new commander, Gen. Thomas Gage, who
replaced the insensitive Amherst. In contrast
with earlier British treatment of Native Amer-
icans, Gage heaped praise on Pontiac, show-
ered him with gifts, and became a loyal friend.
Thus concluded Pontiac’s Rebellion—the
largest, most concerted effort by Native
Americans to halt white expansion. One re-
sult of the war was the Proclamation Line of
1763, which forbade further white settlement
beyond the Appalachians. This policy, in turn,
was viewed as arbitrary by the American
colonists and became a source of grievance
against British rule.
The postwar years were uneasy ones for
Pontiac. He returned to his village on the
banks of the Maumee and lived in relative ob-
scurity for many years. His unswerving stance
as an English ally cost him much prestige, and
at one point he was driven from his village.
While visiting an agent’s store in Cahokia, Illi-
nois, he was suddenly attacked and killed by a
Peoria Indian. It is not known if Pontiac was
slain as the result of an English vendetta or
Indian resentment, but this most formidable
of warriors was transported across the Mis-
sissippi River and buried in present-day St.
Louis. The location of his grave has long since
been forgotten.Bibliography
Chapman, Arthur E. “Pontiac’s Rebellion.” Unpublished
master’s thesis, University of Miami, 1977; Eckert,
Allan W. The Conquerors: A Narrative.Boston: Lit-
tle, Brown, 1970; Holmes, Norman G. “The Ottawa
Indians of Oklahoma and Chief Pontiac.”Chronicles
of Oklahoma45 (1967): 190–206; Keller, Alan. “Pon-
tiac’s Conspiracy.” American History Illustrated12,
no. 2 (1977): 4–9, 42–49; Leach, Douglas E. Arms for
Empire: A Military History of the British Colonies
in North America, 1607–1763.New York: Macmil-
lan, 1973; Nester, William R. “Haughty Conquerors”:
Amherst and the Great Indian Uprising of 1763.
Westport, CT: Praeger, 2000; Newbigging, William J.
“The History of the French-Ottawa Alliance,
1613–1763.” Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Univer-
sity of Toronto, 1995; Peckham, Howard H. Pontiac
and the Indian Uprising.New York: Russell and
Russell, 1970; Sheehan, Bernard W. “Looking Back:
Parkman’s Pontiac.” Indiana Magazine of History
72 (1996): 56–66.POUCHOTDEMAUPAS, PIERRE
Pouchot de Maupas, Pierre
(April 8, 1712–May 8, 1769)
French Army Officer
P
ouchot was a highly talented engineer-
ing officer of the French and Indian
War, one of few army regulars accorded
command of a post in New France. He is best
remembered for his resolute defense of Fort
Niagara and an uncanny ability to strike up
cordial relations with Native Americans.
Pierre Pouchot de Maupas was born in
Grenoble, France, on April 8, 1712, and he
joined the army as a volunteer engineer at the
age of 21. In 1734, he gained a regular army
commission as a second lieutenant in the
Bearn Regiment, where he demonstrated an
aptitude for military engineering. Pouchot
campaigned in Italy throughout the War of the
Polish Succession (1733–1738) and further
honed his abilities while serving on Corsica.
During the War of the Austrian Succession
(1740–1748) he acquired the rank of captain,
and in 1749 Pouchot also received the presti-
gious Cross of St. Louis along with command
of his own company. Following the outbreak