''The Pawnee capture of the Cheyenne Sacred Arrows'' occurred around 1830 in central

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

, when the

Cheyenne The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enr ...

attacked a group from the Skidi Pawnee tribe, who were hunting bison. The Cheyenne had with them their

sacred bundle A sacred bundle or a medicine bundle is a wrapped collection of sacred items, held by a designated carrier, used in Indigenous American ceremonial cultures. According to Patricia Deveraux, a member of the Blackfoot Confederacy in Alberta, "These ...

of four arrows, called the Mahuts. During the battle, this sacred, ceremonial object was taken by the Pawnee. The Cheyenne initially made replica arrows but also tried to get the originals back. They recovered one from the Pawnee directly, either given to them or taken by them, and a second was captured by the

Lakota Lakota may refer to: * Lakota people, a confederation of seven related Native American tribes *Lakota language, the language of the Lakota peoples Place names In the United States: * Lakota, Iowa * Lakota, North Dakota, seat of Nelson County * La ...

and returned to the Cheyenne in exchange for horses. The two corresponding replicas were ceremonially returned to the

Black Hills The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black ...

, where the arrows were traditionally believed to have originated. Eventually the bundles were re-established and the societies and their ceremonies continue into the present day.

Background

Likely, the

Pawnee Pawnee initially refers to a Native American people and its language: * Pawnee people * Pawnee language Pawnee is also the name of several places in the United States: * Pawnee, Illinois * Pawnee, Kansas * Pawnee, Missouri * Pawnee City, Nebraska ...

lived in villages of earth lodges in the present-day state of

Blaine, Martha R. (1990): ''Pawnee Passage, 1870-1875''. Norman and London. and northern

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

already in the 16th century.Wedel, Mildred Mott (1982): "The Wichita Indian in the Arkansas River Basin". ''Smithsonian Contributions to Anthropology''. No. 30, pp. 118-134. Washington. At the time of the battle with the

, the

Skidi The Skidi or Skiri, also known as the Wolf Pawnee or the French Loup Pawnee, are a band of Pawnee people. According to tradition in earlier times, the Skidi were associated with the Arikara before the Arikara moved northward. The Skidi language wa ...

Pawnee populated the banks of

Loup River The Loup River (pronounced /lup/) is a tributary of the Platte River, approximately long, in central Nebraska in the United States. The river drains a sparsely populated rural agricultural area on the eastern edge of the Great Plains southeast ...

in the central part of Nebraska. The Chawi, the Kitkahahki and the Pitahawirata made up the South Bands as they lived south of the

Platte River The Platte River () is a major river in the State of Nebraska. It is about long; measured to its farthest source via its tributary, the North Platte River, it flows for over . The Platte River is a tributary of the Missouri River, which itsel ...

. Just some years later, they would move north and gather in the same area as the Skidi Pawnee. The Pawnee raised corn and other crops near their villages. However, they went on long communal bison hunts in both summer and winter. While out on the

plains In geography, a plain is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and as plateaus or uplands. In ...

, they lived in skin tents and

tipi A tipi , often called a lodge in English, is a conical tent, historically made of animal hides or pelts, and in more recent generations of canvas, stretched on a framework of wooden poles. The word is Siouan, and in use in Dakhótiyapi, Lakȟó ...

s. The final groups of Cheyenne Indians seem to have crossed the Missouri River from eastern

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, So ...

in the last quarter of the 18th century. For a while, they lived south of the Cannonball River near already-established Cheyenne villages or camps. In the first decade of the 19th century, they mainly camped north of the North Platte. Around 1825, some bands headed south lured by reports about large herds of wild horses between the Platte River and the

Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in the western United Stat ...

. This brought them close to the hunting grounds used by the Pawnee. The Pawnee and the Cheyenne had long been enemies, and had fought each other since the Cheyenne first moved into the area. They captured horses and confronted each other on the plains, but neither side achieved any definite lasting advantage over the other.

Sacred Arrows

According to his traditional biography, the Cheyenne ancestral hero Sweet Medicine received the Sacred Arrows as a gift from supernatural beings, after being taken into a sacred cave at

Bear Butte Bear Butte is a geological laccolith feature located near Sturgis, South Dakota, United States, that was established as a State Park in 1961. An important landmark and religious site for the Plains Indians tribes long before Europeans reached Sout ...

in the

. The two Buffalo Arrows in the bundle were painted red and provided for good hunting. The two Man Arrows were painted black and were instead for war′. When the four arrows were tied near the top of a

lance A lance is a spear designed to be used by a mounted warrior or cavalry soldier (lancer). In ancient and medieval warfare, it evolved into the leading weapon in cavalry charges, and was unsuited for throwing or for repeated thrusting, unlike s ...

in two separate pairs and carried against an enemy after the performance of the proper ceremony, they promised victory, and had already been present in the total destruction of a big Crow camp at Tongue River in 1820. The renewal of the arrows form one of the most

sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects ( ...

of the Cheyenne ceremonies, and traditionally take place during the same time every summer, as well as in response to unfortunate events, such as a homicide or other tragedy.

Prelude

A year before this historic battle, a party of Cheyenne warriors intended to raid the Pawnee near the lower Platte. The party was discovered and all killed, just as the Cheyenne had done ten years before after the killing of thirty Cheyenne Bowstring warriors by the Crow. The tribe vowed to avenge the war group by moving the against those to blame for the killings. In the summer of 1830, the entire Cheyenne tribe started down the Platte. A number of allied

and

Arapaho The Arapaho (; french: Arapahos, ) are a Native American people historically living on the plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Lakota and Dakota. By the 1850s, Arapaho ba ...

joined. The special custodian or keeper of the Sacred Arrows, White Thunder, and his wife led them. The scouts sent out to locate the enemy found no traces of the Pawnee. By chance, the group came across four messengers from a party of scouts, who had been killed by the Pawnee. The scouts finally located a large camp of Pawnees at the head of the South Loup. (According to the Pawnee, they had camp somewhere on Platte River). After marching for another day and night march, the body of people reached a place near the Pawnee camp in the early morning. The warriors prepared for battle. The women and children grouped in a circle where they had a view of the flat area soon to become a battlefield. The Pawnee camp seems to have been hidden on the other side of a ridge. The Cheyenne warriors and their allies placed themselves in two separate wings. The Sacred Arrows were in front of one wing, and the other wing would follow a man wearing the sacred Buffalo Hat. "These two great medicines protected all who were behind them ... and rendered the enemy in front helpless". Meanwhile, the first bison hunters left the Pawnee camp and almost stumbled on the lined of the army. The battle was on, and White Thunder was unable to restrain the Cheyenne. Without having performed the required ceremony, he handed over the arrow bundle to a selected medicine man named Bull. Bull in turn hastily tied the whole bundle to the middle of his lance. Then he mounted his horse and tried to catch up with the rest of the warriors.

Battle

"The battle was hard fought". An old Pawnee, apparently a Pitahawirata from the South Bands, was sick and tired of living. He had told his relatives to carry him to the very front line of the battle. He was sitting on the ground with a bow and some arrows. Bull wanted to count coup on this enemy, although the rest of the Cheyenne tried to talk him from it. The old Pawnee avoided the thrust with the lance and seized it. He dragged it from Bull, who slowly rode back to his own line. "This spear must be a wonderful spear ...", shouted the Pawnee, when he saw the medicine bundle in a wrapping of hide tied to it. The Pawnee rushed forward. Chief Big Eagle came first and secured the lance before the Cheyenne could recapture it. During the fight, Chief Big Eagle wore the Wonderful Leggings of Pahukatawa. The leggings were a part of a tribal war bundle, and they seemed to make Big Eagle fearless. "Through the power of these leggings the Skiri

kidi Dennis Nana Dwamena, better known as KiDi, (born August 18, 1993) is a Ghanaian high-life and afrobeats singer-songwriter. He is signed to Lynx Entertainment and is best known for his global hit single Touch It. The remix features American rap ...

captured the wonderful Cheyenne arrows". Further, Big Eagle was dressed in a red shirt and wore a government medal on his breast. Throughout the battle, he rode on a small spotted horse. Therefore, the Cheyenne remembered him as Spotted Horse or Big Spotted Horse. According to the Cheyenne, they killed the old Pawnee on the battlefield. The Pawnee say, he first died the next summer during a Cheyenne attack on an almost empty Pawnee village. With the Sacred Arrows gone and

morale Morale, also known as esprit de corps (), is the capacity of a group's members to maintain belief in an institution or goal, particularly in the face of opposition or hardship. Morale is often referenced by authority figures as a generic value ...

low, the Cheyenne failed to withstand a renewed charge by the Pawnee and retreated. "How many were killed on either side was not known". Later, the Cheyenne retreated up the Platte, mourning the loss of the arrows, which George Bent described as "... the greatest disaster the Cheyennes ever suffered."

Aftermath

Pawnee Chief Big Eagle concluded they had captured something of extraordinary importance when he examined the arrows. He was keeper of the Morning Star bundle of the Skidi Pawnee and placed three of the arrows in that bundle. Some time after the battle, the best Cheyenne arrow makers made four surrogate Sacred Arrows. However, they also tried in various ways to retrieve the originals. Once, they invited Big Eagle and the Pawnees to their camp. In return for the four arrows they promised the guests many horses. Big Eagle expected treachery and brought just one arrow wrapped in a bundle. As feared, a Cheyenne rode away with the arrow in an unguarded moment. Another source recounts that three Cheyenne, White Thunder, Old Bark, and Doll Man traveled to a Skidi village in 1835 where they were received in Big Eagle's lodge and given one Buffalo Arrow. Despite gifts of more than a hundred horses, no more arrows were returned. Lakota winter counts showing the Sacred Arrow of the Cheyennes returned in 1843

In either the winter of 1843 to 1844 according to a contemporary source, or in 1837 according to more modern sources, the Lakota attacked a village of Pawnee and retrieved a single medicine arrow. They recognized the Man Arrow and returned it to the Cheyenne in exchange for one hundred horses. Two of the remade Sacred Arrows were now in excess. A ceremony was held, and the Cheyenne left two of the new arrows in a bundle in a crevice of the Black Hills, near the place where Sweet Medicine had received the original arrows. There they remained for a long while, and were occasional visited by Cheyenne travelers, before eventually disappearing. Efforts to restore the additional two original arrows were again made in the 1890s and 1930s to no avail. The return of the remaining arrows remained a source of bitterness for generations.

Background

Sacred Arrows

Prelude

Battle

Aftermath

See also

Notes

References

Further reading