Battle of Cut Knife The Battle of Cut Knife , fought on May 2 , 1885 , occurred when a small force of Cree and Assiniboine warriors were attacked by a flying column of mounted police , militia , and Canadian army regulars . The warriors defeated the Canadian forces , with losses on both sides . Background . In the spring of 1885 , the Métis living in the District of Saskatchewan formed a provisional government under Louis Riel , taking control of the area around Batoche . Soon , Riel began to contact the local natives ; the Cree and the Assiniboine . The Canadian government decided to crush the rebellion , afraid that it would spread to the tribes across the North - West Territories . Bands of Cree , assembled under the leadership of Poundmaker , went to Battleford to talk to the Indian agent , Rae . The purpose of the visit was to lobby Rae for better supplies ( many members of the band were starving ) and to discuss the situation . The people of Battleford and some of the settlers in the surrounding area , hearing reports of large numbers of Cree and Assiniboine leaving reserves and making their way to Battleford , feared for their safety . On the night of March 30 , 1885 , townspeople began to abandon the town and seek shelter in the North - West Mounted Police Fort Battleford . When Poundmaker and his party reached the town , the Indian agent refused to come out of the fort to meet with them . He kept them waiting for two days . Suffering from hunger and having been refused supplies by the Indian Agent meant to attend their well being , some of the party began looting the abandoned buildings . But the identity of the looters is disputed . Some reports claimed Poundmaker ' s people were responsible , but one observer alleged that most of the looting had already been done by whites . Oral history accounts claim that the looting was done by Nakoda people , and that Poundmaker did his best to stop it . Either way , Poundmaker ' s people left the next day . Meanwhile , bands of Assiniboine living south of Battleford had heard about the Métis rebellion . A small group of them killed a local farmer who had treated them harshly in the past , and shot their Indian agent for beating a teenage girl . They then decided to go north to Battleford to meet up with Poundmaker . Although there is some controversy as to who was responsible and to the extent of the destruction , a number of homes and businesses in Battleford were looted and burned . The Canadian government sent Maj . Gen . Frederick Middleton to Saskatchewan to crush the Métis rebellion . The small police force at Fort Battleford , suddenly responsible for the safety of nearly 500 civilians , called on him for reinforcements and hastily set about forming a home guard to garrison the post . Middleton detached a column under the leadership of Lt . Col . William Otter to relieve Battleford . Otter ' s column , consisted of some 763 men from The Queen ' s Own Rifles of Canada , ' B ' Battery , Regiment of Canadian Artillery , ' C ' Company of the Infantry School Corps , a party of sharpshooters from the Governor General ' s Foot Guards , a small party of North - West Mounted Police under the command of Percy Neale , and assorted teamsters . The column travelled by rail to Swift Current , setting out on the march for Battleford on April 13 and arriving on April 24 . When Otter arrived , he found hundreds of civilians , including Métis , crammed into the fort . However , Poundmaker ' s followers were nowhere to be found . Overjoyed at Otter ' s arrival , the townspeople and settlers wanted revenge on the Indians for the losses in lives and material that they had suffered . Many of Otter ' s troops , green militiamen , were angry that they had ' missed out on a fight ' . Pressured by the townspeople and his own troops , Otter decided to take action . Despite orders from General Middleton to stay in Battleford , he wired the Lieutenant - Governor of the Northwest Territories ( who was also the Indian Commissioner ) , Edgar Dewdney , for permission to " punish Poundmaker . " Permission was granted . A garrison was left in Battleford , while he led a flying column of 392 men to attack the Cree and Assiniboine at Cut Knife Hill . His force was made up of 75 North - West Mounted Police ( cavalry ) , several small units of Canadian army regulars , and various volunteers and militia . He carried with him two 7 - pounder field rifles and a Gatling gun . He set out on the afternoon of May 1 . His plan was to march until dusk , rest until the moon rose , then continue on to attack the Cree and Assiniboine early in the morning , while they were asleep . Meanwhile , the Cree were encamped on their reserve west of Battleford , on Cut Knife Creek . They were joined by various other bands , including Assiniboine . They knew that there were thousands of Canadian soldiers in the area to fight the Métis rebellion and decided to protect themselves . As was Cree custom , the war chief Fine Day replaced Poundmaker ( the ' political chief ' ) as leader until the fighting was over . The entire encampment was moved across Cut Knife Creek to the west side . Behind the camp was Cut Knife Hill , and on both sides of it were ravines filled with bushes and trees . Altogether , 9 bands of Cree and 3 of Assiniboine were present , numbering some 1500 men , women , and children . The battle . Just after dawn on May 2 , Otter ' s column arrived . Otter had expected that the camp would be in the prairie on the east side of Cut Knife Creek . He had not anticipated that he would have to ford the creek . After his column had crossed the creek , they had to wade through a marsh before they reached the encampment . An old Cree man named Jacob with Long Hair had woken up when he heard the sound of the soldiers crossing the creek , and he alerted the camp . Colonel Otter set up two cannons and a Gatling gun and started firing on the camp . In the first few minutes , there was total confusion . The gunfire broke lodges and destroyed the camp . Women and children went running for the safety of the ravines . A group of Assiniboine warriors charged Otter ' s men to stop them from killing the women and children . The other warriors moved into the ravines , and Fine Day went to the top of Cut Knife Hill to direct the Cree counterattack . The warriors fought in small groups . One group would run forward , attack the soldiers , then rush back to the ravine before the soldiers could get them . As soon as the soldiers tried to attack the warriors on one side , another group of warriors would rush out of the second ravine and attack them from behind . The other warriors guarded the women and children . Otter could not attack , because he had no idea where the enemy were nor of their numbers . Robert Jefferson , an eyewitness reports that " not more than 50 [ Natives ] altogether , had taken part in the battle . This was understandable since few were armed . " Douglas Light ' s research indicates some 243 Cree and Assiniboine men were present , and notes that a number of young boys also took part in the fight . Otter formed his men into a wedge . Two lines of soldiers and police faced the two ravines . The volunteers and militia guarded the rear , facing the marsh . As the battle continued , Fine Day employed a flanking maneuver , whereby his warriors began to move along the two ravines , getting closer and closer to the soldiers . The warriors stayed behind trees and bushes while they fired , so that Otter ' s men could not see anyone to shoot at . Colonel Otter ' s soldiers were trapped : on the left and right were the ravines and behind them , the marsh . After six hours of fighting , Otter decided to withdraw . As the soldiers were crossing the marsh , some warriors started mounting their horses to attack . Poundmaker asked them to let Otter ' s men leave . They respected Poundmaker and allowed Otter to return to Battleford . Some historians believe that only this prevented an outright massacre of Otter ' s troops . Note : The Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan describes the terrain and initial encounter somewhat differently but in many respects shows Fine Day to be an even more brilliant tactician than here described . Conclusion . The Battle of Cut Knife was the natives ' most successful battle during the North - West Rebellion . They had the advantage of being on their own territory , but also several disadvantages : they were outnumbered , attacked by surprise , and short on ammunition . Fourteen of Otter ' s soldiers were wounded , and eight killed , including one abandoned to be mutilated by native women ; three natives were wounded and five killed , including a Nez Perce who had come north from the United States some years earlier . The battle also instilled in some of Otter ' s men a new respect for their enemy . Otter had expected Poundmaker ' s people to be caught off - guard and demoralized and to surrender quickly . Despite suffering their greatest reverse during the campaign , the weight of numbers and better supplies favoured the North - West Field Force . In just a few weeks , the starving Cree went to Battleford to make peace with Major - General Middleton . Fine Day , the Cree war chief who had directed the battle , escaped to the United States . Poundmaker was arrested and jailed . Lieutenant - Colonel William Otter survived the battle and remained a prominent figure in the military , commanding The Royal Canadian Regiment in the Boer War , and acting as Director of Internment Camps in World War I . Many people have compared this battle to the Battle of the Little Bighorn . There are some major similarities : in both cases , an army officer disobeyed orders ; both tried to catch a native camp by surprise ; both Custer and Otter badly misjudged the terrain and had to slow down their attacks ; and both ended up being surrounded by warriors and had no idea where to charge . Otter , at least , knew when to retreat ( and was allowed to do so ) , while Custer kept fighting and suffered hundreds of casualties . Of course , the battles were very different in their outcome . Whereas Custer himself was killed along with a third of his soldiers , Otter and most of his soldiers survived their battle and emerged with a new respect for native warriors . Legacy . The site of the battle was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1923 . In the spring of 2008 , Tourism , Parks , Culture and Sport Minister Christine Tell proclaimed in Duck Lake , that " the 125th commemoration , in 2010 , of the 1885 Northwest Resistance is an excellent opportunity to tell the story of the prairie Métis and First Nations peoples ' struggle with Government forces and how it has shaped Canada today . " At Cut Knife is the world ' s largest tomahawk , the Poundmaker Historical Centre and the Big Bear monument . There is also now , correctly located , a cairn erected by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada upon Cut Knife Hill overlooking the Poundmaker Battle site and Battle River valley .