Battle of the Little Big Horn Part 5: Custer's Rise to Fame

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
My name is Eric Gaskell, and you're listening to the
Distorted History podcast and program. I didn't give you many
nails and joy a blunder looking knocked the Darrah A

(00:27):
long struggle for freedom, it really is a revolution. At
the end of our last episode, we finally were introduced
to the last of our major characters that will take
part in the Battle of the Little Bighorn, joining the
likes of Crazy Horse and Sitting Bowl. When we met

(00:48):
Custer last time, he had just taken command of the
Seventh Calvary for the first time on the Great Plains,
at which point he had taken part in a campaign
that heads so far not proven to be a grand
success by any measure. Instead, they had seemingly helped to
drive formally friendly Native American bands to the war path,
following which, as the Seventh Calvary attempted to pursue one
of these formally friendly bands, Custer got himself lost alone

(01:10):
on the plains after he failed attempt to hunt some wildlife,
where the only animal he actually managed to kill was
his own horse. Luckily for Custer, he would be found,
but his luck did not stretch so far as to
actually being able to find any of the Native Americans
they were hunting. Instead, after some more fruitless searching, Custer had,
for all intent and purposes, abandoned his command and ran

(01:31):
off to meet with his wife, Libby, actions which resulted
in Custer being effectively put under arrest and court martialed, which,
as I noted at the end of the last episode,
appeared to be quite default from grace for a man who,
during the country's recent Civil War had become one of
the Union's most famous officers, a rise to glory, which
will be one of the main topics of this episode
as we seek to better understand who exactly George Armstrong

(01:53):
Custer was and why he became such a well known figure,
before we eventually circle back around to find out what
happened as the result of this court martial and the
charges against him. Before we do that, however, first, like always,
I want to acknowledge my sources for this series, which
includes Stevenie Ambrose's Crazy Horse and Custer, the parallel lives
of two American warriors, James Donovan's A Terrible Glory Custer

(02:17):
and the Little Bighorn, the Last Great Battle of the
American West, Bob Drury and Tom Clavins, The Heart of
Everything that Is, The untold story of Very Cloud and
American Legend, Robert m Utley's Sitting Bowl, The Life and
times of an American Patriot, Nathaniel Philbricks, The Last Stan
Custer Sitting Bowl and the Battle of the Little Bighorn,
and the Edward Clown Family's Crazy Horse, The Lakota Warriors

(02:38):
Life and Legacy. And like always, these and any additional
sources that I might have used will be listed on
this podcast, KOFE and Blue Sky pages plus if you
don't want to be bothered skipping through commercials, and add
free version on this feed as available to those who
sign up at patreon dot com slash Distorted History. And
with all that being said, let's begin. George Armstrong Custer

(02:59):
was born in eighteen thirty nine in the tiny village
of New Rumley, Ohio. The Custer family situation, though requires
a bit of explanation. You see, his father, Emmanuel Henry Custer,
was a part time farmer in Blacksmith who had three
children with his first wife, Matilda of the Years before
her untimely death. Emmanuel would then remarry seven months later
to Maria Wardkirkpatrick, who was herself a widow with three

(03:21):
children of her own, So the couple now had six
children from multiple marriages, to which they would add multiple
more until they had ten. In all, George would actually
be the couple's third child, but the first to survive. Now,
despite the mixed parentage of all the children, according to
George as an adult, there had been no division between
the kids. Indeed, he would be unable to readily identify

(03:41):
which of his siblings had been the result of which marriage,
as at the end of the day, they were all
custers and that was what mattered. From that, you start
to get the inclination that he Manuel was better than
any number of parents from that era. Indeed, Wilie Manuel's
Pennsylvania Dutch people had quite the reputation for bidding their
kids to incourage them to admit to their authority. He
didn't seem to subscribe to such child rearing techniques. Instead,

(04:04):
it seems that he much preferred playing with the children
then harshly disciplining them. Meanwhile, Marie was severally absolutely dedicated
to all of the children and worked to make sure
that they got the best education possible, even though she
herself had not had the same benefit in her youth. Now,
Maria was not alone in this, as most Ohioans at
this point in time at least supported the idea of
public education, although to be clear, this educational system primarily

(04:29):
focused on stuff like discipline that was reinforced through corporal
punishment and learning to respect authority, which included respecting others property,
a lesson that was especially meant to be taught to
the poor. They had the learn to respect the property
of the wealthy, as property, according to this educational system,
was sacred. These schools also tended to have a heavy
focus on teaching equality among whites. When it came to

(04:52):
everyone else, not so much. Now, Ohio was a fairly
diverse place by these standards of the time, as much
of Ohio's population hadn't been born in Ohio, but had
instead hailed from other parts of the US, and even
included some European immigrants. Indeed, Ohio's population included immigrants from
just about every part of Europe, and by eighteen fifty

(05:13):
they even had a population of twenty five thousand free blacks,
although again the idea of equality did not apply to them. Now,
the Ohio that young George Armstrong Custer grew up in
was a place undergoing significant changes as it shifted from
a primarily agricultural economy to one that was more diverse.
In doing so, though few in Ohio actually became rich,

(05:34):
something which was true across all the western reaches of
the United States, as while one could carve out a
living for themselves and their family, they merely ever got
wealthy in doing so. Instead, all the wealth generated in
places like Ohio was funneled back to the east into
the pockets of speculators in places like New York, Boston, Philadelphia,
and even London. Indeed, oftentimes was agents of these speculators

(05:57):
who were the ones encouraging people to move westward to
build new farms, communities, and factories, places where these speculators
could then invest and reap the profits. Now, as these
settlers spread westward, notably, one of the first things they
invariably did was destroy the inverted wilderness they found there. Ohio,
you see, had at one time been covered by massive
forests that were these gorgeous stretches of virtually undisturbed natural beauty.

(06:20):
These settlers, though, did not see the forests in this way. Instead,
they were simply an obstacle standing in the way of progress. Specifically,
trees blocked out the sun and used up the nutrients
and the soil that they believed should be used for
growing crops like corn. They didn't even see the forests
as a useful source of wood for buildings or for
fuel for fires they kept their buildings warm. This was

(06:40):
because there were forests everywhere, so in their mind there
was more wood than they could ever need, so much
wood that it would surely never run out. As such,
the Ohio sellers did not so much harvest the trees
of the forest as they do straight up destroyed them.
You see, once they cut the trees down, they would
cut off their top limbs. These limb would then be
cut into ten foot lengths and piled up against a trunck,

(07:03):
effectively turning them into kindling. As instead of utilizing these
trees for anything, they were just destroying them by setting
them on fire. Indeed, sellers were cut down something like
ten to fifteen acres of trees per day, which meant
that their nights were then illuminated by massive burning pires
of dead trees. Meanwhile, in addition to wiping out huge forests,
the early Ohio sellers had also made sure the drive

(07:26):
and or wipe out the people who had originally called
these lands home. As far as they were concerned, the
Native Americans, just like the trees, were simply standing in
the way of progress. All these settlers really cared about
was acquiring land, which was a potential source of wealth,
provided you could sell the somewhat or find some way
of using it to generate money. Regardless, land represented opportunity. Indeed,

(07:46):
the country's constant expansion was feeling its economy while also
keeping the national psyche yump because if you didn't like
your life, there was always the opportunity to move west
and start anew Fighting and killing Native Americans then was
a proud tradition in Ohio. Indeed, George Armstrong Custer's father, Emmanuel,
was a member of the local militia, although by that

(08:07):
point in time all the Native Americans in the region
were either dead or gone. That, however, did not stop
the idea of being in the militia and being an
Indian fighter from seeming like an honorable pursuit to many,
including young George, who would accompany his father to militia
meetings dressed in an imitation soldier's uniform. That had been
crafted by his mother. Indeed, the young George was said
to be so enamored with all the military pageantry that,

(08:29):
as a four year old, he was able to go
through the Manual of Arms with his toy musket as
the other militia men called him a born soldier. Now,
regardless of how actually accurate this imitation was, it does
seem fairly likely that the young George, from an early
age would receive praise and validation by imitating soldiers and
their behavior, something that very likely planted a seed within

(08:50):
his young mind. Yet, even without this experiencing, factory made
that most boys in Ohio, like most white American boys
in general, and especially those living in the Western states
and territories, were raised to see quote unquote Indian fighters
as their greatest heroes. This included individuals who saw little
difference between killing animals and killing the people whose land
they were stealing. Take frontiersman Adam Poe, for example, as

(09:12):
he would at one point stayed quote, I've tried all
kinds of games boys, I fit bar bear. I've tried
all kinds of games boys. I fit bar bear and painter,
panther and catamount. I have no idea. But that ain't
no game like engine, No sir, no game like engine.

(09:33):
So while yes, some of the desire to kill Native
Americans was fueled by a thirst free event for various
outrages they might have committed against the sellers outrageous which,
mind you, were likely fueled by the whole invading and
stealing their land thing, not to mention the whole endangering
not just their way of life, but the lives of
their people as well. However, it can't be ignored that
a man who killed Native Americans earned a non insignificant

(09:55):
amount of fame for his deeds. So called Indian fighters
were seen as hero for killing the evil Indians who
stood in the way of progress and civilization. In fact,
newspaper reporters would send many a story back East lionizing
the individuals who fought, killed, and conquered the Native Americans
who dared to live on lands they had long lived on. Meanwhile,
similar stories glorifying Indian fighters and their exploits, whether real

(10:19):
or invented, were being turned into cheap paperback books that
were sold and often consumed by boys like young George
Armstrong Custer. Indeed, such heroic exploits would be the basis
of political careers for the lives of William Henry Harrison
and even more notably Andrew Jackson, who would carry on
his efforts to drive Native Americans out of the Southeastern
States as President with his Indian Removal policy, the consequences

(10:42):
on which I covered in part of my series on
the Trail of Tears and on the Seminole Wars. For
the people who consumed this media, people who hailed the
exploits of the Indian fighters and even elcted them to
the highest office in the land, the Native American was
less then. They were all naturally liars, violent and deceitful.
They also did not quote unquote improve the land by

(11:02):
European standards, at least meaning they did not tend to
clear forest, build permanent structures, or plant fields of crops,
all of which was just further proven the inferiority of
all races in comparison to the White Man, and for
Southerners in particular, further justification for their system of chattel slavery.
While for the Westerners this specifically justified their taking and
moving on the lands formly occupied by Native Americans. They

(11:25):
weren't using the land properly, and so they had no
right to keep it. Meanwhile, more reform minded individuals who
did not want to see Native Americans wiped out came
to see them quite differently. In doing so, like the
Southerners and the Westerners, these reform minded individuals painted an
image of the Native Americans that fit their narrative and
supported their ideas. These reformers, you see, believed that America

(11:48):
was failing to live up to its promise as a whole,
new and different country, as it was instead repeating these
same mistakes that had been made in Europe. As a result,
they saw in the Native Americans an example of a
better life based around rough equality and a closeness to nature. Therefore,
they had to live a happier and more fulfilling existence
than the average American citizen. Some also held up Native

(12:10):
Americans as being more manly and tough due to their
closeness to nature, unlike the average American man, who increasingly
found himself working in cities and offices, who they described
as being softer and more womanly as a result. With
all that being said, however, while their reformists did not
want to see the Native Americans wiped out, they still
intended to be of the belief that they had to

(12:30):
become quote unquote civilized, meaning they had to learn how
to live like the white man, and also, more often
than not, they had to adopt Christianity, meaning in the end,
they essentially wanted them to cease being a unique people. Regardless,
Custer was being raised in a time where fighting Native
Americans could bring one much personal glory. Plus, he was
growing up in a country that was so extremely individualistic

(12:51):
that it shocked visitors from Europe. As such, he was
raised in an environment that very much encouraged one to
pursue personal individual glory. Indeed, Cut himself would later write,
quote in years long numbered with the past, when I
was verging upon manhood, my every thought was ambitious, not
to be wealthy, not to be learned, but to be great.
I designed to link my name with acts and men,

(13:12):
and in such a manner as to be a mark
of honor not only to the present, but to future generations. Meanwhile,
another important influence on young George Armstrong Custer was his father, Emmanuel,
who thought of himself as a freethinker because he was
a Democrat in a predominantly Whig controlled area. Indeed, Emmanuel
apparently loved debating public issues. Yet despite his self image

(13:34):
as a freethinker, Emmanuel perceived party loyalty as being akin
to loyalty to one's church, something that was not to
be questioned. Speaking of which, Emmanuel was a fairly devoured
Methodist who saw drinking, alcohol, playing cards, and even dancing
as sinful and thus things to be avoided, a belief
he made sure to instill upon his children. George, in
addition to his father's religious beliefs, also picked up his

(13:56):
party loyalty, which he demonstrated after graduating from school at
eight six to becoming a teacher in a one room
schoolhouse in Harrison County, Ohio. As it was while there
that George came to be known too much like his father,
given passion speeches against so called black Republicans, by which
he meant abolitionists, as both shared the at the time
Democratic view that national unity should be preserved and thus

(14:17):
the topic of slavery should not be up for debate
in any way. Meanwhile, even as he acted as a
teacher himself, George had his eyes on continuing his own
education at the United States Military Academy at West Point,
which was a particularly attractive place for an ambitious young
man like George, who hailed from a family of moderate means,
as had offered him both the chance at free higher education,
as was the opportunity to raise his standing in society,

(14:41):
the concept of his place in society being something that
George first seemed to learn when age Tenny was sent
to live with his sister, Lydia. Lydia Uc was fourteen
years older than George and had recently married and moved
with her husband to Monroe, Michigan. In doing so, though
Lydia missed being surrounded by her siblings. Most specifically, she
missed young George, who, due to their age difference, had

(15:01):
been almost like a son to her. As for their mother,
while she had more than enough children to look after herself,
so she agreed to this arrangement, especially because these schools
in Monroe were supposed to be better than what they
had in their hometown in Ohio. It was here that
George would get his first taste of the kind of
class divided president in the United States. You see, while
in Monroe, young George became quite spin with one Libby Bacon,

(15:23):
the daughter of Judge Daniel S. Bacon, a very powerful
and wealthy man. So, in an apparent attempt to get
closer to Libby and Impressor family, young George asked a
judge if he could do some work for him. Yet,
even though the judge was more than willing to pay
the young man to do some odd jobs, he never
once welcomed George and to his home. As you see,
the Costers were just ordinary funk, meaning they weren't members

(15:45):
of the so called better classes like Judge Bacon and
his wealthy friends. For George, then, if he had any
hope of ever becoming a member of one of those
so called better classes, west Point offered probably his best shot. Plus,
as previously established, the promise of adventuring glory of being
a soldier more than likely appealed to the young George
Armstrong Custer. Custer then would enter Westbourne in eighteen fifty seven,

(16:07):
when he was seventeen years old, where he would fairly
famously finish last in his class, something that is a
bit deceptive as it gives you the impression that he
was the worst student in his class at west Point. However,
to be more precise, Custer was actually the lowest to
graduate a deceptively important distinction, as while yes, he would
graduate thirty fourth out of thirty four, that was his

(16:30):
graduating class. Indeed, he had entered the academy as a
part of a class of sixty eight individuals, meaning that
half of those that Custer had entered the academy with
did not graduate. Now, to be fair, twenty two of
those young men did not graduate because they had resigned
to join the Confederacy. That, however, still means that there
weren't twelve cadetsu were dismissed due to academic or disciplinary reasons,

(16:52):
speaking of which, Custer is also fairly famous for getting
so many reprimands that he risked being thrown out, which
paints a picture of this wald and pulsive, out of
control young man, which is an unfair given the multiple
times that he abandoned his command to chase after wild
animals or to run to his wife, as illustrated at
the end of the last episode. That being said, these
disciplinary issues not only illustrated that part of his personality,

(17:15):
but also the fact that he could control himself and
be fairly calculated in doing so. You see, he seemly
knew exactly how much he could get away with and
how much he could push to line without crossing it. Now.
West Point, as you might expect, especially in those days,
had a ton of rules and regulations. Among the long
list of academy rules at Custer and his fellow cadets
were expected to obey, there were not to play cards,

(17:37):
or gamble, or play chess, or participating in any games period.
Tobacco was also forbidden, as was alcohol. Nor were they
allowed to have any cooking utensils in their rooms, a
rule that seems to have been made to combat the
cadet's attempts to supplement the meager and poor food provided
by the academy, where apparently everything was boiled, from the
meat to the potatoes to the pudding. The cadets then

(17:58):
looked to procure additional and or superior food, which they
would then cook over these small fireplaces in their rooms.
Take for example, the time Custer stole a rooster from
an officer's chicken coop, which he then killed and cooked
in his room for himself and his friends. Cadets were
also forbidden from bathing in the Hudson and were not
allowed to play a musical instrument. The violation of these
and any of the myriad of other rules would earn

(18:20):
the offending cadet of demerit, a punishment which included marching
around in full uniform and carrying a rifle for several
hours over the weekend. That, however, was not the limit
of the punishment. You see, the officers at West Point
can't the Italia these demerits, and by rule, any cadet
who received over one hundred demerits over a six month
period was automatically kicked out of the academy. Custer then

(18:41):
seemed to very consciously ride this line. For example, in
two back to back six month periods, he earned ninety
four and ninety eight demerits, coming just up to the
line but never crossing it, which you would think still
suggesting lack of self control, except we can see a
very clear example of self control. Custer managed to earn
ninety demerits over the first three months of such a span,

(19:04):
only to earn any single additional to merit for the
following three months, thereby preserving his enrollment, suggesting that he
couldn't very much follow the rules when he had to.
As such, there does seem to have been some degree
of choice when he was breaking the rules. Basically, then
we have a Custer who is not this completely wild
and out of control, undisciplined character, but I figure who

(19:25):
was fairly calculated, at least when he had to be. Indeed,
he often seemed to break the rules as they wave
ingratiated himself with his classmates. Custer u se would play pranks,
fully knowing that it would earn him a demerit and
that he would spend at least four hours of his
Saturday marching around. Yet in his mind this was all
worth it because the prank and made his classmates laugh.

(19:46):
Custer's pranks then became the stuff of legends among his
fellow candets. For example, one time he made a point
of interrupting their Spanish class to ask the teacher if
they could translate the phrase class is dismissed. Upon the
instructor doing so, Custer then acted as if the instructor
was ending class for the day as he personally marches
fellow cadets out of the classroom. Custer also seemed to

(20:06):
know what he had to do to just get bye academically,
although in January eighteen sixty one he was among thirty
three cadets who were declared academically deficient. However, unlike the
other thirty two cadets, who were also given the opportunity
to take a test to prove their academic merits, Custer
actually passed and was thus reinstated. Now, to be clear,
this is not to say that he was some kind

(20:28):
of genius who did poorly on purpose. Custer, since he
hailed from a more western state, was more likely to
perform more sanny classroom than cadets hailing from the northeastern
parts of the country, simply because the educational facilities there
were more established and better. Indeed, cadets for more southern
and western parts of the country tended to in general
do worse simply due to the fact that they didn't

(20:49):
have the same academic preparation coming in. As for the
education that Custer and the others received at West Point,
despite the academy's claims at providing the best education in
the country, that wasn't actually the case. You see, pretty
much all the cadets were expected to do was memorize
things as such, Actually understanding and applying this knowledge so
as to show actual mastery of it was not a

(21:09):
part of the education, nor was asking questions or any
kind of further investigation into ideas or issues a part
of the West Point education. Indeed, you were not permitted
to have such discussions period, which, to be fair, was
apparently fairly typical of education in those days. It's just
at West Point took distract process of memorization and memorization
only to the extreme. This was partially because memorization was

(21:32):
good for furthering the sense of competition among the candets. Indeed,
the men who ran the academy want into fostering atmosphere
were Eventually everything played into your fight for ranking. Custer, though,
by having the reputation as not being special in his
classes and se class clown of sorts, more or less
removed himself from this competition. As such, he wasn't a
threat to the others who were competing for the top

(21:54):
spot and the like. Therefore he could just be friends
with them, which helped to make him popular with all
his fellow can dance. Plus, it also didn't hurt that
Custer did not seem to be the deepest thinker or
one it was one to question the majority opinion. Instead,
he liked cliches and used them freely. Now the one
place where West Point exceeded academically was when it came

(22:14):
to civil engineers, as practically no other American institution at
the time taught such courses. This then meant that condance,
even if they did not shine in the military, they
could still reliably find work, as it would exit the
academy as competent civil engineers in a country that did
not have an abundance of such individuals. This then, was
one of the major ways that graduates of West Point

(22:35):
were able to get a leg up an American society.
For Custer and his classmates, though, they would be presented
with another opportunity to earn a place in the uppera
ranks of American society thanks to the growing sectional conflict
that would erupt into open war before they were even
able to graduate. Following John Brown's raid, the formerly fairly

(23:19):
united West Point campus began to be just as divided
in contentious places as the rest of the country. Indeed,
arguments started breaking out between goodets, and there was even
at least one duel that was fought in the simmering climate. Custer, however,
still managed to get along with everybody, likely because he
could find common ground with both sides. You see, on
one hand, Custer was a strong supporter of the Union,

(23:41):
but he was also very sympathetic to his Southern secession
as classmates, and then he supported the preservation of slavery. Meanwhile,
as divisive as his climate was, was also one of
excitement and promise, because if things did come to war,
it would potentially provide the gooddets and opportunity to immanly
prove themselves an earned, faming, clad glory, all things that
Custer very much desired, even though he didn't want to

(24:04):
get them, by fighting for a Republican administration against the
institution of slavery and his Southern friends, both of which
he continued to support despite the that they presented to
the Union that he held so dear. Indeed, it would
be this dedication to the Union that ultimately decided which
side Custer would fight on, despite his sympathy for the
Southern cause and his own resentment towards Lincoln. So as

(24:25):
the Southern classmates reside in marsh Off to join the
Confederate war effort, Coster, like all those who remained loyal
to the Union, simply remained in class, which was not
the most exciting development. Indeed, the belief among many at
the start of the war was everything would be decided
in a singular, climactic battle. This was a very real
and frankly baffling belief that was just kind of the

(24:46):
accepted wisdom at the time. The cadets at West Point,
then the seniors in particular, could not help but fear
that they would miss their opportunity to take part in
this glorious singular battle. So the senior sent a petition
to the Secretariat more requesting an earth graduation so that
they might join the war effort, a request that was granted,
and soon they began receiving their commissions and were sent

(25:07):
off to serve. Custer, however, was not a senior. He
was a junior, and his class was not set to
graduate until eighteen sixty two. Still, his class would send
their own petition asking to be graduated more than a
year early, a request that would be granted, leading to
an abbreviated state of classes into which their final year's
worth of instruction was crammed into a little over a

(25:27):
month's time, which thereby necessitated the cadets to study pretty
much around the clock so they could pass their final
exams and become officers in the Union Army. Yet despite
successfully graduating with the rest of his remaining classmates, Custer
was very nearly kicked out of the army before ever
getting the chance to report for duty. You see, five
days after graduating, when two incoming cadets got into a fight, Custer,

(25:49):
rather than intervening as an officer in the army was
expected to do, instead actively stopped others from breaking off
the combat, as he insisted they'd be allowed a fair
fights that were a clear violation of his duty, and
so Custer was arrested when a lieutenant came upon the
scene of cadets fighting while Custer stood by watching, taking
no action to put a stop to the disturbance of

(26:11):
the piece. The boys, you see, had violated the rules
of the academy, and it was then Custer's duty to
stop the fight and send them to be judge and
punished for their actions. By failing to do so, Custer
found himself arrested, with his only explanation being quote, the
instincts of a boy prevailed over the obligations of an
officer of the guard, something that would seem to be

(26:32):
being of a reoccurring theme in his career in the military,
which was itself say primarily because some of his classmates,
who had gone on to Washington while he remained locked up,
reached on to their influential friends, who then ordered that
Custer be released and sent off to report for active duty. Now,
for Custer and his fellow West Point classmates, the Civil
War was the type of golden opportunity that didn't come

(26:54):
around often for military men lack themselves. You see, the
Civil War offered them the chance for the kind of
rapid advance through the ranks that otherwise would be impossible.
Under normal circumstances, a graduate from West Point could expect
to service a second lieutenant for a minimum of five
years before having a chance to be promoted. Than if
they made it to first lieutenant, they would likely serve
in that role for an additional ten years before having

(27:16):
the opportunity to become a captain. During the Civil War, though,
there was a good chance that young officers like themselves
would have the opportunity to prove themselves in as sind
through the ranks. Indeed, for Custer, his belated arrival in
the capital after nearly being kicked out of the army
would ultimately work out in his favor. You see, while
his classmates had already received their assignments to begin drilling

(27:38):
new recruits, since he arrived late. By happenstance, Custer was
given the opportunity to meet with the Venerable General Winfield Scott, who,
on a whim, offered the young Custer the option of
either reporting to General Mansfield or the opportunity for something
more active. Naturally, Coster leaped at the chance for something
more active, which men carrying messages to Brigadier General Irvy McDowell,

(28:01):
who was commanding the Union troops in northeastern Virginia. It
was then, thanks to this assignment that Custer was able
to more and less join McDowell's regiment and even take
part in the first Battle bull Run, where he was
mentioned in the official reports of the engagement, something that
apparently none of his classmates could say. Custer's military career
then seemed to be off to a fine start, and

(28:22):
things only got better from there when during the Peninsula Campaign,
he happened to get the opportunity to impress the commander
of the Army of the Metomac, General George McClellan, as
upon reaching the Chickahominy River, the army paused while McClellan
mused out loud, quote, I wish I knew how deep
it is. As the army waited, McLellan's words filtered through
the ranks until they reached Second Lieutenant Custer, who was

(28:45):
at the back of the column, saying, this is a
chance to prove himself. Custer rode to the front, where
he plunged his horse into the river, riding across it
and back as he called out, quote, that's how deep
it is. General. Upon his return and exchange that not
only impressed McClellan, but also exemplified the difference between the
two men. McLellan, you see, was a type to hesitate

(29:05):
and be at least somewhat frozen by any kind of unknown,
while Custer was a type to plunge in and ask
questions later. Regardless, Custer's act and press McLellan, who offered
him a spot on his staff, a position which came
with a boost and rank for Custer, as he was
promoted to captain. Now, while the two men were fundamentally
different in some important ways, there was something that both

(29:26):
men shared that made Custer a perfect fit for McLellan's staff,
and that was politics. You see, the head of the
Army of the Potomac Black Custer was a Democrat who
hadn't remained loyal to the Union, but in doing so
he had remained sympathetic to the Confederate scoll of protecting
the institution of slavery. McLellan's headquarters and was a place
where the General, his aides and officers could make jokes

(29:48):
about Edwards Lincoln and black Republicans that were apparently enjoyed
by all in attendance. It was also quite the heady
environment for young Custer, as McLellan was known to play
host to French dukes and princesses in his headquarters, in
addition to a Cadria prominent Democratic officials and politicians, the
types of individuals whom Custer had been raised by his
father to admire. Custer's time with McLellan then offered opportunities

(30:10):
to make the kind of connections that would have otherwise
been impossible for an officer of his rank and experience.
That all being said, it was not the most politically
intelligent long term relationship to cultivate, as McLellan's resentment toward
Lincoln was at least in part reciprocated by the President himself,
especially since he was known to be displeased by McLellan's
obvious hesitancy in battling the Confederates. Ploster was also mcleollan's

(30:33):
resistance toward the administration's goals in winning the war. You see,
Lincoln and his fellow Republicans were, to one degree or another,
known to be eyeing the possibility of Wanton for all
abolishing slavery, which was the last thing that McLellan wanted. Indeed,
in response to the potential of Lincoln emancipating the slaves,
McLellan apparently penned a letter that he ultimately ended up

(30:53):
not sending and even destroying after a close confidence told
him that the missive smelled of treason. On surprise, then
Lincoln would in November eighteen sixty two have McClellan replaced
as he headed the Army of the Potomac. Yet even
at this point, Custer did not seem to be in
a hurry to distance himself from they clearly fall on McClellan. Instead,
he followed the former head of the Army of the

(31:14):
Potomac opt to New York as mcclellum worked on his
final report, a move that wallet once again brought young
Custer into close arbor with prominent Democratic politicians, also did
him no favors within the ranks of the army. The
thing that would ultimately save Custer was he simple feed
that as a soldier, he and mcclellum couldn't have been
more different. Custer, you seem practically lusted for combat. Indeed,

(31:36):
Custer would come to realize that he was one of
those individuals who felt most alive when in battle, with
his opinion being that a saber charge was the most
exciting thing a man could do in his life. McClellan,
on the other hand, whilet isserving of credit for training
and organizing the Union forces during those early years of
the war, he was also cautious to a fault. McClellan's
forces then would often crawl forward at a stale's pace,

(31:58):
thanks to his seeming fear of running into Confederates, who
he was constantly convinced outnumbered his own forces, regardless of
logic and reality of just how many men actually existed
in the Southern States that could be put into the field. Indeed,
prior to the battle Vantina. Mccleowan was given the get
in the form of Lee's orders. He telling the movements
of his army, orders that were supposed to be destroyed

(32:19):
but had been kept by one of his officers as
a souvenir, only to lose them, at which point they
ended up in Union hands. Orders that notably detailed how
these forces were at that very moment divided, Orders that,
if acted upon rapidly, could have given the Union forces
a great advantage. Yet even then mclellum was slow to move.
The cautious McClellan would then write of Custer in both

(32:40):
a praising and critical way, as he called him a
quote reckless, gallant boy, undeterred by fatigue, unconscious of fear.
It was these very qualities, his lack of fear and
willingness to fight, not to mention the fact that he
was a West Point graduate, that would serve Custer so
well over the course of the war, even if his
political alignment in the fact that he was a known
Clone loyalists, did him no favors. Indeed, the very fact

(33:03):
that he was a West Point graduate put Custer in
a sort of elite club, a club where the members
were notably more than willing to look after one of
their own, a fact that would certainly help Custer throughout
his military career. That being said, it would be a
mistake to discount Custer's personal attributes for this success. He
experienced Mike for example, his willingness to volunteer for dangerous duty,

(33:24):
as illustrated by the time when the army was in
need of someone to ride in a hot air balloon
to scount Confederate positions, a job that meant the person
taking said hot air balloon was practically asking to be
shot at, as they made for a very obvious target
and is not like hot air balloons are known for
their maneuverability. In general. Then Custer very much appeared to
be brave. Now, some of this was down to the

(33:44):
simple fact the Custer, like so many of his fellow
soldiers then and to this day, just don't want to
look better appear cowardly in front of their fellows. As such,
Custer would master the skill of at least appearing common
confident in front of his men. Plus, has previously mentioned,
Custer would discover that he to some degree actually enjoyed battle,
comparing the rush he felt winning combat to the one

(34:05):
he felt while hunting. Additionally, custer shumer and good nature
demeanor also served him well as he served on the
staff of a half a dozen generals during the first
couple of years of the war. The very same aspects
of his personality which had made him a popular cadet
at West Point, also helped him win favor among the
officers he served under and amongst. Another factor aiding Custer's

(34:25):
success was the simple fact that he remained relatively healthy
throughout the lengthily Civil War, which on the surface may
not sound like much, but was actually a pretty big deal.
As you see, while Custer only had to go one
sick leave twice during that four year period, and wasn't
uncommon for new regiments to have two thirds of their
number out of action due simply to illness. Indeed, fifty

(34:47):
seven deaths or night conflict would be attributed to dysentery,
a number that exceeds the forty four thousand who were
actually killed in battle. Now, during one of Custer's two
sick leaves, he returned to Monroe, Michigan. Custer, though wouldn't
recover rapidly, and so he had the better part of
the month he had been given to recover and to
be the proverbial bell of the ball in Monroe's social circles,

(35:07):
as he who regularly attended social functions where he the
dashing young hero returned temporarily from battle, caught the attention
of more than a few women. During this time, young
George Armstrong Custer started to make quite the name for
himself within Monroe, and especially among the town's upper cross
So when he had the opportunity to return on furlough
several months later, Custer found himself invited to take part

(35:29):
in more and more elite social functions. It was at
this point that Custer encountered Libby Bacon, as a young
girl who had so captured his imagination and attention when
he was a boy, had since that time grown to
one of the prettiest young women around, who, as it
turns out, also happened to be quite taken with the
dashing young captain. Now, in addition to her parent beauty,
Libby was also a skilled horse rider and quite intelligent,

(35:52):
although per the customs of the day, she had the
tendency to hide her inherent bravery and intelligence. Now, despite
the two seemingly being very much attracted to one another.
Custer would very nearly spoil the whole affair by going
on a tremendous drinking spree one afternoon, as he apparently
got extremely drunk in public during the day where anyone
could see, with anyone including both Libby and her father,

(36:15):
Judge Bacon. Indeed, the two got a front row seat
from their houses. Custer made his way down the sidewalk
on their street, alternatively stumbling, weaving from side to side,
falling over and vomiting, all the while also just generally
making a fool of himself, a site that neither Bacon
approved of, nor did Custer's older sister, Lydia, whose homie
was staying at will in Monroe. As remember, their father

(36:37):
had specifically raised his children to avoid drinking alcohol and
to see such indulgences as a sin. Custer, though, since
getting away from these churches of his family and those
of West Point, had subsequently taken up these same pastimes
as many of his fellow soldiers and officers, which included
visiting sex workers and drinking quite often, although not often
enough to get in the way of duty. Now, though,

(36:58):
since he didn't have that limitation standing in his way
while in Monroe, Custer had apparently gotten quite drunk, which
then led to his sister delivering what was reportedly a
long lecture in which she reminded her wayward brother of
the religious structures they had been raised upon, a lecture
that would have the desired effect, as Custer would solemnly
pledge to his sister that from that day forth he

(37:18):
would not imbibe another drop of alcohol, a pledge that
he very much seemed to hold to. As a reporter,
he would not even drink wine during dinner parties after
making this promise. Following this reformation, Custer started winning Libby back,
although her father, Judge Bacon, remained opposed to Custer having
anything to do with his beloved daughter, a stance that,
while unlikely had something to do with the drunken spectacle

(37:39):
Custer had made of himself, was also likely tied to
the fact that the Custers occupied a far lower wrong
on the societal lighter than the prominent Bacons. Indeed, things
even got to the point that the judge forbade Libby
from seeing the young cavalry captain ever again, a situation
that only seemed to feed Custer's desire to make a
name for himself so that even the likes of Judge
bas Bacon could not object to his daughter marrying him.

(38:02):
An important step in achieving this goal came in eighteen
sixty three when Custer got his first chance to command
a Calvary unit out of the eighth New York's Calvary's
colonel was killed in action. That being said, it does
not sound like this first outing was a resounding success,
as Custer reliad his bet on a charge that seemed
to primarily result in them being surrounded by a larger
enemy force and then having to cut their way out.

(38:24):
So though the Wayne wench Custer had taken command in
an emergency situation was enough to impress General Pleasanton who
he was serving under, which was important because it wasn't
long after this when, during his brief time as he
had in the Army of the Potomac, Major General Hooker
reorganized a Union Calvary under General Pleasanton. Now this was
a desperately needed move, as so far the Confederate Calvary

(38:46):
under the leadership of Jeb Stewart had proven to be
virtually impossible to stop. So in an effort to combat
this dangerous shrink force, Hooker and Pleasanton reorganized a Union
cavalry from being a bunch of small units used primarily
as couriers in the occasional recaps contistance mission, to instead
be a larger unit that liked the Confederate cavalry was
focused on being an actual fighting force. As a part

(39:07):
of this reorganization, Custer would be made a brigadier general,
a promotion that Custer had in no way been expecting. Indeed,
when his fellow officer started calling him general one day,
he initially assumed this was their way of making fun
of his well known desire to reach the rank of
general before the war was over. It, however, wasn't a joke.
They were simply acknowledging his new orders and worthy result

(39:28):
of General Pleasanton being so impressed by the way young
Custer had fought when present too a commanding position. Indeed,
the fact that I just referred to him as being
young was purposeful, as at twenty three, Custer was the
youngest man in the history of the US military to
become a general, a situation that was not entirely uncommon,
as keeping the nature of that conflict, many a young
officer would rocking up through the ranks but still Custer

(39:50):
was the youngest to do so. The new brigadier general
then started to gain a nationwide reputation as to quote
boy general with the flowing yellow curls, as he was
described by the New York Carol, due to his efforts
in the Battle of Gettysburg and elsewhere. That being said,
is not like Custer was some kind of tactical genius,
you see. Historian Stephnie Ambrose would call Custer a quote good,

(40:11):
if often reckless, small unit combat commander. No more and
no less. Custer, you see, wasn't much of a fan
of things like scouting and learning more about his enemy,
nor was it a type who saw much value in
maneuvering around to get into an advantageous position. Indeed, the
worst grade that Custer got during his time at West
Point wasn't calvary tactics. Custer then basically had one move,

(40:33):
charged the enemy, a move that sometimes worked and sometimes failed,
but regardless of success, a calvary charge was always glorious
and something that made a compelling story, which made Custer
a favorite of the press. Custer then will be portrayed
as his dashing gallon and courageous cavalry officer in the
nation's papers. To be fair, though, it's not like his
reputation was wholly manufactured, as Custer was still fairly successful

(40:57):
on the battlefield thanks to his brave, if at times
reckless charges. Indeed, it said that whenever he ordered a
saber charge, Custer himself was in the lead, cutting quite
the dashing figure as he dressed in a non regulation
uniform consisting of a velveteen jacket with five golden loops
on the sleeves that he wore overtop a sailor shirt
with a large collar and a very visible red tie.

(41:18):
This outfit and his signature time made it easy for
his men to see him, especially as he waved his
head and pointed his sword at their foes, all the
while shutting encouragements to his men. Custer, then was the
idealized image of the dashing gentleman cavalry commander whom led
his men on glorious charge after glorious charge. Indeed, many
an illustration would be made of the dashing cavalry commander

(41:39):
George Armstrong Custer that would then appear in the various
papers and magazines, alongside their breathless coverage of his exploits.
For example, the New York Times would write, quote Custer
young as he is displayed judgment worthy on Napoleon. Meanwhile,
one reporter, EA Paul, who attached himself to Custer's division,
was if anything, even more effusive as fall a raid

(42:00):
in March eighteen sixty five, he would write, quote General
Custer deserves a credit for planning and execution one of
the most brilliant and successful fights in this or any
other law. Custer was such a sensation, and even Lincoln's
Republican administration won't do make use of the Calvary commander's fame,
despite his own political leanings, as he summoned him back
to Washington in the lead up to the eighteen sixty

(42:21):
four election to show the successful shift the war had taken. Meanwhile,
Custer would play along as he brought along the flags
that he and his men had captured while fighting in Virginia.
It has to be said, though, that Custer's vaunted reputation
often came to the cost of his men's lives. Now,
to be fair, such a description wasn't exactly uncommon among
a lot of the officers from that conflict, and again

(42:42):
in stylight Custer exempted himself from the danger as he
rode with his men all these charges. Still, though, it
seems that Custer was reckless with his men's lives to
a notable degree, even by these standards of the Civil War.
Take Guineysburg for example. While yes is glorious savor charge
against a Confederate division would put us stop to the
enemy's advance, his tactics resulted in the loss of forded

(43:03):
in eighty one of his seventeen hundred men, when a
more defensive minded strategy could have resulted in the same
effect with far fewer losses. Indeed, one chart that Custer
personally led resulted in eighty six tests in a matter
of moments. However, it also earned Custer not only fame,
but also the praise of his superiors for the way
he took the initiative. In particular, Custer would be praised

(43:24):
for his efforts at Gattiesburg because it represented possibly the
first time that Union cavalry had faced jebs towards Confederate
cavalry on the field of battle and emerged victorious in
doing so. It has to be said, though, that Custer
benefited from the fact that by the time he was
put in command, the Confederate Cavalry was more or less
a shell of the great threat they once presented during
the initial years of the war. While they had once

(43:45):
been this seemingly unbeatable force, by this point, whenever the
Confederate Cavalry entered combat, they were more often than not
worn out, ill with dysentery, out gunned, badly outnumbered by
Union forces who were fresher and not ground down by
years of conflict, while also being better fed and better equipped,
both in terms of weapons and horses. Yet, despite this

(44:06):
new reality, the Confederate Calvary still had this reputation of
being these great terrors who had wrecked so much havoc.
As a result, when a Calvary officer like Custer suddenly
started having success against them and only made his legend
all the greater. Meanwhile, now that he was a national hero,
Custer would propose to Libby, who accepted in doing so.
She noally should that, despite trying to appear like the

(44:27):
meek woman she was expected to be accorded to the
standards of the day, Libby was anything but, As she
insisted that Custer promised that she would come and live
with him in the field in his tent, if need be,
as a fair exchange for her giving up her name
for his. In doing so, Libby showed no fear of
danger nor of roughing it, although the degree to which
she would have been expected to rough it is questionable

(44:48):
given the fact that as an officer serving in the
Eastern Theater, Custer lived relatively comfortably. Indeed, by eighteen sixty three,
Custer was traveling with a retinue that included a black
woman who served as his cook, a teenage white boy
who was effectively his servant as he handled all his
cleaning in various personal needs, and also a pair of dogs.
Now this was not unique to Custer, as many a
Union officer serving in the East head similar, if not

(45:10):
even grander, entourages. That all being said, despite Libby agreeing
to his proposal, things still weren't official, as Custer, for
all his bravery on the battlefield, still feared making such
a request of Libby's father, Judge Bacon. Indeed, wil Custer
would eventually make the request, he only did so in writing,
and Judge Bacon, in turn, would only agree to the
marriage after being evasive in his answer for a time still,

(45:32):
the couple would officially time the not only ninth of
February eighteen sixty four. Now that they were married, Libby
helped to add to Custer's fame and mystique as she
became a major figure in Washington's social scene, a role
she was very well suited for. As an addition to
being young, beautiful, and charming, she was also quite clever,
skills which she used to make connections with all the
right people. Mean while, Custer continued to add to his

(45:55):
own legend in the field through both skill and luck,
as he often happened to be in the right place
at the u right time. For example, due to being
in the vanguard of Grant's army that had effectively cut
off Lee's retreat and forced to surrender, Custer would be
the one who personally received Lee's white flag. Additionally, he
would also be gifted by General Sheridan the very table
upon which Lee had signed the surrendered documents in Appomattox. Then,

(46:17):
during the Grand Review following the war, as a victorious
Union army marched through the streets of the nation's capital,
Custer appeared to lose control of his horse. In doing so,
he raised ahead of the rest of the army and
only mashed to gain control of his horse, meaning game
before the presidential viewing stand, a moment that effectively put
the spotlight on the dashing young cavalry commander, when such
attention really should have been on the army as a whole,

(46:39):
and only man who commanded it generally Ulyzzies S. Grant.
One then might be tempted to wonder if Custer had
truly lost control of his horse, or had it all
been an elaborate show by a man who, by all
accounts was an expert horseman, especially after spending much of
the previous four years consistently riding and fighting in a saddle,
a man who was also known to enjoy and desire

(47:00):
the spotlight. We cannot say for sure, then, if this
was just a happy accident that gave George Armstrong Custer
one final bit of national attention at the end of
the Civil War, or if it was a more calculated move. Regardless,
even though the war was over, Custer was not ready
to leave his military career behind, despite his earlier sympathies

(47:58):
for the Southern cause and continuation of their peculiar institution
following the war, Custer would change his stance on slavery
while station in Alexandria Louisiana. Now, this could have potentially
just been the result of Custer realizing the new reality
of the nation following the war, where the idea of
supporting slavery was untenable. That being said, it is also
possible that this shift and stance was a result of

(48:19):
his coming face to face with the true horrible visage
as slavery for the first time. Indeed, Custer would during
this time write quote, there is a young Negro woman
whose back bears the scars of five hundred lashes given
at one time for going beyond the limits of her
master's plantation. If the war has attained nothing else, it
has placed America under a dit of gratitude for all
time for the removal of this evil. Yet, even if

(48:42):
Custer had come to see the true evilness as slavery,
he woulds to all not see African Americans as equals. Indeed,
he would compare the idea of giving African Americans the
right to vote to the idea of naming a Native
American chief. The pope opinions that he would not keep
to himself as Custer would at one point testify before
our Congressional Reconstruction Committee, during which time he expressed his

(49:03):
negative view of free blacks speaking of reconstruction, Custer, after
his time in Louisiana, would be stationed in Texas while
they're the biggest issue he faced was the fact that
the men under his command really had no interest in
being there to start with. The men under Custer all
heild from Western territories, and unlike Custer, had not served
in the Army of the Potomac, which is important because

(49:25):
this meant they were not used to the kind of
strict discipline that was more common in that army than
those serving in the Western theater. Custer's style of harsh
discipline then was an unwelcome surprise in the men under
his command. Plus, seeing as how the war was over,
many weren't interested in acting as an occupying force in Texas,
as what they really wanted was to just go home.
Desertions then became a common problem. Custer, though, had a solution,

(49:48):
as he had one of the men who tried to
desert shot. This led to probably some of the first
negative coverage that Custer ever got in the press, as
he was seen as ordering the shooting and killing of
brave Union soldiers, an image that was not helped out
by the fact that during the same time he was
known to publicly hang out with prominent former Confederates. This
behavior and his known democratic leanings did Custer no favors

(50:09):
when it came time to decide what his rank should
be after the war. You see, wal Custer had been
made a general during the course of that conflict, that
was not actually his rank in the regular army. Instead,
that was a rank given to him as he would
be dealing with volunteer forces from the States who had
their own ranks independent of those in the actual U. S. Army.
As a result of this situation, many lieutenant and the

(50:30):
like would be given loftier ranks so that there was
no question on the pecking order when dealing with these
volunteer forces. In doing so, though their actual official us
RB ranked did not change, which was the case with Custer.
So while General Sheridan very much supported him and the
idea of making Custer a two star general, Nissam could
not be said of the Republicans control in Congress at

(50:50):
the time, who did not want to promote officers with
the kind of Southern leadings that Custer was known to have,
leadings like his aforementioned poor opinion of free blacks and
his opinion that the South should be allowed to return
to the Union with no restrictions or punishments. This included
Custer publicly stating that he believed that former Confederates should
have the right to vote and hold office again. As

(51:10):
a result, he would remain a captain until eighteen sixty six,
when he was made a lieutenant colonel in the seventh Cavalry.
Now he could have been a full colonel, but that
rank would have required Custer to lead an all black regiment,
something that he had no interest in doing because of
his racial prejudices, Which brings us back up to where
we started with Custer's story in his assignment on the
Great Plains, the story we started at the end of

(51:32):
the last episode featuring his and Major General Winfield Scott.
Hancock's ill conceived campaign, then, more than anything else, seemed
to turn groups of peaceful Native Americans hostile, a campaign
that would feature long, fruitless marches across the plains as
Custer searched in vain for foes to do battle with,
coming up empty time and time again before Custer finally,
in his mad ill advised rush to see his wife,

(51:53):
effectively abandon his command in a foriden hostile territory that
it twice come under attacked by Native Americans prior to
his arrival, conduct that had led to court martial charges
being drawn up, with additional charges being added for excessive
cruelty and legal conduct for ordering his officers to shoot deserters,
and for how two of his men during his rush
to see his wife had effectively been abandoned when they

(52:14):
were attacked and killed by hostiles because their horses could
not keep up. These and were seemingly very serious charges,
but Custer still remained confident of his chances, an attitude
that was not entirely unwarranted, given that the captain who
had brought the majority of the charges against him was
not going to testify due to his own drunkenness. On
the flip side, it has to be noted that only

(52:36):
for the officers in Custer's own seventh Calvary were actually
willing to testify in his defense, with one of them
being his own brother Tom. Indeed, a number of the
officers from the seventh actively wanted to testify against Custer,
but they wouldn't be able to because they were stationed
in four Wallace and Custer was being tried in Leavenworth.
As the court martial got under way, Custer would notably

(52:56):
plead not guilty. In fact, he even went so far
as who claimed that the charges were being manufactured by
Hancock to cover up the failure of his expedition. Ultimately, though,
Custer's confidence would prove unwarranted, as he would indeed be
found guilty on all counts. As a result, he was
suspended from the army for a year without pay. This, however,
was not the end of George Armstrong Custer, not by

(53:18):
a long shot. In fact, the sentence itself was fairly light,
as he could have conceivably been dishonorably discharged for his actions. Plus,
being court martialed in those days was not a death
sentence for one's career, especially if you like Custer and
friends in the right places. Indeed, General Sheridan, who thought
quite highly of Custer and his willingness to fight, had
taken over for Hancock and was now in charge of

(53:40):
the military in the region. Sheridan then promised to use
his connections in Washington to try and reduce Custer's sentence
and give him another chance at glory and fame. In
the meantime, Custer and Libby were welcome to make use
of his personal suite of apartments at FOURT. Leavenworth during
the course of his suspension. Indeed, their winter stay in
the fort seemed to serve as an acad excellent vacation

(54:00):
for the couple, as Leavenworth was close enough to quote
unquote civilization that they were able to regularly attend any
number of parties, dances, and parades. Although Wilcuster was still
able to set off from time to time to go hunting.
Now Wilcuster was suspended, the American military obviously would not
be idle. Indeed, part of the reason why Sherman had
been willing to end the Treaty of eighteen sixty eight

(54:22):
abandon the force of long the Bozeman Trail was because,
in addition to his belief that the arrival of the
railroads would bring buffalo hunters who would devastate the herds
of animals to Lakota needed to survive, he also had
plans to start a sizeable campaign against the tribes in
Kansas The thing was the army posty Civil War had
limited men to throw at problems. Indeed, there were only
fifty five thousand men in the army, more than half

(54:44):
of whom were stationed in the South to oversee reconstruction efforts. Meanwhile,
another significant amount of soldiers were required to defend the
nation's coastlines, meaning Sherman had relatively few bodies that he
could throw at their so called Indian problem. To that
and the men who had been more or less trapped
in the forts alone, the Bozeman Trail would be of
much more use as a part of his seek and
destroying mission in Kansas. Yet, as the latest part of

(55:07):
this ongoing campaign got underway in the summer of eighteen
sixty eight, the Army wasn't what you would call successful
in their mission. Indeed, hostile groups of Cheyenne, Arapo, and
Oglala that year would kill some one hundred and twenty
four sellers in Kansas and Colorado as a part of
their efforts to drive these Americans out of their lands.
As you see, they had come to recognize the clearly
disastrous affect the Americans and their railroads were having on

(55:29):
their way of life. Indeed, thanks to white buffalo hunters,
the once great Hearts in Kansas, that is drenched on
for miles, were now vanishing and all but gone. As such,
they lashed out violently and brutally in an effort to
drive the Americans out. As all this was happening, though,
the soldiers under General Sheridan's command and potently ranged across
the plains, unable to find, much less catch any Native Americans.

(55:52):
Frustrated by this failure, Sheridan consultant with Sherman, and together
they approached Grant with the requested reducing Custer's punishment so
that he may once again be sent into the field
to hunt for these elusive Native Americans, a strange request
considering that Custer up until this point had had no
success whatsoever in hunting down Native Americans. Indeed, his own
attempts prior to being court marshaled had come up just

(56:13):
as empty as his latest campaign. Sheridan, however, had faith
in Custer, simply because he had seen the cavalry officer
fight in the Civil War, and thus he trusted that,
at the very least, if given the opportunity, Custer would fight.
So only twenty fourth or September Custer, who along with Libby,
had returned to Monroe, Michigan, would receive a telegram from
General Sheridan informing him that quote, General Sherman Sully and

(56:36):
myself and nearly all the officers of your regiment have
asked for you, and I hope the application will be successful.
Can new come at once? Custer then had once again
been called to duty, and in doing so was granted
another chance to add to his fame and glory, And
so he set off immediately before going any further, though,
this seems as good of a time as any to
talk a bit more about the man he was such

(56:57):
a fan of Custer's, and who would be in charge
of this last campaign against the Plains tribes in Kansas. Sheridan,
you see, had gotten his first experience fighting Native Americans
and stealing their land wall station in the Pacific Northwest
under the command of General George Wright in the mid
eighteen fifties, during which time the US military thuids, use
of superior weapons and ripened hangings of any Native Americans
they found to be suspicious were able to quell any

(57:20):
resistance in the region. Notably during his six years serving
in the Pacific Northwest, Sheridan lived with a Native American
woman who was the daughter of the chief of the
click Attat tribe. During this time, this woman would cook
for Sheridan, maintain his house, and also sleep with him,
an arrangement then lasted until eighteen sixty one, when Sheridan
returned to the East to fight in the Civil War,
after which time, despite sharing his life with this woman

(57:42):
for six years, he apparently never spoke of her again,
much less acknowledged her in any way when she, her
brother and some other friends attempted to visit Sheridan during
a trip to Washington following the war. Indeed, in the
years to come, Sheridan, despite this so called relationship, would
call the Native Americans of the northwest quote miserable wretches. Indeed,
he would eventually go on to declare that quote, the

(58:04):
only good Indians I ever saw were dead, which should
give you a pretty good glimpse into the type of
man that Sheridan was and his temperament when it came
to Native Americans. He, like his boss Sherman, was very
much into fighting and crushing the troublesome savages. Indeed, he
even had a plan to do just that you see,
Sheridan was believing that the Civil War had proven the
validity of the concept of total war with the success

(58:26):
of Sherman's March to the Sea, with the concept of
total war involving the idea that noncombatants, including women and children,
had to endure suffering and experience the horrorsm war so
as to convince the warriors to stop fighting. To that end,
Sheridan wanted to do something that had never been attempted
previously when fighting the planes tribes a winter campaign. The
basic idea here being that if the army could not

(58:48):
find the hostiles during the spring, summer, and fall, when
they were mobile, then they had to attack them during
the winter. The winter, after all, was not a time
for raging and hunting. Indeed, when the temperatures dropped, the tribes,
including all of them the warriors, would retreat to some
sheltered locale where they would honker down for the winter.
In doing so, Sheridan realized they nullified the great advantage
they had over the Americans their mobility. After all, the

(59:11):
various tribes had proven time and again they could easily
outmaneuver and avoid any force the Americans sent out into
the Plains. So the plan now was the Americans would
wait until winter before heading out. This way, they wouldn't
be trying to find and pin down an ever moving
mobile force, but instead they would simply be looking for
a stationary village. That all being said, there was a

(59:31):
reason why this had not been attempted before. Indeed, it
was pretty much the same reason why the Plains tribes
opted to stay in one place during the winter. To
put it simply, it was a bad idea to wander
about on the Great Plans when the weather turned cold. Indeed,
experienced White scouts like the legendary Jim Bridger would warn
Sheridan that should his men get caught in a blizzard
in the middle of the Plans, then they would likely

(59:53):
all perish. Despite this, Sheridan still believed this to be
a good plan, as did Custer, because when Sheridan laid
out everything for him, including these scouts warnings, Custer's only
response was, quote, when do I start? Custer, after all,
wasn't really one to concern himself with the risks of
an action, especially when he was being offered what he
considered to be an ideal situation. As you see, not

(01:00:15):
only did he have the chantry furbish his name and
add to his legend should he be successful. But Sheridan
was basically giving him complete control over this campaign. As
Sheridan was essentially not giving Custer any orders and instead
simply trusting him to make the proper decisions based upon
the situation as he found it. Custer then would not
only not have to answer to anyone else, but this
also meant all the glory would be his when they

(01:00:37):
were invariably successful. So only twenty third of November eighteen
sixty eight, Custer was ready to set off with his
mixed force of infantry, Calvary and Soo Sage scouts. However,
as they woke that morning, they discovered that a foot
of snow already laid on the ground, and more was
being whipped around by howling winds that limited vision to
just a couple of yards. This, however, did nothing to

(01:00:58):
dissuade Custer, as he would inform Sheridan before setting off
that if anything, in his view, these conditions aided them,
as should the snow stay on the ground for a week,
he would soon be able to return having successfully found
a done battle with their elusive foes. In his mind.
You see, the stone would enable him to track their
quarry in a way that otherwise would be impossible on
the planes, and so Custer and his men set off

(01:01:20):
into what was effectively a blizzard. In doing so, Custer
did make sure that none of his men got lost
in the store by ordering them to keep in constant
physical touch with one another. The men they were able
to weather this first day just fine, and would actually
congratulate themselves when they called it a day for having
done so well given the conditions. During the coming days,
they would continue their slog through the snow, hoping each

(01:01:42):
day to come across tracks that would lead them out
long last to an ever elusive Native American village, finally
hitting paydirt on the twenty six when they stumbled across
tracks made by a number of Native Americans who appeared
to be returning to their village in Oklahoma from Kansas. Now,
to be clear, Custer Nora's men knew anything about this group.
They didn't know how many of them.

Speaker 2 (01:02:00):
There were, one tribe, they were from, where they were
coming from, or what they had been doing. None of
that really mattered, though, because here, at long last was
their quarry, and Custer fully intended to hunt them down.
In doing so, he cut loose their wagon train so
as to travel faster, a choice which required him to
lead behind eighty men to guard the wagons as he'd
fallen along at a simmer pace. In the meantime, Custer

(01:02:22):
would keep his men on the trail they needive Americans
well into the night, as he kept them on the
move from four a m. That morning until while after
the sun set. Then, when they did rest, it was brief,
as they essentially had enough time to give their horses
some oats and make coffee to go with their meal
of heartach before getting back in the saddle and pressing
on till about midnight, at which point one of the

(01:02:43):
Osage scouts caught him with a smoke on the air.
At this Custer ordered his men to halt while he
sent his scouts forward. As they did, they soon learned
they'd come upon a valley in which, according to his scouts,
was a significantly sized camp that had been set up
alongside what they would later learn was the Washy Tall River.

Speaker 1 (01:02:59):
Now, Custer, in the darkness, despite what his own scots
are telling him, was not convinced until he heard a
baby crying echo through the night. It was that sound
that finally convinced him that they had indeed found their quarry.
As this, Custer divided his men into roughly four egal
groups so they could surround the village in preparation of
a down attack. Now, it has to be said in
doing so, Custer did not have the first clue about

(01:03:21):
the size of this village, much less who they were,
or even where he was at that moment. Plus, it
has to be said that almost men and their horses
were completely worn out after their long ride, which is
all to say that Custer's plan of attack was fairly reckless. Also,
of note, these criticisms could almost all be repeated verbatim
eight years later when he attacked a different camp of

(01:03:41):
lonely Little Bighorn River. Custer's success here along the Washitah
then all but ensured that he would not learn any
number of lessons that might have saved his and his
men's life in that later campaign. In the meantime, as
Custer's men were getting into position and awaiting his signal
to attack the village along the Washitah, they were under
orders to not even stamped their feet in an attempt
to keep warm in the frigid pre dawn conditions so

(01:04:04):
as to not make any noise that may alert the village. Then,
as dawn came, Custer had the regiment's band announce their
presence and signaled the attack by playing his and their
favorite tune, Gary Owen. Think an Irish drinking song type
of thing, and you'll get the general idea. Now, this
particular rendition did not last all that long, as the
musicians Aliva soon frozen the instruments, which helps to give

(01:04:25):
you an idea of how cold it was on that morning. Regardless,
as soon as the music split that cold morning air,
Custer lent his men only charged down into the village,
firing into the teebs and whomever was sleeping inside. Then,
as the residents of the village were awakened by this assault,
Custer and his soldiers effectively shot everything that moved, regardless
of if it was man, woman, or child. The killing

(01:04:46):
then seems to have been indiscriminate. Indeed, according to historian
George Grinnell, based upon Native American testimony, quote, practically all
the women and children who were killed were shot while
hiding in the buncher trying to run away. Through it, meaning,
as we see time and again in these stories, the
brave soldiers killed women and children who were clearly of
no threat and were actively trying to stay out of

(01:05:06):
the battle, if not get away. Meanwhile, they would also
kill some mortors as they were coming out of their teepees. Others, though,
would manage to actually make it to the nearby Washitah,
where they sheltered behind the river bank to return fire
even as they stood in the freezing water, while still
others managed to make it to a nearby stand of
trees to make their fight. From that being said, within
an hour all the fighting had pretty much ceased, at

(01:05:28):
which point it was now apparently time to figure out
exactly whose village they had just attacked, meaning they had
literally shot first and were asking questions later. Indeed, as
it turns out, this village belonged to the band of
Cheyenne led by Chief Black Kettle. In other words, these
were the very same people who had been massacred by
Chivington at Sand Creek. Indeed, despite those events, Black Kettle

(01:05:49):
had not only remained in power, but had remained steadfast
in his desire to maintain peace with the Whites. But
now after this latest attack, he was dead, which you know,
certainly makes it silent. They had not only attacked a
friendly band, but had again cruelly attacked in already suffering people.
Luckily for Custer, though, there were apparently bits of letters
to Garo types in betting from Kansas homesteads, and even

(01:06:11):
a pair of white captives who had been killed when
the attack began, all of which suggested that at least
some of the wars from this ban had taken part
in raids against Americans, thereby justifying Custer's attack. Custer then
had done it. At long last. Americans had tracked down
and attacked a band of quote unquote hostiles. Custer had
then won a great victory and had even managed to

(01:06:32):
capture some fifty three women and children who had stayed
hidden within their teepees as prisoners. That being said, the
situation was a bit more complicated than it first appeared, because,
as it turned out, this was not some lone camp. Instead,
this was just the tip of a much larger winter
camp consisting of many other arapao of Badgie and Camegie villages. Plus,

(01:06:53):
further complicating the situation, a detachment of nineteen men led
by major Elliott were missing after last being seen pursuing
some fleeing Native Americans. By noon, things were starting to
really take a turn, as words from the nearby villages,
after hearing the early morning fighting, were now taking up
positions on nearby blufs, where they were assembling and starting
to take shots at Custer's men. It was becoming increasingly

(01:07:16):
obvious then that the Americans should be getting someplace else.
That being said, some have questioned just how many actual
warriors are present that day and how much of a
role threat they posed, with some claiming that Custer's seven
hundred well armed cavalrymen should have been able to deal
with the maybe a thousand or so warriors who were
likely there in doing so, though I suspect they are
ignoring the degree to how exhausted these saunters had to

(01:07:38):
be at this point. Regardless, Custer would decide that they
should retreat, yet before doing so, he made should have
set fire to the village, destroying their teepees, buffalo robes,
and the stockpile made they had sent aside for the winter.
Plus he also had his men kill their herd of
nine hundred ponies. After allowing the captured women to select
the ones it would ride as they were taken back
to the Forda's prisoners. The thing that all the women

(01:08:00):
would recall, though, was he pain screams of the ponies
as these soldiers systematically killed them. Once this was don
Custer had his men begin a retreat back from the
larger villages as they headed back to the fort. Doing this,
even though Major Elliott and the nineteen men under his
command still had not been found for some of the battle,
Washitaw would help to cement Custer's famous the nation's premier

(01:08:21):
Indian fighter. After all, he was the first officer to
find and bring the fight to any of the Plains
tribes in quite some time. Indeed, Sheridan made a point
of praising Custer in the Seventh Calvary in a general
Field Order that he issued for that express purpose. To others, though,
Washita was nothing to be proud of, with some focusing
on the fact that this was again the same band

(01:08:41):
who had suffered at the hands of Chippington and his
men at sand Creek. Such individuals then saw Washda's not
some grand victory, but just a repeat of the terrible
events at sand Creek. Meanwhile, there was some of the
military who very much questioned Custer's conduct, like, for example,
why hadn't he done any reconnaissance whatsoever to know the
scope of what he was facing, like you know, whether

(01:09:02):
this was a lone village or a part of a
much larger collection of villages. Plus there was also the
question of why it felt it necessary to simply attack
at dawn without making any attempt to get black cattle
on his people to surrender first. Then there were those
who could not get over the fact that Custer had
essentially abandoned Major Elliott and his men by making no
real attempt to find them. Indeed, Major Elliott and his

(01:09:23):
command would be found dead some time later, having all
been killed by a force of Native Americans. Among those
outraged by Custer failing to do his duty to find
and potentially rescue some of their own were members of
his seventh Cavalry. Indeed, the Saint Louis Democrat would publish
a letter that was critical of Custer for failing Elliott
and his men, a letter that, while unsigned, claimed to
be from an officer in the seventh Cavalry, a letter

(01:09:46):
which outraged Custer and led him to call his officers
together so as to question which one of them had
dared to write this missive promising the horsewhip the man
responsible in doing so. Custer likely never expected anyone to
actually own up to writing this missive, especially in the
face of his threat. Custer then was quite surprised when
Captain Frederick Benteen stepped forward, adjusting the revolver at his

(01:10:07):
waist as he said, quote, all right, General, start your
horsewhipping now. I wrote it. There, however, would be no horsewhipping,
as Custer, after staring at shock at Benteen, simply turned
and walked away. Prior to this moment, Custer had no
clue than Benting had any issues with him. But for Beneen,
what happened to Major Elliott was simply the last straw

(01:10:27):
you see. Bentina was five years Custer senior had long
resented the younger man for rising above him in rank,
although it has to be said that like Custer, Benting
had the opportunity to become a colonel if he had
agreed to lead an all black regiment. Regardless, Benten also
resented what he saw as Custer's on earned fame. Clausett
also did not help that the man Benting had served

(01:10:47):
under previously an officer who had been his mentor had
also been Custer's rival. Indeed, upon their first meeting, Custer
had even made the mistake of making an offhanded insult
of Benteen's mentor. Benteen then had never really left Custer
from the start, and recent events that seemingly only cemented
those feelings. Indeed, from this point on, Bentin was constantly
convinced that anyone in the seventh re liable to soffer

(01:11:09):
these same fate as Major Elliot as long as Custer
was in charge. Basically, it seems that Bentin was of
the opinion that Custer was willing to sacrifice the lives
of his men as long as it earned him fame
and glory. Major Elliott then was simply Custer sacrificed for
the victory at Washita. Meanwhile, there would also be some
quiet talk about the women who had been captured and
brought back by Custer, because, as we have seen with

(01:11:31):
other commands, some of these women would be selected by
the officers. As there was apparently a saying amongst a
soldier serving in the West at this time which is
going down as easily one of the worst phrases I've
ever said on this podcast quote Indian women rape easy,
a practice at custom Soft reportedly took part in, as
according to Benten and others, he spent a winter with

(01:11:52):
one female prisoner in particular. Yet, regardless of these criticisms,
many a newspaper held this as a great victory and
one that only added to the Golden boy general's legend.
After all, Custo remained perfect fodder for fawning newspaper coverage
due to the fact that in many ways he fit
the idealized image of a dashing cavalry officer and Indian fighter,
especially when he wore his frontier scout buckskins. Meanwhile, Custer

(01:12:15):
would continue to roam the planes throughout the winter, although
to be clear, these were all just short excursions, as
the idea of any kind of a prolonged winter campaign
was die impossible as the weather turned out to indeed
be too much for the men of their animals to
withstand for very long. That being said, well, he would
not take part in any more battles. Custer would manage
to convent several chops to return to the Fort Cobb Preservation. Indeed,

(01:12:38):
between Custer's winter efforts and a clean up campaign by
the Fifth Calvary. The following spring, the territory between the
Arkansas and Platte rivers would effectively be cleared of Native Americans.
Following this great victory, Custer would spend three years at
Fort hayswith Lippy, where he became the center of attention. Indeed,
the famous Indian fighter would play host to any number

(01:12:58):
of congressional and miss x men who wouldn't arrive in
the region by the Kansas Pacific Railroad. This included hosting
the Grand Duke Alexei of Russia, the son of Czar Alexander,
the second most Utably, the Grand Duke wanted to try
his handed buffalo hunting, which Custer made happen with the
help of fame Scott William Cody, who managed to find
a small herd of buffalo that they could hunt, with

(01:13:20):
the size of the herd being a disappointment for the
visiting aristocrat, who had heard tales of massive herds stretching
on for miles, to which Custer explained that in a
few more years there were likely to be no more
buffalo left on the Central Plains at all. Despite this
minor disappointment, Custer and Alexi got along so well that
the Grand Duke would ask the Calvary commander to accompany

(01:13:40):
him on the remainder of his tour of the US.
Along the way, the pair would have the opportunity to
kill several more buffalo as a road passed him on
a train, likely never once connecting their actions to the
disappointment that the once great herds were now all but gone.
The two then paid a visit to New Orleans, where
they went shopping, aid a fine restaurants, and attended various
balls before the Grand Duke finally departed. Yet, even without

(01:14:02):
the presence of a foreigner restocrat, Custer still remained easy
fodder for the press, as newspapers continued to eagerly cover
his activities, which included his fairly frequent trips with his
wife Libby, to New York and Washington. Then, to add
to this coverage, Custer also began providing his own press,
initially writing under another name before gradually shifting to openly
writing about himself under his own name, Which is a

(01:14:25):
big reason why we know so much about him, because,
as it turns out, Custer wrote a lot, and when
he did, he typically wrote about himself because he considered
himself to be the most exciting and interesting character he knew.
Plus he seemingly had a burning desire to prove that
he was important, which he seemingly achieved, as his frequent
coverage only served to burnish his name and reputation until

(01:14:48):
he effectively became the most well known Indian fighter in
the army. This despite the fact that he will he
only had one success to his name, and a somewhat
dubious one in that, a reality that only made his
critics in the army rea sent him all the more
because from their perspective, his reputation in the public was
far greater than what his actual achievements warranted. That all
being said, wal Custer enjoyed all this hobnobbing to some degree.

(01:15:11):
It also has to be said that during this time
he did start to grow somewhat bored, as remember, he
never felt more alive than when he was in battle.
Custer then wanted waring glory, so when he and the
Seventh Cavalry war ordered west to Fort Abraham Lincoln to
protect the Northern Pacific Railroad as it prepared to cross
into Lakota Territory, this assignment was music to Custer's ears,

(01:15:33):
as his latest invasion into Lakota Territory was almost assuredly
going to provoke some kind of response and provide George
Armstrong Custer with yet another opportunity to add to his
growing legend that, however, will have to for now remain
a story for another time. Thank you for listening to

(01:15:56):
Distorted History. If you would like to help out, please
rate and review the podcast and tell your friends if
you think they'll be interested. If you would like ad
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over at patreon dot com slash to started History. By
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(01:16:17):
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for listening and until next time,

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