The Battle of the Little Big Horn

The Battle of the Little Big Horn - Custer's defeat

-Crazy Horse's Indians easily defeated the outnumbered US Army -Custer and all his men were killed, mutilated and scalped

The Battle of the Little Big Horn - Custer

-His scouts found a camp of 2,000 warriors in the valley of the Little Big Horn -He only had 600 cavalrymen with him, and his orders were to find the camp and then wait for reinforcements -Instead, he recklessly split his forces and attacked

Consequences of the battle - military control over the Indians

-Sioux weapons and horses were taken and they had to live under military rule -Crazy Horse was captured and killed whilst trying to escape -the US built two new forts and 2,500 soldiers were sent West

Consequences of the battle - treaties

-all old treaties were ended and they had to go to reservations or die -the Sioux were told that, if they didn't give up the Black Hills, the US government would stop sending them food -facing starvation, the Sioux gave up the Black Hills and their lands

Consequences of the battle - reservations

-the army pursued the Sioux and Cheyenne tribes -within 5 years, almost all of them were put in reservations and became dependent on the government for food and shelter -Sitting Bull was forced to surrender

Causes of the Great Sioux War

1)In the 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty, the Sioux were given a large reservation in South Dakota, and could roam free in the Black Hills (sacred to Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho). Whites weren't allowed to settle there or prospect for gold. 2)As the Northern Pacific Railroad got closer to Sioux land, General George Custer led cavalrymen to protect the railroad builders and look for gold. He found it, so prospectors staked their claims to the land - breaking the Fort Laramie Treaty. 3)The US government offered the Sioux $6 million for the Black Hills, or $400,000 a year for the mineral rights. They refused both offers, and many bands left the Sioux reservation. In December 1875, the Sioux were given 60 days to return to the reservation or be attacked. 4)As it was winter, the Indians couldn't return, so President Grant ordered the Sioux to be attacked. By the spring of 1876, over 7,000 Sioux Indians were prepared for war. The US Army then attacked the Indians at Rosebud River on the 17th June 1876. They were defeated by Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse.

Consequences of the battle - a failure or success for the US government?

In the short-term, it was a huge failure, but in the long-term, it was a success - as the Indian resistance ended here

Why were the years 1876 to 1877 a huge turning point in the American West?

The Great Sioux War - which contained the Battle of Little Big Horn. In this battle, the combined forces of the Sioux nation defeated the US Army, leading to the shocked US government changing their policy towards the Indians: civilise and become US citizens or die.

The Battle of the Little Big Horn - the US Army's plan

To attack the Sioux to force them back to their reservations

Impact of the battle on attitudes towards Indians

Until the battle, public opinion had favoured trying to reach an agreement with the Indians. Afterwards, they saw them as a threat, and pressured the government to crush Indian resistance.