1877 : Crazy Horse fights last battle
On this day in 1877, Crazy Horse and his warriors--outnumbered, low on
ammunition and forced to use outdated weapons to defend
themselves--fight their final losing battle against the U.S. Cavalry
in Montana.
Six months earlier, in the Battle of Little Bighorn, Crazy Horse and
his ally, Chief Sitting Bull, led their combined forces of Sioux and
Cheyenne to a stunning victory over Lieutenant Colonel George Custer
(1839-76) and his men. The Indians were resisting the U.S.
government's efforts to force them back to their reservations. After
Custer and over 200 of his soldiers were killed in the conflict, later
dubbed "Custer's Last Stand," the American public wanted revenge. As a
result, the U.S. Army launched a winter campaign in 1876-77, led by
General Nelson Miles (1839-1925), against the remaining hostile
Indians on the Northern Plains.
Combining military force with diplomatic overtures, Nelson convinced
many Indians to surrender and return to their reservations. Much to
Nelson's frustration, though, Sitting Bull refused to give in and fled
across the border to Canada, where he and his people remained for four
years before finally returning to the U.S. to surrender in 1881.
Sitting Bull died in 1890. Meanwhile, Crazy Horse and his band also
refused to surrender, even though they were suffering from illness and
starvation.
On January 8, 1877, General Miles found Crazy Horse's camp along
Montana's Tongue River. U.S. soldiers opened fire with their big
wagon-mounted guns, driving the Indians from their warm tents out into
a raging blizzard. Crazy Horse and his warriors managed to regroup on
a ridge and return fire, but most of their ammunition was gone, and
they were reduced to fighting with bows and arrows. They managed to
hold off the soldiers long enough for the women and children to escape
under cover of the blinding blizzard before they turned to follow
them.
Though he had escaped decisive defeat, Crazy Horse realized that Miles
and his well-equipped cavalry troops would eventually hunt down and
destroy his cold, hungry followers. On May 6, 1877, Crazy Horse led
approximately 1,100 Indians to the Red Cloud reservation near
Nebraska's Fort Robinson and surrendered. Five months later, a guard
fatally stabbed him after he allegedly resisted imprisonment by Indian
policemen.
In 1948, American sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski began work on the Crazy
Horse Memorial, a massive monument carved into a mountain in South
Dakota. Still a work in progress, the monument will stand 641 feet
high and 563 feet long when completed.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1877 : Crazy Horse fights last battle
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihVideoCategory&id=52318
1642 : Astronomer Galileo dies in Italy
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4657
1815 : The Battle of New Orleans
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4658
1867 : Congress expands suffrage in nation's capital
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4659
1916 : Allies retreat from Gallipoli
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=6770
1918 : Wilson announces his 14 Points
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4660
1962 : Mona Lisa exhibited in Washington
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4661
#########################################
On this day in 1877, Crazy Horse and his warriors--outnumbered, low on
ammunition and forced to use outdated weapons to defend
themselves--fight their final losing battle against the U.S. Cavalry
in Montana.
Six months earlier, in the Battle of Little Bighorn, Crazy Horse and
his ally, Chief Sitting Bull, led their combined forces of Sioux and
Cheyenne to a stunning victory over Lieutenant Colonel George Custer
(1839-76) and his men. The Indians were resisting the U.S.
government's efforts to force them back to their reservations. After
Custer and over 200 of his soldiers were killed in the conflict, later
dubbed "Custer's Last Stand," the American public wanted revenge. As a
result, the U.S. Army launched a winter campaign in 1876-77, led by
General Nelson Miles (1839-1925), against the remaining hostile
Indians on the Northern Plains.
Combining military force with diplomatic overtures, Nelson convinced
many Indians to surrender and return to their reservations. Much to
Nelson's frustration, though, Sitting Bull refused to give in and fled
across the border to Canada, where he and his people remained for four
years before finally returning to the U.S. to surrender in 1881.
Sitting Bull died in 1890. Meanwhile, Crazy Horse and his band also
refused to surrender, even though they were suffering from illness and
starvation.
On January 8, 1877, General Miles found Crazy Horse's camp along
Montana's Tongue River. U.S. soldiers opened fire with their big
wagon-mounted guns, driving the Indians from their warm tents out into
a raging blizzard. Crazy Horse and his warriors managed to regroup on
a ridge and return fire, but most of their ammunition was gone, and
they were reduced to fighting with bows and arrows. They managed to
hold off the soldiers long enough for the women and children to escape
under cover of the blinding blizzard before they turned to follow
them.
Though he had escaped decisive defeat, Crazy Horse realized that Miles
and his well-equipped cavalry troops would eventually hunt down and
destroy his cold, hungry followers. On May 6, 1877, Crazy Horse led
approximately 1,100 Indians to the Red Cloud reservation near
Nebraska's Fort Robinson and surrendered. Five months later, a guard
fatally stabbed him after he allegedly resisted imprisonment by Indian
policemen.
In 1948, American sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski began work on the Crazy
Horse Memorial, a massive monument carved into a mountain in South
Dakota. Still a work in progress, the monument will stand 641 feet
high and 563 feet long when completed.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1877 : Crazy Horse fights last battle
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihVideoCategory&id=52318
1642 : Astronomer Galileo dies in Italy
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4657
1815 : The Battle of New Orleans
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4658
1867 : Congress expands suffrage in nation's capital
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4659
1916 : Allies retreat from Gallipoli
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=6770
1918 : Wilson announces his 14 Points
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4660
1962 : Mona Lisa exhibited in Washington
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4661
#########################################
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