Today is the anniversary of The Battle of the Little Bighorn, which was fought on June 25, 1876.
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| The Custer Fight by Charles Maeion Russell |
In 1866,
George Armstrong Custer was appointed Lieutenant Colonel of the 7th Cavalry Regiment and assigned to Kansas to engage in wars against the native Indians. A cavalier cavalry hero of huge popularity amongst the American populace, Custer would be called today a "media personality" who understood the value of good public relations. He frequently invited correspondents to accompany him on his campaigns, and their favorable reportage contributed to his high reputation that lasted well into the 20th century.
Custer was ordered in 1873 to Dakota territory to protect settlers and miners against the Sioux. As Custer and his 7th Cavalry left Fort Abraham Lincoln in the Dakota Territory for the Little Big Horn, the band played "The Girl I Left Behind Me."
On June 25, 1876, Custer's regiment located a Sioux village on Little Big Horn. Underestimating its size and against orders he attacked the Indian community. Having sighted the encampment he had cried "hurrah boys, we've got them." 2,500 Sioux warriors counter attacked and defeated Custer's 655 men.
Several individuals claimed personal responsibility for the killing of Custer. In 2005 at a public meeting, the Northern Cheyenne broke more than 100 years of silence about the battle. Storytellers said that according to their oral tradition, Buffalo Calf Road Woman, a Northern Cheyenne heroine of the Battle of the Rosebud, struck the final blow against Custer, which knocked him off his horse before he died.
The only living thing that the U.S. cavalry got back from the Battle of Little Big Horn was a horse named Comanche. The equine survivor lived until 1890 and became a celebrity. The public assumed that he had been Custer's horse (he hadn't) and that he was the battle's only survivor (he wasn't).
