Battle of Little Bighorn
Lakota, Cheyenne and Arapaho warriors destroyed five companies of the 7th Cavalry in Montana on 25 June 1876, and it was the worst defeat the United States Army suffered in the plains wars. The cause was gold. The Fort Laramie treaty of 1868 had guaranteed the Black Hills to the Lakota in perpetuity; Custer's own expedition found gold there in 1874; miners poured in; the government tried to buy the hills, was refused, and issued an order that all Lakota and Cheyenne report to agencies by 31 January 1876 or be treated as hostile. Many did not receive it, and it was issued in the middle of a plains winter. The village on the Little Bighorn was the largest ever assembled on the northern plains, perhaps 7,000 people with 1,500 to 2,500 fighting men, gathered around Sitting Bull after a sun dance in which he had seen soldiers falling into camp. Custer had about 600 men, divided his command into three, and attacked in daylight without knowing the size of what he faced. Reno's attack on the southern end was stopped and driven back across the river. Custer's five companies were engaged along the ridges to the north and killed to the last man, some 210 of them, in perhaps an hour. The news reached the east during the centennial celebrations of independence. The army response was overwhelming and the Lakota were forced onto reservations within a year. The Supreme Court ruled the seizure of the Black Hills illegal in 1980 and awarded compensation, which the Sioux have refused to accept.
- Year: 1876 CE
- Category: Military
