Dowd boldly reinterprets the causes and consequences of Pontiac's War. Where previous Anglocentric histories have ascribed this dramatic uprising to disputes over trade and land, this groundbreaking work traces the conflict back to status: both the low regard in which the British held the Indians and the concern among Native American leaders about their people's standing--and their sovereignty--in the eyes of the British. Pontiac's War also embodied a clash of world views, and Dowd examines the central role that Indian cultural practices and beliefs played in the conflict, explores the political and military culture of the British Empire which informed the attitudes its servants had toward Indians, provides insightful portraits of Pontiac and his British adversaries, and offers a detailed analysis of the military and diplomatic strategies of both sides.

Introduction: heroes of history, heaven, and Earth -- Ottawas, Delawares and the colonial world, 1615-1760 -- A worldly war -- An otherworldly war -- Besieging Britons, 1763 -- Defending the villages, 1764 -- Mobs, germs, and the standing of American Indians -- Uneasy conclusions -- Deaths and legacies.