Crazy Horse's Account of the Battle of the Little Bighorn

[rapiddominace]

wow, 7000 warriors, never heard that number

[jbeTV1]

Is it not true that Custer- the great indian fighter- only had one "victory" on the plains? That one being a route of women and children and old people at Washita river?

[Spenner56]

Trivial information : Custer was armed with 2 British Bulldog revolvers,not Colts. His hair had been cut short a few days earlier.

Custer graduated from West Point 34th out of a class of 34.

He was court-martialled in 1867 for disobeying orders,treating his men cruelly and abandoning two of them to the Indians.Reinstated the following year,he massacred 103 Cheyenne (including women and children) and earned from the Indians the epithet "Squaw-killer". (The Guiness Book of military Blunders).

[mgaduris]

Custer lead the Michigan Brigade in several important battles during the American Civil War and his units played a critical role in these engagements. He was a Civil War hero. The killing of women and children - such as was practiced by German forces during the Second World War - is criminal.

[Emrald70]

u guys can debate all u want but i know where i stand

the Americans claim to be a free country with opportunity for all races

but they drove the indians off their lands for money, treated blacks as horribly as every other white country, and are this very moment invading eastern lands so they can get oil and thus more money

capitalism means "money is everything" and thats what drives theri government, money

[joey513ja]

@Emrald70 yea thats true but ur putting a bad spin on everything. so ur only telling half truths. All other countries treated blacks alot worst then we did. The American Civil WAr. The North fought and died so they can be free. They didnt even serve in WWII. And if we treated them so bad, why is this the only white country to allow a black man as their president? We did drive the indians off our lands because they harassed us when we were trying to escape the british rule.

[lakota66]

oops dear friend

you are writing words not belonging one to the other! when you were escaping from british rules no lakota knew that washitsus were around.

do you know where your ancestors come from? why they left their home? perhaps their land was stolen by ignorrant white people? if you are smart enough to study about this, good things could happen to you. white country allowing a black man to be your president??? you are so lost in your meanings. poor soul already.

best to you.

[doubletapcracklepop]

@lakota66 white from spain, france, freckle face white skin spanish??

What treatment did native americans recieve from these two white groups.. Just wish that story of hell were told of slavery .......... before the other whites freed themselves from the british..

[rossman1rb]

We should have left the Sioux alone and made their reservation the whole state of S. Dakota. If Custer didnt discover gold there, this whole debacle never would have happened. We ran all over the place kicking the Native Americans around for so long IMO it was about time they returned the favor.

[DonMeaker]

Custer didn't discover the gold. He was a soldier, not a prosepector.

[erwintommy]

No one should have underestimated the Plains peoples. I have read as much as i could and they were experts at adapting to changing conditions and were very very practical. The army was predictable. When the army adapted and got to know these peoples, they ruled the battle field from that point on.

[LastPipeWoman]

white people have never been able to tell the truth and as obvious it is they do not have the ability to be honest. As much as they have tried to annihilate theindigenous people, the greater power has always been for the indigenous people. WE WILL BE FOREVER.

[lastardriver]

The Natives were prepared to go back to the Reservations had Custer kindly asked them to. He didn't so he died. :)

[DonMeaker]

It is also important to note that Custer had, in his testimony to the Senate, opposed the Grant administration Indian policy, so much so that he was almost not permitted to take part in the campaign. He was eventually permitted to take part, because of the expectation that if he was not part of it, the Grant Administration would be blamed for keeping him out if there were any reverses.

[DonMeaker]

I think that the Gatlings that were left behind may have resolved matters in Custer's favor. Other than that...there were no happy endings for the 7th Cavalry that day.

[spareaxe]

@DonMeaker I don't think even Gatlings would have helped, amidst all the confusion. Besides use of the guns are mainly for a defensive position and not for a attack on horse back.

[DonMeaker]

I recommend a small book available on the internet: by a Lieutenant Parker---> With the Gatlings in Cuba... Lt Parker used Gatlings to support the attack of the Cavalry Division in Cuba against the dug in Spanish.

If used like cannon, which they much resembled, they could have provided suppressive fire during the cavalry attack, perhaps from the bluffs above the Indian encampment, or perhaps from across the river where Reno attacked.

[JAG312]

There was a very good reason why Custer did not want to take the Gatlings. The .45-70 ammunition that was available used soft copper cases. The rims tore off in both the Springfield rifles and the Gatling guns causing the guns to jam. With the Springfield, you could pry the case out with the tip of a knife. With the Gatling, an armorer had to disassemble it to clear the jam. Custer tried to get the new brass cased cartridges from Frankford Arsenal, but couldn't get any.

[DonMeaker]

There is truth there, but who knows what would have happened once they opened up. The Indians could have continued attacking hoping for a jam, or could have called off their attack, in an attempt to hold off the cavalry until the rest of the encampment could get away.

[1880TimeTraveler]

Thank you for the narritive from the native side, As you know i recently visited the battle site,, we visit many historical locations,,this site is among the most moving,,Thanks again

[CelticWarrior1971]

Custer was a narcissistic glory hound, and that got his fool ass and a lot of his men, killed. He got what he deserved. The American Indians were just living in freedom, and then here come these greed enforcer morons looking to oppress the Indians and infringe upon their freedom, and they got a moccasined foot hung up their ass. They had every damn bit of it coming; they deserved it. You come into my home doing shit like that, and I'd kill your ass too. Fuck Custer, the arrogant prick.

[rick4001cs]

ignorance like thgis is why a good education is so important,

[CelticWarrior1971]

@rick4001cs: So you're obviously another one of those that calls anyone who points out the truth about something ignorant. Okay. Well, FYI, I am NOT ignorant of Custer or of the battle of The Little Bighorn. I may even know more about these subjects than you do, but even if I don't, anyone who does know even a little bit about Custer and the battle of the Little Bighorn, and are HONEST about it, will know that I have done nothing but speak the truth. Sorry you disagree.

[DonMeaker]

Custer had previously gotten the Indians to return to their reservations, at some personal risk, and with honor. He was a complex man with a brilliant war record in the Civil War, and an excellent record subsequent to that. You dishonor yourself, for Custer is beyond your reach..

[CelticWarrior1971]

@DonMeaker: Yeah, Custer had negotiated with the Indians before, and like most if not all the other white negotiators, he lied to the Indians. I am quite aware of Custer's Civil War record, however, there is more to having honor, than just being able to whip ass in battle. And exactly HOW do I dishonor myself by speaking the truth? I didn't say anything about Custer that wasn't true about him, so there is no dishonor in that.

[CelticWarrior1971]

@DonMeaker: Furthermore, you are right, Custer IS beyond my reach, because I am not an arrogant glory hound who would TOTALLY IGNORE what my Indian scouts said, you know, those who actually KNEW what the hell they were talking about? Then charge in, tired and exhausted against an overwhelmingly SUPERIOR fighting force and take a HUGE risk with the lives of my men, all for the puffed up, arrogant, bullshit sake of glory.

[CelticWarrior1971]

@DonMeaker: No, I am not this selfish, and I am not this STUPID. So yeah, you are right, Custer's arrogance, selfishness, and stupidity, ARE beyond my reach. Custer underestimated the Indians, and got his ass handed to him, plain and simple. He went in there with this little arrogant tough guy attitude, and he got his ass, and the asses of a good number of his men, royally kicked right the fuck off this planet. That's the truth Don, and there is no dishonor in speaking the truth.

[DonMeaker]

He knew the indians well, and knew that there were severe limitations on how many could congregate together for any length of time. The indians were about to leave, because of that. Death in battle due to one's own, or others miscalculations was an occupational hazard of the career that Custer had chosen. The brave thing that military men do is sign up, the rest is following through. He followed through, which is all we can can do sometimes.

[FortAbrahamLincoln]

Well said.

[ukp571]

One of the first to use human shields?

[helicopter73]

wy do some americans rave on about the war of independence and yet revel in the murder of real americans,shamefull

[kennydontcare]

what ever happened atleats custer died that racist killer should have stayed where belong in europe

[ceafexftw]

What's the intro music? Cheers.

[FortAbrahamLincoln]

Garry Owen.

[martynhanson]

Battle of the Washita River! yes, it was a glorious victory, wasn't it?

[TluskiLetowski]

The late Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer was a brave soldier who died like a hero. Regardless of opinions of his command decisions, his memory, and those of all the others who were rubbed out in war, Native and Whites alike, should be honored.

[lastardriver]

Custer was a punk. Plain and simple. My great grandfather was in the battle of the ittle bighorn.

[rick4001cs]

more ignorance.

[TennesseeShine]

Custer was an arrogant ass who finally got his due.  "As you sow, so shall you also reap." Its a spiritual principle that most of the World knows as "What goes around, comes around!" Some time it just takes a while.

[tazed2]

why was it a massacre? when all the white guys came in and killed women and children by, attacking native american settlements was called a conflict or an uprise.

[DonMeaker]

Actually, the Sand Creek Massacre is called a massacre.

[6905632418]

I'm glad Custer was out generalled by RED FACED MEN- men of courage boundless...he had outlived his time , and a very fortunate time it was for a blacksmith's son , who finished at the ...bottom ..of his class @ Westpoint.Did that military bastion instruct future officers to treat all women + children as collateral damage ...or merely as combatants ...or vermin ?Custer + his ilk were given state sanctioned licence to murder. NO LOSS

[gunnysgt61]

If the white man wouldn't have started no shit- their would have been no shit. If I take over your house and force you to live in the dog kennel in the back yard, while i live in your home, are you going to sit by and let me? hell no- your going to fight. thats what we did.

[ErnstBecker]

Gunny:

Well said. Years ago we visited the Little Big Horn Battlefield. It gave me the creeps. We found a monument headstone for those that were killed in the Box Wagon fight. Our family surname, one of the troopers killed in the fight, is inscribed on the stone. We also visited West Pt. Military Academy and found Gen. Custer's grave. Some say that he isn't buried there?

Semper Fi,

MGYSGT E. Becker

[malcjow]

WELL SAID.

[Sturmmann]

who gives us a fuck

we got the whole country and lost a couple of companies

[vinnyhoags]

Custer Died for our sins. The White man's genocide of the first nation's people's of North America.

[DonMeaker]

Genocide implies volition. Most died from exposure to disease. Disease was not understood well enough (colonization being far in advance of germ theory) to permit deliberate acts. Ergo, using the term genocide is wrong.

[vinnyhoags]

Diseased riddled blankets, when evacuating Native's, was not an accident or act of God. The intent for Genocide was always there,and I might add "Manifest Destiny" ,did not require any first nations permission.

[DonMeaker]

Again, look up when the germ theory of disease became known and accepted, and compare it to the time frame of the "blanket" story. Then you have to assume that a fellow responsible for the blankets was completely aware of the their history, and their potential. I haven't seen such a trail. No doubt that many died. So did many colonists, of diseases carried by Amerinds. In no case was the intent of genocide clear.The Rolf family, part English, and part Amerind, were highly honored in Virginia.

[vinnyhoags]

Rolf Family was respected.But the so called"noble savages" were no more respected than the negro Throughout colonial +19th century America. Their elimination and or assimilation was necessary for the Establishment of settlements throughout N. America. The White Man is guilty of murder, Rape,And Theft of first nation land.

[DonMeaker]

Actually, they were respected, their land was normally purchased. There is a vast difference between elimination and assimilation. Of course we could have forced them to stay in little reservations, and to suffer the pains associated with stone age level of civilization, denied them books, running water, food and medicine, but that would have been wrong.

Rape occured on both sides. Murder occured on both sides. War occured on both sides.

[vinnyhoags]

The white man was the victor,and the white man got the spoils. ( STOLE)

[DonMeaker]

Certainly the US consitution was written by white men. Rights so afforded have been extended to men and woman of every race. Still, you can't suggest that the Indians who run the Casinos in California were exterminated, nor assert that there was a serious effort to do so. Nor can you assert that the money they make in their Casinos is stolen. You win, you keep. Stolen is different.

[DonMeaker]

Historian Stafford Poole wrote: "There are other terms to describe what happened in the Western Hemisphere, but genocide is not one of them. It is a good propaganda term in an age where slogans and shouting have replaced reflection and learning, but to use it in this context is to cheapen both the word itself and the appalling experiences of the Jews and Armenians, to mention but two of the major victims of this century.

[DonMeaker]

Last of the Mohicans written before the Civil War expressed great respect for the native Americans, and further, and suggested that we had more in common with the Natives that with the British colonial masters.

[DonMeaker]

Robert Koch was the first scientist to devise a series of proofs used to verify the germ theory of disease. Koch's Postulates were published in 1890, and derived from his work demonstrating that anthrax was caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis. These postulates are still used today to help determine if a newly discovered disease is caused by a microorganism.

[LizzyxDarcy]

Wrong. Custer and his men died because of scum sucking traitors and cowards.

[DonMeaker]

Custer was very familiar with the Indians, and was sure that no great force could be assembled against him. He didn't think he would need the Gatling guns, and left them behind (each weighed about 300 lbs, and would have slowed his advance). He dispersed his forces into three columns. The Indians had assembled a large group, some 15,000 and would soon have to disperse to pursue food. Custer was aggressive, and on this case, unlucky.

[NewOrleansWoman]

fascinating !!

[glynamus]

fresh air! loved it very much, thankyou for sharing. lets remember it was their war, not ours...........we can work together and find solutions to our problems without killing each other. makes me sick that i was taught that custer was a american hero and not the aggesive butcher that he truly was. again, it was their fight, lets learn and move on. should be called battle of greasy grass.

[xappraiser]

This was a great read...thank you for sharing this! I'd like to read the entire article, do you know where to find the pdf file?

[big707ndn]

custer had it coming!

[glynamus]

and he got it. 100%

[wontonga]

With all of the gaming money some tribes are making now, why haven't they opened a NATIONAL NATIVE AMERICAN HOLOCAUST MUSEAM in Washington DC.

[DonMeaker]

Because there are more native americans now than there were when Columbus landed. Because the natives were were happily exterminating each other before the Europeans arrived. Because the Native Americans were heavily intermarried with the Europeans (look up the Rolf family in Virginia).

[redvsblue2]

there is most certainly not more natives now than there were before, it was estimated that over 60 million native americans roamed and lived in the Americas. They weren't also "Happily exterminating" each other, they did however war just like any other European country in the time. Also, yes Natives intermarried because the elders thought that if they intermarried there was a smaller chance of their camps being attacked by whites. Have a good day.

[DonMeaker]

It is unlikely that there were as many as 60 million, (More than modern France!) given a stone age technology. The history of the Cheyenne, Apache, Sioux, Iroquois, and Aztec, as well as the Blackfoot, the Algonquin reveals incompetent attempts at exterminating.

[redvsblue2]

well Columbus put in a journal thing that there were around 3 million people (estimate) on the first little island he "discovered", also it doesn't matter if they were stone aged, they knew what they needed to know to survive. Also the Maya, Inca, Aztec ect.. may have been stone aged but they rivaled European countries in their intelligence and craftsmanship.

[InkaPeru]

because unlike jews , native americans don't live in the past.

[poshportia62]

The 7th Cavalry got their butts in a sling again after Little Big Horn, fourteen years later, the day after the Wounded Knee Massacre. If it wasn't for the 9th Cavalry Buffalo Soldiers, there would of been a second massacre of the 7th. Rescue at Pine Ridge. com.

[poshportia62]

The 7th Cavalry got their butts in a sling again, fourteen years later, the day after the Wounded Knee Massacre. If it wasn't for the 9th Cavalry Buffalo Soldiers, there would of been a second massacre of the 7th. Rescue at Pine Ridge. com.

[39tommyboy]

why was there only ten thousand soilders at the alamo?? the mexicans only had one car!! thats a old joke. im indian and ive heard allot about us. i worked with navaho ,s on the rail road. they could really work their ass, s off, i was put in charge of 150 man gang because i am american indian. i always new when i was being cussed because they would say the same shit when i walked by. the civilized tribes cannot cuss because the language doesnt exsist in theirs.

[isnawica]

Very good information

[palonejr]

Do not blame the soldiers for the bad policies of the Federal Government.

As all soldiers, they obeyed the orders of there superior officers.

The Natives were no innocents either.

Study your history,

not your hate.

Bobby...

[glynamus]

the excuss following orders is a poor one. even the waffen SS was following orders. =P

[southron35043]

I would like to personally thank the American Indians for their terminating this piece of scum. He was attempting to do to them just what he and his kind did to the Southron people in years before.

[DonMeaker]

The Southron people who raped women in the slave cabins?

[glynamus]

yanks did a damn good job of comitting rape too.

[DonMeaker]

Unlike the Germans/Soviet courts, US military courts tried and sentenced for rape, which cut it back.

[malcjow]

GOODBYE CUSTARD.

[dixiedeanlivesalways]

crazy horse warrior of all warriors its a good day to die

[pitatapiu]

hoka hey

[2008IQ]

I´m not american, but always been fascinated by Little Bighorn, Wounded Knee etc. Custer was a COWARD, attacking villages full of women and children. Not at all this "american hero" some make him out to be. He was an american asswipe, not different from many in american politics today. (They still exist, I hear). Glad some REAL men were ready to defend their families, homes and land by firing back! Reno got away, but at least Custer (and many like him) were put to sleep. Good riddance.

[tinker3963]

Good.

[thefirstscout]

Interesting.