Ninigret, - 1677

Ninigret (also known as Janemo) was the son of the Eastern Niantic sachem Saccious and the brother of the Eastern Niantic sachem Wepitanock (or Aquawoce), who was a leader of the Niantic at the time of the Pequot War. After the war, Ninigret rose to prominence through marriage and political maneuvering. He married Wepitanock's daughter, consolidating family and tribal power. Appealing to this authority, he quickly succeeded to the sachemship of the Eastern Niantics over the rival claims of his nephew and brother-in-law, Cashawashett (Harman Garrett). Seeing a chance to extend his influence, he laid claim to a portion of the conquered Pequot territory by virtue of the aid his tribe provided the English during the war. Thus, he repeatedly attacked former Pequot allies, such as the Montauks, to demand wampum tribute. During the Mohegan-Narragansett wars, Ninigret allied with his blood-kin Narragansett against Uncas the Mohegan in 1648. The Uncas-Ninigret feud, which became so acute that the commissioners of the United Colonies often had to intervene, continued until both men became too old to be dangerous anymore. He was succeeded by his daughter Weunquesh in 1679.  Julie A. Fisher and David J. Silverman, Ninigret, Sachem of the Niantics and Narragansetts (Ithaca; Cornell University Press, 2014).  Harold M. Chapin, Sachems of the Narragansett (Providence, 1931). Michael L. Oberg, Uncas, First of the Mohegans (New York, 2003). LaFantasie, The Correspondence of Roger Williams.