Defeat at the Battle of Little Bighorn
In this essay I shall be writing and explaining about the defeat at
the battle of Little Bighorn. I will be writing about why the battle
began in the first place. How it could have been prevented. And who
was to blame for the defeat. I will also be examining why Custer
decided to attempt to conquer the Sioux nation by himself, his
attitude and ambitions and his personality. His background, his
confidence, the battle itself and the reasons why he failed are also
factors I will be exploring. As well I will be writing about why
‘mistakes were made’.
General George Armstrong Custer was born and bred in the small town of
Munroe in Michigan. His father was a blacksmith, but he himself wanted
to become a lawyer. However, because he came from a modesty family
that could support his law school tuition he decided to attend West
Point Military Academy as the other poor boys did. Custer did not
desire for a military career, but he thought that after this he would
have the education to become a lawyer. At West Point, Custer graduated
thirty-fourth out of a class of thirty four. This definitely showed
that Custer’s heart was not in Military-at the time. But this did not
justify what his career would be. He was poor academically but
excelled in swordsmanship and horsemanship. Little did he know he
would become and officer in 1861, the beginning of the American Civil
War.
During the civil war, Custer had a flair that caught the eyes of
powerful men. He then married in 1864 to Elizabeth Bacon. Some said
this marriage was a great love story. He was adored deeply by her and
she devoted nearly 60 years o...
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...‘green troops’. The
men were inexperienced with weaponry and they had problems with their
guns.
When Custer saw his men were in danger he did nothing about it and
this showed his greed and narcissism. The army had single-shot rifles
which was government policy. The army also only had 6 shots a year to
practise with whereas the Indians had regular practise through
hunting. Also their horsemanship was excellent. There were broken
lines of communication between the three officers. There was also no
support given to Custer from the other two officers. Captain Benteen
and Reno refused to support Custer as they had been mistreated before
by him. So basically, because of Custer’s attitude and selfishness it
landed him in great troubles. Custer was blinded by fame and glory and
would just about anything to achieve more.
Epple J. C. (1970). Custer’s battle of the Washita and A history of the Plains Indian Tribes
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