This speech was given by Minavavana (also called Minweweh, Menehwehna, or Ninãkon) in 1761 to Alexander Henry, an English trader, during the French and Indian War (1754–63), which was part of a larger conflict known in Europe as the Seven Years’ War. Minavavana was a chief of the Ojibwa or Chippewa nation, which sided with the French. During war, Native peoples sided with either the French or the British nation, leading to certain consequences when the war was over, including for Minavavana’s people. Following France’s loss, the British began trying to take Native lands. Minavavana made it clear that England could not assert sovereignty, or ownership, over Native peoples and lands just because they had defeated the French.