The Battle of Little Big Horn (Crow Agency, Montana)

"It was a terrible battle...a hard battle because both sides were brave warriors." (Red Feather, Lakota)

The first time I went to The Battle of Little Bighorn (sometime in the 1980's), it was called "Custer's Last Stand."

 

However, in 1991, Congress authorized the name of the area and National Monument to be changed from Custer Battlefield to Little Bighorn National Monument, signed into law by former President George W. Bush. (Public Law 102-201: "The public interest will best be served by establishing a memorial...to honor and recognize the Indians who fought to preserve their land and culture.")

 

An Indian Memorial was also designed to honor the Native American participation in Battle (before there was just the Memorial for the 7th Cavalry soldiers.)

The description of the Indian Memorial in the National Park pamphlet is better than on-line (unless I am just looking in the wrong place) but it describes the Memorial this way: "The circular earth and stone work is gently carved from the prairie...for many tribes, the circle is sacred and symbolic of the journey of life. A weeping wall symbolizes the tears of the Indian People and the suffering that resulted from their battle here on the Greasy Grass to retain their nomadic way of life. The interior walls commemorate the five tribes that fought there: Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Crow and Arikara." The Memorial's theme is "Peace through Unity", and it was dedicated in June, 2003.

 

Basically, this marks the location of a TERRIBLE battle (well, the same could be said about any battle, actually, couldn't it?), which took place June 25 and 26, 1876 near the Little Bighorn River, in eastern Montana Territory, when General Alfred H. Terry sent Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer to the Rosebud and Little Bighorn area, to force the Indians back onto their reservations.

 

As we've previously briefly discussed (see Blog December 8th, about Crazy Horse), there was ALOT of anger and discontent, as treaties were made and broken, with the Native Americans, resulting in the Indians losing much of their sacred ground (every time something good was discovered on their land....like gold, in the Black Hills.)

 

The National Park Services information pamphlet describes that this conflict against the "relentless invasion of the white man" "reached its peak in the decade following the Civil War, when settlers resumed their vigorous westward movement. These western emigrants, possessing little or no understanding of the Indian way of life, showed slight regard for the sanctity of hunting grounds or the terms of former treaties. The Indians' resistance to those encroachments on their domain only served to intensify hostilities." 

 

In 1868, a treaty was signed by the US Government and the Lakota, Cheyenne and other tribes of the Great Plains, designating a large area as permanent Indian reservation., promising to protect the Indians "against the commission of all depredations by people of the United States."

But...then... in 1874 someone struck Gold in the Black Hills, which was in the heart of the reservation AND the Lakota's sacred ground, and their treaty was ignored and their protection was ... gone? So, in an effort to protect themselves and their land, the Lakota & Cheyenne left their reservation and raided settlements and travelers along the fringes of their land.

 

When they did not comply with the order to return to their reservation, the army was called in.

 

Which gets us (eventually) to the Battle of Little Bighorn.

 

Once there, Custer divided his forces (of about 600 men, including officers) into three groups - one under his command, and the other two under Maj. Marcus Reno and one under Capt. Frederick Benteen. Benteen was to go to the South, and Custer and Reno were to go to the North. Custer and Reno then split up and Reno advanced down the valley

 

What they didn't know, though, is that in the meantime, Chief Sitting Bull (who was already recognized as a strong and accomplished warrior, protecting his Lakota people, his culture, and his land, and who considered the US Army as an invasion of Lakota way of life) had formed an alliance with other neighboring tribes (the Cheyenne, Arapaho and other Agency Indians) - and so they had alot more warriors than the U.S. Army calculated.

 

A large force of Lakota warriors intercepted Reno, and Reno was eventually forced to retreat. He was joined by Benteen, and after hearing heaving gunfire to the north, marched on to help Custer.

However, by the time they arrived, the firing at the "Custer battlefield" had stopped. Reno and Benteen soon found themselves under attack, as well, and were forced to withdraw.

The battle continued - the army held their defenses, and the siege ended with the Indians withdrew. (They withdrew, not because Benteen and Reno were winning, but because they heard that General Alfred H. Terry and Col. John Gibbon were coming; General Crook had been delayed in battle at Rosebud, by Crazy Horse (as previously discussed in the December 8 blog about Crazy Horse.)

The Battle was only 2 days long, but Custer and his entire company were killed (about 210 men), Reno and Benteen lost about 53, and about 100 Indians also died.

Mrs. Spotted Horn Bull (of the Lakota tribe) is quoted: "Since the Sioux first fought the men (white men) who are our friends now, they had not won so great a battle...so it was that the Sioux defeated Long Hair and his soldiers in the valley of the Greasy Grass River, which my people remember with regret, but without shame."

 

Despite the overwhelming victory, this marked the beginning of the end of the Indian Wars, and Sitting Bull exiled to Canada. Later, due to hunger and cold, he eventually was forced to return to Fort Buford, Montana, and surrendered.

 

After spending time here and there at various Forts, he and his band were allowed to return to the Standing Rock Agency, in 1883. From there, In 1884, Sitting Bull was allowed to leave the reservation and joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show (see my blog of November 27th, 2012 - "Nebraska, the Cornhusker State"). He was with the show for 4 months, and then returned, again, to the Standing Rock Agency.

 

Because of Sitting Bull's enthusiasm for his culture and people, by 1890, the government started to fear an uprising, and decided to have him arrested. A group of Sioux rallied around him to prevent the arrest. A shoot-out followed and Sitting Bull was shot in the head... an all too familiar story...

 

....


Back to the Little Bighorn Battlefield site: You are allowed to tour around the Battlefield, but you must stay on the designated areas.

 

Markers are scattered around the site, and they are placed where bodies had fallen. The white markers represent soldiers and the brown markers represent Indian warriors.

There's also a Visitors' Center and the National Cemetery. There is an entrance fee (at the time we were there, it was $10 per vehicle.)  http://www.nps.gov/libi/index.htm

 

You should go.

....

Sunday, we are going to be visiting the Montana Grizzly Encounter, in Bozeman, Montana.

Crazy Horse Memorial

Seven years after the completion of Mount Rushmore, the Crazy Horse Memorial was started. Mount Rushmore (which we'll discuss in the next blog) took about 14 years to complete (well, as complete as it will be - more later on that). Crazy Horse is still being worked on.

 

What's the difference in delay? The main delay is financial - Mount Rushmore had government funding and sponsorship, whereas Crazy Horse is privately funded, funded by donations and by admission fees to the location.

 

In 1939, Chief Henry Standing Bear (Lakota tribe leader) wrote a letter to Korczak Ziolkowski, asking him to carve the monument. He said in his letter: ""My fellow chiefs and I would like the white man to know the red man has great heroes also."

 

Ziolkowski was a self-taught artist, born in Boston, in 1908. At one point, he assisted Gutzon Borglum on the sculpting of Mount Rushmore, and had a good understanding of working with the stone of the Black Hills, in South Dakota.

 

So, when Chief Standing Bear approached him, he accepted!

 

The Black Hills were chosen by the Chief and other Native American elders, because they are considered sacred land. Then, the challenge was finding the right dimensions, the right type of stone, etc. Once completed, the sculpture will be 641 feet (195 meters) long by 563 feet (172 meters) high! Crazy Horse's head will be 87.5 feet (27 meters) high, and the horse's head will be 219 feet (67 meters) high!!

 

Rather than try to carve an exact image of the man who avoided being photographed, Korczak said, “Crazy Horse is being carved not so much as a lineal likeness but more as a memorial to the spirit of Crazy Horse — to his people.”

 Ziolkowski died in 1982 but he passed on the commission to his wife (Ruth), saying "“You must work on the mountain-but go slowly so you do it right.”

 

The family still are those directly involved in the sculpting and the continuous progress, to finish.

 

The FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) section of the http://crazyhorsememorial.org/ site explains why Crazy Horse was chosen for the honor: "He is a hero not only because of his skill in battle, but also because of his character and his loyalty to his people. He is remembered for how he cared for the elderly, the ill, the widowed and the children. His dedication to his personal vision caused him to devote his life to serving his people and to preserving their valued culture."

Talking about the Memorial is easy, it turns out, when you compare it to talking about the man! I feel I must disclaim - there is so much information about Crazy Horse, and some reports disagree with other reports, so - this is my understanding. If you hear or read or know otherwise, please don't be offended - and I'd be more than happy to be corrected!

 

In the meantime: Crazy Horse was born sometime around 1840, in the Oglala Lakota tribe, and was named "Cha-O-Ha", which means ("In the Wilderness" or "Among the Trees".) His father (Crazy Horse II) was Oglala Lakota and his mother (Rattling Blanket Woman) was Miniconjou Lakota.

 

I could go on and on (and want to, but I'm too easily distracted) about Crazy Horse's family and the names of some. Their names are so curious though! One is his cousin, Touch the Clouds, who was almost 7 feet tall ~ this name makes sense to me! He had an auntie named "Good Looking Woman" (how beautiful was she, to earn that name!?), and another auntie who was called "They Are Afraid of Her." (He named his only daughter after her, but the poor little thing only lived to be 2 or 3 years old.) Then, I wondered: which name would I rather have - "Good Looking Woman"? or "They Are Afraid of Her"? and I can't decide - I think it might come down to WHY they were afraid of her?? Another family member was a woman called "Kills Enemy"! It sounds like he came from a family of very strong women! (Well, not sure about Good Looking Woman, but the other two, for sure.)

 

As far as interesting family names, Crazy Horse's mom nicknamed HIM "Curly Light Hair"....? His little brother was called "High Horse" (I'm not making that up!!) and his step-grandfather's name was "Corn". 

 

Crazy Horse ("Tasunke Witko" in Oglala) was victorious in many battles - not only against other tribes (like the Arikara, Blackfoot, Crow, Pawnee and Shoshone), but also the US military.

 

Included in that is the Great Sioux War (1876-1877). Crazy Horse, along with approximately 1,500 Lakota and Cheyenne came up against General George Crook and his 1000 cavalry & infantry, and his 300 Crow and Shoshone allies, in the Battle of the Rosebud.

 

This delay prevented Crook from joining General Custer's forces, in the Battle of Little Big Horn, and contributed to Custer's absolute defeat. (More on the Battle of Little Big Horn will be coming in a subsequent blog...and as far as Crazy Horse is concerned - his part is vague, but apparently, according to reports and quotes, he was the "bravest" and the "greatest".) 

 

However, on January 8, 1877, after fighting a major battle at Wolf Mountain in the Montana Territory, Crazy Horse decided to surrender to protect his people. It was winter, and they were hungry and cold. They went to Fort Robinson, Nebraska.

On May 5, 1877, he (along with Little Big Man and others) met with First Lieutenant W.P. Clark to take their first steps toward surrender. Crazy Horse went to live at the Red Cloud Agency, near Fort Robinson.  

In August 1877, news came that the Nez Perce of Chief Joseph in Idaho had broken out of their reservation and were escaping to Canada, through Montana. Lieutenant Clark asked Crazy Horse and Touch the Clouds to join the army against the Nez Perce, and they refused, stating that part of their surrender is that they promised to remain peaceful. (Smart men!)

Trouble was brewing at the Red Cloud Agency, and General Crook was ordered to come to Fort Robinson. Someone told Crook that Crazy Horse said that he was going to kill Crook during a meeting that had been called, involving the Oglala leadership. Crook then ordered Crazy Horse's arrest.

 

Crazy Horse fled to Spotted Trail Agency nearby, but later agreed to return to Fort Robinson with a Lieutenant J.M. Lee. Touch the Clouds and other Indian scouts also went along. Once they arrived, Lieutenant Lee had to (against his will) turn Crazy Horse over to "the Officer of the Day". Lee went to the post commander, Lieutenant Colonel Luther P. Bradley for help. But Bradley had actually received orders to arrest Crazy Horse and had him taken "under the cover of darkness" to Division Headquarters. He was then turned over to Captain Kennington, who took him to the post guardhouse. 

 

Wikipedia says "Once inside, Crazy Horse struggled with the guard and Little Big Man and attempted to escape. Just outside the door, Crazy Horse was stabbed with a bayonet by one of the members of the guard. He was taken to the adjutant's office, where he was tended by the assistant post surgeon at the post, Dr. Valentine McGillycuddy, and died late that night."   

 

This is a very sad story.   

 

At the Memorial, Crazy Horse's arm is extended and pointing. This is to symbolize the answer to the question: "Where are your lands now?" to which Crazy Horse is quoted as saying, "My lands are where my dead lie buried."

 

.....
There are some who are opposed to the Memorial, and I thought that the discussions and debates were interesting and that those opposed have valid points. But, from the perspective a tourist who didn't know anything before, other than what is in standard history books and movies, I found it fascinating, and I have researched and researched, not only this man, but also have learned (to a very small degree, I'm sure) more about the culture and art of the people.  

 

Wednesday, we'll talk about Mount Rushmore.