THE RED RIVER WAR 3
TheRed River War
Theprimary reason for the Red River War was the efforts by the U.S Armyto force the Indian tribes out of their ancestral Southern Plains andrelocate them in the new lands within the Indian region (Haley,2010). The constant conflicts between the nomads and theWestward-bound settlers forced the U.S. Army to sign the MedicineLodge Treaty in 1987. According to Haley, the Treaty called for twoseparate reservations one for the Comanche and Kiowa and the otherone for the Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho (2010). However, it did nottake long before the Indian buffalo hunters ignored the Treaty’sterms and moved back in the Southern plains. In addition, the U.S.government failed to meet its promises made in the Treaty and as aresult, the Indian communities lacked adequate and quality food forsurvival. Since the communities were used to roaming the fieldswithout any restrictions, they felt the need to fight the whites soas to regain control of their lands.
Oneof the most important Indian leaders in this war was known asIsa-tai, who came from the Comanche tribe (Haley, 2010). Isa-tai wasan Indian prophet and medicine man and since the communities had beenfrustrated by the Whites, it took little effort for him and theComanche chief Quanah to persuade the warriors to attack the U.S.Army. Other Indian chiefs such as Lone-Wolf, Maman-ti, Isa-Rose andTabananica played a significant role in the Red Rive War. Importantpersonnel from the U.S. Army such as Lt, Gen. Philip H. Sheridan, whowas the leader of the Missouri Military Battalion, played asignificant role in the War. Other Military leaders such as Gen.William Sherman and Col. Nelson Miles were actively involved inensuring the Indian warriors admitted defeat.
Reference
HaleyJ.L. (2010). Handbook of Texas Online,"Red River War," accessedJune 02, 2016, http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/qdr02.