The horse culture of the tribes of the High Plains of North America lasted only some 170 years. In that time the sub-tribes of the Teton or Western Sioux people imprinted a vivid image on the world's imagination by their fearless but doomed fight to protect their land from the increasing spread of the white man. This text outlines the history, social organization, religion and material culture of the Santee, Yankton and Teton Sioux; rare early photographs include portraits of many of the great war chiefs and warriors of the Plains Indian Wars, and eight detailed plates record details of Sioux traditional costume.