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The Battle of Little Bighorn
The Battle of Little Bighorn, also known as Custer’s Last Stand, occurred on June 25th of
1876. The Battle took place near the Little Bighorn River in the Montana territory. The conflict
was between federal troops who were by led by Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer, the Lakota
and Cheyenne people who were led by Sitting Bull. Several significant events led up to the
Battle of Little Bighorn, including broken treaties and multiple smaller battles. The Battle of
Little Bighorn was the last battle in the Indian Wars.1
George Armstrong Custer was the Lieutenant Colonel commanding the 7th Cavalry. Lt.
Col. Custer was a West Point graduate from the class of 1861. He served with distinction in
several battles in the civil war to include; Gettysburg, Cometary Ridge, Overland Campaign, and
Cedar Creek. He was also at Appomattox for General Lee’s surrender. By the end of the Civil
War in 1865, he had attained the rank of Major. He was then assigned to the Indian Wars in the
West and given the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.2
1
“Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument (U.S. National Park Service).” National
Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, www.nps.gov/libi/index.htm.
2
Editors, History.com. “George Armstrong Custer.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 9
Nov. 2009, www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/george-armstrongcuster#section_7.
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The Lakota people were a Native American tribe located in the Northern Midwest,
covering the states of Minnesota, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska. The
Lakota were one of the three Sioux tribes, known as the Teton Sioux. In 1851, the Lakota signed
the Fort Laramie Treaty, which allowed the settlers to travel across the Lakota land unharmed on
their way to Oregon. This did not last long as some of the settlers decided to settle in the Lakota
territory and were not stopped by the federal government. This did not sit well with the Lakota
and they attacked several settlements, which caused a reaction from the United States
government. The United States Army was sent into the Lakota territory to put an end to these
attacks. In September of 1855 General William S. Harney led 700 soldiers in an attack on a
Lakota village in Nebraska. The Civil War caused even more settlers to enter the Lakota
territory as refugees further aggravating the situation. After the Civil War miners moved into the
Black Hills, which the Lakota considered sacred ground. The United States built forts along the
Bozeman Trail to prevent attacks against the miners. The Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 was
signed to keep white settlers out of the Black Hills permanently. This only lasted a short time
until gold was discovered, and once again the miners violated the treaty and returned to the
Black Hills. The leader of the Lakota people during the Battle of Little Bighorn was Sitting Bull.
Even though Sitting Bull’s band were not involved in the attacks against the settlers, they were
treated equally as guilty by the United States Government.3
The Cheyenne people were a Native American tribe located in North and South Dakota
area, in and around the Black Hills. The Cheyenne were also a part of the Fort Laramie Treaty
3
“Teton.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.,
www.britannica.com/topic/Teton.
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of 1851. The wounding of a Cheyenne warrior in 1856 caused the Cheyenne to begin attacking
settlers. This led to the United States Cavalry to attack the Cheyenne, killing and wounding
several braves. The Cheyenne then went on to attack several groups of settlers. The First
Cavalry Regiment was sent in to put an end to the attacks by the Cheyenne. The United States
Army then continued attacking the Cheyenne in several small battles. In 1859 once again,
miners intruded into the Cheyenne territory in Colorado during the Colorado Gold Rush. The
Treaty of Fort Wise was enacted, and the Cheyenne gave up their territory as agreed to in the
Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851. Many Cheyenne did not agree to the treaty and remained on their
traditional grounds. In 1864 at the urging of John Evans, the Colorado governor, the Colorado
volunteers began attacking the Cheyenne who had refused to leave their land. This caused a war
between the Cheyenne and Colorado. During this time, the volunteers attacked a Cheyenne
encampment killing over a hundred women and children. In the beginning of 1865, the
Cheyenne attacked Camp Rankin with a large group of warriors. After many raids, the
Cheyenne moved north back into the Black Hills. In November of 1868 Lt. Col. Custer attacked
the Cheyenne on the reservation, killing many men, women, children.4
The Sun Dance ceremony was an annual religious event. Many tribes gathered together
for the Sun Dance ceremony. The ceremony was a time for prayer and sacrifice. The ceremony
consisted of many features including tradition dances and songs played on traditional drums, a
4
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Cheyenne.” Encyclopædia Britannica,
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 15 Mar. 2017, www.britannica.com/topic/Cheyenne-people.
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sacred fire, and fasting. Sitting Bull had a vision during the ceremony of soldiers falling upside
down into his village. He saw it as a sign of impending victory.
The U. S. 7th Cavalry which is the main force that engaged in the Battle of Little Bighorn,
was understaffed and ill trained. A large portion of the troops were new recruits with very little
to no experience. A large number of the officers were on detached duty to other units, leaving a
gap in the command structure of the Regiment. Col. Samuel D Sturgis, who was the regimental
commander, was on detached service to the Mounted Recruiting Service at the Cavalry Depot in
St. Louis, leaving the command to Lt. Col. Custer.
The Battle of Rosebud occurred on June 17 in 1876, in the Montana territory. It was
between the United States Army with their Native American allies against the Lakota and
Cheyenne. General George Crook were coming from Fort Fetterman and was to be supposed to
be joining two other groups of soldiers, one being the 7th Cavalry commanded by Lt. Col. Custer,
and the other General Gibbon’s group. When General Crook’s group was approaching Little
Bighorn, a scout spotted a large group of Sioux. General Crook wanted to attack the group and
had Native American allies from the Crow and Shoshone tribes who warned him about Crazy
Horse. General Crook had stopped to take a break and let the rest of the soldiers catch up. This
is when the Sioux attacked which caught most of General Crook’s men of guard. General Crook
retreated and later joined the other 2 groups in the Battle of Little Bighorn. The Crow and
Shoshone would join the Lakota and Cheyenne.5
5
“Indians Hammer U.S. Soldiers at the Battle of the Rosebud.” History.com, A&E
Television Networks, 16 Nov. 2009, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/indians-hammer-u-ssoldiers-at-the-battle-of-the-rosebud.
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Major Reno and his men were the first group to attack in the Battle of Little Bighorn.
Without knowing the precise location and size of the Native American group, Major Reno and
his men headed in the direction of the group. When him and his men got close enough to the
group, the Native Americans attacked and reno’ men retreated. Custer’s part of the battle is very
vague since there was only one survivor from his command. Curley, his scout from the Crow
tribe said that Custer had attacked the group and was pushed back to the area where his body was
found. After Custer was defeated the Lakota and Cheyenne returned to attack reno and his men.
This battle was the last of the Indian Wars.6
After the Battle of Little Bighorn led to many problems for Native Americans. The battle
lead to the government and military to focus on the Sioux tribes. For example, the United States
would stop giving rations to the Sioux if they did not agree to give up ownership of the Black
Hills. Even though the Native Americans won, they still were not treated as though they were
Americans.7
6
“Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument (U.S. National Park Service).” National
Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, www.nps.gov/libi/index.htm.
7
“Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument (U.S. National Park Service).” National
Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, www.nps.gov/libi/index.htm.
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Works Cited
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Cheyenne.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia
Britannica, Inc., 15 Mar. 2017, www.britannica.com/topic/Cheyenne-people.
Editors, History.com. “George Armstrong Custer.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 9
Nov. 2009, www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/george-armstrongcuster#section_7.
“Indians Hammer U.S. Soldiers at the Battle of the Rosebud.” History.com, A&E Television
Networks, 16 Nov. 2009, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/indians-hammer-u-ssoldiers-at-the-battle-of-the-rosebud.
“Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument (U.S. National Park Service).” National Parks
Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, www.nps.gov/libi/index.htm.
“Teton.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.,
www.britannica.com/topic/Teton.