CHEROKEE

Here is a color study that I whipped up of a Cherokee warrior. It's a fast, speed-rendering I did to try out some different color schemes. During the French and Indian War, Francis Marion fought with what was probably the provincial militia against the Cherokee indians. The Cherokee were imbedded deep in the back country--mainly in the northwest or Piedmont region of South Carolina. Clemson University is perfectly situated in what would have been the heart of Cherokee country during the eighteenth century--right where the Blue Ridge mountains "yawn their greatness..." In fact, Fort Hill was the site of Fort Prince George, I believe. Fort Hill looks down on the East end zone of Death Valley, which in the eighteenth century would have been prime real estate...
This is a depiction of Francis Marion and some of his men fighting some Cherokee. During the war, Marion led a small detachment (possibly around 32 men) of militia against the Cherokee. During the engagement, all but 8 men were lost in what must have been a bloody battle. Of course, the irony in all of this is that many of the men who, at the time, were fighting for England and the colonies, had, until recently, lived in harmony with the Cherokee. Marion, in particular, was said to have counted among his friends several Cherokee Indians... I am not positive that this was the case as I am not sure how many Cherokee were living and working openly in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina at the time. Who knows? Anybody have any ideas out there? Please do let me know.