thumb|upright=1.4|Map indicating the battlefields of the Lakota wars (1854–1890) and the Lakota Indian territory as described in the [[Treaty of Fort Laramie (1851). The Battle of the Little Bighorn is #14.]]

thumb|upright=1.4|Crow Indian Reservation, 1868 (area 619 and 635). Yellow area 517 is 1851 Crow treaty land ceded to the U.S. It was in the red area 635 that the battle occurred.

The 1876 Battle of the Little Bighorn, commonly referred to as Custer's Last Stand, and known to the Lakota and other Plains Indians as the Battle of the Greasy Grass, was an armed engagement between combined forces of the Lakota Sioux, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes and the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army. It took place on June 25–26, 1876, along the Little Bighorn River in the Crow Indian Reservation in southeastern Montana Territory. The battle, which resulted in the defeat of U.S. forces, was the most significant action of the Great Sioux War of 1876.

Most battles in the Great Sioux War, including the Battle of the Little Bighorn, were on lands those natives had taken from other tribes since 1851. The Lakotas were there without consent from the local Crow tribe, which had a treaty claim on the area. Already in 1873, Crow chief Blackfoot had called for U.S. military actions against the native intruders. The steady Lakota incursions into treaty areas belonging to the smaller tribes were a direct result of their displacement by the United States in and around Fort Laramie, as well as in reaction to white encroachment into the Black Hills, which the Lakota consider sacred. This pre-existing Indian conflict provided a useful wedge for colonization and ensured the United States a firm Indian alliance with the Arikaras and the Crows during the Lakota Wars.

The fight was an overwhelming victory for the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho, who were led by several major war leaders, including Crazy Horse and Chief Gall, and had been inspired by the visions of Sitting Bull (). The U.S. 7th Cavalry, a force of 700 men commanded by Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer (a brevetted major general during the American Civil War), suffered a major defeat. Five of the 7th Cavalry's twelve troops were wiped out and Custer was killed, as were two of his brothers, his nephew, and his brother-in-law. The total U.S. casualty count included 268 dead and 55 severely wounded (six died later from their wounds), including four Crow Indian scouts and at least two Arikara Indian scouts.

Public response to the Great Sioux War varied in the immediate aftermath of the battle. Custer's widow Libbie Custer soon began to work to burnish her husband's memory, and during the following decades, Custer and his troops came to be widely considered to be heroic figures in U.S. history. The battle and Custer's actions in particular have been studied extensively by historians. Custer's heroic public image began to tarnish after the death of his widow in 1933 and the publication in 1934 of Glory Hunter – The Life of General Custer by Frederic F. Van de Water, which was the first book to depict Custer in unheroic terms. These two events, combined with the cynicism of an economic depression and historical revisionism, led to a somewhat revised view of Custer and his defeat on the banks of the Little Bighorn River. St. Louis-based fur trader Manuel Lisa built Fort Raymond in 1807 for trade with the Crow. It was located near the confluence of the Yellowstone and Bighorn rivers, about north of the future battlefield. The area is first noted in the 1851 Treaty of Fort Laramie.

In the latter half of the 19th century, tensions increased between the Native inhabitants of the Great Plains of the US and encroaching settlers. This resulted in a series of conflicts known as the Sioux Wars, which took place from 1854 to 1890. While some of the indigenous people eventually agreed to relocate to ever-shrinking reservations, a number of them resisted, sometimes fiercely.

On May 7, 1868, the valley of the Little Bighorn became a tract in the eastern part of the new Crow Indian Reservation in the center of the old Crow country. There were numerous skirmishes between the Sioux and Crow tribes, so when the Sioux were in the valley in 1876 without the consent of the Crow tribe, the Crow supported the US Army to expel the Sioux (e.g., Crows enlisted as Army scouts and Crow warriors would fight in the nearby Battle of the Rosebud).

The geography of the battlefield is very complex, consisting of dissected uplands, rugged bluffs, the Little Bighorn River, and adjacent plains, all areas close to one another. Vegetation varies widely from one area to the next.

The battlefield is known as "Greasy Grass" to the Lakota Sioux, Dakota Sioux, Cheyenne, and most other Plains Indians; however, in contemporary accounts by participants, it was referred to as the "Valley of Chieftains".

1876 Sun Dance ceremony

Among the Plains Indians, the long-standing ceremonial tradition known as the Sun Dance was the most important religious event of the year. It is a time for prayer and personal sacrifice for the community, as well as for making personal vows and resolutions. Towards the end of spring in 1876, the Lakota and the Cheyenne held a Sun Dance that was also attended by some "agency Indians" who had slipped away from their reservations. During a Sun Dance around June 5, 1876, on Rosebud Creek in Montana, Sitting Bull, the spiritual leader of the Hunkpapa Lakota, reportedly had a vision of "soldiers falling into his camp like grasshoppers from the sky." At the same time US military officials were conducting a summer campaign to force the Lakota and the Cheyenne back to their reservations, using infantry and cavalry in a so-called "three-pronged approach".

1876 U.S. military campaign

thumb|upright=1.3|1876 US Army campaign against the Sioux

Col. John Gibbon's column of six companies (A, B, E, H, I, and K) of the 7th Infantry and four troops (F, G, H, and L) of the 2nd Cavalry marched east from Fort Ellis in western Montana on March 30 to patrol the Yellowstone River. Brig. Gen. George Crook's column of ten troops (A, B, C, D, E, F, G, I, L, and M) of the 3rd Cavalry, five troops (A, B, D, E, and I) of the 2nd Cavalry, two companies (D and F) of the 4th Infantry, and three companies (C, G, and H) of the 9th Infantry moved north from Fort Fetterman in the Wyoming Territory on May 29, marching toward the Powder River area. Brig. Gen. Alfred Terry's column, including twelve troops (A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, K, L, and M) of the 7th Cavalry under Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer's immediate command, Companies C and G of the 17th Infantry, and the Gatling gun detachment of the 20th Infantry departed westward from Fort Abraham Lincoln in the Dakota Territory on May 17. They were accompanied by teamsters and packers with 150 wagons and a large contingent of pack mules that reinforced Custer. Companies C, D, and I of the 6th Infantry moved along the Yellowstone River from Fort Buford on the Missouri River to set up a supply depot and joined Terry on May 29 at the mouth of the Powder River. They were later joined there by the steamboat Far West, which was loaded with 200 tons of supplies from Fort Abraham Lincoln.

7th Cavalry organization

The 7th Cavalry had been created just after the American Civil War (1861–1865). Many men were veterans of the war, including most of the leading officers. A significant portion of the regiment had previously served 4½ years at Fort Riley, in Kansas, during which time it fought one major engagement and numerous skirmishes, experiencing casualties of 36 killed and 27 wounded. Six other troopers had died of drowning and 51 in cholera epidemics. In November 1868, while stationed in Kansas, the 7th Cavalry under Custer had routed Black Kettle's Southern Cheyenne camp on the Washita River in the Battle of Washita River, an attack which was at the time labeled a "massacre of innocent Indians" by the Indian Bureau.

thumb|[[U.S. Army 7th Cavalry Regiment's Troop "I" guidon banner recovered at the camp of American Horse the Elder, c.1876]]

By the time of the Battle of the Little Bighorn, half of the 7th Cavalry's companies had just returned from 18 months of constabulary duty in the Deep South, having been recalled to Fort Abraham Lincoln, Dakota Territory to reassemble the regiment for the campaign. About 20% of the troopers had been enlisted in the prior seven months (139 of an enlisted roll of 718), were only marginally trained and had no combat or frontier experience. About 60% of these recruits were American, the rest were European immigrants (primarily Irish and German)—just as many of the veteran troopers had been before their enlistments. Archaeological evidence suggests that many of these troopers were malnourished and in poor physical condition, despite being the best-equipped and supplied regiment in the Army.

Of the 45 officers and 718 troopers then assigned to the 7th Cavalry (including a second lieutenant detached from the 20th Infantry and serving in Company L), 14 officers (including the regimental commander) and 152 troopers did not accompany the 7th during the campaign. The regimental commander, Colonel Samuel D. Sturgis, was on detached duty as the Superintendent of Mounted Recruiting Service and commander of the Cavalry Depot in St. Louis, Missouri, which left Lieutenant Colonel Custer in command of the regiment. The ratio of troops detached for other duty (approximately 22%) was not unusual for an expedition of this size, and part of the officer shortage was chronic and was due to the Army's rigid seniority system: Three of the regiment's twelve captains were permanently detached, and two had never served a day with the 7th since their appointment in July 1866. Three second lieutenant vacancies (in E, H, and L Companies) were also unfilled.

Battle of the Rosebud

The Army's coordination and planning began to go awry on June 17, 1876, when Crook's column retreated after the Battle of the Rosebud, to the southeast of the eventual Little Bighorn battlefield. Surprised and according to some accounts astonished by the unusually large numbers of Native Americans, Crook held the field at the end of the battle but felt compelled by his losses to pull back, regroup, and wait for reinforcements. Unaware of Crook's battle, Gibbon and Terry proceeded, joining forces in early June near the mouth of Rosebud Creek. They reviewed Terry's plan calling for Custer's regiment to proceed south along the Rosebud while Terry and Gibbon's united forces would move in a westerly direction toward the Bighorn and Little Bighorn Rivers. As this was the likely location of Native encampments, all army elements had been instructed to converge there around June 26 or 27 in an attempt to engulf the Native Americans. On June 22, Terry ordered the 7th Cavalry, composed of 31 officers and 566 enlisted men under Custer, to begin a reconnaissance in force and pursuit along the Rosebud, with the prerogative to "depart" from orders if Custer saw "sufficient reason". Custer had been offered the use of Gatling guns but declined, believing they would slow his rate of march. roughly in the distance. After a night's march, the tired officer who was sent with the scouts could see neither, and when Custer joined them, he was also unable to make the sighting. Custer's scouts also spotted the regimental cooking fires that could be seen from away, disclosing the regiment's position.

Custer contemplated a surprise attack against the encampment the following morning of June 26, but he then received a report informing him several "hostiles" had discovered the trail left by his troops. Assuming his presence had been exposed, Custer decided to attack the village without further delay. On the morning of June 25, Custer divided his 12 troops into three squadrons in anticipation of the forthcoming engagement. Three troops were placed under the command of Major Marcus Reno (A, G, and M) and three were placed under the command of Captain Frederick Benteen (H, D, and K). Five troops (C, E, F, I, and L) remained under Custer's immediate command. The 12th, B troop under Captain Thomas McDougall, had been assigned to escort the slower pack train carrying provisions and additional ammunition. Custer's overriding concern was that the Native American group would break up and scatter. The command began its approach to the village at noon and prepared to attack in full daylight.

With an impending sense of doom, the Crow scout Half Yellow Face prophetically warned Custer (speaking through the interpreter Mitch Bouyer), "You and I are going home today by a road we do not know."

Prelude

Military assumptions prior to the battle

Number of Indian warriors

thumb|left|A Cheyenne artist's depiction of the Battle of the Little Bighorn

As the Army moved into the field on its expedition, it was operating with incorrect assumptions as to the number of Indians it would encounter. These assumptions were based on inaccurate information provided by the Indian Agents that no more than 800 "hostiles" were in the area. The Indian Agents based this estimate on the number of Lakota that Sitting Bull and other leaders had reportedly led off the reservation in protest of U.S. government policies. It was in fact a correct estimate until several weeks before the battle when the "reservation Indians" joined Sitting Bull's ranks for the summer buffalo hunt. The agents did not consider the many thousands of these "reservation Indians" who had unofficially left the reservation to join their "uncooperative non-reservation cousins led by Sitting Bull". Thus, Custer unknowingly faced thousands of Indians, including the 800 non-reservation "hostiles". All Army plans were based on the incorrect numbers. Although Custer was criticized after the battle for not having accepted reinforcements and for dividing his forces, it appears that he had accepted the same official government estimates of hostiles in the area which Terry and Gibbon had also accepted. Historian James Donovan notes, however, that when Custer later asked interpreter Fred Gerard for his opinion on the size of the opposition, he estimated the force at 1,100 warriors.

Additionally, Custer was more concerned with preventing the escape of the Lakota and Cheyenne than with fighting them, as reported by John Martin (born in Italy as Giovanni Martino).

Martin was temporarily assigned to serve as one of Custer's trumpeter-orderlies. As Custer and nearly 210 troopers and scouts began their final approach to the massive Indian village located in the Little Bighorn River Valley, Martin was dispatched with an urgent note for reinforcements and ammunition. Newspaper accounts of the period referred to him as "Custer massacre survivor" and "the last white man to see Custer alive".

From his observation, Custer assumed the warriors had been sleeping in on the morning of the battle, to which virtually every native account attested later, giving Custer a false estimate of what he was up against. When he and his scouts first looked down on the village from the Crow's Nest across the Little Bighorn River, they could see only the herd of ponies. Later, looking from a hill away after parting with Reno's command, Custer could observe only women preparing for the day, and young boys taking thousands of horses out to graze south of the village. Custer's Crow scouts told him it was the largest native village they had ever seen. When the scouts began changing back into their native dress right before the battle, Custer released them from his command. While the village was enormous, Custer still thought there were far fewer warriors to defend the village.

Finally, Custer may have assumed when he encountered the Native Americans that his subordinate Benteen, who was with the pack train, would provide support. Rifle volleys were a standard way of telling supporting units to come to another unit's aid. In a subsequent official 1879 Army investigation requested by Major Reno, the Reno Board of Inquiry (RCOI), Benteen and Reno's men testified that they heard distinct rifle volleys as late as 4:30 pm during the battle.

Custer had initially wanted to take a day to scout the village before attacking; however, when men who went back looking for supplies accidentally dropped by the pack train, they discovered that their track had already been discovered by Indians. Reports from his scouts also revealed fresh pony tracks from ridges overlooking his formation. It became apparent that the warriors in the village were either aware or would soon be aware of his approach. Fearing that the village would break up into small bands that he would have to chase, Custer began to prepare for an immediate attack.

Role of Indian noncombatants in Custer's strategy

Custer's field strategy was designed to engage non-combatants at the encampments on the Little Bighorn to capture women, children, and the elderly or disabled to serve as hostages to convince the warriors to surrender and comply with federal orders to relocate. Custer's battalions were poised to "ride into the camp and secure non-combatant hostages", and "forc[e] the warriors to surrender". Author Evan S. Connell observed that if Custer could occupy the village before widespread resistance developed, the Sioux and Cheyenne warriors "would be obliged to surrender, because if they started to fight, they would be endangering their families."

In Custer's book My Life on the Plains, published two years before the Battle of the Little Bighorn, he asserted:

On Custer's decision to advance up the bluffs and descend on the village from the east, Lt. Edward Godfrey of Company K surmised:

Ownership of the Black Hills, which had been a focal point of the 1876 conflict, was determined by an ultimatum issued by the Manypenny Commission, according to which the Sioux were required to cede the land to the United States if they wanted the government to continue supplying rations to the reservations. Threatened with forced starvation, the Natives ceded Paha Sapa to the United States,

  • B Company: Capt. Thomas McDougall, 2nd Lt. Benjamin Hodgson (killed) as Adjutant to Major Reno
  • C Company: Capt. Thomas Custer (killed), 2nd Lt. Henry Moore Harrington (killed)
  • D Company: Capt. Thomas Weir, 2nd Lt. Winfield Edgerly
  • E Company: 1st Lt. Algernon Smith (killed), 2nd Lt. James G. Sturgis (killed)
  • F Company: Capt. George Yates (killed), 2nd Lt. William Reily (killed)
  • G Company: 1st Lt. Donald McIntosh (killed), 2nd Lt. George D. Wallace
  • H Company: Capt. Frederick Benteen, 1st Lt. Francis Gibson
  • I Company: Capt. Myles Keogh (killed), 1st Lt. James Porter (killed)
  • K Company: 1st Lt. Edward Settle Godfrey
  • L Company: 1st Lt. James Calhoun (killed), 2nd Lt. John J. Crittenden (killed)
  • M Company: Capt. Thomas French

<gallery mode="packed" heights="150px" style="text-align:left" class="center">

File:Soldier memorial little bighorn 1.jpg|Memorial Marker as seen from the east

File:Soldier memorial little bighorn 3.jpg|Memorial Marker plaque

File:Soldier memorial little bighorn 2.jpg|Memorial Marker as seen from the west

File:Where custer fell little big horn.jpg|Marker indicating where General Custer fell among soldiers – denoted with black-face, in center of photo

</gallery>

Native American leaders and warriors

thumb|[[Pretty Nose who, according to her grandson, participated in the battle]]

thumb|Marker stone on the battlefield

The Lakota had formed a "Strongheart Society" of caretakers and providers for the camp, consisting of men who had demonstrated compassion, generosity and bravery. As the purpose of the tribes' gathering was to take counsel, they did not constitute an army or warrior class.

  • Hunkpapa (Lakota): Sitting Bull, Four Horns, Crow King, Chief Gall, Black Moon, Rain-in-the-Face, Moving Robe Woman, Spotted Horn Bull, Iron Hawk, One Bull, Bull Head, Chasing Eagle, Little Big Man
  • Sihasapa (Blackfoot Lakota): Crawler, Kill Eagle
  • Minneconjou (Lakota): Chief Hump, Black Moon, Red Horse, Makes Room, Looks Up, Lame Deer, Dog-with-Horn, Dog Back Bone, White Bull, Feather Earring, Flying By
  • Sans Arc (Lakota): Spotted Eagle, Red Bear, Long Road, Cloud Man
  • Oglala (Lakota): Crazy Horse, He Dog, Kicking Bear, Flying Hawk, Chief Long Wolf, Black Elk, White Cow Bull, Running Eagle, Black Fox II, Big Road
  • Brule (Lakota): Two Eagles, Hollow Horn Bear, Brave Bird
  • Two Kettles (Lakota): Runs-the-Enemy
  • Lower Yanktonai (Dakota): Thunder Bear, Medicine Cloud, Iron Bear, Long Tree
  • Wahpekute (Dakota): Inkpaduta, Sounds-the-Ground-as-He-Walks, White Eagle, White Tracking Earth
  • Black Powder (Sioux Firearms trader): Black Powder, Johann Smidt
  • Northern Cheyenne: Two Moons, Wooden Leg, Old Bear, Lame White Man (killed), American Horse, Brave Wolf, Antelope Women, Thunder Bull Big Nose, Yellow Horse, Little Shield, Horse Road, Bob Tail Horse, Yellow Hair, Bear-Walks-on-a-Ridge, Black Hawk, Buffalo Calf Road Woman, Crooked Nose, Noisy Walking
  • Arapaho: Waterman, Sage, Left Hand, Yellow Eagle, Little Bird

Arapaho participation

Modern-day accounts include Arapaho warriors in the battle, but the five Arapaho men who were at the encampments were there only by accident. While on a hunting trip they came close to the village by the river and were captured and almost killed by the Lakota who believed the hunters were scouts for the U.S. Army. Two Moons, a Northern Cheyenne leader, interceded to save their lives.

Notable scouts/interpreters

The 7th Cavalry was accompanied by a number of scouts and interpreters:

  • Bloody Knife: Arikara/Lakota scout (killed)
  • Bob Tailed Bull: Arikara scout (killed)
  • Boy Chief: Arikara scout
  • Charley Reynolds: scout (killed)
  • Curley: Crow scout
  • Curling Head: Arikara scout
  • Fred Gerard: interpreter
  • Goes Ahead: Crow scout
  • Goose: Arikara scout (wounded in the hand by a 7th Cavalry trooper)
  • Hairy Moccasin: Crow scout
  • Half Yellow Face, leader of Crow Scouts, also known as Paints Half His Face Yellow
  • Isaiah Dorman: interpreter (killed)
  • Little Brave: Arikara scout (killed)
  • Little Sioux: Arikara scout
  • Mitch Bouyer: scout/interpreter (killed)
  • One Feather: Arikara scout
  • Owl: Arikara scout
  • Peter Jackson: half-Pikuni and half-Siksika brother of William, scout
  • Red Bear: Arikara scout
  • Red Star: Arikara scout
  • Running Wolf: Arikara scout
  • Sitting Bear: Arikara scout
  • Soldier: Arikara scout
  • Strikes The Lodge: Arikara scout
  • Strikes Two: Arikara scout
  • Two Moons: Arikara/Cheyenne scout
  • White Man Runs Him: Crow scout
  • White Swan: Crow Scout (severely wounded)
  • William Jackson: half-Pikuni and half-Siksika scout
  • Young Hawk: Arikara scout

<gallery mode="packed" heights="150px" style="text-align:left" class="center">

File:Edward Curtis with Crow Indians 1908.jpg|Three of Custer's scouts accompanying Edward Curtis on his investigative tour of the battlefield, c. 1907. Left to right: Goes Ahead, Hairy Moccasin, White Man Runs Him, Curtis, and Alexander B. Upshaw (Curtis's assistant and Crow interpreter)

File:Portrait of Curley, A Crow Indian Scout with the Seventh Cavalry at the Battle of the Little Bighorn - NARA - 533090 NewEdit.tif|Curley, Custer's Crow scout and interpreter through the battle.

File:CurlyPhilKonstantin.jpg|Grave of Curley

File:Crow Scouts 1913.jpg|Former U.S. Army Crow scouts visiting the Little Bighorn battlefield, c. 1913

</gallery>

Order of battle

{| class="wikitable"

|+ Native Americans

! width=25% | Native Americans

! width=25% | Tribe

! Leaders

|-

| rowspan=4 |

Native Americans

| Lakota Sioux

|

  • Hunkpapa: Sitting Bull, Four Horns, Crow King, Chief Gall, Black Moon, Rain-in-the-Face, Moving Robe Women, Spotted Horn Bull, Iron Hawk, One Bull, Bull Head, Chasing Eagle
  • Sihasapa: Crawler, Kill Eagle
  • Minneconjou: Chief Hump, Black Moon, Red Horse, Makes Room, Looks Up, Lame Deer, Dog-with-Horn, Dog Back Bone, White Bull, Feather Earring, Flying By
  • Sans Arc: Spotted Eagle, Red Bear, Long Road, Cloud Man
  • Oglala: Crazy Horse, He Dog, Kicking Bear, Flying Hawk, American Horse the Elder, Chief Long Wolf, Black Elk, White Cow Bull, Running Eagle, Black Fox II
  • Brule: Two Eagles, Hollow Horn Bear, Brave Bird
  • Two Kettles: Runs-the-Enemy

|-

| Dakota Sioux

|

  • Lower Yanktonai: Thunder Bear, Medicine Cloud, Iron Bear, Long Tree
  • Wahpekute: Inkpaduta, Sounds-the-Ground-as-He-Walks, White Eagle, White Tracking Earth

|-

| Northern Cheyenne

|

  • Northern Cheyenne: Two Moons, Wooden Leg, Old Bear, Lame White Man †, American Horse, Brave Wolf, Antelope Women, Thunder Bull Big Nose, Yellow Horse, Little Shield, Horse Road, Bob Tail Horse, Yellow Hair, Bear-Walks-on-a-Ridge, Black Hawk, Buffalo Calf Road Woman, Crooked Nose, Noisy Walking†

|-

| Arapaho

|

  • Arapahoes: Waterman, Sage, Left Hand, Yellow Eagle, Little Bird

|-

|}

{| class="wikitable"

|+ United States Army, Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer, 7th United States Cavalry Regiment, commanding

! width=25% | 7th United States Cavalry regiment

! width=25% | Battalion

! Companies and others

|-

| rowspan=5 |

Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer †, commanding

| Custer's Battalion

Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer †

|

  • Company C: Captain Thomas Custer †
  • Company E: First Lieutenant Algernon Smith †
  • Company F: Captain George Yates †
  • Company I: Captain Myles Keogh †
  • Company L: First Lieutenant James Calhoun †

|-

| Reno's Battalion

Major Marcus Reno

|

  • Company A: Captain Myles Moylan
  • Company G: First Lieutenant Donald McIntosh †
  • Company M: Captain Thomas French

|-

| Benteen's Battalion

Captain Frederick Benteen

|

  • Company D: Captain Thomas Weir
  • Company H: Captain Frederick Benteen
  • Company K: First Lieutenant Edward Settle Godfrey

|-

| Pack train

First Lieutenant Edward Gustave Mathey

|

  • Company B: Captain Thomas McDougall

|-

| Scouts and interpreters

Second Lieutenant Charles Varnum (wounded), Chief of Scouts

|

  • Bloody Knife †, Charley Reynolds †, Isaiah Dorman †, Mitch Bouyer †, Bob Tailed Bull†, Little Brave†, White Swan (severely wounded), Goose (wounded), Curley, Curling Head, Fred Gerard, Goes Ahead, Boy Chief, Hairy Moccasin, Half Yellow Face (Paints Half His Face Yellow), Little Sioux, One Feather, Owl, Peter Jackson, William Jackson, Red Bear, Red Star, Running Wolf, Sitting Bear, Soldier, Strikes The Lodge, Strikes Two, Two Moons, White Man Runs Him, Young Hawk

|-

|}

Casualties

Native American warriors

Estimates of Native American casualties have differed widely, from as few as 36 dead (from Native American listings of the dead by name) to as many as 300. Lakota chief Red Horse told Col. W. H. Wood in 1877 that the Native Americans suffered 136 dead and 160 wounded during the battle. In 1881, Red Horse told Dr. C. E. McChesney the same numbers but in a series of drawings done by Red Horse to illustrate the battle, he drew only sixty figures representing Lakota and Cheyenne casualties. Of those sixty figures, only thirty-some are portrayed with a conventional Plains Indian method of indicating death. In the last 140 years, historians have been able to identify multiple Indian names pertaining to the same individual, which has greatly reduced previously inflated numbers. Today a list of positively known casualties exists that lists 99 names, attributed and consolidated to 31 identified warriors.

Native American noncombatants

Six unnamed Native American women and four unnamed children are known to have been killed at the beginning of the battle during Reno's charge. Among them were two wives and three children of the Hunkpapa Leader (Gall).

7th Cavalry

The 7th Cavalry suffered 52 percent casualties: 16 officers and 242 troopers killed or died of wounds, 1 officer and 51 troopers wounded. Every soldier of the five companies with Custer was killed (except for some Crow scouts and several troopers that had left that column before the battle or as the battle was starting). Among the dead were Custer's brothers Boston and Thomas, his brother-in-law James Calhoun, and his nephew Henry Reed.

In 1878, the army awarded 24 Medals of Honor to participants in the fight on the bluffs for bravery, most for risking their lives to carry water from the river up the hill to the wounded. Few on the non-Indian side questioned the conduct of the enlisted men, but many questioned the tactics, strategy and conduct of the officers. Indian accounts spoke of soldiers' panic-driven flight and suicide by those unwilling to fall captive to the Indians. While such stories were gathered by Thomas Bailey Marquis in a book in the 1930s, it was not published until 1976 because of the unpopularity of such assertions. Although soldiers may have believed captives would be tortured, Indians usually killed men outright and took as captive for adoption only young women and children.

Civilians killed (armed and embedded within the Army)

  • Boston Custer: brother of George and Thomas, forager for the 7th
  • Mark Kellogg: reporter
  • Frank Mann: ex-cavalry soldier and civilian packer. Killed in Reno battle
  • Henry Armstrong Reed: Custer's nephew, herder for the 7th
  • Charles Reynolds, ex-soldier and civilian guide

Legacy

Reconstitution of the 7th Cavalry

Beginning in July, the 7th Cavalry was assigned new officers and recruiting efforts began to fill the depleted ranks. The regiment, reorganized into eight companies, remained in the field as part of the Terry Expedition, now based on the Yellowstone River at the mouth of the Bighorn and reinforced by Gibbon's column. On August 8, 1876, after Terry was further reinforced with the 5th Infantry, the expedition moved up Rosebud Creek in pursuit of the Lakota. It met with Crook's command, similarly reinforced, and the combined force, almost 4,000 strong, followed the Lakota trail northeast toward the Little Missouri River. Persistent rain and lack of supplies forced the column to dissolve and return to its varying starting points. The 7th Cavalry returned to Fort Abraham Lincoln to reconstitute. The regimental commander, Colonel Samuel D. Sturgis, returned from his detached duty in St. Louis, Missouri. Sturgis led the 7th Cavalry in the campaign against the Nez Perce in 1877.

Expansion of the U.S. Army

The U.S. Congress authorized appropriations to expand the Army by 2,500 men to meet the emergency after the defeat of the 7th Cavalry. For a session, the Democratic Party-controlled House of Representatives abandoned its campaign to reduce the size of the Army. Word of Custer's fate reached the 44th United States Congress as a conference committee was attempting to reconcile opposing appropriations bills approved by the House and the Republican Senate. They approved a measure to increase the size of cavalry companies to 100 enlisted men on July 24. The committee temporarily lifted the ceiling on the size of the Army by 2,500 on August 15.

"Sell or Starve"

As a result of the defeat in June 1876, Congress responded by attaching what the Sioux call the "sell or starve" rider () to the Indian Appropriations Act of 1876 (enacted August 15, 1876), which cut off all rations for the Sioux until they terminated hostilities and ceded the Black Hills to the United States. The Agreement of 1877 (, enacted February 28, 1877) officially took away Sioux land and permanently established Indian reservations.

Controversies

Reno's conduct

The Battle of the Little Bighorn was the subject of an 1879 U.S. Army Court of Inquiry in Chicago, held at Reno's request, during which his conduct was scrutinized. Some testimony by non-Army officers suggested that he was drunk and a coward. The court found Reno's conduct to be without fault. After the battle, Thomas Rosser, James O'Kelly, and others continued to question the conduct of Reno for his hastily ordered retreat. Defenders of Reno at the trial noted that while the retreat was disorganized, Reno did not withdraw from his position until it became apparent that he was outnumbered and outflanked by the Native Americans. Contemporary accounts also point to the fact that Reno's scout Bloody Knife was shot in the head, spraying him with blood, possibly increasing his panic and distress.

thumb|Death of Custer, scene by Pawnee Bill's Wild West Show performers c. 1905 of Sitting Bull's stabbing Custer, with dead Native Americans lying on ground

By contrast, each Gatling gun had to be hauled by four horses, and soldiers often had to drag the heavy guns by hand over obstacles. Each of the heavy, hand-cranked weapons could fire up to 350 rounds a minute, an impressive rate, but they were known to jam frequently. During the Black Hills Expedition two years earlier, a Gatling gun had turned over, rolled down a mountain, and shattered to pieces. Lieutenant William Low, commander of the artillery detachment, was said to have almost wept when he learned he had been excluded from the strike force. There is evidence that Custer suspected that he would be outnumbered by the Indians, although he did not know by how much. By dividing his forces, Custer could have caused the defeat of the entire column, had it not been for Benteen's and Reno's linking up to make a desperate yet successful stand on the bluff above the southern end of the camp.

The historian James Donovan believed that Custer's dividing his force into four smaller detachments (including the pack train) can be attributed to his inadequate reconnaissance; he also ignored the warnings of his Crow scouts and Charley Reynolds. By the time the battle began, Custer had already divided his forces into three battalions of differing sizes, of which he kept the largest. His men were widely scattered and unable to support each other. Wanting to prevent any escape by the combined tribes to the south, where they could disperse into different groups, Facing major budget cutbacks, the U.S. Army wanted to avoid bad press and found ways to exculpate Custer. They blamed the defeat on the Indians' alleged possession of numerous repeating rifles and the overwhelming numerical superiority of the warriors.

The widowed Elizabeth Bacon Custer, who never remarried, wrote three popular books in which she fiercely protected her husband's reputation. She lived until 1933, hindering much serious research until most of the evidence was long gone. In addition, Captain Frederick Whittaker's 1876 book idealizing Custer was hugely successful. Custer as a heroic officer fighting valiantly against savage forces was an image popularized in Wild West extravaganzas hosted by showman "Buffalo Bill" Cody, Pawnee Bill, and others. It was not until over half a century later that historians took another look at the battle and Custer's decisions that led to his death and loss of half his command and found much to criticize.

Gatling gun controversy

General Alfred Terry's Dakota column included a single battery of artillery, comprising two 3-inch ordnance rifles and two Gatling guns. (According to historian Evan S. Connell, the precise number of Gatlings has not been established: either two or three.)

thumb|The Gatling gun, invented in 1861 by [[Richard Jordan Gatling|Richard Gatling. Custer declined an offer of a battery of these weapons, explaining to Terry that they would "hamper our movements". Said Custer, "The Seventh can handle anything it meets."]]

Custer's decision to reject Terry's offer of the rapid-fire Gatlings has raised questions among historians as to why he refused them and what advantage their availability might have conferred on his forces at the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

One factor concerned Major Marcus Reno's recent 8-day reconnaissance-in-force of the Powder-Tongue-Rosebud Rivers, June 10 to 18. This deployment had demonstrated that artillery pieces mounted on gun carriages and hauled by horses no longer fit for cavalry mounts (so-called condemned horses) were cumbersome over mixed terrain and vulnerable to breakdowns. Custer, valuing the mobility of the 7th Cavalry and recognizing Terry's acknowledgment of the regiment as "the primary strike force" preferred to remain unencumbered by the Gatling guns. Custer insisted that the artillery was superfluous to his success, in that the 7th Cavalry alone was sufficient to cope with any force they should encounter, informing Terry: "The 7th can handle anything it meets". In addition to these practical concerns, a strained relationship with Major James Brisbin induced Custer's polite refusal to integrate Brisbin's Second Cavalry unit—and the Gatling guns—into his strike force, as it would disrupt any hierarchical arrangements that Custer presided over.

Historians have acknowledged the firepower inherent in the Gatling gun: they were capable of firing 350 .45–70 () caliber rounds per minute. Jamming caused by black powder residue could lower that rate, raising questions as to their reliability under combat conditions. Researchers have further questioned the effectiveness of the guns under the tactics that Custer was likely to face with the Lakota and Cheyenne warriors. The Gatlings, mounted high on carriages, required the battery crew to stand upright during its operation, making them easy targets for Lakota and Cheyenne sharpshooters.

Historian Robert M. Utley, in a section entitled "Would Gatling Guns Have Saved Custer?" presents two judgments from Custer's contemporaries: General Henry J. Hunt, expert in the tactical use of artillery in Civil War, stated that Gatlings "would probably have saved the command", whereas General Nelson A. Miles, participant in the Great Sioux War declared "[Gatlings] were useless for Indian fighting."

Weapons

Lakota and Cheyenne

thumb|Henry rifle and a Winchester Model 1866 rifle. These [[Repeating rifle|repeater rifles were capable of higher rates of fire than the Springfield trapdoor.]]

The Lakota and Cheyenne warriors that opposed Custer's forces possessed a wide array of weaponry, from war clubs and lances to the most advanced firearms of the day. The typical firearms carried by the Lakota and Cheyenne combatants were muzzleloaders, more often a cap-lock smoothbore, the so-called Indian trade musket or Leman guns distributed to Indians by the US government at treaty conventions. Less common were surplus rifled muskets of American Civil War vintage such as the Pattern 1853 Enfield and Springfield Model 1861. Metal cartridge weapons were prized by native combatants, such as the Henry and the Spencer lever-action rifles, as well as Sharps breechloaders. The Lakota and Cheyenne warriors also used bows and arrows. Effective up to , the arrows could readily maim or disable an opponent.

Sitting Bull's forces had no assured means to supply themselves with firearms and ammunition. Nonetheless, they could usually procure these through post-traders, licensed or unlicensed, and from gunrunners who operated in the Dakota Territory: "a horse or a mule for a repeater ... buffalo hides for ammunition." Custer's highly regarded guide, "Lonesome" Charley Reynolds, informed his superior in early 1876 that Sitting Bull's forces were amassing weapons, including numerous Winchester repeating rifles and abundant ammunition.

Of the guns owned by Lakota and Cheyenne fighters at the Little Bighorn, approximately 200 were .44 caliber Winchester Model 1866 repeating rifles, corresponding to about 1 of 10 of the encampment's 2,000 able-bodied fighters who participated in the battle.

7th Cavalry

thumb|Colt Single Action Army, serial No 5773 7th Cavalry issued

thumb|Springfield trapdoor rifle with breech open. Custer's troopers were equipped with these breech-loading, single-shot rifles.

The troops under Custer's command carried two regulation firearms authorized and issued by the U.S. Army in early 1876: the breech-loading, single-shot Springfield Model 1873 carbine, and the 1873 Colt single-action revolver. The regulation Model 1860 saber or "long knives" were not carried by troopers upon Custer's order.

Except for a number of officers and scouts who opted for personally owned and more expensive rifles and handguns, the 7th Cavalry was uniformly armed.

Ammunition allotments provided 100 carbine rounds per trooper, carried on a cartridge belt and in saddlebags on their mounts. An additional 50 carbine rounds per man were reserved on the pack train that accompanied the regiment to the battlefield. Each trooper had 24 rounds for his Colt handgun.

The opposing forces, though not equally matched in the number and type of arms, were comparably outfitted, and neither side held an overwhelming advantage in weaponry.

Lever-action repeaters vs. single-shot breechloaders

Two hundred or more Lakota and Cheyenne combatants are known to have been armed with Henry, Winchester, or similar lever-action repeating rifles at the battle. Virtually every trooper in the 7th Cavalry fought with the single-shot breech-loading Springfield carbine and the Colt revolver.

Historians have asked whether the repeating rifles conferred a distinct advantage on Sitting Bull's villagers that contributed to their victory over Custer's carbine-armed soldiers.

Historian Michael L. Lawson offers a scenario based on archaeological collections at the "Henryville" site, which yielded plentiful Henry rifle cartridge casings from approximately 20 individual guns. Lawson speculates that though less powerful than the Springfield carbines, the Henry repeaters provided a barrage of fire at a critical point, driving Lieutenant James Calhoun's L Company from Calhoun Hill and Finley Ridge, forcing it to flee in disarray back to Captain Myles Keogh's I Company and leading to the disintegration of that wing of Custer's Battalion.

Model 1873 / 1884 Springfield carbine and the U.S. Army

After exhaustive testing—including comparisons to domestic and foreign single-shot and repeating rifles—the Army Ordnance Board (whose members included officers Marcus Reno and Alfred Terry) authorized the Springfield as the official firearm for the United States Army.

The Springfield, manufactured in a .45–70 long rifle version for the infantry and a .45–55 light carbine version for the cavalry, was judged a solid firearm that met the long-term and geostrategic requirements of the United States fighting forces.

thumb|Tomahawk and sabre; or even odds, painting by [[Charles Schreyvogel (1861–1912). This kind of combat never occurred at the Battle of the Little Bighorn: none of the 7th Cavalry carried sabers on Custer's orders.]]

Historian Mark Gallear claims that U.S. government experts rejected the lever-action repeater designs, deeming them ineffective in a clash with fully equipped European armies, or in case of an outbreak of another civil conflict. Gallear's analysis dismisses the allegation that rapid depletion of ammunition in lever-action models influenced the decision in favor of the single-shot Springfield. The Indian Wars are portrayed by Gallear as a minor theatre of conflict whose contingencies were unlikely to govern the selection of standard weaponry for an emerging industrialized nation.

The Springfield carbine is praised for its "superior range and stopping power" by historian James Donovan, and author Charles M. Robinson reports that the rifle could be "loaded and fired much more rapidly than its muzzle-loading predecessors, and had twice the range of repeating rifles such as the Winchester, Henry and Spencer."

Gallear points out that lever-action rifles, after a burst of rapid discharge, still required a reloading interlude that lowered their overall rate of fire; Springfield breechloaders "in the long run, had a higher rate of fire, which was sustainable throughout a battle."

The breechloader design patent for the Springfield's Erskine S. Allin trapdoor system was owned by the US government and the firearm could be easily adapted for production with existing machinery at the Springfield Armory in Massachusetts. At time when funding for the post-war Army had been slashed, the prospect for economical production influenced the Ordnance Board member selection of the Springfield option.

Malfunction of the Springfield carbine extractor mechanism

Whether the reported malfunction of the Model 1873 Springfield carbine issued to the 7th Cavalry contributed to their defeat has been debated for years.

That the weapon experienced jamming of the extractor is not contested, but its contribution to Custer's defeat is considered negligible. This conclusion is supported by evidence from archaeological studies performed at the battlefield, where the recovery of Springfield cartridge casing, bearing tell-tale scratch marks indicating manual extraction, were rare. The flaw in the ejector mechanism was known to the Army Ordnance Board at the time of the selection of the Model 1873 rifle and carbine, and was not considered a significant shortcoming in the overall worthiness of the shoulder arm. With the ejector failure in US Army tests as low as 1:300, the Springfield carbine was vastly more reliable than the muzzle-loading Springfields used in the Civil War.

Gallear addresses the post-battle testimony concerning the copper .45–55 cartridges supplied to the troops in which an officer is said to have cleared the chambers of spent cartridges for a number of Springfield carbines. This testimony of widespread fusing of the casings offered to the Chief of Ordnance at the Reno Court of Inquiry in 1879 conflicts with the archaeological evidence collected at the battlefield. Field data showed that possible extractor failures occurred at a rate of approximately 1:30 firings at the Custer Battlefield and at a rate of 1:37 at the Reno-Benteen Battlefield.

Historian Thom Hatch observes that the Model 1873 Springfield, despite the known ejector flaw, remained the standard issue shoulder arm for US troops until the early 1890s.

Survivor claims

thumb|upright=.7|left|[[Giovanni Martino wearing the US Army uniform, c. 1904]]

Soldiers under Custer's direct command were annihilated on the first day of the battle, except for three Crow scouts and several troopers (including John Martin (Giovanni Martino) and Sergeant Daniel A. Kanipe, both of whom were used by Custer as messengers) who had left that column before the battle; one Crow scout, Curly, was the only survivor to leave after the battle had begun. Rumors of other survivors persisted for years.

Over 120 men and women came forward over the next 70 years claiming they were "the lone survivor" of Custer's Last Stand. The phenomenon became so widespread that one historian remarked, "Had Custer had all of those who claimed to be 'the lone survivor' of his two battalions he would have had at least a brigade behind him when he crossed the Wolf Mountains and rode to the attack."

The historian Earl Alonzo Brininstool suggested he had collected at least 70 "lone survivor" stories. Michael Nunnally, an amateur Custer historian, wrote a booklet describing 30 such accounts. W. A. Graham claimed that even Libby Custer received dozens of letters from men, in shocking detail, about their sole survivor experience. At least 125 alleged "single survivor" tales have been confirmed in the historical record as of July 2012.

Frank Finkel, from Dayton, Washington, had such a convincing story that historian Charles Kuhlman believed the alleged survivor, going so far as to write a lengthy defense of Finkel's participation in the battle. Douglas Ellison—mayor of Medora, North Dakota, and an amateur historian—also wrote a book in support of the veracity of Finkel's claim, but most scholars reject it.

Some of these survivors held a form of celebrity status in the United States, among them Raymond Hatfield "Arizona Bill" Gardner and Frank Tarbeaux. A few even published autobiographies that detailed their deeds at the Little Bighorn.

A modern historian, Albert Winkler, has asserted that there is some evidence to support the case of Private Gustave Korn being a genuine survivor of the battle: "While nearly all of the accounts of men who claimed to be survivors from Custer's column at the Battle of the Little Bighorn are fictitious, Gustave Korn's story is supported by contemporary records." Several contemporary accounts note that Korn's horse bolted in the early stages of the battle, whilst he was serving with Custer's 'I' company, and that he ended up joining Reno's companies making their stand on Reno Hill.

Almost as soon as men came forward implying or directly pronouncing their unique role in the battle, there were others who were equally opposed to any such claims. Theodore W. Goldin, a battle participant who later became a controversial historian on the event, wrote (in regards to Charles Hayward's claim to have been with Custer and taken prisoner):

The only documented and verified survivor of Custer's command (having been actually involved in Custer's part of the battle) was Captain Keogh's horse, Comanche. The wounded horse was discovered on the battlefield by General Terry's troops. Although other cavalry mounts survived, they had been taken by the Indians. Comanche eventually was returned to the fort and became the regimental mascot. Several other badly wounded horses were found and killed at the scene. Writer Evan S. Connell noted in Son of the Morning Star:

thumb|[[Comanche (horse)|Comanche in 1887]]

Battlefield preservation

The site of the battle was first preserved as a United States national cemetery in 1879 to protect the graves of the 7th Cavalry troopers. In 1946, it was re-designated as the Custer Battlefield National Monument, reflecting its association with Custer. In 1967, Major Marcus Reno was re-interred in the cemetery with honors, including an eleven-gun salute. Beginning in the early 1970s, there was concern within the National Park Service over the name Custer Battlefield National Monument failing to adequately reflect the larger history of the battle between two cultures. Hearings on the name change were held in Billings on June 10, 1991, and during the following months Congress renamed the site the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument.

United States memorialization of the battlefield began in 1879 with a temporary monument to the U.S. dead. In 1881, the current marble obelisk was erected in their honor. In 1890, marble blocks were added to mark the places where the U.S. cavalry soldiers fell.

Nearly 100 years later, ideas about the meaning of the battle became more inclusive. The United States government acknowledged that Native American sacrifices also deserved recognition at the site. The 1991 bill changing the name of the national monument also authorized an Indian Memorial to be built near Last Stand Hill in honor of Lakota and Cheyenne warriors. The commissioned work by native artist Colleen Cutschall is shown in the photograph at right. On Memorial Day 1999, in consultation with tribal representatives, the U.S. added two red granite markers to the battlefield to note where Native American warriors fell. As of December 2006, a total of ten warrior markers have been added (three at the Reno–Benteen Defense Site and seven on the Little Bighorn Battlefield).

The Indian Memorial, themed "Peace Through Unity", is an open circular structure that stands from the 7th Cavalry obelisk. Its walls have the names of some Indians who died at the site, as well as native accounts of the battle. The open circle of the structure is symbolic, as for many tribes, the circle is sacred. The "spirit gate" window facing the Cavalry monument is symbolic as well, welcoming the dead cavalrymen into the memorial.

<gallery>

File:Littlebighorn HR Locke.jpg|Photo taken in 1894 by H.R. Locke on Battle Ridge looking toward Last Stand Hill (top center). To the right of Custer Hill is Wooden Leg Hill, named for a surviving warrior. He described the death of a Sioux sharpshooter killed after being seen too often by the enemy.

File:little bighorn memorial overview with clouds.jpg|The battlefield in 2005

File:Casualty Marker Battle of the Little Bighorn.jpg|US Casualty Marker Battle of the Little Bighorn

file:little-bighorn-memorial-sculpture-2.jpg|Indian Memorial by Colleen Cutschall

</gallery>

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  • John Mulvany's 1881 painting Custer's Last Rally was the first of the large images of this battle. It was and toured the country for over 17 years.
  • In 1896, Anheuser-Busch commissioned from Otto Becker a lithographed modified version of Cassilly Adams' painting Custer's Last Fight, which was distributed as a print to saloons all over America.
  • Edgar Samuel Paxson completed his painting Custer's Last Stand in 1899. In 1963 Harold McCracken, the noted historian and Western art authority, deemed Paxson's painting "the best pictoral representation of the battle" and "from a purely artistic standpoint...one of the best if not the finest pictures which have been created to immortalize that dramatic event."
  • In 1926, General Custer at the Little Big Horn opened in movie theaters in the U.S., featuring Roy Stewart with John Beck as Custer.
  • The 1941 film They Died with Their Boots On, starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Arthur Kennedy, Anthony Quinn and Sydney Greenstreet, is a fictionalized, romanticized drama of Custer's life beginning with his time at West Point and concluding with the battle.
  • The episode The 7th Is Made Up of Phantoms from the fifth season of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone depicts modern American soldiers finding themselves near the battlefield and ultimately involved in the real battle.
  • The 1964 novel, Little Big Man by American author Thomas Berger and 1970 film of the same name include an account of the battle and portray a manic and somewhat psychotic Custer (Richard Mulligan) realizing to his horror that he and his command are "being wiped out."
  • The 1972 John Wayne movie The Cowboys includes a scene where his cattle drive passes through the battlefield some years later, and the drovers find skeletal remains. Wayne's character, Wil Andersen, in a response to a question from one of the young drovers regarding the deceased having not been buried replies, "Well, it's not how you're buried, it's how they remember you".
  • 1991 TV miniseries Son of the Morning Star was based on the life of Lt. Col. George A. Custer and the 7th Cavalry. It concludes with the Battle of Little Bighorn, where 5 companies of the 7th Cavalry are wiped out, along with George Custer, Thomas Custer, Boston Custer and the brothers' nephew Henry A. "Autie" Reed.
  • The 1994 video game Live A Live features this story in its Western chapter. The chapter villain O. Dio was actually the horse that was the sole survivor of the battle; possession by vengeful spirits of the slain Union soldiers turned the horse into an evil man, as told by the town sheriff after defeating O. Dio.
  • A fictionalized version of the battle is depicted in the 2006 video game Age of Empires III: The Warchiefs.
  • In 2007, the BBC presented a one-hour drama-documentary titled Custer's Last Stand.
  • The May 2011 episode of the BBC Radio 4 program In Our Time featured Melvyn Bragg (and guests) discussing the context, conditions, and consequences of the battle.
  • In 2017, historian Daniele Bolelli covered the battle and the events leading to it in a three-part series on the "History on Fire" podcast.
  • In October 2024, the book The Ballad of Thomas Patrick Downing was released. This is the first biography of one of Custer's men in over a hundred years. It chronicles the life of one of Custer's previously anonymous cavalrymen, Thomas Patrick Downing from I Company, who died in the battle.

See also

  • Battle of the Little Bighorn reenactment
  • Battle of Powder River
  • Dade battle
  • Fetterman Fight
  • List of battles won by Indigenous peoples of the Americas
  • St. Clair's Defeat
  • Battle of Isandlwana
  • Battle of Adwa

Footnotes

Citations

References

  • Account of Custer's fight on Little Bighorn, MSS SC 860 at L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University
  • Custer Battlefield Museum, Garryowen, Montana
  • Map of Battle of Little Bighorn, Part III.
  • Map of Battle of Little Bighorn, Part IV. Indians.
  • Map of Battle of Little Bighorn, Part V.
  • Map of Battle of Little Bighorn, Part VI.
  • Map of Battle of Little Bighorn, Part VII. Custer's Last Stand.
  • Map of Indian battles and skirmishes after the Battle of Little Bighorn. 1876–1881.
  • Battle field related
  • Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument
  • Friends of the Little Bighorn Battlefield
  • Portals
  • The Little Big Horn Associates – includes a bibliography and articles, as well as many general and commercial links
  • custerwest.org – site for traditional scholarship with sources and videos
  • First-person accounts
  • The Battle of Little Bighorn: An Eyewitness Account by the Lakota Chief Red Horse
  • An eyewitness account by Tantanka Iyotake (Lakota Chief Sitting Bull), New York Times archive PDF.
  • Complete transcript of the Reno Court of Inquiry
  • 100 Voices: Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Crow, Arikara and American eyewitness accounts of the Battle of the Little Bighorn
  • Lists of participants
  • Friends Of The Little Bighorn Battlefield – Battle information, including names of 7th Cavalry soldiers and warriors who fought in the battle.
  • Muster Rolls of 7th U.S. Cavalry, June 25, 1876
  • Custer Battlefield Historical and Museum Association
  • Kenneth M. Hammer Collection on Custer and the Battle of the Little Bighorn (Harold G. Andersen Library, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater)
  • Charles Kuhlman collection on the Battle of the Little Big Horn, MSS 1401 in the L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University
  • "Custer's Last Stand" – An American Experience Documentary
  • Verdict at the Little Bighorn – The American Surveyor (October 2009)

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  • Comanche: A horse billed as the only survivor of the battle of the Little Big Horn -->
  • Cyclorama of Custer's Last Stand