The Battle of Tippecanoe (/ˌtɪpəkəˈnuː/ TIP-ə-kə-NOO) was fought on November 7, 1811, in Battle Ground, Indiana, between American forces led by then Governor William Henry Harrison of the Indiana Territory and tribal forces associated with Shawnee leader Tecumseh and his brother Tenskwatawa (commonly known as "The Prophet"), leaders of a confederacy of various tribes who opposed European-American settlement of the American frontier. As tensions and violence increased, Governor Harrison marched with an army of about 1,000 men to attack the confederacy's headquarters at Prophetstown, near the confluence of the Tippecanoe River and the Wabash River.
Tecumseh was not yet ready to oppose the United States by force and was away recruiting allies when Harrison's army arrived. Tenskwatawa was in charge of the Indian warriors during his brother's absence but he was a spiritual leader, not a military man. Harrison camped near Prophetstown on November 6 and arranged to meet with Tenskwatawa the following day. Early the next morning warriors from Prophetstown attacked Harrison's encampment. They took the army by surprise, but Harrison and his men stood their ground for more than two hours. After the battle, Harrison's men burned the abandoned village of Prophetstown to the ground, destroying the food supplies stored there for the winter. The soldiers then returned to their homes.