The Coosa (variously Kussos) was a tribe of Indians living in the vicinity of Charles Town (i.e. present-day Charleston, South Carolina). They were one of the four foundation tribes of the Creek Confederacy (along with the Coweta, Kasihta and Tukabahchee). When encountered by De Soto in 1540, the Coosa were considered the dominant subgroup of the Creek.
The English settlers in the Carolinas colony came to believe that the Coosa, working with the Spaniards, were plotting a conspiracy against them. The English colonists decided to strike against the Coosa before they could make their own strike. The Indian tribe was nearly annihilated in the ensuing confrontation. A large number of the tribe were taken captive by the English colonists and maintained as slaves.
The vanquishing of the Coosa was the first incident of enslavement of the Indians by the Euro-Americans.
