Kinache (c. 1750 – c. 1819) was a Seminole chieftain who commanded Seminole forces against the United States during the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

and later during the

First Seminole War The Seminole Wars (also known as the Florida Wars) were three related military conflicts in Florida between the United States and the Seminole, citizens of a Native American nation which formed in the region during the early 1700s. Hostilities ...

. He is also known as ''Kinhega'', ''Kinheja'', ''Kinhija'', ''Opie Mico'', ''Kapitca Mico'', ''Capichee Mico'', ''Tom Perryman'' and ''Lye Drop Mico'' (the latter meaning ''"Far Off Warrior"''). Kinache was a prominent chieftain among the Seminoles along the mouth of the Apalachicola River during the late eighteenth century when he allied with

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

during the American Revolution. Following Great Britain's defeat, Kinache moved to a Miccosukee village on the west side of

Lake Miccosukee Lake Miccosukee is a large swampy prairie lake in northern Jefferson County, Florida, located east of the settlement of Miccosukee. A small portion of the lake, its northwest corner, is located in Leon County. The small town of Miccosukee, Flo ...

, where he lived among the Seminole of western Florida. He was regarded as "king of the

Miccosukee The Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida is a federally recognized Native American tribe in the U.S. state of Florida. They were part of the Seminole nation until the mid-20th century, when they organized as an independent tribe, receiving f ...

s". During 1800 until 1802, the area was used by

Bolek Bolek (died 1819), also spelled as Boleck or Bolechs, and known as Bowlegs by European Americans, was a Seminole principal chief, of the Alachua chiefly line. He was the younger brother of King Payne, who succeeded their father Cowkeeper (kno ...

as a base of operations in staging raids into Georgia. During the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

, Kinache reportedly fought with British forces against General

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

at the

Battle of New Orleans The Battle of New Orleans was fought on January 8, 1815 between the British Army under Major General Sir Edward Pakenham and the United States Army under Brevet Major General Andrew Jackson, roughly 5 miles (8 km) southeast of the Frenc ...

. Rear Admiral Codrington, in a letter to his wife dated 14 December 1814, describes meeting him. In 1815, Kinache was part of the Seminole/Negro stronghold of Negro Fort, and helped defend it against an attack by Colonel Duncan L. Clinch, when US troops attempted to capture escaped slaves hiding among the Seminole. (See

Battle of Negro Fort Negro Fort (African Fort) was a short-lived fortification built by the British in 1814, during the War of 1812, in a remote part of what was at the time Spanish Florida. It was intended to support a never-realized British attack on the U.S. via i ...

.) During the First Seminole War, Kinache commanded Miccosukee forces against the combined forces of American and Creeks under the command of Gen. William McIntosh. Although reportedly killed in battle while leading the Miccosukee in defense of their village, Kinache apparently survived the campaign, later escaping to the

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the ar ...

before returning to Florida in 1819, where he died soon after.

References

* *Johansen, Bruce C. and David A. Grinde, Jr. ''The Encyclopedia of Native American Biography'', New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1997. * {{Citation , last=Reilly , first=Robin , year=1974 , title=The British at the gates – the New Orleans campaign in the War of 1812 , location=New York , publisher=Putnam , oclc=839952 Native American leaders Seminole people Pre-statehood history of Florida 1750 births 1819 deaths Native Americans of the Seminole Wars