mportant, the British valued their alliance with the Cherokee and worked hard tomaintain it. Colonel George Chicken was sent by the British government in 1725 toregulate Cherokee trade and prevent the possibility of their turning to the French. He wasfollowed by Sir Alexander Cuming who visited the major Cherokee towns and convincedthem to select a single chief to represent them with the British. Cuming even escorted aCherokee delegation to England for an audience with George II. In the treaty signed atCharleston in 1743, the Cherokee not only made peace with the , but promised to tradeonly with the British. Two years later, the Cherokee also concluded a peace with theWyandot (an important French ally north of the Ohio), only to learn that the Wyandot andother French tribes were secretly plotting to break free from the French trade monopoly.At this point, the Cherokee apparently decided the French would not be an improvementover the British. While the French were permitted to build a trading post in theirhomeland, this was a close as the Cherokee ever came to changing sides. However, theBritish still had serious doubts about Cherokee loyalty. Pressed to acquire new land to compensate for their growing loses to white settlement, theCherokee and Creek were almost forced into a war with each other (1752-55). At stakewas control of a hunting territory in northern Georgia which the two tribes had formerlyshared. After the decisive battle at Taliwa (1755), the Cherokee emerged as the winner,and this new territory probably allowed them to support the British at the outbreak of theFrench and Indian War (1755-63). Although the Cherokee signed a treaty in 1754confirming their alliance and allowing the construction of British forts in their territory todefend the colonies, the lingering suspicion remained they were sympathetic to the French.Incidents between Cherokee and white settlers during 1758 were hastily covered over byanother treaty, but th...
