The 1880's were difficult times for Indians. They had given up claims to large tracts of land and moved to reserves. They were dying from disease and starvation brought about by the disappearance of the buffalo, poor crops, hard winters, and little government assistance.

When news of the Metis success at Duck Lake reached the Poundmaker reserve in March 1885, Chief Poundmaker (Pitikwahanapiwiyin) decided it was a advantageous time to negotiate necessary supplies for his starving people. Joined by the Stonies, the Crees went to Battleford. On hearing of the Indians' approach, about 500 area settlers became worried and moved to the NWMP post at Fort Battleford for protection. Arriving on March 30th, Poundmaker and his people found the town deserted. Efforts to open negotiations with Indian Agent Rae failed. Hungry and frustrated, some of Cree and Stonies began looting the empty homes in the Battleford area, despite Poundmaker's attempts to stop them. The next day the combined Battleford bands moved west to the Poundmaker reserve (about 50 km or 30 miles away) and established a large camp east of Cutknife Creek. Although Poundmaker was appointed the political leader and chief spokesperson for the combined bands, a soldiers' lodge was also erected at the Cutknife camp. According to Plains Cree tradition, once erected the soldiers' lodge, not the chief, was in control of the camp.

On March 31st, Riel's Council of the Provisional Government of Saskatchewan moved the Metis force to Batoche. They constructed a defensive system of trenches and rifle pits around Batoche.

To relieve the settlers at the NWMP Battleford fort, a column of Canadian militia under Colonel William D. Otter marched up from Swift Current. After Colonel Otter arrived at Battleford to relieve the NWMP and settlers, he decided to take matters into his own hands. On May 1, 1885, he and some 300 men made their way west to Poundmaker's camp near Cut Knife Creek. Early on the morning of May 2, Otter and his troops launched a surprise attack, but withdrew in defeat after about seven hours of fighting, the Indians forced Otter to withdraw. At this point Poundmaker stepped in and stopped the Indians from attacking the retreating troops. Following the Battle of Cutknife Hill on 2 May, Poundmaker attempted to move the camp to the hilly country around Devil's Lake. The warriors leading the camp, however, prevented this retreat and began leading the combined tribes east to join Riel at Batoche.

On 14 May, while passing through the Eagle Hills, the Battleford bands captured a wagon train carrying supplies for Colonel Otter's column. Once again Poundmaker successfully intervened to prevent bloodshed and the twenty-one teamsters captured along with the wagons were taken prisoner.

From 1878 to 1880, Big Bear (Mistahimaskwa) travelled through the Canadian North-West and Montana trying to unite the bands. In the 1880s Big Bear's was focusing on uniting all Cree bands and attempting to establish an Indian territory in the Northwest with a series of adjacent reserves. The government refused to grant contiguous reserves and refused to respond to joint gatherings of Cree bands, such as the one organized by Big Bear at Fort Battleford in May 1884, that met to present Indian grievances to the Canadian government. Big Bear began to lose influence over the band's warrior society during the winter of 1884-1885.

On 2 April 1885, Big Bear's band, led by his son Ayimisis and the war chief, Wandering Spirit (Kapapamahchakwew), murdered the Indian agent (Thomas Quinn); two priests (Father Fafard and Father Marchand) and nine civilians at Frog Lake on April 2, 1985. On April 14th, Wandering Spirit moved to attack Fort Pitt. He successfully negotiated the surrender of the fort's 44 civilian inhabitants and forced the small NWMP detachment at the fort to flee down the North Saskatchewan River to Battleford. The militia, under General Strange, pursued the Cree and on May 28th, fought an indecisive battle at Frenchman's Butte. The final battle against Big Bear's Cree band, came on June 3rd when NWMP scouts surprised the Cree camp at a spot now known as Steele Narrows on Makwa Lake. Big Bear did not participate in the fighting on either occasion.

On April 3rd, 1885, Cree of the Little Hunter and Blue Quill bands raid government store house at Saddle Lake (130 km northeast of Edmonton). On April 26, 1885 Cree's raid a Hudson's Bay Company fort at Lac La Biche, Alberta.

The uprising of the Cree Nation prompted the Canadian government to intervene. Up until this time, Sir John A. Macdonald had not taken events in the West seriously, but the Frog Lake massacre quickly caught his attention. The government took two measures; the first was to increase the amount of money provided to the Indians for food. This was a wise decision for, their hunger satisfied, some of the Indians remained on the reserves. The second measure was to mobilize a military force of 5,000 men under the command of Major-General Frederick Dobson Middleton. Thanks to the newly-built railroad, the troops were in Winnipeg 10 days after the battle at Duck Lake. Three columns of troops were then dispatched to the centers of disturbance in Saskatchewan.

Major-General Frederick Middleton's men were soon to meet the Metis at the Battle of Batoche.