[Victoria Delsoul]

After the death of Sitting Bull in 1890, a band of Sioux fled into the badlands of South Dakota where they were captured by the U.S. Cavalry near Wounded Knee. While the Sioux were being disarmed, a young warrior pulled a gun and shot an officer. The U.S. troops responded by opening fire and killing nearly 200 Sioux men, women, and children.

The so-called "Battle" at Wounded Knee marks the final, tragic chapter in the Indian Wars, which had reached their height between 1869 and 1878. During these years, the Army fought over 200 battles against Native American tribes, who sought to protect their homelands and buffalo hunting practices against incursions made by white settlers and the railroad.

[SAMWolf]

During these years, the Army fought over 200 battles against Native American tribes, who sought to protect their homelands and buffalo hunting practices against incursions made by white settlers and the railroad.

Hi Victoria. A clash of cultures caused by Western expansion.

[docmcb]

My knowledge of Wounded Knee is from SLA Marshall's CRIMSONED PRAIRIE, in which he defends the Army and contends that WK was indeed a battle at the start -- though it turned into a massacre. There were apparently a lot of soldiers killed or wounded, indicating a deliberate plot by the Souix, with many guns hidden under blankets. Has anyone else read CP? BURY MY HEART AT WK was written just after VietNam, and particularly the My Lai massacre; there were a lot of folks glad to see the Army portrayed as prone to massacre civilians. Marshall was (no doubt) equally concerned with defending the US Army in that post-VN atmosphere. Note that I'm not saying there wasn't a massacre, just that there really was a serious gunbattle first, which may have been initiated by the Souix.