Пышаққанғанапивин: Бейбітшілік пен халық қорғаушысы

Plains Cree chief
the Cree headman

Pîhtokahanapiwiyin (c. 1842 – 4 July 1886), also known as Poundmaker, was a Plains Cree chief known as a peacemaker and defender of his people, the Poundmaker Cree Nation. His name denotes his special craft at leading buffalo into buffalo pounds (enclosures) for harvest. In 1885, during the North West Rebellion, his band was attacked by Canadian troops and a battle ensued. After the rebellion was suppressed, he surrendered and was convicted of treason and imprisoned. He died of illness soon after his release. In May 2019, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau exonerated the chief and apologized to the Poundmaker Cree Nation.

According to Cree tradition, or oral history, Pîhtokahanapiwiyin, known to English speakers as Chief Poundmaker, gained his name for his special ability to attract buffalo into pounds. A buffalo pound resembled a huge corral with walls covered by the leaves of thick bushes. Usually herds of buffalo were stampeded into this trap. But sometimes buffalo were drawn in by a person such as Pîhtokahanapiwiyin, who according to tradition was gifted by spirit helpers, singing and drumming a special song to entice a lead buffalo cow to lead her herd into the enclosure.

Poundmaker was born in Rupert's Land, near present day Battleford; the child of Sikakwayan, an Assiniboine medicine man, and a mixed blood Cree woman, the sister of Chief Mistawasis. Following the death of his parents, Poundmaker, his brother (Yellow Mud Blanket), and his younger sister, were all raised by their mother's Cree community, led by Chief Wuttunee, later known as the Red Pheasant Band. In his adult life, Poundmaker gained prominence during the 1876 negotiations of Treaty 6 and split off to form his own band. In 1881, the band settled on a reserve about 40 km northwest of Fort Battleford. Looting of the abandoned buildings of the town took place, 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. White witness oral history suggests daily looting by Indians. Native tradition suggests 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, to establish an encampment at Cut Knife Hill. On 2 May 1885, a military force of 332 Canadian troops, led by Lieutenant Colonel William Dillon Otter, attacked Poundmaker's camp near Cut Knife Hill. After six hours of inconclusive skirmishing and suffering casualties, Otter ordered the withdrawal. As his force retreated, Poundmaker, who had not taken part in the fight, coaxed his band's fighters not to pursue the soldiers. Likely, his actions prevented the loss of many lives on both sides as the active pursuit of the fleeing force would have prolonged the conflict as serious countermeasures would have been put into use to cover the retreat, and the Cree would likely have killed many as the soldiers made their retreat. A few weeks later, after Riel's defeat at Batoche, Poundmaker and his starving band went to Battleford to make peace with Major General Middleton.

The Poundmaker Cree Nation continues to this day, near Cut Knife. His grandnephew John Tootoosis, Cree leader, and great grandnephew Gordon Tootoosis, actor, both lived on this reserve. Pîhtokahanapiwiyin, referred to by his anglicised name Poundmaker, appears as the leader of the Cree in Sid Meier's Civilization VI, having bonuses related to trade and diplomacy. His appearance in the game drew criticism from some members of the Poundmaker Cree Nation, who felt that, by being included in a game based around expansion and conquest, his values and those of the Cree were misrepresented, and criticized the company for not formally approaching community elders, but also commented that his portrayal wasn't completely negative, and hoped his inclusion in the game would help his at the time ongoing exoneration by publicizing it.