Tuesday, July 12, 2016

The Death Of Tall Bull...!

For those interested in early Native American history, here is a tale you might find interesting.

1869
Tall Bull dies

Tall Bull, a prominent leader of the Cheyenne Dog Soldier warrior society, is killed during the Battle of Summit Springs in Colorado.

Tall Bull was the most distinguished of several Cheyenne warriors who bore this hereditary name. He was a leader of the Dog Soldiers, a fierce Cheyenne society of warriors that had initially fought against other Indian tribes. In the 1860s, though, the Dog Soldiers increasingly became one of the most implacable foes of the U.S. government in the bloody Plains Indian Wars.

In October 1868, Tall Bull and his Dog Soldiers badly mauled an American cavalry force in Colorado. He confronted General Philip Sheridan’s forces the following winter in Oklahoma. Near the Washita River, Sheridan’s Lieutenant Colonel George Custer attacked a peaceful Cheyenne village under Chief Black Kettle. The Cheyenne suffered more than 100 casualties, and Custer’s soldiers brutally butchered more than 800 of their horses. However, Custer was forced to flee when Tall Bull and other chiefs camped in nearby villages began to mass for attack.

Custer’s attack had badly damaged the Cheyenne, but Tall Bull refused to surrender to the Americans. In the spring of 1869, Tall Bull and his Dog Soldiers took their revenge, staging a series of successful attacks against soldiers who were searching for him. Determined to destroy the chief, the U.S. Army formed a special expeditionary force under the command of General Eugene Carr.

On this day in 1869, Carr surprised Tall Bull and his warriors in their camp at Summit Springs, Colorado. In the ensuing battle, Tall Bull was killed and the Dog Soldiers were overwhelmed. Without the dynamic leadership of their chief, the surviving Dog Soldiers’ resistance was broken. Although other Cheyenne continued to fight the American military for another decade, they did so without the aid of their greatest warrior society and its leader.

History is so interesting that I never get tired of reading about it. Funny, 'cause I never cared for it when I was in school. Of course, what they taught us was a watered down version of the truth as we know it today.

Coffee out on the patio this morning.

7 comments:

Momlady said...

I'm sure our understanding of history would be different if we could read/hear the other side's version. Thanks for the history lesson HJ.

linda m said...

Great history lesson today. I wish stories like this had been taught in my history classes. Mostly what I learned in school was ancient history, which I thought was totally irrelevant. I do love it when I read your post and learn something new. Thank you

HermitJim said...

Hey Momlady...
You are probably right about that Unfortunately that seldom happens.
Thanks for stopping by today!


Hey Linda...
I love being able to share a bit of knowledge with folks, especially if it is something new to them.
Thanks for coming by today!

JO said...

With all the reading I have done and still do I never heard of this great Chief. Thank you for posting this story. One always has more to learn. And I agree the stuff you learned in school was only one sided and not always the truth.

Dizzy-Dick said...

Everyone has a story, but you Jim, seem to find the most interesting true stories. Always enjoy your blog postings.

HermitJim said...

Hey Jo...
Hard for me to find a topic that you haven't read about. Glad that I could find one this time!
Thanks, sweetie, for dropping in today!


Hey Dizzy...
Thanks for reading and finding them interesting. I try and find something that will appeal to everyone,or almost everyone!
Many thanks for the visit today!

deb harvey said...

never was taught about him.
so sad about the terrible abuses.
figure God has long ago settled those soldiers hash.
we need to try to stop such behaviors in our own time.