Key Features of Plains Indian Society

• Bands and tribes

  Plains Indians lived in groups called tribes. Large tribes were known as nations. Tribes were made up of different bands. These ranged in size from 20 to several hundred people.
• Chiefs and councils

  • Chiefs were the leaders in Plains Indian society.
  • A tribe could have several leaders.
  • White Americans found this hard to understand.
  • They were chosen for their wisdom or skill and were replaced when these skills faded.
  • Each band had a band chief. Band chiefs and elders made up the tribe’s council.
  • Some bands made their own decisions. They did not necessarily all follow the same chief.
• Warrior brotherhoods

  Each tribe had several different brotherhoods made up of brave and skilled young men.

  They trained young men in fighting skills.

  They didn’t always respect peace treaties.

  Leading members formed a guard unit for the whole tribe. These organised the yearly buffalo hunt and chose where the tribe made camp.
• Famous Chiefs

  Some chiefs became famous for their leadership in war against white Americans. These included Red Cloud, Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse.
• Women

  Women were highly valued and respected. Their role was to look after their families and make food and products from the buffalo.

  Women could not be chiefs and men could have more than one wife, polygamy.

  
• Beliefs about nature and animals

  Buffalo and horses were very important to the Indians. They treated all animals with respect because they believed that everything in nature had a spirit. They believed they could contact the spirit world through vision quests, guided by spirit animals.
• Beliefs about land and property

  Land was viewed as sacred, and farming and mining it was seen by some as disrespectful. Indians did not believe in buying, selling or owning land

  
• Beliefs about war

  Tribes would raid each other for food, horses, weapons and people. Raids would only go ahead if they were likely to succeed, and raiders would run away if things looked bad. A counting coup was a type of fighting where a warrior would try and touch/hit the enemy (rather than kill) and get away unharmed. This required skill and bravery.