Native Americans Flashcards
what does BERTWHIP stand for?
Buffalo- NA followed the buffalo
Exposure- if you fall behind you are left behind for the goodness of the tribe
Roles- everyone in a tribe had a role
Tipis- tents. required limited resources
Warfare- steal resources like horses
Horses- like currency. easier to follow buffalo with horses as well as raiding tribes
Indian religion- believed in the Great Spirit and had sacred land such as the Black Hills of South Dakota (Mt Rushmore)
Polygamy- having more than one wife was a way of maintaining tribal dominance
what were large tribes called?
nations
what was counting coup?
touching your enemy during war, considered brave
what was the Great Spirit also called?
Wakan Tanka
what was seen as inhabitable during the early 1800s?
the Great Plains- labelled the ‘Great American Desert’
what was created in 1832?
the Permanent Indian Frontier
what did the Permanent Indian Frontier do?
gave all land west of Mississippi to the Indians and during the 1830s and 1840s many settlers began to cross this land, causing conflict as under the terms this was not allowed to happen
what was the Manifest Destiny belief originating from the 1840s?
the belief that whites should conquer and civilise the whole of the continental USA
Destiny meant that they felt it was their god given right and therefore it had religious connotations
What was the Homestead Act 1862?
It was used to secure the plains for the federal government, and gave out Indian plains land to any Americans willing to settle there
what was granted to American settlers through the Homestead Act?
160 aces for 5 years was given free of charge for Americans over the age of 21, it aimed to fulfil manifest destiny
what was the impact of the Civil War 1861-1865, and Plains Wars 1862-1868?
uneasy relationship with the army as they were meant to defend both Indians and whites- and this did not always happen
(deterioration of relationship with the army also led to Sand Creek Massacre and other battles)
Treaties led to further loss of land- created tension as NA were worse off each time
led to a loss of food supply such as the buffalo
Government treaties promised aid in the form of food and resources but not forthcoming
Corrupt Indian agents sold good destined for Indians and this led to starvation and uprisings
Came into contact with settlers while searching for food- which led to conflict
A CONSTANT CYCLE of treaties and broken promises due to the presence of the army and settlers on the plains
what treaties led to loss of land for Native Americans in the Gilded Age?
Fort Laramie Treaties
when were the Plains Wars?
1862-1868
what were some of the key battles as a result of the Civil War, examples of NA rising up against the US government?
Little Crow’s War 1852
Red Cloud’s War 1867
Sand Creek Massacre 1864
why was there limited opportunities to trade with the army on the plains after 1895?
the removal of troops
What year were Indians moved onto Reservations?
1864 however they were poorly run and undermined the Native American lifestyle- like following the Buffalo
What two battles led to further deterioration in relations as a result of Reservations policy?
Battle of the Little Bighorn 1876 and Massacre at Wounded Knee 1890
what disrupted the buffalo herds between 1865-1869?
the transcontinental railroad being under construction
what did Reservation Policy do?
designed to keep Indians separate from Homesteaders and ranchers
wanted to teach Indians the American way of life (expected to live as farmers)
aimed to prevent conflict by keeping Indians separate
also wanted to make Native Americans dependent on the American government
what was one way the US government made NA dependent on them through Reservation Policy?
after the conflicts of the 1860s and 1870s NA lost right to leave reservations and hunt buffalo
what did the Battle of the Little Bighorn 1876 prove that undermined the effectiveness of Reservation policy?
NA were unwilling to be confined to reservations and so therefore it cannot be considered effective
was the Reservation Policy effective?
Corrupt Indian agents increased starvation and poor conditions
Reduced the amount of land the Indians had
Indians are treated as children through being ‘Wards of State’. US gov.t has to look after and provide for them
- therefore somewhat effective as this is what gov.t wanted- to make them dependent on them
how was assimilation attempted through education and schools?
Native Americans sent to schools that enforced assimilation, which means making them the same as Americans. This made them like Americans/settlers. They had to cut their hair/choose traditional names etc.
in what ways can the assimilation attempts made through education be viewed as effective?
very effective as completely eradicated NA culture
Next generation of Indians didn’t even know what it was like to live out of a reservation
what did the Dawes Severalty Act 1887 do?
This was the start of Allotment Policy
This divided up NA land and it granted citizenship to the male head of the household
they were given 160 acres of land
If Indians did not take this, they were effectively left with no land, so this leaves them with no choice- ‘wards of the state’ aim therefore fulfilled
they were told the law had to be obeyed
essentially broke up NA tribal structure, and so under Allotment Policy tribes would disappear
It was meant to help NA but did not
Was the Dawes Act and Allotment Policy effective?
very effective at breaking up tribal structure
removed self-determination
land was taken and the right to negotiate this land was removed
by 1900 how many Native Americans that lived on the Plains in 1865 left?
140,000
how many acres of land was controlled by Native Americans prior to the Dawes Act?
150 million acres
what was the Indian Appropriation Act 1871?
ended treaties between individual tribes and the government
determined how Native American tribes were organised on the reservations
no nation/tribe was recognised under this act- wards of state and assimilation!
