A number of Indian tribes served as mediators between the Esopus and the Dutch during the Esopus Wars, including not only nearby tribes such as the Mohicans and Wappingers, but also the Mohawks, Senecas and Hackensack Indians, whose proximity to the major Dutch settlements at Fort Orange and New Amsterdam made them useful to both sides (Fried 1975). In 1664, a peace treaty ended the final conflict with the now impoverished Esopus Indians. Later the same year, the Dutch lost their North American colonies to the English. By 1684, the Esopus tribe had sold most of their ancestral lands to the colonies, though many Indians continued living on portions of the land until settlers actually took possession during succeeding decades.