Native American fighting styles
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Native American fighting styles were used by the indigenous people on the North American continent to fight each other; when Europeans arrived, the indigenous people tried, unsuccessfully, to use them to repel the encroachment of the European expansion into the territories. Many Native American tribes viewed warfare as both a physical and spiritual experience. The killing of an enemy warrior was considered, generally, to be the least important part of battle (being more ritual than predatory). Native American ritual fighting with enemy tribes was not always expensive in terms of lives lost nor was it composed of a search for destructive weaponry.
Some of the Native American fighting styles could be regarded today as forms of guerrilla warfare, in the French and Indian War for example. Over 400 years, the experiences of other Native Americans, such as the Seneca Indians with Europeans resulted in decades of conflicts, but typically were ultimately disastrous for the Native Americans. The Native Americans performed well during earlier conflicts against European advances. The Native American fighting styles also influenced the English settlers.
In the 15th century, Europeans introduced the horse to the Americas and the Native Americans became excellent mounted warriors. The introduction of the horse had a most profound impact on Native American cultures in the Great Plains of North America. This new mode of transportation made it possible for some tribes to greatly expand their territories. Later, the United States military had several wars with the of Native American tribes (in particular, the Great Plains and Prairie tribes), learning the concepts of asymmetric warfare of the native peoples (i.e., war parties).
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General styles
War chiefs usually lead war parties because they had proved themselves in prior conflicts. Sometimes, these leaders had special medicine by supernatural forces (such as a medicine bag). Individual warrior braves also had personal medicine. On the warpath, war parties used stealth and utilized various methods of communication. Native American Indian's weapons of war included clubs, hatchets, bows (arrows), lances, and knives. Later they became marksmen with guns. War parties used surprise as one of their main weapons, as well as the principles of force concentration. In the face of superior force, retreating was not a dishonor. Native American Indian warriors also made every attempt to remove their wounded from the field of battle and to recover their dead.
Training for their martial arts differ between Indian tribes or peoples.
There are a number of general different regional fighting styles of the Native Americans:
Alaska Native
- The Tlingit and Haida of Southeast Alaska were noted as fierce fighters by early European explorers, and had some notable victories against large Russian military expeditions. Armor made of rawhide and cedar slats was said to be able to stop Russian musket balls. Headgear included heavy solid wood helmets which could take axe blows without splitting, and which might be covered with copper sheathing to absorb blows and blunt blades. The typical method of fighting before the introduction of rifles involved eight to ten foot spears hafted with flint, obsidian, or copper blades that were used as polearms and were not thrown. These spears contrast with the ones used for hunting which were around twice as long and unwieldy in battle. Close fighting was done with double bladed daggers of bone, ivory, or copper which were worn around the neck as sidearms by most Tlingit and Haida freemen. Short bows held horizontally at the waist were also used for both hunting and battle. Slaves were ritually killed with a special club, other specialized clubs were used for fishing and hunting, and certain long, heavy clubs made of bone, ivory, slate, or fine-grained greenstone were used in battle. After the introduction of firearms the Tlingit and Haida people became excellent shots. Introduction of iron and steel were quickly adopted for the production of weapons, and the Sitka chief Katlian used a blacksmith's hammer while leading his famous battle against the Russians in Sitka, which is still on display there along with his helmet.
- The Athabaskans of Interior Alaska utilized spears hafted with bone, ivory, and stone, as well as knives, bows, and clubs. Little is known about their fighting techniques as they had little contact with Europeans before more modern times.
- The Aleut of the Aleutian Islands in Southwest Alaska fought primarily with bows, although knives were also used for close fighting. Harpoons used in whaling and sealing might also be used in an emergency, although their use generally required more careful aim than might be available in the heat of battle. They readily adopted the Russian rifle alongside their indigenous bows, and both were used in battles against the Tlingit under Russian supervision.
- The Alutiiq Eskimos of Southcentral Alaska and the Prince William Sound area used much the same techniques and weapons in battle as did the Aleuts, although their weapons are clearly more closely related to the Inupiat and Yup'ik Eskimos from whence they came.
- weapons used: spears, bows, daggers, clubs
Arctic
- Warriors in the Arctic relied on the dogsled. Weapons were ornate, featuring elaborate, colorful designs, as well as feathers and ivory. The armor of these peoples was of a high technical and artistic standard. Helmets were usually adorned with expressive grimacing faces depicting terrifying animals or men, a form of psychological warfare. A thick face guard of bent wood just below the helmet protected the face, with a small gap for vision. Helmets were also used as crest hats (emblems of the family status). The noblemen warriors wore these helmets and wooden slat armor. With the introduction of firearms, however, wooden armor became impractical.
- weapons used: Bows, Shield, warclub. spears
West coast
- The Klamath warrior's headdress was made from the material of tule stems woven by a twining process. Accounts of the aggressive activities of the peoples of the west coast include intertribal conflicts. Some female warriors of the west coast were renowned for defending their communities.
East Coast
- The Seneca used a body hardening techniquewhich allowed them to endure many strong blows. This was an extension of their planting rituals.
Eastern Woodlands
- The Cherokee developed the fighting style involving throwing a special type of hatchet, called the tomahawk. However, this method of fighting was lost in the Trail of Tears. Up to a range of 30 feet, a Cherokee warrior wielding a Tomahawk could split a coconut and in a melee, Cherokee wielding this hatchet were able open up the chests of those they attacked with a single blow. Today the Cherokee have no use for such fighting methods, and there are no longer any practitioners of this style.
Northwest Coast
- Full blood Choctaw and Martial Arts Hall of Fame inductee Adrian Roman has created his own fighting system, which he calls Red Warrior or Tushka-homa. It is supposedly a blend of Native American arts and American Kenpo.
Plains - Prairies
- The peoples of the Great Plains in central North America had a system of graded war honors for acts of bravery. Counting coup (from the French word meaning "hit" or "blow") was regularly practiced and had strong spiritual connotations. The object of counting coup was to touch an enemy without harming him, either with the hand or a special stick known as a coup stick. Another form of counting coup was to capture an enemy’s weapon(s) or horse(s).
- Noted Sioux Indian warriors such as Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse were able to defeat the 7th US Army Cavalry in Montana in the battle of Little Big Horn, otherwise known as "Custer's Last Stand", by changing their fighting techniques. The weakness of the hotchkiss machine gun was its inability to turn around quickly. Using a special technique of the ritual martial arts of the "dog soldier", the Sioux forces were able to completely destroy Custer's cavalry. This technique of the "dog soldiers" were widely lost after the Wounded Knee Massacre. Sioux teton lances were typically 44 inches in length, and were primarily designed for hunting bison. In the hands of the dog soldiers they were used to impale an opponent. On horseback, the teton lance could penetrate several people standing in a row.
Southwest
- The Hopi people posessed a primarily agricultural and usually peaceful society. However, they did learn to use some Aztec warfare styles in their combat formations. Additionally, they used leather shields for both ritual and combate purposes. These shields are known as Mandellas.
- weapons used: Atlatl, bows
Mesoamerican
- In Mesoamerica, a number of guerrilla strategies were used to try to repel the Spanish conquistadors, provoking a harsh reaction from the Spanish military. Mesoamerican peoples used a special spear combined with a "foot" or handle, called an atlatl which functioned as a lever to aid in throwing.