Regarded as one of the strongest advocates for the resistance of Native Americans to white settlers, Sitting Bull gained international fame for the Battle of Little Big Horn. From medicine man to tribal chief, he and his men won many battles but not the war in the Sioux War of 1875. When he was finally able to settle in peace in what is now South Dakota, once gold was found in the Black Hills, he was forced to flee, which reignited hatred for the whites’ way of life and lies.

Born in South Dakota, Sitting Bull had an affinity for the land and his people around him. With millions of buffalo roaming the grounds, his people lived well off of the land, even during the harsh northern winters. In his childhood, he earned what would become his famous nickname when he subdued a buffalo calf that had attacked him. He grabbed the calf by its ears and kicked it back, making the small bull land on his hind-end, appearing as if the bull were sitting upright. In his early 20s, he was known by his people as a warrior. But, he didn’t want to be known only as a fighter, so he began studying medicine according to generations past. His popularity saw him become a political leader, a chief, of his people and inspired the Sioux and Cheyenne to join the cause against encroaching settlers.

After gold was struck on his reservation that had been protected by an official treaty with the United States government, his people became displaced once again. When he was told to leave, he gathered those willing and chose to fight. When George Custer and his 7 th Calvary of only 264 men happened upon Sitting Bull, thousands of warriors awaited the slaughter. Famous Native Americans named Gall and Crazy Horse annihilated Custer and his men on the Little Bighorn River.

Sitting Bull was then forced into Canada, where the government could not claim responsibility for their well-being. The U.S. Government offered amnesty to the tribe and they returned to the United States to Fort Buford where they would be looked after at the Standing Rock Reservation in the Dakotas. While away in Canada, Sitting Bull had become famous and wanted nothing to do with what came with popularity. He instead talked of the day when the Native American messiah would come to save his people from the white man. The movement became so big that U.S. Government was scared the Sioux would start another war. Whether a planned assassination or not, Sitting Bull was shot and killed in a skirmish between U.S. soldiers and his people on his reservation.

• Geronimo
• Pocahontas
• Crazy Horse
• General Custer
• Davy Crockett
• Stonewall Jackson
• Robert E. Lee