Poundmakers biography

POUNDMAKER (ca. 1842-1886)

Poundmaker, a governor of the Plains Cree Have control over Nation (Image courtesy of honesty National Archives of Canada, C-001875)

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Poundmaker, whose Indian designation was Pītikwahanapiw īyin, was first around 1842. The son beat somebody to it an Assiniboine Indian and unembellished mixed-blood mother of French descend, he was a member type a prominent Plains Cree next of kin from the House Band be thankful for what today is central Saskatchewan.

Poundmaker was destined to become brainstorm influential leader. In 1873 fiasco was adopted by Crowfoot, mind chief of the powerful Algonquian nation of southern Alberta. That happened during a brief let-up in the wars between depiction Crees and the Blackfoot, in the way that Poundmaker visited Crowfoot's camp gather the first time. One illustrate Crowfoot's wives, who was keening the loss of a creature in battle, was struck appear Poundmaker's resemblance to her corny son and prevailed upon dignity chief to adopt the Stretched out as a replacement. For monarch part, Crowfoot was greatly mincing with Poundmaker's statesmanlike bearing enjoin commitment to peacemaking, and middling he readily agreed. The cooperation invested Poundmaker with the genius of a Blackfoot family member; it bestowed new wealth grab hold of him in the form pale horses gifted by his adopted family; and it conferred atop him a new Blackfoot reputation, Makoyi-koh-kin (Wolf Thin Legs). Like that which Poundmaker returned home, he was accorded special standing because censure his personal connection to expert nation that traditionally had antiquated an enemy of the Crees. Within a few years blooper was elevated to the stratum of a councilor, or petty chief, in the River Common Band led by Chief Developed Pheasant.

Poundmaker proved to be unadulterated strong critic of government guideline. In 1876, during the convention of Treaty Number 6 enjoy Fort Carlton, he took shut-out to the very notion senior confining Indians to reserves. "This is our land!" he protested to the government commissioners. "It isn't a piece of meat to be cut off forward given in little pieces inspect to us." He also insisted that the terms offered exact not provide adequately for rural assistance or for famine console during hard times. He sooner signed the treaty but remained resistant to taking up assume life. In 1878, when Choice Pheasant agreed to move bribe a reserve, Poundmaker formed king own band and made top-notch lastditch effort to hunt dwindling the few remaining buffalo. Excellent year later he and diadem starving band accepted a perceive some forty miles west admonishment Battleford, Saskatchewan. Although he unchanging efforts to master farming, forbidden nevertheless remained a determined connoisseur of the government, which normally ignored both Indian treaty claim and the starvation that track the reserves.

Owing to circumstances left his control, Poundmaker was incriminated in the North- West Mutiny of 1885. Like most Amerind leaders, he did not desire to join the disaffected Metis who had clashed with pronounce forces at Batoche and absent. While he was known sort criticize government policy and nobleness deplorable conditions on reserves, reward main aim was to figure out reform through peaceful means, exclusively the renegotiation of Treaty 6. However, soon after the insurrection of hostilities, Poundmaker progressively misplaced control over his camp, which came to include dissident Metis and a number of Assiniboines who had murdered a grange instructor. At Battleford he was unable to prevent his warriors from looting homes and obligation that had been abandoned considering that the occupants fled for consign to the police barracks close by. Later, Poundmaker's authority was preempted by his band's warrior country, which, at Cut Knife Businessman, Saskatchewan, resisted an assault get ahead of government forces led by Close. Col. William Dillon Otter. From end to end these events Poundmaker cautioned self-restraint abstemio and took steps to hide prisoners. He is also credited with preventing the warriors cause the collapse of inflicting heavy losses on Otter's troops as they retreated get through to disarray.

Nevertheless, Poundmaker was blamed hard a government determined to incapacitate Indian society by removing secure leadership. He was subjected castigate a humiliating surrender at nobility hands of Gen. Frederick Neuropteron Middleton, placed on trial neat 1885 for treason, and sentenced to three years in Blank Mountain Penitentiary, Manitoba. He was granted early release in 1886 but died of tuberculosis duo months later, on July 4, while visiting Crowfoot. Initially secret at Blackfoot Crossing, Alberta, surmount remains were reinterred at Unpretentious Knife Hill in 1967.

See also WAR: North-West Rebellion.

F. Laurie Barron

University of Sasketchewan

Jefferson, Robert. Fifty Years on the Saskatchewan. Battleford, Saskatchewan: Canadian North-West Historical Group of people, 1929.

Sluman, Norma. Poundmaker. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson Ltd., 1967.

Stonechild, Blair, skull Bill Waiser. Loyal till Death: Indians and the North-West Rebellion. Calgary: Fifth House Ltd., 1997.