Battle Of Little Bighorn : The Worst Defeat Of American History

On June 25, 1876, The Battle of Little Bighorn took place near the Black Hills in Montana. This was one of the most controversial battles of the 20th century and the line between good guys and bad guys was grey at best. Gen. George Armstrong Custer (reduced to LTC after the civil war) had 366 men of the 7thU.S. Cavalry under his command that day. Sitting Bull (A Medicine Man) led 2000 braves of the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes (Klos, 2013). At the conclusion of the battle, the stories of the Indians savagery were used to demonize their culture and there were no survivors from the 7thcavalry to tell what really happened.

The Battle of the Alamo is probably the most famous battle to take place in the history of, and in the state of, Texas. The battle has given Texans the will to persevere against tough odds and the courage to endure through seemingly impossible situations for many generations. Many a Texan would draw inspiration during the fights following the defeat at the Alamo. This inspiration eventually led them to victory during the Texas Revolution following the Battle of San Jacinto. Had the Texas military correctly utilized their intelligence and combat assets available to them at the time, they would have been able to properly reinforce the Alamo. This would have allowed Texan leadership to develop an effective strategy to defeat the Mexican army

Following the civil war the Army was downsizing. Custer was a captain in the regular army. In July 1866 he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel made second in command of the 7th Calvary at Fort Riley Kansas. As the settlers, along with the railroad, were pushing west, there were conflicts with Indians. Custer’s mission was to tract down these roving Indian, war parties. This was a new type of war for Custer. It was guerrilla warfare. Custer tried to track down the Indians as if they were the confederates. He would camp on hill tops so he could see all around him. At night, his men would build big fires. The Indians would see this and flee. This lack of success drastically brought the morale down in Custer and his men. Before long, a group of 15 men deserted, Custer ordered them to be tracked down and shot. He then went on a forced march with his men just so he could spend a day with his wife regardless of the repercussions to his career. Major General Hancock gave a court martial to Custer for the execution of his men without trial. Custer was suspended in pay for one year.v

George Armstrong Custer was a United States cavalry officer who served with distinction in the American Civil War and was the youngest ever brevet brigadier general at age twenty-three (History.com Staff, 2009). Custer had various disciplinary issues throughout his career ranging from abandoning his post for romantic reasons to leaving the field without searching for a slain reconnaissance unit (History.com Staff, 2009). His expedition in 1874 that led to the discovery of gold, was in violation of the treaty of 1868 wherein the Black Hills were recognized to belong to the Sioux Nation. Custer was known to have a reckless temperament and was often at odds with superior officers. Nevertheless, as a Lieutenant Colonel assigned to the Seventh Cavalry Regiment out of Fort Riley, Kansas, Custer was tasked to lead the force against Sitting Bull’s alliance (History.com Staff, 2009).

Moving east was a column led by Col. John Gibbon from Fort Ellis Montana. Under the command of Gen. George Crook from Fort Fetterman Wyoming, a column was deployed from the south near Wyoming Territory. On May 17th, Brigade General Alfred Terry moved west from Fort Abraham Lincoln Dakota. Gen. Alfred Terry’s column consisted of 879 personnel, the majority being of the 7th Cavalry under LTC George A. Custer. On June 22nd, Gen. Terry detached Custer and the 7th Cavalry to flank from the southeast and force the Indians upstream where he planned to engage them with a smaller force along Little Bighorn River. Custer moved to the headwaters of the Tongue and Bighorn Rive and on June 25th Custer’s Soldiers were approximately 25 miles out from a large Indian encampment southwest of his position. Custer sent out scouts, along with Crow scouts (Indian scouts/linguist) to gather intel on the native encampment. Scouts reported a larger number than expected, an estimated 8,000 personnel including 1,500 native warriors present in the village. They also reported that the unit’s fires could be spotted from the crow’s nest, giving away Custer’s position. Assessing the situation, Custer decided to advance on the enemy’s position towards Wolf Mountain which was 12 miles from the encampment. With the information gathered by the crow scouts weighing heavily on Custer’s mind, he decided to attack the encampment the next day to prevent losing contact of the Sioux. Custer split his Regiment into three squadrons: a supply train consisting of 125 personal, commanded by Cpt. Frederick Benteen, a three troop force consisting of 175 personnel, led by Maj. Marcus Reno, and a five troop force consisting of 210 personnel with

When Reno and his company crossed the river the lakota and cheyenne was surprised and rushed to defend their village from the oncoming attackers. Reno then held his troops and formed them into a skirmish line, in which they began to fire upon the oncoming attackers. Reno had to retreat two times, the first time was when his left flank was endangered, and the second time he had to retreat to the east side of river. During the retreat Lakota and Cheyenne warriors rode down the troops inducing heavy casualties to Reno’s men. Reno’s company regrouped with the main the group after Benteen confirmed that there was no Indians following. A written message from Custer was sent by a messenger to Benteen stating “ Come on, Big Village. Be Quick. Bring Packs. P.S Bring Packs.” para. 11 (Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument). Captain Weir’s company made an effort to locate and communicate with Custer’s men after heavy gunfire was heard. (Little Bighorn Battlefield National

Imagine standing with twenty eight thousand Union soldiers staring at thirty two thousand Confederate soldiers all young and scared of what lies ahead because five thousand won't be alive when the battle is over. The North will lose the battle and they will realize that this won't be as easy as they thought. Three generals were showcased in this battle Union General Irvin McDowell Confederate Joseph E. Johnston Confederate P.G.T. Beauregard . The battle of Bull Run was a defining moment in the Civil War. It helped the North realise what they were up against. It also showcased 3 simi-famous generals.

The Battle of the Alamo was an extremely important Battle for the Southern States, and one of the well-known civil engagements in United States History. The battle only lasted 13 days, but was a major strategic point for both forces, the Mexicans and Americans. During the battle, many factors played roles in the outcome of March 6. Many of those factors belong to the Mexicans and the way they approached the battle. In addition, the facts that have lived in infamy since that day are well known throughout the people of the United States; the courage of those men and the famous men we know as Bowie and Crockett. However, there are many other facts that are widely unknown to those

The weather on the day of battle was hot, in the mid 80’s to low 90’s, and humid. The heat had a negative effect on Union soldiers. The Union Army set out at 2 a.m. to avoid engaging in battle during the hottest part of the day. Many of these Soldiers were untrained in road marches and lacked discipline. They would break ranks to find water, rest or collect blackberries. For these reasons they reached Bull Run three hours late and consequently ended up fighting well into the day. Both sides went into the battle with high morale. They believed that over the course of a few days they would be victorious and the war would be won in this one battle. The terrain of the Battle was mostly rolling country side. Bull Run River was running through the battlefield, which is what the battle was named after. Soldiers had to

Next, we have the analyzation of the strategies, tactics, and battlefield layout. This battle can be separated into two engagements. Each of these engagements can be identified by the hill they primarily fought by. The first battle is on Matthews Hill. It started with the Col. “Shanks” Evans engaging the Union’s flanking maneuver. Beauregard also attempted to flank in the direction where these Union troops were coming from. Eventually, the small engagement turned into a more sizable battle as each side sent more troops. Unfortunately for the Confederates, they were outnumbered in all aspects and were forced to retreat to Henry Hill.

The Battle of Little Bighorn in 1876 was perhaps the greatest victory for the Native Americans against the white European settlers. The Battle of Little Bighorn is also known as Custer's Last Stand and it was a fight between the Lakota, Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes against the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army. The Native Americans were led by "Crazy Horse" and "Sitting Bull," while the 7th Cavalry Regiment was led by General George Armstrong Custer. Custer's orders were to locate the Sioux camp in the Big Horn Mountains in Montana and wait for back up to arrive and help.

Reno charged the southern end of the Indian village and received sporadic fire from Indian skirmishers. Reno believed he was being overwhelmed and

In 1790, the Americans faced a great defeat against Little Turtle and his tribe. Out of the 1800 soldiers sent to capture the land, only 900 came out alive. The battle has no name. Anthony Wayne returned and

The first two campaigns led by Crook, Terry, and Gibbon were failures for the US. The first big altercation occurred at the Battle of Little Bighorn. Led by Lt. Col. Custer, the Seventh Cavalry encountered a large village on the west bank of Little Bighorn. The US troops were defeated there, and about 260 men were killed, including Custer (The Battle of Little Bighorn). This also became known as “Custer’s Last Stand3.”

You probably know the story as Custer’s Last Stand. The Battle of Little Bighorn (The Battle of Greasy Grass to Native Americans) took place near Little Bighorn River, Montana Territory and on June 25, 1876. Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer and his U.S. Army troops are defeated in battle against the Native Americans Lakota Sioux and Northern Cheyenne tribes in Montana, near Little Bighorn River, during The Battle of Little Bighorn.