A military action allright-and if Custer was anything but the most towering of egomaniacs his last words would have to have been "S&*^&! I &%^$ed UP!!" So was it an ambush set up by Crazy Horse? Or did the situation just happen that way? My thoughts after fresh back from the site; The one surprise was the firing lines the Lakota/Cheyenne threw up on ridges around Custer's postitions so as to pepper him at range leaving one to wonder if Crazy Horse had heard about "fixing the enemy.". This was basically a modern firefight and if there were any "arrows and tomahawks" employed it was probably in Gall's final flanking attack-if at all. From start to finish the Battle lasted on half hour and ended with a lopsided Lakota/Cheyenne victory. So what was Custer thinking when he ordered the charge across an open field against a foe who as it turned out possessed superior firepower? It was certainly a massive mistake on his part and the old "hey diddle diddle right up the middle!" plan was NOT the way to go! If he had brought the 2 Gatling guns could Custer have prevailed? Looking over the field and thinking on things I guessed not-the Indians made good use of cover, had some well placed firing lines, were mostly armed with firearms themselves some of which were superior to the troopers' ; and the best the Gatlings could have done is possibly staved off annihilation. Possibly.
Indian Memorial - Little Bighorn Battlefield NM

Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument (U.S. National Park Service)

Friends of the Little Bighorn, home of Custer's Last Stand

Eric von Schmidt paints Lewis and Clark

The Friends of Bear Paw, Big Hole and Canyon Creek Battlefields

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