Memory Lands: King Philip's War and the Place of Violence in the Northeast

The Henry Roe Cloud Series on American Indians and Modernity

by Christine M. DeLucia

A powerful study of King Philip’s War and its enduring effects on histories, memories, and places in Native New England from 1675 to the present

"This book moves back and forth across time and place in order to weave together a dense and wide-ranging reconstruction of [King Philip's War] and its many continuing consequences."—Annette Kolodny, Native American and Indigenous Studies

“Sure to fascinate readers interested in the long reach of colonial memory and how the past is remembered.”—Publishers Weekly

Noted historian Christine DeLucia offers a major reconsideration of the violent seventeenth-century conflict in northeastern America known as King Philip’s War, providing an alternative to Pilgrim-centric narratives that have conventionally dominated the histories of colonial New England. DeLucia grounds her study of one of the most devastating conflicts between Native Americans and European settlers in early America in five specific places that were directly affected by the crisis, spanning the Northeast as well as the Atlantic world. She examines the war’s effects on the everyday lives and collective mentalities of the region’s diverse Native and Euro-American communities over the course of several centuries, focusing on persistent struggles over land and water, sovereignty, resistance, cultural memory, and intercultural interactions. An enlightening work that draws from oral traditions, archival traces, material and visual culture, archaeology, literature, and environmental studies, this study reassesses the nature and enduring legacies of a watershed historical event.

Genres: History, Native American, Nonfiction, 17th Century, The United States Of America, War

496 pages, Paperback

First published January 9, 2018

Reviews

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Memory Lands is an ambitious project that intervenes successfully in its specific line of historiography and in history writ large. Her understanding of how history is created in tandem with memory, and all “in place” (connected to spots of land that accrete sedimentary layers of meaning, emotion, political engagement, or spiritual significance) is particularly compelling. Ethically responsible and moving beyond re-inscriptions of colonial violence in the telling of the history of war, she helps recover and reimagine the landscape of the northeast with more complexity than what we see on our maps and guides. Could be a lot shorter and could really use more verve, though.

[TaraShea Nesbit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative and also wonderful to read in terms of the prose and style. The weaving of varied sources, physical journeying, and inspiring turns of phrases make this book a pleasure to read, which is something one doesn't often say about a highly-footnoted, dense book on an academic press.

[Charlotte · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone interested in the making of history and places of memory should read this book! Especially if they are interested in the history of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. And eloquent and thoughtful look at how the past is made and remade.

[Jaclyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Introduction was a bit of a slog, and I wasn't sure I was going to make it all the way through the book. But! It really took a turn and I found myself hanging on every page turn, learning really interesting things and meta-things along the way. Very enlightening and good read.

[Alicia Primer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very readable reselling of New England's shameful history with Native Americans.