Delgadito (not to be confused with at least two homonymous Navajo chiefs) was a chief (''nantan'') of the Copper Mines group of Tchihende ( Mimbreño) people, one of the three divisions (Tchihende, Chiricahua and Ndendahe) of central Apaches.

War-leader and chief

As a young warrior and later as a war-leader and a chief, he fought under Tchihende chief Juan Josè (later to be his uncle) and Fuerte, then later under their successors

Mangas Coloradas Mangas Coloradas or Mangus-Colorado (La-choy Ko-kun-noste, alias "Red Sleeve"), or Dasoda-hae ("He Just Sits There") (c. 1793 – January 18, 1863) was an Apache tribal chief and a member of the Mimbreño (Tchihende) division of the Central ...

(chief of the "Coppermine" Mimbreño subdivision and principal chief of the Tchihende Apaches) and

Cuchillo Negro Baishan, Spanish name Cuchillo Negro (Black Knife) (c. 1796 – May 24, 1857), was a Tchihende ( Mimbres) Apache chieftain, of the Warm Springs Apache Band during the 1830s to 1850s. Apache war-leader and chief Baishan ("Knife"), son of the ...

(chief of the "Warm Springs" Mimbreño subdivision, with

Nana Nana, Nanna, Na Na or NANA may refer to: People and fictional characters * Nana (given name), including a list of people and characters with the given name * Nana (surname), including a list of people and characters with the surname * Nana ( ...

as an able lieutenant and second-ranking chief of the Tchihende Apaches). As a warrior and chief, he succeeded Mangas Coloradas as chief of the "Coppermine"

Mimbreños The Mimbreños were a part of the Native American Apache tribe. They were located in present day New Mexico in the narrow valley of the Mimbres River.Nesbitt, Paul Homer, 1904. The Ancient Mimbreños, Based on Investigations at the Mattocks Ruin. ...

. He was a primary actor in Apache warfare until the mid-1860s, along with his contemporary

Cochise Cochise (; Apache: ''Shi-ka-She'' or ''A-da-tli-chi'', lit.: ''having the quality or strength of an oak''; later ''K'uu-ch'ish'' or ''Cheis'', lit. ''oak''; June 8, 1874) was leader of the Chihuicahui local group of the Chokonen and principa ...

(who would go on to be the principal chief of the Tsokanende or

Chiricahua Chiricahua ( ) is a band of Apache Native Americans. Based in the Southern Plains and Southwestern United States, the Chiricahua (Tsokanende ) are related to other Apache groups: Ndendahe (Mogollon, Carrizaleño), Tchihende (Mimbreño), Sehende ...

) and Nana, and with some younger leaders as

Victorio Victorio (Bidu-ya, Beduiat; ca. 1825–October 14, 1880) was a warrior and chief of the Warm Springs band of the Tchihendeh (or Chihenne, often called Mimbreño) division of the central Apaches in what is now the American states of Texas, New ...

Loco Loco or El Loco may refer to: Places United States * Loco, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Loco, Oklahoma, a village * Loco, Texas, an unincorporated community * Loco Mountain (Labinero, Montana), a mountain peak of the Crazy Mountains i ...

Juh Juh (also known as Ju, Ho, Whoa, and sometimes Who;Kraft, Louis (2000). - ''Gatewood and Geronimo''. - Albuquerque: University of New Mexico. - p.4. - c. 1825 – Sept/Oct 1883) was a warrior and leader of the Janeros local group of the Ndé ...

Chihuahua Chihuahua may refer to: Places *Chihuahua (state), a Mexican state **Chihuahua (dog), a breed of dog named after the state **Chihuahua cheese, a type of cheese originating in the state **Chihuahua City, the capital city of the state **Chihuahua Mun ...

Geronimo Geronimo ( apm, Goyaałé, , ; June 16, 1829 – February 17, 1909) was a prominent leader and medicine man from the Bedonkohe band of the Ndendahe Apache people. From 1850 to 1886, Geronimo joined with members of three other Central Apache ba ...

. He may not have been the real leader of all the Mimbreños, however, since in the meantime younger

, Mangas Coloradas's son-in-law, achieved even higher fame and prestige because of his extraordinary abilities as a warrior and a warlord, succeeding Cuchillo Negro as chief of the "Warm Springs" Mimbreños to every extent (so going elderly Nana to be a precious and worthy lieutenant and long-time allied of the same Victorio). Delgadito stood side by side with Mangas Coloradas and Cuchillo Negro many times, and acted for them in dealing with North Americans and Mexicans. After parleys in the spring of 1850, Delgadito and some other Mimbreño and Nednhi chiefs signed a treaty that summer in Janos with Chihuahua representatives. In June 1851, Delgadito, Ponce and Coleto Amarillo accompanied Mangas Coloradas to

Santa Rita del Cobre Santa Rita is a ghost town in Grant County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. The site of Chino copper mine, Santa Rita was located fifteen miles east of Silver City. History Copper mining in the area began late in the Spanish colonial period, but ...

to meet John R. Bartlett, the U.S. commissioner appointed by Washington to the United States and Mexican Boundary Commission, until the Apaches did not feel disappointed and betrayed by the Anglo-American newcomers. In the same year of 1851, the Santa Rita del Cobre copper mines were reopened and white people (mostly miners) overran the area of Pinos Altos and Santa Rita, imposing their rule and giving deference to the Mexicans according to the agreements with the Mexican Government. In spite of the good will of the chiefs (Mangas Coloradas, Cuchillo Negro, Delgadito, Ponce and Coleto Amarillo), who had to intervene repeatedly to prevent any drastic reaction by the warriors, relations became more and more difficult until the Apaches broke them.

References

{{reflist Clum Woodworth Apache Agent'' ''The Riverside Press'', 1936 Chapters 1-5 Apache people