Uncas, Benjamin, 1647 - 1726

Major Benjamin Uncas (Ben Uncas I) was the youngest son of Uncas and the daughter of Poxon/Foxon, Uncas's chief councilor.  As a young man during King Philip's War, Ben was pledged a hostage in return for his father's good conduct.    He subsequently joined the Connecticut colonial militia as leader of Indian scouts, earning the nickname "Major Ben."  He served with Massachusetts forces during King William's war, and in 1711, with many of his fellow Mohegans, was part of Connecticut's ill-fated expedition against Canada.  According to some Mohegans, due to the circumstances of his birth, he was considered illegitimate or "poquiem," and this disqualified him as being eligible for the position of tribal sachem.  During the tenure of his half-brother Owaneco, he remained a powerful figure on the Mohegan council, representing tribal interests before the Connecticut authorities.  After the death of his nephew Ceasar Uncas in 1722, Ben assumed the sachemship in 1723 following a heated contest with his rival Mahomet.  Ben was the husband of the daughter of Asnehunt, another Mohegan councilor, and father to Ben Uncas II.  Paul Grant-Costa, "The Last Indian War in New England: The Mohegan Indians v. The Governour and Company of Connecticut, 1703-1774" (Ph.D. diss., Yale University, 2008), 146-148.