A Day Late....

[Talyn]

The Importance of the Battle of the Little Bighorn​

On June 25, 1876, Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer and an entire battalion of the 7th Cavalry Regiment rode to their deaths and into American legend on the ridges north of Montana’s Little Bighorn River. The battle was decided in a few hours. Its meaning remains contested 150 years later.

The Importance of the Battle of the Little Bighorn

On June 25, 1876, Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer and an entire battalion of the 7th Cavalry Regiment rode to their deaths and into American legend on

warontherocks.com

Little Bighorn stands alongside Yorktown, Gettysburg, and D-Day in the pantheon of iconic American battles. But it is a curious addition there, in that it was a small engagement, fought by just a few hundred men on a compact piece of terrain. More curiously still, it was a loss. Not just a loss — a disaster. And more than any other American battle, it has become identified with a single man. Most Americans know it not by its place, but by its protagonist: “Custer’s Last Stand.”

The Mystery of the Little Big Horn - Pulse News Mexico

Pulse News Mexico photo/Rich Grant By RICH GRANT On the afternoon of June 25, 1876, on high bluffs above the Little Big Horn River, Coronel George Armstrong Custer halted the 7th Cavalry and dictated an order: “Benteen. Come On. Big Village. Be Quick. Bring Packs. P.S. Bring Packs.” The order...

pulsenewsmexico.com

What Was the Role of the 1873 Springfield Trapdoor Rifle in the Battle of Little Bighorn?​

https://worldtreasures.org/blog/what-was-the-role-of-the-1873-springfield-trapdoor-rifle-in-the-battle-of-little-bighorn

Native Warriors on Both Sides of the Battle of Little Bighorn

As part of our document spotlight series, today we bring you primary sources related to the Battle of Little Bighorn. One hundred and forty-one years ago, from the evening of June 25, 1876, to dusk…

education.blogs.archives.gov

 

[Annihilator]

The Importance of the Battle of the Little Bighorn​

On June 25, 1876, Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer and an entire battalion of the 7th Cavalry Regiment rode to their deaths and into American legend on the ridges north of Montana’s Little Bighorn River. The battle was decided in a few hours. Its meaning remains contested 150 years later.

The Importance of the Battle of the Little Bighorn

On June 25, 1876, Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer and an entire battalion of the 7th Cavalry Regiment rode to their deaths and into American legend on

warontherocks.com

View attachment 113456

Little Bighorn stands alongside Yorktown, Gettysburg, and D-Day in the pantheon of iconic American battles. But it is a curious addition there, in that it was a small engagement, fought by just a few hundred men on a compact piece of terrain. More curiously still, it was a loss. Not just a loss — a disaster. And more than any other American battle, it has become identified with a single man. Most Americans know it not by its place, but by its protagonist: “Custer’s Last Stand.”

View attachment 113453

The Mystery of the Little Big Horn - Pulse News Mexico

Pulse News Mexico photo/Rich Grant By RICH GRANT On the afternoon of June 25, 1876, on high bluffs above the Little Big Horn River, Coronel George Armstrong Custer halted the 7th Cavalry and dictated an order: “Benteen. Come On. Big Village. Be Quick. Bring Packs. P.S. Bring Packs.” The order...

pulsenewsmexico.com

View attachment 113454

What Was the Role of the 1873 Springfield Trapdoor Rifle in the Battle of Little Bighorn?​

https://worldtreasures.org/blog/what-was-the-role-of-the-1873-springfield-trapdoor-rifle-in-the-battle-of-little-bighorn

View attachment 113457

Native Warriors on Both Sides of the Battle of Little Bighorn

As part of our document spotlight series, today we bring you primary sources related to the Battle of Little Bighorn. One hundred and forty-one years ago, from the evening of June 25, 1876, to dusk…

education.blogs.archives.gov

View attachment 113455

Very good link and article! Thanks for sharing!

 

[Belt Fed]

@Old_Me was there, he can tell us more.

 

[Talyn]

There's a good chance that our old friend BB attended this years event since he had a strong interest in the Little Bighorn.

 

[Jester560]

Custer's arrogance got him killed.

 

[Mr.W.]

Custer's arrogance got him killed

Custer's arrogance got everyone killed.

 

[Shibadog]

There was a reason Custer was last in his class at West Point. In those days the brightest became Engineers, the next brightest, Artillery offices, the next group infantry, and finally, the lowest graded became Cavalry officers. There are commanders who can divide their army in face of superior forces and win (R.E. Lee comes to mind) , Custer wasn’t one of them. He also chose to leave his battery of Gatling guns behind because they’d “slow him down”. Add in the Indians not only having superior numbers AND repeating rifles as evidenced by the .44 Henry and .56 Spencer case on the battlefield (while the troopers had single shot Springfields) and the outcome was a given. The only surprising thing is that the other element of the 7th weren’t wiped out as well.

 

[Talyn]

Not everyome was killed...

“Before amputating … the surgeon gave Mike a stiff horn of brandy to brace him up. Mike went through the ordeal without a whimper, and was given another drink. Smacking his lips in appreciation, he whispered to the surgeon, ‘Doctor, cut off me other leg!’”

Private William Slaper recounts the words of U.S. Seventh Cavalry trooper Michael P. Madden, a water carrier who volunteered to fetch water for soldiers on Reno Hill, running to the Little Bighorn River under heavy fire. On this day June 30th 1876, Madden and other wounded soldiers reached the Far West steamboat and were evacuated from Little Bighorn.
-----------------------------------

While everyone under Custer’s direct command was killed, roughly 350 to 400 troopers, scouts, and pack-train personnel under Major Marcus Reno and Captain Frederick Benteen survived. They successfully fortified themselves for over 24 hours on a high bluff (Reno Hill) before General Alfred Terry’s forces relieved them.

Reno-Benteen Battlefield (U.S. National Park Service)

www.nps.gov

Other notable survivors and individuals associated with the 7th Cavalry's defense at Reno Hill (the Reno-Benteen entrenchment) include:

• Major Marcus Reno: Commanded the initial valley charge and the retreat to the bluffs. He directed the combined battalions until relieved and faced severe scrutiny afterward.
• Captain Frederick Benteen: Arrived with three companies and established the horseshoe-shaped defensive perimeter that kept the remaining men alive.
• Trumpeter John Martin (Giovanni Martini): The last white soldier to see Custer and his men alive. He was sent back to Benteen with a crucial written message from Custer ("Be Quick. Bring Packs.").
• Assistant Surgeon Henry R. Porter: The only surviving doctor at the battle; he set up an improvised field hospital in a depression on Reno Hill to treat the wounded.
• Private Charles Windolph: A Company H trooper who survived the siege and was later awarded the Medal of Honor.
• Private Theodore Goldin: Earned the Medal of Honor by carrying water under heavy fire to the wounded and parched troopers.
• Sergeant Daniel Kanipe: Carried messages between commands, avoiding the fate of Custer's immediate battalion.
• John S. C. Gerard: An Indian interpreter and civilian scout who survived.

Plus...

The controversial story of Frank Finkel, a man who claimed to be a survivor of Custer's doomed battalion.

A Farmer Told His Bride an Old Wound Was From a Fight With Some Indians. He Got It at Little Bighorn.

Many men had claimed to have been survivors of Custer's command at the bloody Battle of Little Bighorn, but Frank Finkel was the real deal.

historynet.com

 

[Cedric]

There was a reason Custer was last in his class at West Point. In those days the brightest became Engineers, the next brightest, Artillery offices, the next group infantry, and finally, the lowest graded became Cavalry officers. There are commanders who can divide their army in face of superior forces and win (R.E. Lee comes to mind) , Custer wasn’t one of them. He also chose to leave his battery of Gatling guns behind because they’d “slow him down”. Add in the Indians not only having superior numbers AND repeating rifles as evidenced by the .44 Henry and .56 Spencer case on the battlefield (while the troopers had single shot Springfields) and the outcome was a given. The only surprising thing is that the other element of the 7th weren’t wiped out as well.

If there hadn't been mass resignations from the USMA of those leaving to go fight for the South his ranking might have been different. But it was what it was, and despite that he became the highest-ranking officer from his class. However, one thing I have never read about or heard is that cavalry officers were the lowest graded. Everyone at USMA received instruction in engineering and branch designations were based on need and abilities. IMO the observations of Frederick the Great were carried forward to modern times, that is, "I expect just as much from a Lieutenant of Cavalry as I do a Major of Infantry." JEB Stuart, Nathan Bedford Forest, Custer's old boss Phil Sheridan, General Pershing, Patton, Creighton Abrams (who didn't rank that high in his graduating class) are just some examples of "lowest graded cavalry officers."

 

[Shibadog]

If there hadn't been mass resignations from the USMA of those leaving to go fight for the South his ranking might have been different. But it was what it was, and despite that he became the highest-ranking officer from his class. However, one thing I have never read about or heard is that cavalry officers were the lowest graded. Everyone at USMA received instruction in engineering and branch designations were based on need and abilities. IMO the observations of Frederick the Great were carried forward to modern times, that is, "I expect just as much from a Lieutenant of Cavalry as I do a Major of Infantry." JEB Stuart, Nathan Bedford Forest, Custer's old boss Phil Sheridan, General Pershing, Patton, Creighton Abrams (who didn't rank that high in his graduating class) are just some examples of "lowest graded cavalry officers."

The old “classification by academic status” ended at one point though I’m not sure when I believe it was 2020. I’m by no means disparaging cavalry officers-some were very bright and very talented commanders. For many years all cadets have been some of the country’s best and brightest. Remember too that ranking in the class was predicated by academic achievement, and demerits earned. Someone who racked up demerits would rank down the list even if grades were good. Additionally formal training was not a requirement for an individual to become a success. Forest had zero military training (and not a lot of formal education) but became one of the greatest commanders of the war. Custer was heavily interested in politics in the 70’s (aided by wife and father in law). The desire for “glory” combined with an oversized ego (he loved being “General Custer” even though his actual rank was Lt. Colonel) and overconfidence was his undoing.

 

[HayesGreener]

I think somewhere along the way Custer started believing his own B.S.

 

[Cedric]

The old “classification by academic status” ended at one point though I’m not sure when I believe it was 2020. I’m by no means disparaging cavalry officers-some were very bright and very talented commanders. For many years all cadets have been some of the country’s best and brightest. Remember too that ranking in the class was predicated by academic achievement, and demerits earned. Someone who racked up demerits would rank down the list even if grades were good. Additionally formal training was not a requirement for an individual to become a success. Forest had zero military training (and not a lot of formal education) but became one of the greatest commanders of the war. Custer was heavily interested in politics in the 70’s (aided by wife and father in law). The desire for “glory” combined with an oversized ego (he loved being “General Custer” even though his actual rank was Lt. Colonel) and overconfidence was his undoing.

Not disagreeing with you, about Custer, but I have never heard of classification by academic status prior to 2020. In the modern age even in ROTC, one's branch request was viewed favorably depending upon academic standing, schools attended prior to commissioning and so forth. There was no order of merit as to what branch totem pole one would be assigned. As far as USMA I have never heard of branch assignments based solely on academic standing. Side Note: there were cadets who requested and got slots for Ranger School in order to get their first choice of branch. It so happened the Army took notice that we had a heck of lot of Airborne Ranger Finance Corps officers running around, or other support branches. Ultimately, attendance at Ranger School was predicated on an agreement to accept a commission in one of the combat arms.