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Comanche Tribe Essay

512 Words3 Pages

In the 1500’s the Comanche tribe was originally merged with the Shoshone tribe in the Upper reaches of the Platte River. Only when the Europeans arrived did they split up. Around 1700 the Comanches acquired horses and started moving south from the Shoshone tribe. They made a stop in the Central plains before continuing on to an area that extended from the Arkansas River to Central Texas. As the tribe migrated south their population began to increase dramatically due to an abundance of food and an influx of Shoshone tribe members. The tribe itself was split into 8-12 independent groups and often fought amongst each other over land rights and food. When the Europeans discovered the Comanches they were settled in present-day Texas, Oklahoma …show more content…

Comanche skills on horseback flourished rapidly, and in many ways, were superior to those of Europeans. With the horses they became daring and dangerous, they later on were known as the best buffalo hunters in the southern plains. Horse trade was a large part of their culture, breeding, and trading horses with other indians, and it gave them a huge advantage when it came to buffalo hunting and warfare. Stealing horses was a blood-sport among the plains tribes, but especially amongst the Comanche tribe. During the 1800’s they stole large amounts of cattle from settlers in Texas, resulting in not only warfare with other plains indians but also with white Texan settlers. Warfare was common between the Comanche and other tribal groups due to their aggressive and warlike nature. Mounted, the Comanche were superior warriors compared to other plains tribes, and even European settlers. As moving targets the Comanche were difficult to hit, and if an enemy fired and had to reload, a Comanche could close rapidly with their lance or shoot them with multiple arrows without breaking out of a gallop. During warfare, the Comanche would kill all the males, but kidnap the women and children for later use. Often, the children were adopted and raised as their own to join and expand the tribe. The women, however, were either raped or sold as

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