History for Kids: The Sioux

By: Charles River Editors

Narrated by: Tracey Norman

Length: 27 mins

Publisher's summary

Among Native American tribes, the Sioux are one of the best known and most important. Participants in some of the most famous and notorious events in American history, the history of the Sioux is replete with constant reminders of the consequences of both their accommodation of and resistance to American incursions into their territory by pioneering white settlers pushing further westward during the 19th century. Some Sioux leaders and their bands resisted incoming whites, while others tried to accommodate them, but the choice often had little impact on the ultimate outcome. Crazy Horse, who was never defeated in battle by US troops, surrendered to them in 1877, only to be bayoneted to death by soldiers attempting to imprison him. Black Kettle, who flew a large American flag from his lodge to indicate his friendship with the white man, was shot to death by soldiers under George Custer's command in 1868.

Throughout the 19th century, the US government and its officials in the West adopted a policy of dividing the Sioux into two groups: "Treaty Indians" and "Non-treaty Indians." Often they used these groups against each other or used one group to influence another, but the end was always the same. They were forced off the land where they resided, their populations were decimated by disease, and they were forced onto reservations to adopt lifestyles considered "appropriate" by American standards.

Despite being some of the most erstwhile foes the US government faced during the Indian Wars, the Sioux and their most famous leaders were grudgingly admired and eventually immortalized by the very people they fought. Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse remain household names due to their leadership of the Sioux at the fateful Battle of the Little Bighorn, where the native warriors wiped out much of George Custer's Seventh Cavalry and inflicted the worst defeat of the Indian Wars upon the US Army. Red Cloud remains a symbol of both defiance and conciliation, resisting the Americans during Red Cloud's War, but also transitioning into a more peaceful life for decades on reservation.

History for Kids: The Sioux comprehensively covers the culture and history of the Sioux, profiling their origins, their famous leaders, and their lasting legacy. Your kids will learn about the Sioux like never before.

©2013 Charles River Editors (P)2017 Charles River Editors