Editing Arapaho (section)

===Great Sioux War of 1876–77===
{{main|Great Sioux War of 1876|Battle of the Little Bighorn}}
[[File:Chief Black Coal - An Arapaho Chief.jpg|thumb|Chief Black Coal, among the most influential Arapaho chiefs of his time. Chief Black Coal was able to largely keep the Arapaho at peace with the United States and out of the Great Sioux war of 1876.]]
The Great Sioux War of 1876–77, also known as the Black Hills War or Great Cheyenne War, was a major conflict that was fought between the Lakota Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho alliance and the US Army. The war was started after miners and settlers traveled into the [[Black Hills]] area and found gold, resulting in increased numbers of non-Indians illegally entering designated Indian lands. A large part of Cheyenne and Arapaho territory and most of Sioux territory known as the [[Great Sioux Reservation]] was guaranteed legally to the tribes by the Treaty of Fort Laramie after they defeated the US during [[Red Cloud's War]] in 1868.<ref>George Hyde. ''Red Cloud's Folk: A History of the Oglala Sioux Indians.'' Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1937.</ref> The Black Hills in particular are viewed as sacred to the Lakota and Dakota peoples, and the presence of settlers illegally occupying the area caused great unrest within the tribes. Instead of evicting the settlers, the US Army broke the treaty and invaded Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho territory in order to protect American settlers and put the allied tribes on smaller reservations or wiped them out.

After Red Cloud's War, many Northern Arapaho moved to the Red Cloud Agency in Dakota Territory and lived among the Lakota, as well as many Cheyenne. Among the most influential and respected Arapaho chiefs living on the Agency was [[Chief Black Coal (Northern Arapaho)]], who gained prominence as a warrior and leader against white settlers in the Powder River country. Other important Arapaho chiefs living in the area included Medicine Man, [[Black Bear (chief)|Chief Black Bear]], Sorrel Horse, Little Shield, Sharp Nose, Little Wolf, Plenty Bear, and [[Friday (Arapaho chief)|Friday]]. The Arapaho chief Friday was well regarded for his intelligence and served as an interpreter between the tribe and the Americans.<ref>Fowler 54</ref> Black Coal guaranteed to the Americans that he and his people would remain peaceful during the tense times when the settlers were illegally entering Indian land in hopes of securing recognized territory of their own in Wyoming. Many of the warriors and families that disagreed with Black Coal's ideals drifted southward to join up with the southern division of Arapahos. Many Arapaho, particularly those in Chief Medicine Man's band, did not wish to reside among the Sioux "for fear of mixing themselves up with other tribes".<ref>Fowler 55</ref> Their peaceful stance and willingness to help American soldiers strained once strong relations between them and the Lakota and Cheyenne, who took an aggressive stance and fled the reservation. Attitudes towards the Arapaho from the "hostile" Lakota and Cheyenne were similar to the attitudes they had towards members of their own tribes which took similar peaceful stances and remained as "reservation Indians". Despite their unwillingness to take up the warpath, the Arapaho were unwilling to cede their territory, particularly the Black Hills area to which they have a strong spiritual attachment similar to the Lakota.<ref>Fowler 57</ref>

{{blockquote|You have come here to speak with us about the Black Hills, and, without discussing anything that we say, and without changing anything that we say, we wish to tell the Great father [President of the United States] when you get back that this is the country in which we were brought up, and it has also been given to us by treaty by the great father. And I am here to take care of the country, and therefore, not only the Dakota [Sioux] Indians, but my people have an interest in the Black Hills that we have come to speak about today.|Black Coal<ref>Fowler 58</ref>}}
 
During this time of great unrest, the tribe found itself deteriorating in leadership with many chiefs holding little sway among their bands. In order to regain strength as leaders and further negotiations for land in Wyoming, many chiefs and their warriors enlisted as army scouts for the United States and campaigned against their allies. Chief Sharp Nose, who was considered as influential and equal to Black Coal, was noted as "the inspiration of the battlefield&nbsp; ... He handled men with rare judgment and coolness, and was as modest as he was brave".<ref>Fowler 61</ref> Despite their overall stance as allies for the Americans, a handful of Arapaho warriors fought against the United States in key battles during the war.

Like in previous wars, the US recruited Indian warriors from tribes that were enemies with the Arapaho–Cheyenne–Lakota–Dakota alliance to act as Indian scouts, most notably from the [[Crow Nation|Crow]], [[Arikara people|Arikara]], and [[Shoshone people|Shoshone]]. Unlike previous conflicts involving the Lakota–Dakota–Cheyenne–Arapaho alliance and the United States, the Great Sioux War ended in a victory for the United States. The bison herds which were the center of life for the Indians were considerably smaller due to government-supported whole-scale slaughter in order to prevent collisions with railroads, conflict with ranch cattle, and to force nomadic plains Indians to adopt reservation life living off government handouts. Decreased resources and starvation was the major reason for the surrendering of individual Indian bands and the end of the Great Sioux War.

[[File:Ledger Drawing - Arapaho warrior and U.S Soldier.jpg|thumb|Ledger drawing of an Arapaho warrior riding down a U.S. soldier (1880)]]
[[File:Ledger Drawing - Arapaho warrior and U.S Solddier - ca. 1880.jpg|thumb|Ledger drawing of an Arapaho warrior with headdress, counting coup with rifle butt on a U.S. soldier.]]
[[File:Ledger Drawing - Arapaho and U.S Soldier Fight on Horseback.jpg|thumb|Ledger drawing of an Arapaho warrior in battle with a U.S. soldier on horseback.]]
The most significant battle of the war was the [[Battle of The Little Bighorn]] on June 25–26, 1876. The battle was fought between warriors from the Lakota, Cheyenne, and Arapaho (as well as individual Dakota warriors) and the [[7th Cavalry Regiment]] of the US Army. The battle was fought along the [[Little Bighorn River]] in eastern Montana. The soldiers attempted to ambush the large camp of Indians along the river bottom despite the warnings from the [[Crow Scouts]] who knew that Custer severely underestimated the number of warriors in the camp. The US Seventh Cavalry, including the Custer Battalion, a force of 700 men led by [[George Armstrong Custer]], suffered a severe defeat. Five of the Seventh Cavalry's companies were annihilated. The total US casualty count, including scouts, was 268 dead including Custer and 55 injured. Only five Arapaho were present at the battle and their presence was by chance.<ref>Graham, Col. William A. ''The Custer Myth: A Source Book for Custeriana''. New York: Bonanza Books, 1953, p. 109.</ref> The Arapaho present were four Northern Arapaho warriors named Yellow Eagle, Yellow Fly, Left Hand, and Water Man. The fifth Arapaho was a Southern Arapaho named Well-Knowing One (Sage) but also known as Green Grass. The five Arapaho set out as a war party from near Fort Robinson to raid the Shoshone, but by chance came across a small party of young Sioux warriors. The Sioux thought that the Arapaho were [[United States Army Indian Scouts]] and invited them back to their camp along the Little Bighorn River, where they were captured and had their guns taken from them. The Lakota and Dakota threatened to kill the Arapaho, but the Cheyenne chief [[Two Moons]] recognized the men as Arapaho and ordered their release. The next day was the battle and, despite being viewed with suspicion, the five Arapaho actively fought in the battle. Water Man wore a large eagle feather [[war bonnet|headdress]], a white shirt, beaded leggings, a breechcloth, and painted his face red and yellow during the battle. Water Man claimed killing one soldier while charging up the steep river banks but did not take his scalp because most Arapaho refused to take a scalp from someone with short hair. Water Man claimed to have watched Custer die.<ref>{{cite web|title=Water Man's Story of the Battle|url=http://www.astonisher.com/archives/museum/waterman_little_big_horn.html|work= 100 Voices|access-date=2013-08-26}}</ref>

{{blockquote|When I reached the top of the hill I saw Custer. He was dressed in buckskin, coat and pants, and was on his hands and knees. He had been shot through the side and there was blood coming from his mouth. He seemed to be watching the Indians moving around him. Four soldiers were sitting up around him, but they were all badly wounded. All the other soldiers were down. Then the Indians closed in around him, and I did not see any more. Most of the dead soldiers had been killed by arrows, as they had arrows sticking in them. The next time I saw Custer he was dead, and some Indians were taking his buckskin clothes.|Water Man}}

The Arapaho warrior Left Hand accidentally killed a Lakota warrior that he mistook for an Arikara scout, and despite further anger from the Lakota, left the battle alive along with the other four Arapaho.<ref>{{cite web|title=Left Hand's Story of the Battle|url=http://www.astonisher.com/archives/museum/left_hand_little_big_horn.html#kill|work= 100 Voices|access-date=2013-08-26}}</ref> After the battle, the five Arapaho quietly slipped away and headed back to the Fort Robinson area.