Skip to main content icon/video/no-internet
icon backReturn to Entries

Wounded Knee Massacre and Incident

The tragedy that happened on the snow-crusted plain near Wounded Knee Creek at daybreak on December 29, 1890, has been described as a battle and a massacre. In truth, both sides fired gunshots and suffered casualties—but it was hardly even.

Of the 500 U.S. Cavalry engaged that day, 23 died in the encounter, dozens were wounded, and 20 received the U.S. Army's Medal of Honor. Of some 350 Sioux Indians, over 150 were killed, including 44 women and 18 children, and another 50 were wounded. Some estimates put the Indian deaths closer to 200.

The Fight

The day before, soldiers of the U.S. Seventh Cavalry under Major Samuel M. Whiteside, a veteran officer who had served in the Civil War, were patrolling the Dakota Badlands and came across a large band of Sioux who were led by a chief named Spotted Elk, also known as Big Foot. The army had issued orders that all nomadic Indians must be brought to the nearby Pine Ridge Reservation, and Major Whiteside, following these orders, decided to escort the Indians in that direction. They camped along the way by Wounded Knee Creek.

But rather than disarm the Indians immediately, which could start a fight, Whiteside decided to wait for reinforcements, which came later that night with a heavily armed column under Colonel James W. Forsyth, another veteran officer with both Indian and Civil War experience. Forsyth and Whiteside's combined force now totaled some 500 men and included four Hotchkiss guns (similar to Gatling machine guns) that they mounted around the Indian encampment.

During the late 1880s, most Americans still harbored bitter feelings toward Indians because of continued confrontations on the Great Plains. The public still fumed over the killing of General George Armstrong Custer and his soldiers at Little Bighorn in 1876, and they sought recompense. Most Americans felt that the Indians needed civilizing and the only way to accomplish this was to remove them from their reservations. This set the stage for the tragic events that occurred near Wounded Knee Creek in the winter of 1890.

The Shooting

On the morning of December 29, 1890, at daybreak, Colonel Forsyth ordered his Seventh Cavalry troops to gather the Indians in their camp, separating men from women, and demand they surrender their guns. Both sides seemed itching for a fight. By one account, a Sioux medicine man named Yellow Bird began to perform the Ghost Dance—a mystical ritual that many Sioux believed made them bulletproof. Forsyth demanded he stop, but the medicine man refused.

Once the Ghost Dance started, the soldiers immediately raised weapons and returned fire full force at close range. Dozens of Indian men fell in the first volleys, including Chief Spotted Elk. The Indian gunfire quickly ceased, but the soldiers kept shooting, and many soldiers ended up falling to friendly fire. The Sioux women and children, originally separated from the men, ran from the camp toward some nearby ravines for safety. In the confusion and excitement, several cavalry soldiers jumped on horses, chased them down, and shot them. The machine guns joined the fight, with soldiers raining bullets into the Indian tents.

...

  • Loading...
locked icon

Sign in to access this content

Get a 30 day FREE TRIAL

  • Watch videos from a variety of sources bringing classroom topics to life
  • Read modern, diverse business cases
  • Explore hundreds of books and reference titles

Read next

More like this

Sage Recommends

We found other relevant content for you on other Sage platforms.

close

Have you created a personal profile? Login or create a profile so that you can save clips, playlists and searches

close
close
close Signed In to profile You are signed in as:
close
Logged in Institution Institution