The Sioux visionary, born in 1831 in Grand River, South Dakota had five wives, three daughters and two sons. Sitting Bull was born to Jumping Bull and Her Holy Door and was also the half-brother of Big Foot, killed in the Wounded Knee massacre. He was a Sioux of the Hunkpapa tribe with a savior-like demeanor. As he grew in wisdom, he became revered by his people as a holy man who possesse the unusual ability to experience premonitions and visions. Eerily three of his premonitions proved all to true. One of those premonitions would literally energize his braves and incur disastrous results for the US Cavalry. (Ref. Colliers Encyclopedia)
The Black Hills and the US Cavalry
Sitting Bull experienced two premonitions shortly before the Battle of Little Big Horn. In his premonition, he saw white men falling out of the sky and dying by the hundreds on Sioux land. In the second premonition, he saw his tribe winning in battle against the white man. At this time, the US Cavalry intended to create a northward trail from Big Horn, Montana. Within these plans, they built a cavalry stockade on land known as "The Black Hills". George Armstrong Custer, an ambitious military man, was less interested in capturing natives of the northwest than he was in fighting them. The Black Hills became the driving force when it was discovered that they were littered with gold. (Ref. Rise of the American Nation - Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich)
The Treaty and George Armstrong Custer
Sitting Bull agreed to safe passage for Custer's 7th Cavalry in the treaty with the US government. Interestingly, the 7th Cavalry had been deployed in the Civil War and became a constabulary for the march westward that would effect "Manifest Destiny", the acquisition of land by the US as far west as the Pacific Ocean. Custer believed no more than 800 Indians occupied the area at that time, a serious miscalculation on his part. He held the opinion that the Indians of this region were hostile. Sitting Bull, and three Indian groups, Lakota Sioux, Arapaho, and Northern Cheyenne considered the Black Hills holy land and blessed by the shiny gold that it contained. They had no wish for the Black Hills to be plundered or the natural beauty destroyed by white men and were willing to protect it to their deaths, if necessary. They interpreted the newly built cavalry stockade to be a desecration of their holy land. (Ref. Rise of the American Nation - Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich)
The Battle of Little Big Horn - Custer's Last Stand
A battle ensued when Custer chose to ignore the treaty between Sitting Bull and the government. In retrospect and deference to whatever the opinion may be, Custer's actions at the build-up of Little Big Horn were perceived as rash and overly ambitious. Chief Sitting Bull's first and second premonitions came to fruition when the Battle of Little Big Horn was over. Not a single member of the 7th Cavalry remained alive. Hundreds lay dead as if "fallen from the sky". Sitting Bull's tribe followed his instructions as he saw them in his premonitions. This earned him ever more credence in his ability to see the future. His visionary skills proved all too accurate. (Ref. Rise of the American Nation - Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich) (Wikipedia)
The Third Premonition of Sitting Bull
As time passed, certain members of Sitting Bull's tribe became allies of the US government. Sitting Bull viewed this as a weakening of the Indian nations. On one of his lone retreats, he experienced his third premonition...one that would predict his own death and the manner in which it would be carried out. His attunement to nature acute, while listening to the staccato of a cricket, the premonition told of his death at the hands of one of his own tribesman. As the vision formed, he saw several of the Sioux tribesmen dressed in police uniform firing on members of their own tribe. He saw one shot to his head and one to his side. Later, several of the Sioux members of the police did, in fact, fire on their own tribesmen. When Sitting Bull left his cabin to see what had occurred he was struck by one of the uniformed police in the head and in his side...just as he had envisioned. He died at Standing Rock Reservation on December 15, 1890. (Ref. Wikipedia)
