In the 1860s, efforts began to move the Comanche to a reservation in Indian Territory (Oklahoma). By the 1870s, these illnesses had reduced their population to about 7,000 people.
The fierce Comanche continued to maintain their independence and even increase their territory until new diseases, including smallpox and cholera, began to take their toll. Some were killed, but most often, their horses and cattle were stolen. Continuing to protect their territory, the formidable Comanche aggressively attacked the many settlers passing through on their way to the California Gold Rush. Many historians debate whether the Comanche deserve their ferocious reputation, indicating that they were only fighting for retrieval of the land they felt was theirs. Now dominating the Texas Panhandle area, including western Oklahoma and northeastern New Mexico, the Comanche were so well-heeled at their horsemanship that they began to supply horses to French and American traders. In an attempt to stop the raids upon the Apache, the Spanish offered help however, it was to no avail, and the Apache were finally forced out of the Southern Plains by the mid-1800s.
There are two accounts of its origin, the most accepted being a Spanish corruption of a name the Ute called them - Kohmahts, meaning “those who are against us.” The second account is that it was a derivative of the Spanish word amino ancho, meaning “wide trail.” They were also called Paducah by early French and American explorers, but the preferred name of the tribe has always been Numunuh, meaning “The People.” The Comanche speak a Uto-Aztecan language, which is almost identical to the Shoshone from which they originated. Sharing the same language and culture, they sometimes fought between bands and at other times were at peace, cooperating one with the other.Īlthough the name Comanche is well known, it is uncertain where it originated. Though the tribe was large, they never formed a single tribal unit but were divided into eight to twelve independent groups. From the moment of their capture until their death or release, they were both physically and mentally abused.
Unfortunately, the Comanche Indians did not treat their captives well, considering them little more than a slave and a commodity. Long known as war-like and aggressive, some estimates state that up to 20,000 people were kidnapped. In fact, the different nations or bands within the Comanche political structure made their own policies and decisions based on their own needs, without any sort of central authority like a president or a king.Comanche Hunting Buffalo by George Catlin While there were at times a single "great chief" acknowledged by the others, it was not a formal position and didn't change the fact that the Comanches governed themselves via a council where representatives had a vote, not any sort of monarchy.
These bands would then combine informally into a tribe or nation, but this was based on mutual need or advantage.Ĭomanche government was therefore very council-based, with elders gathering on a formal and informal basis to discuss issues and come to decisions. Sometimes these bands could be hundreds strong, and the elder patriarch was usually referred to as a chief. As historian Thomas Kavanagh explains, the Comanche Nation was divided into "bands," which were centered on a patriarch and usually comprised of extended relatives. Despite having a few famous Chiefs of their own, the Comanches were not this organized or unified.
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