The Nez Perce Chief Who Refused To Surrender 40 Miles From Canada — Then Slipped Past The Army And Escaped

Joseph is the most famous nimíipuu leader of the 1877 events.

This is partly because his surrender speech became one of the most widely quoted texts in American history, partly because his subsequent advocacy brought him to public prominence, and partly because the American press of the late nineteenth century had a particular appetite for the image of a “noble chief” who accepted defeat with dignity.

White Bird’s story has a different shape.

He escaped.