Cree chiefs, Big Bear and Poundmaker, gave only hesitant support to the uprising led by Riel. Only the desperate situation of their people accounted for their participation in the rebellion, and though involved, they sought restraint among their own followers. Separately, they surrendered after the defeat of Riel.
Here they are seen after their trial, with Big Bear and his son Horse Child on the left and Pound-maker on the right. Poundmaker had pleaded:
Everything I could do was done to prevent bloodshed. Had I wanted war I would not be here now. I would be on the prairie. You did not catch me. I gave myself up. You have got me because I wanted peace. I cannot help myself, but I am a man still and you may do as you like with me.
The surrender of Big Bear symbolized the end of freedom for the Indians of the Canadian Prairies. Big Bear had vehemently opposed the government's Indian policies, particularly settlement on reserves, and as late as the summer of 1884 had proposed the formation of a large Indian confederation capable of winning concessions from the government through negotiations rather than violence. Sent to prison, Poundmaker and Big Bear were both broken men who died shortly after their release.
