Final answer:
Sachems held the power within the Iroquois Confederacy, which was a sophisticated political entity consisting initially of five, and later six, Native American nations.
Step-by-step explanation:
The group given power in the Iroquois Confederacy were the sachems, who were political leaders chosen from specific families with hereditary rights to leadership positions. The Iroquois, also known as Haudenosaunee, formed a large and successful confederacy consisting of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and later the Tuscarora nations.
This confederacy had a council made up of fifty sachems representing each of the Five Nations initially, and later six with the Tuscarora's inclusion. The Iroquois political system featured concepts such as checks and balances and the separation of power, which later impressed American leaders like Washington.
During the American Revolution, a political split occurred due to differing alliances where Mohawk Joseph Brandt (Thayenadanega) successfully encouraged four nations to side with the British, while the Oneida and Tuscarora supported the Americans. The Iroquois had a significant political influence in the Northeast for over a century, with their decision to become English subjects under the Treaty of Albany further demonstrating their political maneuvering capacity.