Editing Cornplanter (section)

==Post-Revolutionary War years==
When the war ended in 1783, Cornplanter recognized the need to develop a positive diplomatic relationship with the [[Congress of the Confederation|fledgling government]] of what the Iroquois called the "Thirteen Fires." He became a negotiator in disputes between the new "Americans" and the Seneca.  He was a signatory of the [[Treaty of Fort Stanwix (1784)]], although this treaty was never ratified by the Iroquois.<ref>{{cite web |title=Treaty and Land Transaction of 1784 |url=https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/treaty-and-land-transaction-of-1784.htm |publisher=National Park Service |access-date=18 March 2023}}</ref>

During the [[Northwest Indian War]], Native Americans in what is now [[Ohio]] and [[Indiana]] mounted a resistance to the encroachment of American settlers into their territory. Cornplanter convinced the Seneca to remain neutral in this conflict. In addition, he attempted to negotiate with the [[Shawnee]] on behalf of the United States.<ref name="Abler 2007" />

In 1790, Cornplanter and other Seneca leaders travelled to [[Philadelphia]] to meet with President George Washington and [[Pennsylvania]] Governor [[Thomas Mifflin]] and protest the treatment of their people. Cornplanter extracted an agreement from Washington and Mifflin to protect Seneca land.<ref>{{cite letter |author=Seneca Chiefs |recipient=[[George Washington]] |subject=To George Washington from the Seneca Chiefs, 1 December 1790 |date=1 December 1790 |url=https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/05-07-02-0005 |access-date=11 September 2018 |publisher= [[National Historical Publications and Records Commission]] of the [[NARA|National Archives]]}}</ref>

Cornplanter made a number of trips to Philadelphia, and later [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]], to strengthen relationships and meet with those who were interested in his people. He tried to understand Euro-American culture, as he felt it necessary for successful relations between the Iroquois and the United States.

Cornplanter was particularly impressed by the beliefs and practices of the [[Quakers]]. Like the Quakers, Cornplanter and his half-brother, the religious leader [[Handsome Lake]], strongly opposed the use of liquor, and unlike other Protestant groups, the goal of Quaker missionaries was to educate rather than convert.<ref>{{cite thesis |type=PhD |last=Kinney |first=Jill |date=2009 |title="Letters, Pen, and Tilling the Field" : Quaker Schools among the Seneca Indians on the Allegany River, 1798-1852 |publisher=University of Rochester}}</ref> Cornplanter invited Quakers to the Cornplanter Tract to help the Seneca learn new skills such as [[animal husbandry]], carpentry and smithing as they could no longer rely on hunting or the fur trade as a way of life.  He also encouraged Seneca men to become involved in growing crops, a task which traditionally was done by women.

In 1794, Cornplanter was a signatory to the [[Treaty of Canandaigua]]. The treaty proclaimed "peace and friendship" between the United States of America and the Iroquois, and affirmed their land rights in the state of [[New York (state)|New York]].<ref name="cayuga-treaty-text">{{cite web|url=http://www.cayuganation-nsn.gov/Home/LandRights/Treaties/TreatyofCanandaigua|title=Treaty of Canandaigua|publisher=Cayuga Nation ("People of the Great Swamp")|access-date=2009-08-17|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100727153640/http://www.cayuganation-nsn.gov/Home/LandRights/Treaties/TreatyofCanandaigua|archive-date=2010-07-27}}</ref>
Three years later he signed the [[Treaty of Big Tree]] that established Seneca reservations within their traditional territory.

Eventually, Cornplanter became disillusioned with his relationship with the Americans. To fight the drunkenness and despair suffered by many Indians, his half-brother Handsome Lake preached that the Seneca must return to the traditional way of life and take part in religious ceremonies. Cornplanter heeded Handsome Lake's prophecy that they should return to traditional ways and turn away from European assimilation. He burned his military uniform, broke his sword, and destroyed his medals. He closed the schools but did not completely break relations with the Quakers as he retained his respect for them.

Cornplanter occasionally openly expressed his disdain for whites. Upon taking a short ride on the first steamboat to navigate the upper Allegheny River, Cornplanter, while generally impressed with the boat, quipped that "white men will do anything to avoid using their muscles."<ref>[http://www.oleantimesherald.com/news/state-and-union-river-traffic-dreams-never-realized-at-olean/article_b80dfd40-204e-11e6-ab50-c77e4ebece48.html "State and Union: River-traffic Dreams Never Realized at Olean Point"]. ''Olean Times Herald'' (May 22, 2016). Retrieved May 22, 2016.</ref>

During the [[War of 1812]], Cornplanter did not play an active role in the fighting along the [[Niagara River]], however, his son Henry and his nephew Chainbreaker, also known as Blacksnake actively supported the Americans.<ref name="Abler 2007" />

As Cornplanter aged, his influence among the Seneca dwindled in favour of Chainbreaker and [[Red Jacket]]. He died in 1836 at his home in the Cornplanter Tract.