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Battle analysis of little bighorn
Battle analysis of little bighorn
Battle analysis of little bighorn
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The Battle of Little Bighorn
Custer’s Last Stand, also known as the Battle of Little Bighorn, was a much disputed battle between the American army and 2000 Native Americans of joint tribes. While the violence can be blamed on both parties, it must be said that it was caused by the Americans, and that the Natives were, to an extent, justified in their actions. The battle was between a mass conglomerate of western Natives and the 7th Cavalry, led by Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer.
As white settlers continued to expand American territory, they encountered Native Americans. One such group was the Lakota Sioux. Because their land was invaded, the Sioux responded with raids of white settlements, some of which resulted in the deaths of
The 7th Cavalry Regiment's destruction at the Battle of the Little Bighorn in June 1876 is the subject of over a century of debate. LTC George A. Custer failed to exercise four key responsibilities that were expected of him as the regiment’s commander. He failed to understand the problem and environment, visualize a feasible solution, clearly describe it to his subordinates, and effectively direct his forces. These four aspects of mission command are integral to the operations process and help Soldiers understand and execute their commander's intent. Custer's failure to properly fulfill his role in the operations process resulted in his death and a strategic defeat for the nation.
The Battle of the Little Bighorn is a tragic military battle where a commander’s overconfidence, refusal to listen to advisors, and lack of foresight, led to the sacrifice of over 265 Soldiers. Many leaders within the regiment and Soldiers underneath LTC Custer were not convinced of his leadership and often time doubted his decision-making abilities. Yet despite a blatant outburst that saw him temporarily removed as regimental commander by President Grant, LTC Custer moved forward to command the regiment and ultimately met his demise at the Battle of Little Big Horn. LTC Custer routinely showed a careless disregard for the operations process and his recklessness led to his downfall.
Panzeri, Peter. 1995. Little Big Horn 1876: Custer's Last Stand. 8th Ed. New York, NY: Osprey Publishing.
The land of the Native Indians had been encroached upon by American settlers. By the
The journey of exploration to the western territories brought the white man many great things, but they did face some opposition. The US government made plans to explore the Black Hills, after hearing of the gold it contained. This was not an easy task. The Sioux, with strong force, were not giving up their sacred land easily. The only way to gain the territory of the Black Hills was to wage war against the Sioux. The Battle of the Little Big Horn was one battle that the US will never forget. General George Custer led an army of men to take out the Sioux, one of the battalions was completely wiped out including Custer. The Sioux were very strong, but US had a lot more power and technology. Why did we get massacred? This question has been a mystery to many people throughout the years. Sergeant Windolph, of Benteen’s cavalry, and John F. Finerty, from General Crooks cavalry, bring us some personal accounts and memories of this tragedy.
George Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and also in the Indian Wars. Raised in the cities Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted in West Point in 1858, where he was graduated last in his class. However, with outbreak of the Civil War, all officers were needed, and Custer was called in to serve for the Union. General Custer developed a strong reputation throughout the Civil War. He fought in the first major engagement, and also in the First Battle of Bull Run. His association with many important officers helped him with his career, as his success as a highly effective cavalry commander. Custer was also promoted to the rank of major general and major general of Volunteers. At the conclusion of the Appomattox, in which his troops played a big role, Custer was at General Robert E. Lee's surrender.
The Sioux band tougher led by Little Big Foot. They were heading to Pine RidgeReservation in South Dakota, when the army stopped them and held them at gun pointovernight. Big Foot’s group contained about 300 people two-thirds of them were women and children. While the soldiers numbered around 500 and were armed with automatic weapons. The next morning when the army began to disarm the Indians a shot rang out then the gun fire began leaving about 200 Indians dead in the snow. Thirty soldiers were also killed in the massacre. The soldiers that lost there lives were most likely killed by their own men in friendly fire. Wounded Knee is said to have been the last battle of the war but it was not so much a battle as it was a massacre. It was in fact the last exchange of fire between the army and the Sioux.
The battle of Little Bighorn, also known as Custer’s last stand, was also a prime example of the cruelty towards the Native Americans. The battle of Little Bighorn took place in 1876 in Montana. The government was falling back on a treaty they signed with the Sioux and Cheyenne Tribes. They were already placed onto a reservation, but when gold was discovered on the reservation, Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer was sent to trap them and then wait for backup to force the Native American’s from the land. Custer disobeyed orders and attacked instead.
With buffalo numbers decreasing fast, Native American tribes faced starvation and desperation. There were many different actions the Americans did to destroy the land of the Native Americans. Western expansion caused a shift in the lives of Native Americans because many tribes, including women and kids, were being murdered by the new settlers. S.G. Colley, a U.S. Indian Agent, writes in a Report for the Committee on the Conduct of War, “That notwithstanding his knowledge of the facts as above set forth, he is informed that Colonel Chivington did, on the morning of the 29th of November last, surprise and attack said camp of friendly Indians and massacre a large number of them, (mostly women and children,) and did allow the troops of his command to mangle and mutilate them in the most horrible manner” (Colley, 1865). This quote shows the Americans were exterminating innocent American Indians for no justifiable reason.
What really happened at the Battle of the Little Big Horn has spawned countless books and opinions as to why General Custer attacked the Sioux and Cheyenne on June 22, 1876. The books and online articles that recount the facts, timeline, and who survived were written based on facts but are not all unbiased in perspective. Most of these writers want to prove that Custer was either a hero or a villain. From the perspective of the general’s men, they saw him as a fearless leader, one of the few who would ride out in front of the battle, while those on the political end interpreted the general’s actions as selfish and reckless. Custer’s last stand gave him immortal status at the price of not only his own life; but also those of his entire brigade involved due to a tactical blunder. Unfortunately, the magnitude of this “mistake” cannot be over-looked, but to negate what he accomplished in the Civil War and Indian Wars is the argument that continues to rage on. Was General Custer really an American hero or an over aggressive general who was looking for fame and glory?
Beginning in the 1860s and lasting until the late 1780s, government policy towards Native Americans was aggressive and expressed zero tolerance for their presence in the West. In the last 1850s, tribal leaders and Americans were briefly able to compromise on living situations and land arrangements. Noncompliance by Americans, however, resumed conflict. The beginning of what would be called the "Indian Wars" started in Minnesota in 1862. Sioux, angered by the loss of much of their land, killed 5 white Americans. What resulted was over 1,000 deaths, of white and Native Americans. From that point on, American policy was to force Indians off of their land. American troops would force Indian tribe leaders to accept treaties taking their land from them. Protests or resistance by the Indians would result in fighting. On occasion, military troops would even lash out against peaceful Indians. Their aggression became out of control.
The Wounded Knee Massacre politically altered the relationship between American Indians and the US government with long lasting repercussions. The massacre took place roughly one hundred years before the AIM was formed , on December 29, 1890, as the last battle of the American Indian war, a massacre took place at the Lakota Pine Ridge reservation near South Dakota. The US 7th Calvary intruded upon the reservation as a means to disarm the Lakota of their rifles. It is speculated that a deaf tribal man refused to give his rifle to American authorities, in response the Calvary point blank shot the man leading to chaos as the few Lakota warriors shot out as a defense mechanism before they were quickly outnumbered. (Nelson) The definition of a massacre is a killing of many unresisting human beings under circumstances of aristocracy. The incident at Wounded Knee is...
Native Americans had inherited the land now called America and eventually their lives were destroyed due to European Colonization. When the Europeans arrived and settled, they changed the Native American way of life for the worst. These changes were caused by a number of factors including disease, loss of land, attempts to export religion, and laws, which violated Native American culture.
The Europeans invaded America with every intention of occupying the land, the bountiful natural resources as well as the complete domination of the native people. The Europeans desire for the land created an explosive situation for the native peoples as they witnessed their land and right to freedom being stripped from them. They often found themselves having to choose sides of which to pledge their allegiance to. The Europeans depended upon Indian allies to secure the land and their dominance as well as trade relations with the Indians. The Indians were in competition with one another for European trade causing conflict among the different tribes altering the relationships where friends became enemies and vice versa (Calloway, 2012, p. 163). These relationships often became embittered and broke into bloody brawls where it involved, "Indian warriors fighting on both sides, alongside the European forces as well as against European forces invad...
In addition to the road to battle, it is important to know that historical accounts of what led to the battle and what transpired are in dispute. These are not disputes over minor items, such as the exact order of battle or a clear sequence of events in what was a confusing night and dawn battle. Accounts of what transpired are often fundamentally different, and it is clear that various actors suppressed or championed differing accounts for political or personal reasons. By some accounts, the battle began by accident as an Indian patrol sent to keep watch on the Americans drew fire from nervous American sentries, leading the Indians only a mile away at Prophetstown to attack. By other accounts, the Indians planned a deliberate attack in order to strike the American force before the Americans could strike the Indians. Harrison touted the battle as a decisive victory that broke up the Indian confederacy and many historians agreed. However, modern accounts argue that the battle actuall...