artist) (1890–1976), American artist *John Butler (author) (born 1937), British author and YouTuber *John Butler (born 1954), ...

in 1796. Three years later, the death of

Alexander McKee Alexander McKee ( – 15 January 1799) was an American-born military officer and colonial official in the British Indian Department during the French and Indian War, the American Revolutionary War, and the Northwest Indian War. He achieved the ...

led to Claus's promotion to Deputy Superintendent General, the second highest position in the administration of Indian Affairs in

the Canadas The Canadas is the collective name for the provinces of Lower Canada and Upper Canada, two historical British colonies in present-day Canada. The two colonies were formed in 1791, when the British Parliament passed the '' Constitutional Act'', ...

. His only superior in the Department was his uncle, Sir John Johnson, whose responsibilities were primarily limited to

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

. As the head of the Indian Department in Upper Canada, Claus was responsible for organizing land surrender treaties, distributing annual presents to the British Empire's Indigenous allies, securing the military assistance of First Nations warriors in times of crisis, and more generally ensuring good relations between the British and the Indigenous nations of the

Great Lakes region The Great Lakes region of North America is a binational Canadian–American region that includes portions of the eight U.S. states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin along with the Canadian p ...

. William Claus served during the

both as head of the Indian Department in Upper Canada and as the colonel of the 1st Lincoln Militia. During the war, Claus's leadership of the Indian Department was challenged by Joseph Brant's adopted heir John Norton, who accused Claus of cowardice and incompetence. By the end of the war, however, Norton's brashness had alienated many among the Six Nations and the British administration, including the

Governor General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

Sir Gordon Drummond General Sir Gordon Drummond, GCB (27 September 1772 – 10 October 1854) was a Canadian-born British Army officer and the first official to command the military and the civil government of Canada. As Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, Drum ...

. Claus accordingly remained the head of the Indian Department in Upper Canada, while Norton was forced into retirement, albeit with a substantial pension. As one of the leading men of the

Niagara region The Regional Municipality of Niagara, also colloquially known as the Niagara Region or Region of Niagara, is a regional municipality comprising twelve municipalities of Southern Ontario, Canada. The regional seat is in Thorold. It is the southern ...

, Claus had served as a justice of the peace since 1803. He was appointed to the

Legislative Council of Upper Canada The Legislative Council of Upper Canada was the upper house governing the province of Upper Canada. Modelled after the British House of Lords, it was created by the Constitutional Act of 1791. It was specified that the council should consist ...

in 1812, and six years later Claus was appointed to the Executive Council, the most important body advising the

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

on the governance of the Upper Canada.

Death and legacy

Claus rarely enjoyed good health in his later years, and was a long-time sufferer of gout. He died of cancer in 1826 at the age of 61. Following his death, William Claus's heirs were involved in a substantial dispute with the

Six Nations of the Grand River Six Nations (or Six Nations of the Grand River, french: Réserve des Six Nations, see, Ye:i’ Níónöëdzage:h) is demographically the largest First Nations reserve in Canada. As of the end of 2017, it has a total of 27,276 members, 12,848 of w ...

due to Claus's failure to pay the interest that had been generated from their trust fund, of which Claus had been the principle trustee. In 1791, William Claus married Catherine Jordan. Together they had three sons and two daughters who survived to adulthood. One of William Claus's sons, Daniel Claus, was killed at the

Battle of Crysler's Farm The Battle of Crysler's Farm, also known as the Battle of Crysler's Field, was fought on 11 November 1813, during the War of 1812 (the name ''Chrysler's Farm'' is sometimes used for the engagement, but ''Crysler'' is the proper spelling). A Briti ...

in 1813. A second son, Warren Claus, became a leading lawyer in Upper Canada. The Claus family home, named the Wilderness, was purchased by the Six Nations and given to Ann Claus, William Claus's mother, as a mark of respect for the longstanding connections between the communities on the Grand River and the Johnson and Claus families. It was destroyed by American troops in December 1813 as part of the burning of Newark during the U.S. retreat from the Niagara Peninsula. Rebuilt in 1816-1817, the home can still be seen in Niagara-on-the-Lake today.

Family Gallery

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Claus, William British Indian Department 1765 births 1826 deaths British Army personnel of the War of 1812 18th-century Canadian politicians Pre-Confederation Ontario people