1) Lead a successful war party
2) Disarm an enemy
3) Steal an enemy horse
4) Touch an enemy soldier in battle without killing him
As a young man he went off to WWII and to fight in Europe as a member of the US Army's 103rd Infantry Division. He did, indeed, lead a successful party to blow up enemy positions. While taking over a small village he literally ran into an enemy German in an alleyway, disarmed him, and bested him in hand-to-hand combat, then spared the man's life. Finally, he stole not one but fifty horses from German soldiers who had taken over a farm house. One wonders what the Germans thought when their horses stampeded out of the paddock, urged on by an American GI using no more than an improvised rope halter while singing a traditional Crow song of honor. Whatever it was, they didn't think it of it long because the whole horse-theft thing was a diversion prior to an early morning attack on the enemy's position.
When Medicine Crow returned home the tribe held a welcome-back ceremony where, among other things, he was asked to recount what he had done during the war. After telling his tales the elders informed him he had performed the necessary deeds to become a war chief and gave him that formal status.
This is Chief Medicine Crow with his US army medals:
This is Chief Medicine Crow in full Crow War Chief headdress or war bonnet:
Yep, that's the real deal, not Hollywood. Each feather represents an honorable deed, such as the required war deeds to become a chief but can also represent diplomatic, political, or other acts that benefit the tribe as a whole, thus the number of feathers in a man's headdress is a tally of his accomplishments. As they are also the tail feathers of the American bald eagle, damn few people are permitted to own even one these days, much less this many.
Chief Medicine Crow resumed his collegiate studies, interrupted by war, to become the first member of his tribe to earn a college degree, a Masters in Anthropology. He was the tribe's official historian and devoted much of his life to preserving the history and culture of his people, as well as emphasizing the need for education for success in the modern world.
As an interesting note, the Crow Nation was one that chose to ally itself with the United States during the Plains Indian Wars. Joe Medicine Crow's grandfather, White Man Runs Him, was a scout for General George Custer and an eye witness to the Battle of Little Big Horn so when Joe became a scout for the US army in WWII he was carrying on a long family tradition.
Medicine Crow's military honors included the US Bronze Star and the French Legion of Honor. His civilian honors include several honorary doctorates and the US Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Chief Medicine Crow passed away at the age of 102 on April 3rd in Billings, Montana.
