Camanche Wars

The **Camanche Wars** were a series of armed conflicts fought between Camanche peoples and Spanish, Mexican, and American militaries and civilians in the United States and Mexico from as early as 1706 until at least the mid-1870s. The Camanche were the Native American inhabitants of a large area known as Camancheria, which stretched across much of the southern Great Plains of West Elizabeth from Big Valley and Great Plains in the north through Great Plains, Hennigan's Stead, and eastern Cholla Springs and into the Mexican state of Chihuahua in the south. For more than 150 years, the Camanche were the dominant native tribe in the region, known as “the Lords of the Southern Plains”, though they also shared parts of Camancheria with the Wichita, Kioway, and Kioway Apache and, after 1840, the southern Cheyanne and Arapahoe.

The value of the Camanche traditional homeland was recognized by European-American colonists seeking to settle the American frontier and quickly brought the two sides into conflict. The Camanche Wars began in 1706 with raids by Camanche warriors on the Spanish colonies of New Spain and continued until the last bands of Camanche surrendered to the United States Army in 1875, although a few Camanche continued to fight in later conflicts such as the Buffalo Hunters' War in 1876 and 1877. The Camanche were noted as fierce combatants who practiced an emphatic resistance to European-American influence and encroachment upon their lands.

Camanche power peaked in the 1840s when they conducted large-scale raids hundreds of miles into Mexico proper, while also warring against the Anglo-Americans and Tejanos who had settled in independent New Austin. Their power declined as epidemics of cholera and smallpox caused thousands of Camanche deaths and as continuous pressure from the expanding population of the United States forced them to cede most of their tribal lands.

## Influential people

### Iron Jacket

Main article: Iron Jacket

Iron Jacket was a Camanche chief and medicine man. The name “Iron Jacket” came from his tendency to wear a coat of mail into battle. Iron Jacket took part in the Tanner's Span Expedition of 1858, where he was ultimately killed at the Battle of Little Robe Creek. His son, Peta Nocona, became a chief himself.

### Peta Nocona

Main article: Peta Nocona

Peta Nocona was the father of the last Camanche Chief Quanah Parker, as well as a Camanche Chief who played a crucial part in the Indian Wars. Peta Nocona led the full attack on Fort Parker where Cynthia Ann Parker was taken captive and later became his wife. Peta Nocona's place and date of death is still in dispute.

### Quanah Parker

Main article: Quanah Parker Quanah Parker was the last Camanche Chief and part of the Quahadi sect of the Camanche, who were highly respected by the other tribes. Quanah was never an official chief since the United States government appointed him to the position. Before he was a Camanche chief, Quanah Parker witnessed the peace negotiations of 1867 but refused to sign the accords.

### Buffalo Hump

Main article: Buffalo Hump

Buffalo Hump was a Camanche War Chief who led the Great Raid of 1840 after New Austiner officials killed Camanche delegates during the events that unfolded during the Council House Fight.

### Mirabeau B. Lamar

Main article: Mirabeau B. Lamar

Mirabeau Lamar was the second President of the Republic of New Austin from 1838 to 1841, preceded by Sam Houston. Mirabeau Lamar had a harsher policy towards Native Americans in New Austin and signed two bills which escalated tensions in the region. The first bill was signed on December 21, 1838, which formed an 840-man regiment to protect the Northern and Western Frontiers of New Austin. An additional bill was passed on December 29, 1838, which added an additional 8 companies of mounted volunteers to serve 6 month deployments.

### Santa Anna Aka Santana (Camanche war chief)

Main article: Santa Anna/Santana (Camanche war chief)

Santa Anna was a Camanche war chief who advocated for armed resistance against the New Austin settlers, and became influential after the Council House Fight of 1840 in San Antonio. Santa Anna joined forces with Buffalo Hump and most likely took part in the Battle of Stillwater Creek and the Great Raid of 1840. Santa Anna was the first of his tribe to travel to Washington, D.C., and agreed to sign a treaty in May 1846, despite the continued hostilities. Santa Anna died from a cholera outbreak in 1849.

## Battles and campaigns in the United States

### Fort Parker massacre (May 1836)

Main article: Fort Parker massacre

The Fort Parker massacre was a raid conducted by a coalition of tribes including the Camanches, Kioways, Caddos and Wichitas. They attacked the fort killing five of the inhabitants and capturing Cynthia Ann Parker a nine-year old who later married the Camanche chief Peta Nocona, John Richard Parker the brother of Cynthia Ann Parker, Rachel Plummer a seventeen-year-old wife along with her son James Pratt Plummer, and lastly Elizabeth Duty Kellog who was later reunited with her sister Martha in 1836.

### Council House Fight (March 1840)

Main article: Council House Fight

The Council House Fight was a Peace delegation turned conflict between the Camanche delegates and the New Austin officials on March 19, 1840. The conflict started over negotiations regarding New Austiner and Mexican captives that the Camanches were holding in order to gain back sections of Camancheria that New Austin had claimed. The Council house fight ended with twelve of the Camanche Leaders killed inside the Council house as well as 23 others shot in San Antonio.

### Battle of Stillwater Creek (August 1840)e

Main article: Battle of Stillwater Creek

The Battle of Stillwater Creek was a conflict in Hennigan's Stead, New Austin that took place on August 12, 1840. It was an attack led by Chief Buffalo Hump who led a large force of 1,000 Camanche warriors against 200 New Austin Rangers in response to the Council House Fight. The Battle Began as a raid where the Camanche party stole livestock and firearms which gradually turned into a gun fight. The results of the battle are still being debated since the Rangers reported 80 Camanches were killed but only 12 bodies were found  The Camanches claimed to have killed 11 New Austin Rangers.

### Tanner's Span expedition (January–May 1858)

Main article: Tanners Span expedition

The Tanner's Span expedition was a campaign led by the federal 2nd Cavalry against the Camanche and Kioway tribes in Camancheria. It started in January 1858 and ended in May of the same year. The cause for the expedition was due to Camanche raids into New Austiner territories. Peta Nocona and Iron Jacket led Camanche troops against the combined 220 forces of the 2nd cavalry, Tonkowa, Nadaco and Shawnee. Their expedition's purpose was to move the 2nd Cavalry from West Elizabth to New Austin in order to better handle the raiding Camanches. For this reason the United States gained the aid of the Camanches' enemy tribes Tonkowa, Nadaco and Shawnee. The resulting battle concluded with 50 killed on the United States side and 76 killed and 16 captured on the Camanche side. The Tanner's Span Expedition further expanded into the Battle of Tanner's Span.

#### Battle of Tanner's Span

Main article: Battle of Tanner's Span

The 1858 Battle of Tanner's Span was a battle fought between the Camanches' allies of the Kioway and the Apache against the New Austin Rangers with their allies the Tonkowa, Caddo, Anadarko, Waco, Shawnee, Delaware, and Tahaucano. The Battle was the first in which the New Austin Rangers successfully advanced into Camancheria. The United States rallied a force of 100 New Austin Rangers and 113 allies where the Camanches rallied a force between the range of 200-600. The "battle" itself was actually three decisive engagements between the Camanches and the New Austin Rangers; the first began in the morning of May 12  when the Rangers, led by General Ford launched a surprise attack on a Camanche camp. The Camanches were caught completely off guard and a massacre occurred. The second battle began when the New Austin Rangers attempted to do the same to another nearby Camanche encampment. As they encroached on the camp, the Rangers were spotted by Camanche scouts. Though able to mount a concerted defense this time, the Camanche still suffered heavy casualties. It was not until the third and final battle of Little Robe creek that Camanche warriors were able to take an offensive stance against the New Austin Rangers who then withdrew back into New Austin proper. However, the campaign was costly for the Camanche forces: with 76 killed and over 60 warriors captured by the New Austin Rangers, who by comparison lost only two killed and five wounded.

### Battle of the Lower Montana River (December 1860)

Main article: Battle of the Lower Montana River

The Battle of the Lower Montana River took place on December 18, 1860, in Cholla Springs, New Austin. This battle has become highly debated due to unreliable sources and exaggerated facts surrounding the event, but the event started in November 1860, most likely when a band of Camanche warriors, "struck farms, ranches, and outlying settlements in Parker, Young, Jack, and Palo Pinto counties west of Fort Worth." In these Camanche raids property was stolen and at least six people were killed. The citizens responded by pursuing the Camanches to a village on the Pease River, but because there were too many Camanches, the citizens had to wait for a larger force to arrive. Three units arrived, led by Lawrence Sullivan "Sul" Ross, Captain J.J. Cureton, and First Sergeant John W. Spangler. On December 19, 1860, Sul Ross led the attack on the Camanche village and according to Ross's report, "killed twelve of the Camanches and captured three: a woman who turned out to be Cynthia Ann Parker, her daughter Topsannah (Prairie Flower), and a young boy whom Ross brought to Waco and named Pease Ross...The whole incident lasted twenty minutes-thirty at the most."

### First Battle of Adobe Walls (November 1864)

Main article: First Battle of Adobe Walls

The First Battle of Adobe Walls was a battle fought against the United States Army and the Camanche Allies of Kioway, and the Plains Apaches. The battle began when Kit Carson attacked a Kioway town  In response the Kioway and Camanches launched a counterattack of over 1,000 men. The battle was long and drawn out almost to the point of the United States army running out of ammunition.

### Buffalo War (June- September 1874)

In 1874 what came to be known as the Buffalo War began. With the total population of the Camanche tribe reduced to only around 3,000 in total, divisions began to appear within the tribe. About two-thirds of the remaining Camanche now resided on the reservation, often labeled the “tamed Camanche” or “broken Camanche”. About 1,000 Camanche however continuing to roam the plains. Most of these Camanche would be considered civilians with only about 300 being actual warriors. The unsettled Camanche joined forces with warriors from likeminded factions of Kioway, Kioway Apache, and Southern Cheyanne and gathered together in the North New Austin panhandle. The federal government responded by sending forty-six companies of soldiers, the largest force ever deployed against Native Americans by the U.S., under the command of General Mackenzie. The majority of the Buffalo War was conducted in guerrilla warfare and search-and-destroy tactics. The conflict ended with the Battle of Pikes Basin, when General Mackenzie was able to conduct a surprise attack on the Camanche settlement. This led to the destruction of most of the Camanche’s resources and the seizure of 1,424 horses.