You are viewing a free preview of this lesson.
Subscribe to unlock all 10 lessons in this course and every other course on LearningBro.
As white settlement of the West accelerated after the Civil War, conflict between the US government and the Plains Indians intensified dramatically. The period from the 1860s to the 1890s saw a series of brutal wars, broken treaties, and the forced confinement of Native Americans onto reservations. This is a key topic in the AQA GCSE History specification.
| Cause | Detail |
|---|---|
| Westward expansion | Settlers, miners, and ranchers moved onto Native American land in ever-greater numbers |
| Destruction of the buffalo | The deliberate slaughter of the buffalo destroyed the Plains Indians' way of life |
| Railroad construction | Cut through Native American territory and brought more settlers |
| Broken treaties | The US government repeatedly signed treaties with Native Americans and then broke them when settlers wanted the land |
| Gold discoveries | Discovery of gold in places like the Black Hills of Dakota (1874) led to invasions of sacred Native American land |
| Different attitudes to land | Native Americans believed land could not be owned; whites believed in private property and "improving" the land |
Subscribe to continue reading
Get full access to this lesson and all 10 lessons in this course.