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CRAZY HORSE
(TESUNKE WITKO)
Near the Black Hills of South Dakota, Crazy Horse was born into the Ogalala band of the Lakota (Sioux) Nation. His eact birthdate is unknown, but many people agree that it was in the early 1840's. Crazy Horse grew up during a difficult time for his people. He quickly became known as a great leader and powerful warrior. When he was about twelve years old, he had a dream, or vision, that showed him how he was supposed to live his life. The vision was of a humble man, without war paint or decorations on his clothing. The man in the vision told young Crazy Horse to always be generous and humble, never taking anything for himself. So, although he was a very brave warrior, Crazy Horse never came back to camp bragging about his deeds. He gave away the horses and food he did not need for himself or his family. He always made sure that everyone had plenty. Because of his dedication to his people, the Lakota, many people admired him. Warriors eagerly followed him into battle. Younger men and boys came to him to learn. Crazy Horse not only taught them how to hunt and fight, but also the history of their people, which he had learned from his elders. He was well liked and respected by almost everyone who knew him. But Crazy Horse was not just a warrior. He was also a man of his people. He was a loyal son and brother. His brother, Little Hawk, was one of his closest friends. Crazy Horse was devastated when he was killed. Crazy Horse was also a loving husband and father. Though he married late in his life, his marriage was a happy one. The first woman he loved, Black Buffalo Woman, married another man, named No Water. But Crazy Horse never gave up on her. When he was in his mid-twenties, Crazy Horse and Black Buffalo Woman went away to live together. She was free to leave her husband whenever she wanted but No Water would not let her. He found them and shot Crazy Horse in the face. Crazy Horse recovered but suffered great dishonor for causing so much trouble among his people. A few years later, Crazy Horse married Black Shawl. They had a daughter named They Are Afraid Of Her, who died very young of a white man's disease. This also upset Crazy Horse greatly. Of all the deaths he had seen, his daughter's was the hardest. Black Shawl was also sick with the same disease and Crazy Horse took special trips with her, trying to help her get better. Crazy Horse loved his people and valued their freedom so much that he fought for many years to defend it. The United States government had promised again and again that they would protect and help the Lakota, and many other Native Americans. But they continued to break those promises. Crazy Horse saw his land being taken away, the precious buffalo disappearing, and his people dying. So, in 1877, after winning many large battles against the U. S. Army, Crazy Horse surrendered. He came to live on Red Cloud's reservation near Fort Robinson. The government promised to give Crazy Horse and his people their own reservation in the north, near the Powder River. So the whole time he lived near Fort Robinson, he reminded the government about that promise. He was determined to make them keep it. For this, the government arrested him. He struggled against the guards, again determined to maintain his freedom, and a soldier stabbed him in the back. He died on September 5, 1877, at the age of about 35. The life Crazy Horse lived can teach us many things. He struggled with the many problems that faced the Lakota. Many of these things were much larger and stronger than he was. But he did not let that scare him away. He did not give up. He kept fighting, and kept the hope that he and his people could be free. Most of all, his spirit was not broken. Though he had to surrender and live on a reservation, he did not stop fighting for what he believed in. His final commitment was to his people. Because of his spirit and his example, he continues to live in the memories of the Lakota. Almost 70 years after his death, a Lakota chief named Henry Standing Bear wanted to make a memorial to Crazy Horse. This was around the same time that Mount Rushmore was being carved into the Black Hills, the sacred grounds of the Lakota. Henry Standing Bear and four other chiefs wrote a letter to a sculptor named Korczak Ziolkowski (CORE-chuck jule-CUFF-ski). They asked him to carve Thunderhead Mountain in the Black Hills to look like Crazy Horse. They told Korczak, "we want the white man to know that the red man has great heroes, too". So in 1948, Korczak started carving the mountain. It is still not done, but when it is, Crazy Horse will be riding a horse, his arm outstretched. Under it will be the words Crazy Horse said to a white man who asked him what happened to all the land the Lakota had worked so hard to defend. These words are "my lands are where my dead lie buried".
To learn more about Crazy Horse, look for these books at your local library: * Crazy Horse: His Life, His Lands. A photographic biography. By Bill and Jan Moeller. * The Life and Death of Crazy Horse. By Russell Freedman, with drawings by Amos Bad Heart Bull. * Return of Crazy Horse. By William Kotzwinkle. * Lasting Echoes. By Joseph Brudiac.
to go back to our index page, click here. this page created by Megan Gnekow.
August, 1998.
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There
are no photographs of Crazy Horse but Thunderhead Mountain in the Black
Hills of South Dakota is being carved into his likeness.
Almost
15 thousand people attended the annual Volksmarch in 1996. This is a 6
mile hike from the visitors center to the top of the mountain, where people
get a full view of Crazy Horse's face.