Little Big Horn, A Study of a Cavalry Regiment in the Indian Wars

[dragoon500ly]

Originally Posted by bobcat

i completely agree. these brave riders where screwed as soon as they stepped out. one can argue weapons and tactics all day long but at those odds, even if they could have carried twice as much ammo. they would have been slaughtered. the purest sign of how overwhelmed they were is the fact they resorted to killing their mounts to use as cover. something everyone under a stetson knows is only done when you know you not coming out alive.

One of intresting things about LBH is that there is very little reference to the cavalry shooting their mounts and using them as breastworks with the exception of a dozen or so mounts on Custer Hill.

The Upton manual stresses that the horses were to be pulled back behind cover, this distance was to be anywhere from 50-200 yards behind the skirmish line.

There is a lot of reference to horses having been shot during the course of the battle, but Indian oral tradition has always held that the mounts were shot in the course of the battle or were stampeded by various warriors.

[Abbott Shaull]

Originally Posted by dragoon500ly

One of intresting things about LBH is that there is very little reference to the cavalry shooting their mounts and using them as breastworks with the exception of a dozen or so mounts on Custer Hill.

The Upton manual stresses that the horses were to be pulled back behind cover, this distance was to be anywhere from 50-200 yards behind the skirmish line.

There is a lot of reference to horses having been shot during the course of the battle, but Indian oral tradition has always held that the mounts were shot in the course of the battle or were stampeded by various warriors.

That was one of the things that I always found discouraging when I was doing my report back in grade school. This was back like 1979 or 1980 time frame, that one book would say that horse were shot and used as improvised breast-works with drawing to that effect. While others made reference to the oral history that they were chased away...

I guess in many ways the little things that added up to Custer defeat there as add to the legend and myths that persist to this day of what happen there.

[Grimace]

that one book would say that horse were shot and used as improvised breast-works with drawing to that effect. While others made reference to the oral history that they were chased away...

Or, the more likely situation, there was some of each. All those men means there were a lot of horses as well. Some may have been run off, others may have been kept, shot by indians (though that would be somewhat doubtful that they would do such a thing on purpose...the Indians treasured horses) or killed by desperate cavalryman who wanted some sort of cover when they realized they were literally surrounded by indians and their fellow troopers were dying all around them.

Being at the battle site showed very plainly that there was NO cover for Custer's men. The trees that are within a mile of the place where Custer fell are all probably only 40-60 years old. So those trees weren't even there during the battle and they were only in a location where Benteen could have used them had they existed at the time. Where Custer was...no trees. Simple, exposed hillside.

[dragoon500ly]

Originally Posted by Grimace

Or, the more likely situation, there was some of each. All those men means there were a lot of horses as well. Some may have been run off, others may have been kept, shot by indians (though that would be somewhat doubtful that they would do such a thing on purpose...the Indians treasured horses) or killed by desperate cavalryman who wanted some sort of cover when they realized they were literally surrounded by indians and their fellow troopers were dying all around them.

Being at the battle site showed very plainly that there was NO cover for Custer's men. The trees that are within a mile of the place where Custer fell are all probably only 40-60 years old. So those trees weren't even there during the battle and they were only in a location where Benteen could have used them had they existed at the time. Where Custer was...no trees. Simple, exposed hillside.

It all comes back to the Upton manual, the cavalry were taught to fight as dismounted skirmishers, and while a trooper was allowed to take cover, this was only if it did not interfere with the skirmish line. There are a lot of references to the troopers actually being discouraged from seeking cover.

Photos of the battlefield taken in 1878-79 confirm that there was very few trees, mostly in the ravines and along the LBHR. There was some sage and lots of tall grass. One of the intresting things about the battlefield is the somewhat gentle slopes of some of the key areas. For example, there is a low ridge facing Battle Ridge that is known as Henryville (the Fox dig found over 100 Henry/Winchester casings here). You can walk up the slope to a point where you can still stand erect and be in a position to see the cavalry positions along Battle Ridge. Take another couple of steps and you can whip up your rifle, fire a couple of rounds and then step back into safety. And this is one of four locations within easy rifle shot (150-300 yards) of the cavalry positions.

Dr. Fox has a rather intresting theory of what is called bunching. The tactical manual required the file closers, i.e. the officers and ncos to remain standing in order to better direct fire of the kneeling skirmishers. As the Indian attacks became increasingly heavy, these key people were killed or wounded. The effect on the enlisted men would be to move closer to the remaining command structure. This would lead to gaps in the skirmish line that would be exploited by the Indians, who would take advantage to gett closer, kill more exposed troopers, force the remaining troopers to bunch closer and repeat the process over and over. The good doctor was trying to explain why several of the cavalry graves (the Custer bn was buried were they fell) are grouped together in rather small areas (Keogh and Custer areas). Its an intresting theory.