Edward Two-Two (c.1851 in the USA; died July 27, 1914, Essen, Germany) was a

Lakota Lakota may refer to: *Lakota people, a confederation of seven related Native American tribes *Lakota language Lakota ( ), also referred to as Lakhota, Teton or Teton Sioux, is a Siouan languages, Siouan language spoken by the Lakota people of ...

Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin ( ; Dakota/ Lakota: ) are groups of Native American tribes and First Nations people from the Great Plains of North America. The Sioux have two major linguistic divisions: the Dakota and Lakota peoples (translati ...

Native American who appeared at the beginning of the 20th century at

Hagenbeck Hagenbeck may refer to: * Tierpark Hagenbeck, a zoo in Hamburg * Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus, American circus * , a castle in Dorsten * , a mine in Essen-Altendorf * Circus Carl Hagenbeck and Circus Wilhelm Hagenbeck (later ''Circus Willy Hagenbeck''), ...

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, and in the

Sarrasani Sarrasani is a German circus that reached world fame before World War II and was resident in Dresden, but also became known as the national circus of Argentina during the years of German separation. Sarrasani was founded by ''Hans Stosch'', a c ...

circus in

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

educating and entertaining German audiences of Native American life.

Early life

Edward Two-Two was a Native American from the Lakota Sioux tribe, who was born on the Great Prairie of the United States, which later became the

Pine Ridge Reservation The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation (), also called Pine Ridge Agency, is an Oglala Lakota Indian reservation located in the U.S. state of South Dakota, with a small portion extending into Nebraska. Originally included within the territory of the ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

. He later served as a Reserve Police Officer on that reservation in 1891. He traveled to Germany in 1910 to be part of a

human zoo Human zoos, also known as ethnological expositions, were a colonial practice of publicly displaying people, usually in a so-called "natural" or "primitive" state. They were most prominent during the 19th and 20th centuries. These displays of ...

, in the Hagenbeck Zoo of Hamburg, Germany and shortly afterward he returned to America. Sometime between 1913 and 1914, he returned with his family again to Europe, and worked at the Sarrasani circus in

where he was appointed "Sioux Chief". Due to the good treatment and recognition of his family, he expressed his wish to be buried in Dresden. While touring in Essen he died, his body was transferred as back to Dresden and was buried at the New Catholic Cemetery. His name "Two-Two" meant in the Lakota language means "One of two". The inscription on the grave stone reads in the Lakota language: "To Paradise angel like you escort". Dresden Neuer Katholischer Friedhof Grab Two-Two

Dresden Neuer Katholischer Friedhof Grab Two-Two

Other individuals

Two-Two and German writer

Karl May Karl Friedrich May ( , ; 25 February 1842 – 30 March 1912) was a German author. He is best known for his novels of travels and adventures, set in the American Old West, the Orient, the Middle East, Latin America, China and Germany. He als ...

, who wrote extensively about Native American culture and contributed to the

popular image of Native Americans in German-speaking countries Since the 18th century, Native Americans have been a topic of fascination in German culture, inspiring literature, art, film and historical reenactment, as well as influencing German ideas and attitudes towards environmentalism. Hartmut Lutz c ...

, never met as Karl May died in 1912, before Two-Two and his men arrived in Dresden in March 1913. In addition to the grave at the New Catholic Cemetery in Dresden, there is a second Indian grave in

Emden Emden () is an Independent city (Germany), independent town and seaport in Lower Saxony in the north-west of Germany and lies on the River Ems (river), Ems, close to the Germany–Netherlands border, Netherlands border. It is the main town in t ...

(William Big Charger, 1872-1932), where another Sarrasani Indian died there in 1932. In 2012 Bettina Renner produced a documentary ''

Bury My Heart in Dresden Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...

'', which deals with the contemporary life of the Indians on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, with Edward Two-Two and his descendants.

External sources

* Anne Drees Bach: Domesticated Wild. The exhibition "exotic" people in Germany, Campus Verlag, 2005. * René Grießbach: Indians in Dresden, in:. Blätt'l Dresden, 18. Jg, issue 13/2007 of November 2, 2007

External links

Bury my Heart in Dresden - The Journey of the Lakota Sioux Edward Two Two

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