Post by Okwes on Mar 17, 2006 12:09:05 GMT -5
129 years after Little Big Horn
129 years after Little Big Horn By John Christian Hopkins Diné
Bureau www.gallupindependent.com/2006/mar/031106ltlhrn.html
WINDOW ROCK — Charles Windolph died 56 years ago today, on March 11,
1950. He was a decorated soldier, winning both the Congressional Medal
of Honor and a Purple Heart. But, his battlefield exploits did not occur
in World II, World War I or even the Spanish-American War. Windolph,
98, was the last cavalry survivor from the Battle of the Little Bighorn.
The last survivor, an Indian named Dewey Beard, would die in 1955. The
debacle, on a grassy hilltop in Montana, has captured the imagination
for generations. When the news reached civilization, two weeks after the
battle, the public was shocked: how could the country's greatest cavalry
leader be bested by a horde of savages? It was so unthinkable that early
speculation was that renegade white men must have directed the mindless
Indians. Now, 129 years after the battle, the names of the
participants are legendary General George Armstrong Custer, Sitting
Bull, Crazy Horse, Captain Frederick Benteen, Captain Myles Keough, Two
Moons and Rain in the Face. A lot has happened in the intervening
years, with the Indians, first seen as wanton savages, slowly gaining
recognition as people struggling to retain their way of life; and the
Custer myth growing tall, only to be cut down to size. Still many
questions remain, that can never be answered. And one certainty haunts
the Montana plains it was a disaster that didn't have to happen. For
like the sinking of Titanic in 1912, Custer's Last Stand was a slow
unraveling of events, where if any one had happened differently, the
ultimate doom would have been avoided. The Paha Sapa The roots of the
Sioux war of 1876 began in 1866, when the military built the Bozeman
Trail, constructing forts across the heart of Sioux Country. Led by Red
Cloud, the Sioux fiercely resisted. The white men wasichus wanted to
take the Black Hills, the sacred Paha Sapa, where the Sioux believed
their ancestors lived with the gods. For the only time in the history
of the Indian wars, the United States surrendered to the Indians and, in
the Treaty of Fort Laramie, promised the Sioux they could keep the Black
Hills "as long as the grass shall grow." But soon rumors began to
circulate that gold was in the Black Hills. The Laramie Treaty said
that no white man would be allowed to enter the Black Hills without the
Sioux's permission; and also that none of the Sioux land could be sold
unless a majority of Indian men signed off. The army broke the treaty
in 1874 when it decided to see if there was gold. An expedition, led by
Custer, was sent to the Black Hills to explore. The charismatic general
announced to the world that there was "gold from the grassroots down."
It was then set: the U.S. government wanted the Black Hills. Miners and
gamblers rushed to the Black Hills, to towns like Deadwood, which
boasted such residents as Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane and Wyatt
Earp. And although the 1868 treaty spelled out that the army would keep
white men out of the Paha Sapa, the government did nothing to enforce it
instead offering to buy the Black Hills for $6 million. One mine alone,
which founded the Hearst fortune, among others, earned its investors
more than 100 times the amount offered by the government. The Sioux
attitude was summed up by Crazy Horse, who said, "One does not sell the
ground upon which the people walk." Congress issued an ultimatum in
December 1875, giving the "hostiles" until Jan. 31, 1876 to report to
the nearest reservation post. It was an order that would have been
impossible to meet even if the Sioux wanted to meet it. But the Sioux,
who were living on land promised them under the 1868 treaty, were in no
mood to let their sacred hills be stolen. The Fighting 7thCuster He
graduated last in his class at West Point. He was the youngest general
in U.S. history. He was a polarizing figure in his own time, garnering
either unabashed adoration from followers, or intense hatred. His
reputation has been tarnished today, but George Custer was a legitimate
war hero for his heroic exploits during the Civil War. He had a dozen
horses shot out from under him as he led his men into battle. Unlike
other commanders of the era, who sat safely behind the battlelines and
issued orders, the golden-haired Boy General said his headquarters would
be at the head of the charge. He was dashing, fearless and his one
battle plan was to "ride to the sound of the guns." Here, his
recklessness gave birth to a phrase popular in the 19th century Custer's
Luck. It referred to someone who did everything wrong, only to have it
turn out right. Time after time, Custer charged foes that outnumbered
his own, yet always managed to win the day. It was in this war that he
attained his brevet rank of general. A brevet rank is temporary, but as
was the custom of the time soldiers, as a courtesy, were referred to by
their brevet ranks. At the time of his death, Custer's legitimate rank
was lieutenant colonel a rank that had remained unchanged for 15 years.
Following the Civil War, the army became a refuge for ne'er-do-wells,
adventurers, and wanted me seeking to hide. Many, like Charles Windolph,
were immigrants. Custer became second in command of the 7th U.S.
Cavalry; however the commander, Col. William Forsythe, preferred his
desk to horseback and virtually left command to Custer. A master
publicist, Custer had built up his own reputation, and now, by,
extension did the same for the 7th. To the public, the 7th became known
as the country's best Indian fighters; in truth the record was shabby,
with its greatest "victory" being a dawn massacre against the peaceful
Cheyenne village of Black Kettle at the Wamonkeya River. But Custer's
record with his superiors was also shabby. His graduation at West Point
had been interrupted by a court martial for failing to break up a fight
while he was officer on duty. Then, in 1867, he was suspended without
pay for a year for abandoning his men in the field and unduly harsh
discipline for deserters. As 1876 neared, the Boy General now 39
sensed his military career was ending. For 15 years he had not gotten a
higher rank. Custer may have been planning a change in careers from
soldier to president of the United States. The outgoing president, U.S.
Grant had done just that. Some historians suggest that Custer was in a
hurry to win a major Indian battle in time for the Democratic convention
set for July in Philadelphia. Road to Disaster Custer nearly missed
the Little Bighorn. When Congress held hearings on the Indian Ring,
which included the president's brother, Custer testified against the
ring, charging them with cheating the Indians. In retaliation, Grant
ordered the 7th into action without the general. Custer begged his
supporters Gens. William Sherman and Philip Sheridan to intercede. The
old soldiers swayed Grant, who relented, but insisted that Forsythe lead
the 7th in the field. The plan was for three battalions to converge at
the Little Bighorn on June 26, and catch the Indians between them. Gen.
Alfred Terry was in overall command, with the other groups to be led by
Forsythe and Gen. George Crook. But Forsythe only too to the field so
far, before letting Custer take over. Unbeknownst to Terry and Custer,
the army's plan had already begun to crumble. On June 17, on the banks
of the Rosebud, Crazy Horse defeated Crook, forcing his retreat. As
Custer prepared to cut loose on his own, he made the first two of his
fatal blunders. Terry offered to let Custer have several companies of
infantry, another 500 men or so. Custer turned them down, saying the
infantry would slow his cavalry. Terry agreed, then offered him four
Gatling guns. Again Custer demurred, saying the wagons with the guns
would also hamper his movements. Either the infantry or those machine
guns would have certainly led to a different ending on June 25. On his
own, Custer marched his men ragged. He ignored reports from his own
Indian scouts that they found a trail indicating far more Sioux than the
army realized. In this, Custer was using what was considered military
intelligence at the time. The army did not believe that Indians would
ever stand and fight a pitched battle, they felt the warriors were
cowards and would run. The 7th reached the Little Bighorn area worn
and exhausted late on June 24. But soon his Indian scouts reported
Indian sign just ahead. Custer decided to march forward, planning to
rest his men on the 25th. But early that morning his Indian scouts
reported seeing the huge Sioux village. Custer could not see it, but
his scouts assured him it was the biggest they had ever seen. Then
Custer's hand was forced. A mule had dropped some supplies and when
troops went back to get them, they found three young Indians had already
come upon the prize. The Indians were reported rushing toward their
village to spread the warning. Custer decided to attack. His favorite
Indian scout, Bloody Knife, told the general, "Today, you and I ride
home on a road we do not know." Here he made yet another blunder,
dividing his outnumbered men into four groups. Sending Major Reno, who
had no Indian fighting experience, to attack one end of the village,
Custer planned to strike from the other end. Custer's Last Stand
Custer, with 216 men, rode off. He still had no precise idea of where
the Sioux and Cheyenne village was, or any guess as to how many warriors
he faced. The entire 7th Cavalry consisted of less than 700 men, and
some estimates say the Indian warriors numbered from 5,000 to 10,000.
The last any survivors saw of Custer, he was waving his hat in the air
as he extorted Reno on. Then Custer led his men toward Medicine Tail
Coulee. What he didn't see was Reno's retreat as the Indians met his
charge head-on. Reno was soon pinned down. Custer led his men down the
coulee and into his last mistake. He emerged in the middle of the
village, not at the end. Indians swarmed toward him, as the 7th slowly
fought its way back up the coulee. Their fate was sealed as they
regained the hills, only to be met by the fierce charge of Crazy Horse.
Custer ordered his men to dismount where every fourth soldier held the
horses for himself and three comrades. It further lessened the effect of
his fighting force. Littered atop Custer Hill were the bodies of the
general, his brothers twice-Medal of Honor winner Captain Tom and
Boston, a nephew Autie Reed and a brother-in-law Captain Calhoun. The
rest of the 7th would join up with Reno and dig in as they fought off
the Indians until about midday on the 26th, when the village decamped as
General terry approached. Charles Windolph was among the 24 soldiers who
won Medals of Honor. He had acted heroically, suffering a wound in the
buttocks on his way to becoming the last white man standing from the
Battle of the Little Bighorn.
129 years after Little Big Horn By John Christian Hopkins Diné
Bureau www.gallupindependent.com/2006/mar/031106ltlhrn.html
WINDOW ROCK — Charles Windolph died 56 years ago today, on March 11,
1950. He was a decorated soldier, winning both the Congressional Medal
of Honor and a Purple Heart. But, his battlefield exploits did not occur
in World II, World War I or even the Spanish-American War. Windolph,
98, was the last cavalry survivor from the Battle of the Little Bighorn.
The last survivor, an Indian named Dewey Beard, would die in 1955. The
debacle, on a grassy hilltop in Montana, has captured the imagination
for generations. When the news reached civilization, two weeks after the
battle, the public was shocked: how could the country's greatest cavalry
leader be bested by a horde of savages? It was so unthinkable that early
speculation was that renegade white men must have directed the mindless
Indians. Now, 129 years after the battle, the names of the
participants are legendary General George Armstrong Custer, Sitting
Bull, Crazy Horse, Captain Frederick Benteen, Captain Myles Keough, Two
Moons and Rain in the Face. A lot has happened in the intervening
years, with the Indians, first seen as wanton savages, slowly gaining
recognition as people struggling to retain their way of life; and the
Custer myth growing tall, only to be cut down to size. Still many
questions remain, that can never be answered. And one certainty haunts
the Montana plains it was a disaster that didn't have to happen. For
like the sinking of Titanic in 1912, Custer's Last Stand was a slow
unraveling of events, where if any one had happened differently, the
ultimate doom would have been avoided. The Paha Sapa The roots of the
Sioux war of 1876 began in 1866, when the military built the Bozeman
Trail, constructing forts across the heart of Sioux Country. Led by Red
Cloud, the Sioux fiercely resisted. The white men wasichus wanted to
take the Black Hills, the sacred Paha Sapa, where the Sioux believed
their ancestors lived with the gods. For the only time in the history
of the Indian wars, the United States surrendered to the Indians and, in
the Treaty of Fort Laramie, promised the Sioux they could keep the Black
Hills "as long as the grass shall grow." But soon rumors began to
circulate that gold was in the Black Hills. The Laramie Treaty said
that no white man would be allowed to enter the Black Hills without the
Sioux's permission; and also that none of the Sioux land could be sold
unless a majority of Indian men signed off. The army broke the treaty
in 1874 when it decided to see if there was gold. An expedition, led by
Custer, was sent to the Black Hills to explore. The charismatic general
announced to the world that there was "gold from the grassroots down."
It was then set: the U.S. government wanted the Black Hills. Miners and
gamblers rushed to the Black Hills, to towns like Deadwood, which
boasted such residents as Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane and Wyatt
Earp. And although the 1868 treaty spelled out that the army would keep
white men out of the Paha Sapa, the government did nothing to enforce it
instead offering to buy the Black Hills for $6 million. One mine alone,
which founded the Hearst fortune, among others, earned its investors
more than 100 times the amount offered by the government. The Sioux
attitude was summed up by Crazy Horse, who said, "One does not sell the
ground upon which the people walk." Congress issued an ultimatum in
December 1875, giving the "hostiles" until Jan. 31, 1876 to report to
the nearest reservation post. It was an order that would have been
impossible to meet even if the Sioux wanted to meet it. But the Sioux,
who were living on land promised them under the 1868 treaty, were in no
mood to let their sacred hills be stolen. The Fighting 7thCuster He
graduated last in his class at West Point. He was the youngest general
in U.S. history. He was a polarizing figure in his own time, garnering
either unabashed adoration from followers, or intense hatred. His
reputation has been tarnished today, but George Custer was a legitimate
war hero for his heroic exploits during the Civil War. He had a dozen
horses shot out from under him as he led his men into battle. Unlike
other commanders of the era, who sat safely behind the battlelines and
issued orders, the golden-haired Boy General said his headquarters would
be at the head of the charge. He was dashing, fearless and his one
battle plan was to "ride to the sound of the guns." Here, his
recklessness gave birth to a phrase popular in the 19th century Custer's
Luck. It referred to someone who did everything wrong, only to have it
turn out right. Time after time, Custer charged foes that outnumbered
his own, yet always managed to win the day. It was in this war that he
attained his brevet rank of general. A brevet rank is temporary, but as
was the custom of the time soldiers, as a courtesy, were referred to by
their brevet ranks. At the time of his death, Custer's legitimate rank
was lieutenant colonel a rank that had remained unchanged for 15 years.
Following the Civil War, the army became a refuge for ne'er-do-wells,
adventurers, and wanted me seeking to hide. Many, like Charles Windolph,
were immigrants. Custer became second in command of the 7th U.S.
Cavalry; however the commander, Col. William Forsythe, preferred his
desk to horseback and virtually left command to Custer. A master
publicist, Custer had built up his own reputation, and now, by,
extension did the same for the 7th. To the public, the 7th became known
as the country's best Indian fighters; in truth the record was shabby,
with its greatest "victory" being a dawn massacre against the peaceful
Cheyenne village of Black Kettle at the Wamonkeya River. But Custer's
record with his superiors was also shabby. His graduation at West Point
had been interrupted by a court martial for failing to break up a fight
while he was officer on duty. Then, in 1867, he was suspended without
pay for a year for abandoning his men in the field and unduly harsh
discipline for deserters. As 1876 neared, the Boy General now 39
sensed his military career was ending. For 15 years he had not gotten a
higher rank. Custer may have been planning a change in careers from
soldier to president of the United States. The outgoing president, U.S.
Grant had done just that. Some historians suggest that Custer was in a
hurry to win a major Indian battle in time for the Democratic convention
set for July in Philadelphia. Road to Disaster Custer nearly missed
the Little Bighorn. When Congress held hearings on the Indian Ring,
which included the president's brother, Custer testified against the
ring, charging them with cheating the Indians. In retaliation, Grant
ordered the 7th into action without the general. Custer begged his
supporters Gens. William Sherman and Philip Sheridan to intercede. The
old soldiers swayed Grant, who relented, but insisted that Forsythe lead
the 7th in the field. The plan was for three battalions to converge at
the Little Bighorn on June 26, and catch the Indians between them. Gen.
Alfred Terry was in overall command, with the other groups to be led by
Forsythe and Gen. George Crook. But Forsythe only too to the field so
far, before letting Custer take over. Unbeknownst to Terry and Custer,
the army's plan had already begun to crumble. On June 17, on the banks
of the Rosebud, Crazy Horse defeated Crook, forcing his retreat. As
Custer prepared to cut loose on his own, he made the first two of his
fatal blunders. Terry offered to let Custer have several companies of
infantry, another 500 men or so. Custer turned them down, saying the
infantry would slow his cavalry. Terry agreed, then offered him four
Gatling guns. Again Custer demurred, saying the wagons with the guns
would also hamper his movements. Either the infantry or those machine
guns would have certainly led to a different ending on June 25. On his
own, Custer marched his men ragged. He ignored reports from his own
Indian scouts that they found a trail indicating far more Sioux than the
army realized. In this, Custer was using what was considered military
intelligence at the time. The army did not believe that Indians would
ever stand and fight a pitched battle, they felt the warriors were
cowards and would run. The 7th reached the Little Bighorn area worn
and exhausted late on June 24. But soon his Indian scouts reported
Indian sign just ahead. Custer decided to march forward, planning to
rest his men on the 25th. But early that morning his Indian scouts
reported seeing the huge Sioux village. Custer could not see it, but
his scouts assured him it was the biggest they had ever seen. Then
Custer's hand was forced. A mule had dropped some supplies and when
troops went back to get them, they found three young Indians had already
come upon the prize. The Indians were reported rushing toward their
village to spread the warning. Custer decided to attack. His favorite
Indian scout, Bloody Knife, told the general, "Today, you and I ride
home on a road we do not know." Here he made yet another blunder,
dividing his outnumbered men into four groups. Sending Major Reno, who
had no Indian fighting experience, to attack one end of the village,
Custer planned to strike from the other end. Custer's Last Stand
Custer, with 216 men, rode off. He still had no precise idea of where
the Sioux and Cheyenne village was, or any guess as to how many warriors
he faced. The entire 7th Cavalry consisted of less than 700 men, and
some estimates say the Indian warriors numbered from 5,000 to 10,000.
The last any survivors saw of Custer, he was waving his hat in the air
as he extorted Reno on. Then Custer led his men toward Medicine Tail
Coulee. What he didn't see was Reno's retreat as the Indians met his
charge head-on. Reno was soon pinned down. Custer led his men down the
coulee and into his last mistake. He emerged in the middle of the
village, not at the end. Indians swarmed toward him, as the 7th slowly
fought its way back up the coulee. Their fate was sealed as they
regained the hills, only to be met by the fierce charge of Crazy Horse.
Custer ordered his men to dismount where every fourth soldier held the
horses for himself and three comrades. It further lessened the effect of
his fighting force. Littered atop Custer Hill were the bodies of the
general, his brothers twice-Medal of Honor winner Captain Tom and
Boston, a nephew Autie Reed and a brother-in-law Captain Calhoun. The
rest of the 7th would join up with Reno and dig in as they fought off
the Indians until about midday on the 26th, when the village decamped as
General terry approached. Charles Windolph was among the 24 soldiers who
won Medals of Honor. He had acted heroically, suffering a wound in the
buttocks on his way to becoming the last white man standing from the
Battle of the Little Bighorn.