Palisade Wall

The Mandan village of Mih-tutta-hang-kush was surrounded by a palisade wall and a ditch, with the ditch believed by archaeologists to have been inside the wall, unlike earlier Mandan villages where the ditch was outside. The Mandans defended their villages not only by building palisades but also by choosing locations that were easy to protect. Before the Missouri River changed course, Mih-tutta-hang-kush stood on a bend in the river, with the palisade guarding the south and west sides and the steep river bank protecting the north and east sides. Catlin characterized the village's palisade as a strong piquet with an interior ditch three or four feet deep, made of timbers a foot or more in diameter and eighteen feet high, set firmly in the ground with enough space between them to allow guns and other missiles to be fired through, while warriors used the ditch inside the piquet to shield themselves from enemy view and weapons as they reloaded and fired.

North Dakota · United States