Colonial Georgia and the Creeks

“Colonial Georgia and the Creeks is as meticulous, nuanced, and fine-grained a study of Anglo-Indian diplomacy as anything in the literature of Colonial America.”—Richard White, Stanford University

"Juricek understands the changing southern frontier in the mid-eighteenth century, and this seasoned historian has used his thorough knowledge of original texts and secondary sources to create a reliable narrative of lasting value. His readable book highlights the balance-of-power diplomacy of Brim and later Creeks, putting early Georgia relations with this powerful Indian nation into the wider context of Native American rivalries, European imperial competition, and the expanding world of Atlantic affairs."— Peter H. Wood, Duke University

This detailed account of interactions between the English and the Creek Indians in colonial Georgia, from the founding until 1763, describes how colonists and the Creeks negotiated with each other, especially over land issues. John Juricek's deep research reveals the clashes between the groups, their efforts to manipulate one another, and how they reached a series of unstable compromises.

European and North American Indian nations had different understandings of "national" territory. In Georgia, this led to a bitter conflict that lasted more than a decade and threatened to destroy the colony. Unlike previous accounts of James Oglethorpe's diplomacy, Juricek reveals how his serious blunders led directly to colonial Georgia's greatest crisis. In the end, an ingenious and complicated compromise arranged by Governor Henry Ellis resolved the situation, mainly in favor of the English.

After spending more than twenty years gathering and editing documentary information on the treaties, Juricek is uniquely qualified to explain the legal and practical issues involved in the acquisition of territory by the British Crown and Georgia settlers at the expense of the Creek Indians. By focusing on the land issues that structured the treaties, he tells a cross-cultural story of deal-making and deal-breaking, both public and private.