Fights on the Little Horn: Unveiling the Mysteries of Custer's Last Stand

This remarkable book synthesizes a lifetime of in-depth research into one of America’s most famous disasters, the defeat of Custer’s 7th Cavalry at the hands of the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians at Little Horn.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 200 pages
Publication date: 31 January 2018
Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Winner of the 2014 John Carroll Award, presented annually by The Little Big Horn Associates, as their Literary Award for the best book/monograph during the preceding year.

Winner 2014 G. Joseph Sills Jr. Book Award

This remarkable book synthesizes a lifetime of in-depth research into one of America's most storied disasters, the defeat of Custer's 7th Cavalry at Little Horn at the hands of the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians, as well as the complete annihilation of that part of the cavalry led by Custer himself.

The author, Gordon Harper, spent countless hours on the battlefield itself as well as researching every iota of evidence of the fight from both sides, white and Indian. He was thus able to recreate every step of the battle as authoritatively as anyone could, dispelling myths and falsehoods along the way.

One of his first observations is that the fight of June 25–26, 1876, took place along the Little Horn River—its junction with the Big Horn was several miles away, so that the term for the battle, "Little Big Horn," has always been a misnomer. He precisely traces the mysterious activities of Benteen's battalion on that fateful day, and why it could never come to Custer's reinforcement. He describes Reno's desperate fight in unprecedented depth, as well as how that unnerved officer benefited from the unexpected heroism of many of his men.

Indian accounts, ever-present throughout this book, come to the fore especially during Custer's part of the fight, because no white soldier survived it. However, analysis of the forensic evidence—tracking cartridges, bullets, etc., discovered on the battlefield—plus the locations of bodies assist in drawing an accurate scenario of how the final scene unfolded. It may indeed be clearer now than it was to the doomed 7th Cavalrymen at the time, who .

Weight: 560g
Dimension: 228 x 154 x 24 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781612005638