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American West c1835-1895 GCSE > Key topic 1: The Plains Indians > Flashcards

Key topic 1: The Plains Indians Flashcards

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1
Q

who led bands?

A

chiefs and council of advisers

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2
Q

what did the council of advisers do?

A

they agreed to everything that the band did

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3
Q

the protection of the band as a whole was seen as more important ……

A

than the individuals within it

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4
Q

why were chiefs chosen?

A

because of their wisdom, leadership and spiritual powers or for their skills as warriors/hunters.

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5
Q

what did the chiefs and councils do?

A

they decided where their bands would go and what should happen to those who broke with customs and traditions

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6
Q

did you have to obey chiefs and councils?

A

no - the rest of the tribe or band did not have to obey the decision

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7
Q

Indians didn’t have to obey decisions by chiefs, what was the consequence of this when the US government signed a treaty?

A

US thought all the tribe should obey the terms of the treaty if a chief ever signed one but that was not how plains indians society worked.

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8
Q

why were tribal meeting held each year?

A

to arrange marriages, trade horses and discuss issues.

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9
Q

who formed tribal councils that advised tribal chiefs?

A

chiefs and elders

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10
Q

who formed the warrior society?

A

the best warriors from each band

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11
Q

what did members of the warrior societies do?

A
  • supervised hunting
  • protected their bands from attack
  • led short raids and wars
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12
Q

how was Plains Indian society view leadership differently from whites?

A
  • no decision could be made until everyone at the council had agreed to it
  • the rest of the tribe or band did not have to obey the decision
  • chiefs and elders were often guided by the spirit world through visions
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13
Q

what were the role of men (braves)?

A

hunting and fighting enemies

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14
Q

what were the role of women

A
  • made clothing
  • fed the family
  • looked after tipis
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15
Q

who looked after children?

A

everyone

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16
Q

how were elders viewed in plains indian society?

A
  • respected for wisdom

- left behind to die if their weakness threatened the survival of a band

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17
Q

What was the consequence of US government trying to break up Indian society into family units or moving Indian children to schools far away from their tribe?

A
  • they no longer fitted in with their families
  • children didn’t learn all the skills and traditions of their people
  • impacted plains indian ways of life
18
Q

what was the climate of the Great Plains?

A

very dry, with hot summers and extremely cold winters

19
Q

what wealth and status measured by?

A

the amount of horses an Indian or a tribe had

20
Q

some Indians were nomads which meant…..

A

they ate wild fruits and plant but did not settle long enough to grow crops

21
Q

when did Plains Indians migrate?

A

summer and autumn

- followed buffalo migrations

22
Q

Why were tipis ideal for Plains life?

A
  • their coned shape protected them against strong winds
  • flaps provided ventilation in the summer heat
  • they could be taken down and packed away in minutes
23
Q

In winter, were did bands move to?

A

sheltered valleys where they lived in wooden lodges, insulated with thick layers of soil

24
Q

Why did nomadic tribes find it difficult to live permanently on reservations?

A

because they were used to travelling and hunting freely

25
Q

Band sizes changed depending on…

A

how much food was available

26
Q

Why did bands splits up and spread out when food was scarce?

A

so that there was more chance of everyone getting enough to eat

27
Q

Beliefs about nature and spirits

A
  • everything nature had a spirit and these spirits could help humans or harm them
  • humans were a part of nature and should work with the spirits of nature rather than try than tame and control nature
  • they could contact the spirit world through visions and special ritual dances (like the sundance)
28
Q

Beliefs about land and property

A
  • tribes had sacred areas
  • no one owned land: land was not anyone’s property ad not something that one person could buy and keep for themselves
  • Land was seen as the “mother” of the Plains Indians
29
Q

Attitudes to war

A
  • avoided killing too much because young men were essential to each tribe’s survival
  • highest respect and prestige was given to warriors for counting coup
  • flee if losing a battle
30
Q

counting coup

A

landing a blow on an enemy and getting away without being injured

31
Q

what are the uses of the buffalo

A 
Dung = fuel
bones= knives and sledge runners
Fur= blankets, mittens and saddle covers
Tongue = hair brush
Sinews= bowstrings, thread
Hooves = glue and tools
32
Q

what is the importance of horses to Plains indians

A
  • needed to hunt buffalo and to travel across the Plains in search for food
  • highly significant for warfare and for status within Plains Indians society
  • raids on other tribes or white settlers were often to steal horses
33
Q

In the 1870s, how many horses did the comanche have and how many people were in the tribe?

A

nearly 8,000 horses in a tribe of 3,000 people

34
Q

What happened when food was scarce?

A

conflicts occurred as tribes pushed into hunting areas that were traditionally used by others

35
Q

Plains indians thought that farming and mining was _________

A

disrespectful to the land

36
Q

What would happen if farming and mining was done on sacred land?

A

it would disrupt the sacred link between the tribe and the spirits

37
Q

What were white americans opinions on Plains Indians

A
  • they were savages

- did nothing to improve the land: they just lived off the resources the land produced naturally

38
Q

Why did white Americans think they deserved the land more than Plains Indians?

A

because they were trying to improve it:

  • ploughing it for farming
  • digging up its minerals for manufacturing
  • clearing its forests for timber
  • developing America into a civilised country
39
Q

what were two main approaches to tackling the conflict whites and Indians

A
  • keeping white settlers and Plains Indians apart
  • encouraging Plains Indians to become like white settlers

keeping white settlers and Plains Indians apart meant that the Indians continued to follow their traditional ways of life rather learning white ways

40
Q

Why were individual US states not allowed to negotiate with American Indians?

A
  • Because state governments were often openly hostile towards Indian populations and very keen to get hold of their land
  • Indians were the responsibility of the federal government: provided Plains Indians with some protection
41
Q

How was the relationship between American Indians and the federal government unequal?

A
  • federal government viewed the American Indians as being like children who needed to be kept safe while they were guided towards a civilised way of life
  • Indians rights as the original inhabitants of the lands were not given any respect and their deep understanding of their environment and how to manage its resouces was largely ignorned

American West c1835-1895 GCSE (22 decks)

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