Great Leader: Naiche of the Chiricahua Apache, c 1857-1919
Most Native tribes in North America didn't have a royal or noble class. Even when leadership passed from father to son in patrilineal societies, or uncle to nephew in matrilineal ones, each man had to prove and keep proving his right to lead his people. Naiche, c 1857-1919, the son of Cochise, made good his claim as the last hereditary leader of the Chiricahua, succeeding his father and his older brother Taza.
Naiche in Apache means mischief maker. He was the son of Cochise by his wife Dos-tes-y, meaning, Something Already Cooked in the Campfire, and born in the Chiricahua's home range of southern Arizona. With Cochise as a father, Taza and Naiche would have received their warrior's training from the best, a man beloved by his people and feared by the Army and Settlers. Naiche grew up to be tall and strikingly good-looking. Army officer Britton Davis described him as being 6'1" and carrying himself as though he were a royal prince. Naiche came to have 3 wives and six children. Cochise died in 1872, when Naiche was approximately 25 years old. Taza died in 1876 and it was up to Naiche to keep his people safe in the face of encroaching settlement.
In the 1880's, Naiche teamed with Geronimo, both men choosing freedom over life on a reservation. In 1880, he took his people to Mexico along with Geronimo's followers to escape relocation to San Carlos. They surrendered in 1883, but left the reservation in 1885. In 1886, Naiche was with Geronimo when he surrendered to General Nelson A. Miles at Skeleton Canyon. He was transported to Fort Marion in Florida. Kiowa and Comanche leaders in Oklahoma offered a home in Oklahoma to the displaced Apache. Naiche and 295 people moved to Fort Sill in Oklahoma. There, Naiche discovered another talent, if he wasn't aware of it already. He became known as a painter and decorated deer hides with scenes from nature and Apache symbolism. He also carved and painted wooden canes. In 1913, he was permitted to move to the Mescalero Indian Reservation in New Mexico and died there in 1919.
Naiche in Apache means mischief maker. He was the son of Cochise by his wife Dos-tes-y, meaning, Something Already Cooked in the Campfire, and born in the Chiricahua's home range of southern Arizona. With Cochise as a father, Taza and Naiche would have received their warrior's training from the best, a man beloved by his people and feared by the Army and Settlers. Naiche grew up to be tall and strikingly good-looking. Army officer Britton Davis described him as being 6'1" and carrying himself as though he were a royal prince. Naiche came to have 3 wives and six children. Cochise died in 1872, when Naiche was approximately 25 years old. Taza died in 1876 and it was up to Naiche to keep his people safe in the face of encroaching settlement. In the 1880's, Naiche teamed with Geronimo, both men choosing freedom over life on a reservation. In 1880, he took his people to Mexico along with Geronimo's followers to escape relocation to San Carlos. They surrendered in 1883, but left the reservation in 1885. In 1886, Naiche was with Geronimo when he surrendered to General Nelson A. Miles at Skeleton Canyon. He was transported to Fort Marion in Florida. Kiowa and Comanche leaders in Oklahoma offered a home in Oklahoma to the displaced Apache. Naiche and 295 people moved to Fort Sill in Oklahoma. There, Naiche discovered another talent, if he wasn't aware of it already. He became known as a painter and decorated deer hides with scenes from nature and Apache symbolism. He also carved and painted wooden canes. In 1913, he was permitted to move to the Mescalero Indian Reservation in New Mexico and died there in 1919.
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