cancel2 2022
Canceled
Excellent BBC documentary about the Battle of the Little Big Horn and George Custer.
The truth about Custer's Last Stand
- Thread starter cancel2 2022
- Start date
Mott the Hoople
Sweet Jane
Did you know that that was not the worst defeat of the US Army by Native Americans?
The very first combat action by the newly formed United States Army was crushed in the most decisive defeat ever of the US Army and the largest victory of Native Americans over the US Army at the Battle of the Wabash (aka St. Clair's Massacre).
This occurred during the Northwest Territory Indian Wars in 1791 near the headwaters of the Wabash River in North Western Ohio where a coalition of Miami's, lead by Little Turtle (Mishikinqua) and the Shawnee lead by Blue Jacket (Wayapiersinwa) and the Delaware (Lenape) lead by Buckongahela surprised a large US Force led by General Arthur St. Clair, a prominent subordinate of General Washington during the Revolutionary War, was destroyed by the attack for which St. Clair's forces were completely unprepared. Though St. Clair himself fought courageously his poorly trained and equiped soldiers were routed and most killed.
In the after math Gen. St. Clair was court martialled but acquitted though his military career was ended. Shortly there after St. Clair was replaced by a man who understood wilderness warfare and how to defeat the Native Americans. That man was Gen. Anthony Wayne (aka Mad Anthony Wayne...called "Mad" not because he was crazy but because of his temper). Gen. Wayne went on to defeat the Native Americans in the Northwest Indian Wars and proved to be Americas greatest General in the Frontier wars.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Clair's_defeat
The very first combat action by the newly formed United States Army was crushed in the most decisive defeat ever of the US Army and the largest victory of Native Americans over the US Army at the Battle of the Wabash (aka St. Clair's Massacre).
This occurred during the Northwest Territory Indian Wars in 1791 near the headwaters of the Wabash River in North Western Ohio where a coalition of Miami's, lead by Little Turtle (Mishikinqua) and the Shawnee lead by Blue Jacket (Wayapiersinwa) and the Delaware (Lenape) lead by Buckongahela surprised a large US Force led by General Arthur St. Clair, a prominent subordinate of General Washington during the Revolutionary War, was destroyed by the attack for which St. Clair's forces were completely unprepared. Though St. Clair himself fought courageously his poorly trained and equiped soldiers were routed and most killed.
In the after math Gen. St. Clair was court martialled but acquitted though his military career was ended. Shortly there after St. Clair was replaced by a man who understood wilderness warfare and how to defeat the Native Americans. That man was Gen. Anthony Wayne (aka Mad Anthony Wayne...called "Mad" not because he was crazy but because of his temper). Gen. Wayne went on to defeat the Native Americans in the Northwest Indian Wars and proved to be Americas greatest General in the Frontier wars.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Clair's_defeat
Mott the Hoople
Sweet Jane
A replica of Fort Recovery, built on the site St. Clair's Massacre in 1793, in current day Fort Recovery, Ohio. This is about 10 miles from my hometown of Coldwater (which was called "Buzzards Glory" back in 1793 as it was a small English trading post on the western edge of the Great Black Swamp).
cancel2 2022
Canceled
As the video points out Custer very nearly won that battle.
Mott the Hoople
Sweet Jane
He did but have you ever seen the Movie Little Big Man? Though certainly exaggerated Custer placed himself in that position by his own arrogance and underestimating the Sioux.
Most of what we see of the Native American wars in popular media is centered around the very end out west in the Great Plains and Southwest when the Indians were already defeated and were at their desperate last gasp.
The real Indian Wars were fought largely fought in the North East and the Great Lakes region during the 18th and early 19th century where the gave as good as they got. For over a hundred years they stopped American settlement west of the Appalachian mountains in what can only be described as extremely brutal wilderness warfare where appalling atrocities we’re committed by both side. The Native Americans of that time and region were some of the most fearsome guerrilla fighters in human history.
If you would like to learn more I’d strongly recommend the series of historical works by Allen Eckert. It’s a six book series and his research is phenomenal. In particular you would like the Wilderness Empire which is biographical about Sir William Johnson and his actions among the Iroquois. It’s a fascinating history of the Seven Years war in North America. His first Novel, The Frontiersman is probably his best work and is biographical about the Frontiersman Simon Kenton who was a contemporary and friend of Daniel Boone and a bonafide BAMF. It’s also biographical of the Great Shawnee leader Techumseh and covers the pivotal opening of the Ohio River valley to settlement.