Ostenaco and the Cherokee, 1762 (The King's Arms)

In June 1762, three Cherokee chieftains arrived at Plymouth. They were on their way to King George III to mark the confirmation of the new treaty of friendship between Britain and the Cherokee Nation. This followed four years of hostilities and was organised by the Governor of Virginia, Francis Fauquier.

The three men were Atawayi (‘Wood Pigeon’), Kunagadoga (‘Standing Turkey’) and Utsidihi (‘Man Killer’). Utsidihi preferred that name over Osteneco, the name we know, which translates as ‘Big Head’. Their translator died enroute – somewhere near Newfoundland - but they were accompanied by two officers, Lt. Henry Timberlake and Sgt. Thomas Sumter, both experienced in Anglo-Indigenous relations.

They had arrived on the frigate HMS Epreuve, but were transferred to the boat of the Plymouth flagship HMS Revenge as befitted their status as ambassadors. They came in to Plymouth – although we’re not exactly sure where – on 16th June 1762.

Their arrival was the scene of much celebration, as recounted by their official guide, Henry Timberlake:

"Ostenaco, painted in a very frightful manner, sung a solemn dirge with a very loud voice to return God thanks for his safe arrival. The loudness and uncouthness of his singing, and the oddity of his person, drew a vast crowd of boats, filled with spectators, from all the ships in the harbour; and the landing place was so thronged, it was almost impossible to get to the inn, where we took the post to London."

In the late 1700s, there were two posting inns in the Plymouth area - the Prince George at Plymouth Dock and the King's Arms here, opposite what is now The Swallow, on what would have been the route to London at that time (A. Arrowsmith, Cary's Actual Survey of the Great Post Roads between London and Falmouth, 1782). We're not sure which inn they patronised but either way they would have travelled through this area of the city on their way to Exeter the next day and then Salisbury. There they were described –

“They are well-made Men, near six feet high, dressed in their own Country Fashion, with only a shirt, trousers, and mantle around them; their faces are painted of a Copper Colour, and their heads adorned with Shells, Feathers, Earrings and other trifling Ornaments. They neither of them can speak to be understood, and very unfortunately lost their Interpreter, who died in the Passage, which obliges them to make their Wants and Desires known, as well as they can, by dumb Signs. They are shy of Company, especially a Crowd, by whom they avoid being seen as much as possible.”

The Cherokee delegation spent two months in London meeting the King several times and visiting many of the city's tourist attractions. It was during this period that they sat for portraits with Plymouth artist Joshua Reynolds and Francis Parsons. They became instant celebrities followed by crowds and the press, and within a short time had attracted conmen and grifters who sought to exploit them. After a brawl in Vauxhall Gardens, they were sent back to America, via Portsmouth on 24th August. Their mission having been a qualified if exuberant success. However, all future delegations out of Virginia were banned.

On 16th June 2012, a group representing the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians, and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians recreated the trip - a mere 250 years on.