Little Big Horns - VALENTINE RENARD

the 7th Regiment of the US army is crushed by the Indian warriors. Their victory is complete and bloody, and the event will stay in the minds for a long time.

On the 25th and the 26 th of June,

In the course of their installation, the European settlers pushed back their border with Native Americans further and further. The Native eventually were entreched in the Great Plains in the West, and with the end of the Civil War and with the activity of the railroad, they became even more threatened. The tensions were intense.

the conflict from a far distance, and truly believed in the invicibilty of their army.

19th century

History of the United States

What a shock for the population,

History of the United States

who was living

Passengers were encourage, when the train stopped, to slaughter neddlessly hords of buffaloes for sport.

An inevitable confontation ?

As the industrialisation and the gold rush increased, it became obvious that the nomadic and hunting culture of the Amerindians could not coexist in peace with the frenetic profit-oriented culture of the white settlers, always in search for new lands. They strain the Native Americans to give up

The fleeing village

their nomadic life to live in reservations, by establishing treaties with them, such as the Treaty of Fort Laramie in 1868 made with Lakota leaders. But not all of them were agree on playing by the rule of the US, and forgive the affront they made to them. Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse were one of them.

When the Americans broke an important treaty reserving the lands of the Black Hills for the Sioux tribes, because they found gold in its soil, it was the final straw. The Lakota Sioux, Northern Cheyenne, Arpaho tribes decided to join their forces against the US government and make a strong impact to defend their lands and their precious buffaloes. But as the warriors were endlessly moving, it was very difficult for the US army to attack them

Custer, Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull

The battle

Sitting Bull

1841-1877

Crazy Horse

1831-90

Sitting Bull was a feared and highly respected Dakota chief. Although he was a great hunter in his youth, he became later a healer and "holy" (spiritual) man. As he was skilled in politic, and demonstrate a good mastery in startegy, he was recognised as good chief. Sitting Bull faced the US military several times, but he is mostly famous for the battle of Little Big Horn. There, he succeeded to unite the Sioux forces of the Great Plains, and make a landslide victory on Custer's Regiment.

Colonnel George Armstrong Custer

1839-76

Custer was a military officer famous for his campaign during the Civil War, and even more for his action against the Native American during the war he led against them. He is celebrated as a martyr of the Little Big Horn battle, the whole Amrican culture glorifying his death with movies, books, newspapers... However, he is a controversial figure. He had been several times accused of leaving his troops, and he played a big part in the repression and killing of the Native Americans. He died on the battlefield of Little Big Horn, shot by firegun.

Consequences

The Ameridians won the battle of Little Bighorn, though they did not won the war. For the US, it was an humiliation but also an act of savagery that sacred them even more. It made them realise that their conquest would be as esay as they believed it. Their enemies had still energy left in reserve.

As a consenquece, the repression against Native Americans became even more violent, and they took even more drastic steps. Eight mounths later, the US won the Great Sioux Warand confined to reservations nearly all their Plains Indian adversaries. Sitting Bull flew in Canada, but eventually had to surrender, as most of the insurgents did. In the aftermath, the Black Hills belonged to the US government nearly for free. Nothing could stop the gold rush and the longing for money of the white settlers.