RED INDIANS VS WHITE MAN -- WHITE MAN VS RED INDIANS

NATIVE INDIAN CHIEFS 1865

When you have two groups of people with complete opposite ideas you bound to have a confrontation. That was the situation in the 19th century when white settlers went into America crossing the country and were convinced it was their God given right to be there. The Red Indians who were there for thousand of years saw it as their homeland, which it was, and would not accept that they should be move away.

White man crossed the permanent frontier and the Indians, at first, rather died than given up their land and territory. You also got to realize that, although Indians had their little confrontations with other tribes but were not equipped or used to that kind of warfare. The Indian people were reduced rapidly while white American population grew. 1800 there about 4 millions white American by the 1860 there were 31 millions.

Settlers trailed across the Plains to reach Oregon and California. The prospectors heard of gold in California, Montana, Wyoming and Dakota. Prospectors are never of a gentle nature or understanding the other people needs. When the railroad came through these territories it frightened the great herd of buffalo and this in turn made the life of Indians harsh.

Eventually, with all these pressures from all corners and being constantly pushed into a corner were they knew that they would and could not survive, the resentment grew and turned into violence.

They attacked wagon trains which in their eyes was the only way to stop more and more white people coming. The whites and the army counteracted and the violence escalated. The army built fords all along the trails and soldiers protected the wagon trains.

There followed treaty after treaty with Indian tribes but the government was always cutting away the Indian homeland. To compensate they offered money as well as guaranteed food, shelter and patches of farmland on ever smaller reservations. These reservations were of poor land with little water which the white man didn't want. The promised hunting for buffalos was more often withdrawn than given. Government rations were either late and/or of poor quality. Traders cheated the Indians. The resentment grew and young Indians ran away to hide in the hills to become hostile.

Every tribe was completely different and had different ceremonial customs. The bead and quill-work was done by squaws. The men painted the pictograms of war and hunted buffalo.

The Dakota Sioux Chief 'Sitting Bull' tried very hard to save his people. After negotiation failed and war failed he joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. In 1890 Sitting bull was murdered because he 'resisted arrest'.

Red Cloud, Chief of the Oglata Sioux, campaigned in 1860 to eliminate the forts along the Bozeman Trail which was in the heart of the Sioux hunting grounds. He succeeded and the army had to burn the forts.