Lakota and Cheyenne

by Greene, Jerome A.

• ISBN13: 9780806132457
• ISBN10: 0806132450
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-06-01
• Publisher: Univ of Oklahoma Pr

Summary

The Great Sioux War of 1876-1877 is memorable to most Americans because of Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer's last stand at the Battle of the Little Big Horn. But to the Lakotas (Western Sioux) and Northern Cheyennes who won that battle but lost the war, the experience of those fifteen months was truly a "last stand" - a cultural catastrophe that led to the reservation experience they had fought so long and hard to avoid. In writings about the history and import of the Great Sioux War, the perspectives of its Native American participants often are ignored and forgotten. In this volume Jerome A. Greene corrects that oversight by presenting a comprehensive overview of America's largest Indian war from the point of view of the Lakotas and Northern Cheyennes. A counterpoint to his earlier volume, which advances the military view of the skirmishes and battles - including the Little Big Horn - this book presents the Indians' report on the actions that ended their traditional way of life for all time. The accounts, by both men and women, afford fresh insights into the war. The Indian recollections provide personal, individualistic descriptions of significant events as the people struggled to protect their homelands, families, and tribal cultures. Most Sioux and Cheyenne accounts of the engagements remained within their own societies for many years. Those that were published during or soon after the war were colored by the defeat and often by mistranslation. This book presents a first-time compilation of the best of the Indians' recollections. The editor's introduction gives readers insight into the significance of Indian testimonial sources. Separate introductions place the Indians' accounts in the context of the war and enable readers to understand interrelationships among the events and thus gain a more complete appreciation of the war and its impact upon the Lakota and Cheyenne people.

Table of Contents

Illustration list	ix
Acknowledgments	xi
Introduction: The Great Sioux War and Indian Testimony	xiii
Jerome A. Greene
The Battle of Powder River, March 17, 1876
Wooden Leg, Black Eagle, Kate Bighead, and Iron Hawk	3	(12)
The Battle of Rosebud Creek, June 17, 1876
Lazy White Bull, Little Hawk, and Young Two Moon	15	(16)
The Battle of the Little Big Horn, June 25-26, 1876
Red Horse, She Walks with Her Shawl, Brave Wolf, American House, Soldier Wolf, Tall Bull, One Bull, Flying By, Little Hawk, White Bull, and Young Two Moon	31	(42)
Pursuing Soldiers in the Big Horns, July, 1876
Flying Hawk, Little Sun, and Little Hawk	73	(7)
The Skirmish at Warbonnet Creek, July 17, 1876
Beaver Heart and Josie Tangleyellowhair	80	(5)
The Battle of Slim Buttes, September 9, 1876
Red Horse, Charger, Many Shields, and Tall Bull	85	(8)
The Spring Creek Encounters, October 11, 15-16, 1876
Lazy White Bull	93	(4)
The Cedar Creek Councils and the Battle of Cedar Creek, October 20-21, 1876
Long Feather, Bear's Face, Spotted Elk, and Lazy White Bull	97	(16)
The Dull Knife Battle, November 25, 1876
Iron Teeth, Black White Man, Beaver Heart, and Other Northern Cheyennes	113	(12)
The Battle of Wolf Mountains, January 8, 1877
Eagle Shield and Wooden Leg	125	(9)
The Lame Deer Fight, May 7, 1877
White Bull and Hump	134	(14)
The Death of Crazy House, September 5, 1877
Standing Soldier and American Horse	148	(5)
Notes	153	(2)
Index	155