Chilcotin War

CHILCOTIN WAR was not a war at all, but an isolated outbreak of violence in Apr 1864 by a group of TSILHQOT'IN people against a work party cutting a road through their territory. The exact cause of the attack is not known. It occurred in an atmosphere of increasing unrest as survey parties and pack trains penetrated the CHILCOTIN Plateau in the wake of the Cariboo GOLD RUSH. The newcomers did not ask the aboriginals' permission to cross their land and did not always treat the Tsilhqot'in with respect; the attack may have been an act of retaliation. It may also have been an attempt by the Tsilhqot'in to prevent the return of smallpox to their territory. Fourteen roadbuilders died in the assault. Two parties of troops were dispatched to bring in the fugitives. The hunt continued all summer, and 5 more white people were killed (among them Donald McLEAN). Finally the Tsilhqot'in agreed to come to a parley. Instead they were seized and put on trial. Five Tsilhqot'in were found guilty by Judge Matthew BEGBIE and hanged in Oct 1864. They were the leader KLATSASSIN, his son Piell, Telloot, Tahpit and Chessus. Another man, Ahan, was later hanged for one of the murders. The road was never built. More than a century later the provincial government officially apologized for the incident and in 1999 a plaque commemorating the graves of the 5 men hanged at QUESNEL was unveiled.