It was June 25, and the 7th Calvary was out looking for the escapes.  The Cheyenne and the Sioux.  The Indians were outraged and had left there reservation.  The Indians had gathered in Montana with the great Sitting Bull to fight for their land.  If the 7th Calvary wanted to defeat the large Indian army with their few men they would have to attack in three columns.  One column contained Lieutenant Colonel George Custer and men of the 7th Calvary.

 Lt. George Custer

7th Calvary Symbol

     When Custer spotted the Sioux village about fifteen miles away along the Rosebud River.  He also spotted a group of about forty warriors on a hunting party.  Then Custer made a big mistake.  He decided to go and attack the Indian tribe.  Disobeying the orders to wait for the main party.  That was on the way.
     Custer made a mistake that would end up killing him in the end.  The number of warriors in the large tribe outnumbered his men by three.  Custer put the men under order of Fredrick Benteen.  Benteen had a main mission that was too not let the Indians escape through the upper valley of the Little Big Horn River.  Major Marcos Reno was to proceed the Indian group , cross a river, and charge the Indian village with the rest of the men under his command.  The 7th Calvary had another disadvantage because they did not know the terrain like the Indians.  

     Reno had 175 men when he attacked the northern end of the village.  But Reno still got trapped for a ten min. period until he fled to the forest.  The retreat didn't work though they were chased uphill by a mix of Sioux and Cheyenne.

  Maj. Marcos Reno
     When Reno's forces were defeated the Indians went to go after Custers  other forces at the village side.  Custer had a scares 210 men to protect himself let alone destroy the hole tribe.  To defeat Custers forces the Indians used a sweep attack to overpower Custers forces.  

     Custer made a last stand.  He told all his men to shoot their horses and us them as a block from the bullets and arrows fling through the air of the seeming never ending army of warriors. The blocks didn't even work against the bullets from the enemy.  That was the end of Custer and his men. 

In the future the Battle of Little Big Horn was called the greatest military disaster ever.  The Indians took valuable things or clothes.  Scalping some and not others.  They did not scalp Custer though.  He had been wearing a buckskin coat and the Indians thought he was innocent.   

Michael Pugh

8th Grade

2001 American History

Rossville Jr. High

Bibliography