Sitting Bull

~1831–1890 · Hunkpapa Lakota (Native American) · Great Sioux War

Known for: Holy man and leader whose spiritual vision preceded the victory at Little Bighorn

Sitting Bull was a Hunkpapa Lakota holy man, warrior, and the most famous Native American leader in history. Before the Battle of the Little Bighorn, he performed a Sun Dance and had a vision of soldiers falling upside down into camp—a prophecy that came true when Custer attacked. He was the spiritual and political leader who made Little Bighorn possible.

After the victory, he led his people to Canada to escape US retaliation. He spent years in exile before returning, briefly joining Buffalo Bill's Wild West show, and settling on the Standing Rock Reservation. He was killed by Indian police in 1890 during the Ghost Dance crisis—the government feared his influence would spark another uprising.

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