One Bull (

Lakota Lakota may refer to: *Lakota people, a confederation of seven related Native American tribes *Lakota language, the language of the Lakota peoples Place names In the United States: *Lakota, Iowa *Lakota, North Dakota, seat of Nelson County *Lakota ...

: ''Tȟatȟáŋka Waŋžíla'' in Standard Lakota Orthography), later known as Henry Oscar One Bull (–1947), was a

Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...

man best known for being the nephew and adopted son of

Sitting Bull Sitting Bull ( lkt, Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake ; December 15, 1890) was a Hunkpapa Lakota leader who led his people during years of resistance against United States government policies. He was killed by Indian agency police on the Standing Rock I ...

. He fought at

Battle of the Little Bighorn The Battle of the Little Bighorn, known to the Lakota and other Plains Indians as the Battle of the Greasy Grass, and also commonly referred to as Custer's Last Stand, was an armed engagement between combined forces of the Lakota Sioux, Nor ...

and, in his later years, provided interviews about his life as a warrior. His name is sometimes given as Lone Bull.

Early life

His mother was Sitting Bull's sister Good Feather; his father was Makes Room and his brother was

White Bull White Bull ( Lakota: Tȟatȟáŋka Ská) (April 1849 – June 21, 1947) was the nephew of Sitting Bull, and a famous warrior in his own right. White Bull participated in the Battle of the Little Bighorn on June 25, 1876. Early life Born in t ...

. One Bull was adopted by Sitting Bull in 1857 at the age of four. One Bull recalled that Sitting Bull gave him a

pinto pony A pinto horse has a coat color that consists of large patches of white and any other color. The distinction between "pinto" and "solid" can be tenuous, as so-called "solid" horses frequently have areas of white hair. Various cultures through ...

when he was about six years old; One Bull named the pony ''Itanchan'', or Chief. He treated the horse well, never whipping or otherwise abusing the pony, which became the "swiftest runner in the camp, the envy of all and the object of many rejected offers of purchase".

Life as a warrior

One Bull was a

Heyoka The heyoka (, also spelled "haokah," "heyokha") is a kind of sacred clown in the culture of the Sioux (Lakota and Dakota people) of the Great Plains of North America. The heyoka is a contrarian, jester, and satirist, who speaks, moves and reacts ...

, one who had dreamed of thunderbirds. One Bull participated in

in 1876. He arrived with his horse and Sitting Bull's. He rode his mother to safety and then joined the fight. Sitting Bull told him, "Fear nothing. Go straight in". One Bull recounted having killed several fleeing troopers in the battle. He wore his uncle's shield during the Battle of Little Bighorn. One Bull joined his uncle in fleeing to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

following the

in 1876. In subsequent years, he was highly regarded amongst the Plains Indians for his rescuing of a warrior named Good Bear Boy. Sitting Bull's band remained in the "Grandmother's Country" until he surrendered in

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

in 1881. One Bull stood by Sitting Bull at his surrender. He later contradicted the narrative that Sitting Bull had said at his surrender: "Let it be recorded that I was the last man of my people to lay down my gun." One Bull reported that Sitting Bull was silent. One Bull, who had been away hauling freight north of

Fort Yates Yates is a city in Sioux County, North Dakota, United States. It is the tribal headquarters of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and county seat of Sioux County. Since 1970 the population has declined markedly from more than 1,100 residents, as peo ...

, had returned the night before the massacre of Sitting Bull. His wife, Red Whirlwind, who was pregnant, had been sleeping in Sitting Bull's cabin. When One Bull heard the shots, he rushed to the cabin and got his wife to safety, who had escaped the gunfire, only returning to Sitting Bull's home after the troops had gone.

Later life

Following the death of Sitting Bull, One Bull reported that all of his personal household goods and some of his horses were taken. One Bull is listed as living in 1929 at the

Standing Rock Agency The Standing Rock Reservation ( lkt, Íŋyaŋ Woslál Háŋ) lies across the border between North and South Dakota in the United States, and is inhabited by ethnic "Hunkpapa and Sihasapa bands of Lakota Oyate and the Ihunktuwona and Pabaksa ...

, where he was prominent in tribal matters. One Bull participated in interviews about his experiences with Sitting Bull, as did his brother White Bull, a famous Lakota warrior and chief contributor to Stanley Vestal's biography of their uncle.

Depiction in media

One Bull was portrayed by

Nathan Lee Chasing His Horse Nathan Lee Chasing His Horse, also known as Nathan Chasing Horse and Nathan Chases His Horse (born April 28, 1976) is a Native American actor. Formerly from the Rosebud Lakota Sioux Nation, he has spent most of his adult life in California, and ...

in the television miniseries ''

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee ''Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West'' is a 1970 non-fiction book by American writer Dee Brown that covers the history of Native Americans in the American West in the late nineteenth century. The book expres ...

'' (2007).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:One Bull Lakota people 1853 births 1947 deaths