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Battle of Little Bighorn Facts

Battle of Little Bighorn Facts
The Battle of Little Bighorn was a battle between the 7th Calvary Regiment of the U.S. Army and several Native American tribes including the Lakota, Cheyenne, Dakota, and Arapaho, between June 25th and June 26th, 1876. This battle also became known as Custer's Last Stand because his Calvary did not retreat and stood their ground during the battle, and were defeated and killed in the end by the Native American tribes. The battle took place because the U.S. government went back on the treaty to guarantee the Black Hills in South Dakota to the Lakota. Gold had been discovered in the Black Hills and the U.S. government decided it wanted the land back. When Custer arrived to remove the Natives by force, he didn't expect the thousands of warriors that greeted his Calvary. This battle was a victory for the Native tribes.
Interesting Battle of Little Bighorn Facts:
In 1868 the U.S government signed a treaty with the Sioux Natives in Dakota Territory that guaranteed them the Black Hills. This treaty was called the Treaty of Fort Laramie.
Once gold was discovered in the Black Hills the U.S. government decided to go against the treaty and wanted to force the Natives out of the area.
The Battle of Little Bighorn is also referred to as Custer's Last Stand, and the Lakota refer to the battle as the Battle of Greasy Grass.
George Armstrong Custer led the 7th Calvary of 700 men into battle at Little Bighorn, divided into 12 companies. 5 of the 12 companies, led by Custer, were wiped out. This resulted in 268 initial deaths and 6 more as injuries claimed the lives of wounded soldiers.
Custer was killed in the battle, along with his brother-in-law, his nephew, and two of his own brothers.
The Native American tribe leaders present at the Battle of Little Bighorn were Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, and Chief Gall.
The Battle of Little Bighorn was part of a bigger conflict referred to as the Sioux Wars. The Sioux Wars occurred between 1854 and 1890 as the tensions between the Great Plain's Natives and the settlers grew. The tensions were a result of the Native Americans being forced from their land, and they often fought back.
It was during the 'Sun Dance', a Native tradition and important religious event that the Native tribes had gathered to engage in on June 5th, that Siting Bull had a vision of soldiers falling on his camp from the sky. U.S. Army forces had indeed begun to gather to embark on the campaign to remove the Lakota from the Black Hills.
When Custer attacked the Natives in the Battle of Little Bighorn, he sent three companies with Major Marcus Reno to attack from southern end of the camp, and three companies were sent to Reno's left. One company was assigned to guard the pack train.
Marcus Reno retreated when he shouldn't have, resulting in Custer's companies being wiped out completely.
Despite the Native tribe's initial victory, reinforcements later arrived and drove the Natives out of the Black Hills.


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