Though history between Europeans and Indigenous peoples of the New World is complicated and often quite sad, at least there was one rare moment in that history that shines a little brightly concerning the Wampanoag Tribe and Plymouth colony.

Here is a good History Channel piece, Why the Wampanoag Signed a Peace Treaty with the Mayflower Pilgrims, that summarizes the peace accomplished and the alliances forged between the two groups and gives the background that led to this alliance.

“The peace accord, which would be honored on both sides for the next half-century, was the first official treaty between English settlers and Native Americans, and a rare example of cooperation between the two groups.”

“Despite periodic tensions, peace between the two groups survived until after Ousamequin’s [Massasoit’s] death in 1661, making the 1621 treaty the only one between Native Americans and English colonists to be honored throughout the lives of all who signed it.”