Real Life Heroes Wiki
Advertisement

For us, warriors are not what you think of as warriors. The warrior is not someone who fights, because no one has the right to take another life. The warrior, for us, is one who sacrifices himself for the good of others. His task is to take care of the elderly, the defenseless, those who can not provide for themselves, and above all, the children, the future of humanity.
― Sitting Bull.


Sitting Bull (c. 1831-December 15th, 1890) was a Hunkpapa Lakota Sioux chief who is best known for resisting United States policies towards Native Americans to end oppression.

History[]

Early life[]

Sitting Bull was born near the Grand River in what is now South Dakota in 1831 and was originally named "Jumping Badger" by his father, Jumping Bull. He was nicknamed "Slow", due to his apprehensive nature. When he was 10, he caught his first buffalo. 4 years later, he joined a war party against a Crow tribe, thus giving him the new name "Tatanka Iyotanka" ("Sitting Bull" in English) for his honor and bravery.

Career[]

When the United States Government began taking tribal lands away, Sitting Bull united all the Sioux tribes in the Great Plains to fight against white settlers. In 1868, the Fort Laramie treaty was passed and the Sioux tribes were allowed to keep their sacred Black Hills.

However, in 1874, after gold was found in the Black Hills, the Government breaks their promise and decides to relocate the tribes by force. Sitting Bull refused to sell the sacred hills and the government threatened to wage war on them if they continue resisting. The next year, Sitting Bull refused to move his tribe onto the Sioux reservation and this would lead to the Battle of Little Bighorn. On June 25th, 1876, U.S. Army lieutenant colonel George Armstrong Custer led the 7th Cavalry to Sitting Bull's village, where they attempted to seize the villagers. However, thousands of warriors led by Crazy Horse emerged from their teepees and led a successful battle against the army, wiping out Custer and many other soldiers.

After the battle, Sitting Bull and his tribe went to Canada for four years, but they faced mass starvation and were forced to head back to the United States, where Sitting Bull surrendered in 1883 and was appointed to the Standing Rock Reservation. In 1885, Sitting Bull joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show and he gained international fame.

Death[]

When the Sioux tribe began performing a religious movement known as the Ghost Dance, in which its purpose is to regain their freedom and end oppression by the U.S. Government, Sitting Bull joined the dance. However, due to paranoia that this was going to be an Indian uprising, the Government sent soldiers and Indian police officers to Sitting Bull's residence to arrest him and this would eventually lead to the infamous Wounded Knee Massacre. When the police arrived, they woke up Sitting Bull and the chief refused to go with them quietly. Several warriors came to Sitting Bull's aid and one of the warriors shot one of the officers. The officers retaliated by fatally shooting the Lakota chief and killing many of the warriors. Sitting Bull's corpse was buried at Fort Yates in North Dakota, but was eventually reburied in Mobridge, South Dakota in 1953.

Advertisement