hessians in the 2nd English Civil War

The misnomer callr the American war of I ndependence gives us the feeling that it was Americans against English but in reality it was English colonists against mainland English or British.Many lands fought in America but the role of the Hessians is not very clear. Schools put history lessons into the hands of those who merely reiterate the trodden but often lost path of history.The American war was basically about greed and not( the end of  the American finanial empire as we see today is for the reason that greed defies the relationship, the necessary relationship, between real work and gain.)independence and this was to cause the end of the The Hessians were 18-century German regiments hired through their rulers by the British Empire. Despite their name, they were not all from Hesse.

It is said they were not mercenaries, although their German rulers profited from their use. Though used in several conflicts including in Ireland, they are most widely associated with combat operations in the  so called American Revolutionary War. They provided extensive manpower to support the American loyalist cause, but the fact that they were not British provided the pro-independence side with opportunities for propaganda and may have aided pro-independence recruitment.They first landed at Staten Island on August 15, 1776. Their first engagement was in the Battle of Long Island. The Hessians fought in almost every battle, although after 1777, the British used them mainly as garrison troops. An assortment of Hessians fought in the battles and campaigns in the southern states during 1778–80 (includingGuilford Courthouse), and two regiments fought at the Siege of Yorktown in 1781.

The British use of Hessian troops rankled American sentiment, and pushed more loyalists to be in favor of the revolution. The British use of non-English speaking foreign troops to put down the rebellion was seen as insulting, as it treated British subjects no differently than non-British subjects. Pro-British Tories believed that the British nature of the british colonists should have subjected them to something other than mercenary foes.

wake island by sgt major miniatures

the only wargames shop in central london

• The easiest way to get to the Orcs Nest shop is by London Underground.
• Go to Leicester Square underground station, and go out the Charing Cross Road Eastexit.
• When you get to the street turn right on Charing Cross Road.
• Walk up Charing Cross Road until you come to Shaftesbury Avenue.
• You will see the Palace Theatre showing "Priscilla Queen of the Desert".
• Turn right, and we are at the end of Earlham Street just past the Marquis of Granby Pub.
• The ORCS NEST is the shop painted bright yellow and black, with the Orc's face hanging outside!
• See ya there!

cvarloantonio=ITALIANS DO IT BETTER

these are plastic figures from strelets painted by carlo antonio, so why buy metalk ones if you can get this

DISHONEST BLOGGER ITALY PLUS GOOGLE

Due to problems invented by Blogger and Google this blog will be moving on . It seems every time we get near to being paid out for the ads this and my other blogs create (but especially for them) they find an excuse not to pay.The latest one was that my photos were too big. This was given as an excuse on THE ITALIAN WARS OF INDEPENDECE and on let god decide the just tHEY SAID THAT THE BLOG WASN'T ORIGINAL AND THEREFORE IT WAS TO BE DONE WITHPOUT ADS, THIS IS AFTER WE ARE CLOSE TO GETTING PAID OUT BY THEM.sTRANGE THEY NEVER SAID ANYTHING IN THE LAST YEAR. The other excuse was that I was inciting readers to click ads. I have no incitements like this. So we'll be leaving. I'd just ask you not to get involved with Google blogs. In my opinion =Not honest.

earp

Come along,” says Virgil Earp, as he hands a Wells, Fargo & Co. shotgun to Doc Holliday. The quartet starts up Fourth Street, walking four abreast, but after they turn the corner at Fremont Street, they walk two by two, favoring the south sidewalk.

Striding purposefully past the rear entrance to the O.K. Corral, the quartet sees Cochise County Sheriff John Behan coming toward them. “Hold up boys, don’t go down there or there will be trouble!”

Virgil is firm about enforcing the  ordinance banning guns within the city limits. “Johnny, I am going down to disarm them,” he tells the sheriff.

“I have been down there to disarm them!” Behan cries.

Virgil and his brother Wyatt resheathe their weapons. Despite Behan’s claim, they continue on, to meet their tormentors face to face and tell them off.

But as they step into the lot, they see Behan was not quite telling the truth. Both Billy Clanton and Frank McLaury have on holsters with their pistols in plain sight.

“Boys, throw up your hands,” Virgil demands. “I want your guns.”

Nervous about the confrontation and sensing the bristling attitude of Morgan Earp and Doc Holliday, Frank McLaury says, “We will,” and makes a motion to pull his revolver.

Making a sudden move, Holliday thrusts his shotgun threateningly toward Tom McLaury. Wyatt jerks his pistol from his coat pocket, and Billy Clanton pulls his revolver.

“Hold on, I don’t want that!” says Virgil, realizing the situation is slipping from his control.

Two shots ring out, almost as one. Then a long pause. Frank McLaury clutches his stomach and staggers, as the firing becomes general (Ike Clanton flees once the shooting starts).

Some 30 shots are fired in less than 30 seconds. The most famous fight in the West is over. The repercussions are only beginning.

Did Wyatt Earp Shoot His Brother Morgan in the Back?

In recent years, a theory has been advanced that in the confusion of the Tombstone street fight, Wyatt Earp may have shot his brother Morgan. We asked expert Jeff Morey to weigh in on this “friendly fire” theory:

The problem with Morgan’s wound is that the two newspapers give completely opposite trajectories. About Morg’s wound the Tombstone Daily Nugget reported, “...the ball passing through the point of the left shoulder blade across his back, just grazing the backbone and coming out at the shoulder, the ball remaining inside of his shirt.”

On the other hand, The Tombstone Epitaph reported, “His [Virgil Earp’s] brother Morgan was shot through the shoulders, the ball entering the point of the right shoulder blade, following across the back, shattering off a piece of one of the vertebrae and passing out the left shoulder in about the same position that it entered the right.”

Until someone comes up with the actual doctor’s report, we are stuck with two opposite accounts.

What are the implications of the two bullet trajectories?

If the Nugget is right, and the bullet hit Morgan in the left shoulder, the chances that Morg was hit by friendly fire becomes a strong possibility.

Virgil testified that he fired four times, once at Frank McLaury, and three times at Billy Clanton. When Virgil fired at Frank, that Cowboy was moving out from the lot. This means that Frank and Morgan were both north of Virgil when he fired. This being the case, Virgil’s shot at Frank might have inadvertently hit Morg in the left shoulder. Virgil would never have known his shot brought Morg down.

The other friendly fire possibility involves Wyatt.  Ike Clanton testified that as he and Wyatt wrestled, Wyatt’s revolver discharged. We don’t know how Wyatt was holding his pistol at that moment, but, since Wyatt was right handed, Ike might have pushed Wyatt’s right hand out and away, pointing it in the general direction of Morgan. Wyatt’s pistol might have discharged just before Wyatt pushed Ike away. At that instant, Wyatt became aware his younger brother was down and thus became fully preoccupied with Morg’s well-being.

Wyatt’s distraction, at that instant, explains why he never realized Ike had scooted behind him and clambered into the front door of C.S. Fly’s Boarding House. For the rest of his long life, Wyatt claimed Ike ran away through the lot. But Ike didn’t do that.

Wyatt  also never realized his shot brought Morgan down, that is, if the Epitaph got the trajectory right.

Aftermath: Odds & Ends

After the fight, Doc Holliday walked into his room at C.S. Fly’s Boarding House to check on his live-in girlfriend Kate. She later said, “Doc came in, and sat on the side of the bed and cried and said, ‘Oh, this is just awful—awful.’”

On October 29, Ike Clanton swore out complaints against the Earps and Holliday. Judge Wells Spicer heard the case. Thomas Fitch, an old friend of Mark Twain’s, served as Wyatt Earp’s counsel. Thomas J. Drum represented Holliday. Virtually all of the Cowboy witnesses tried to pin the fight on Holliday, but the defense team avoided putting him on the witness stand. Spicer ruled in their favor, saying, “There being no sufficient cause to believe the within named Wyatt S. Earp and John H. Holliday guilty of the offense mentioned within,

I order them to be released.”

In January 1882, the inevitable rematch between the Cowboys and the Earps and Holliday almost became reality when Holliday and Johnny Ringo faced off on Allen Street. The Earps and their supporters were lined up on the north side of Fremont Street, with the Cowboys on the south side. Before the fight could open, a police officer, Jim Flynn, grabbed Ringo from behind and arrested him, Holliday and Wyatt Earp. Holliday and Ringo were fined $32 each for carrying concealed weapons.

After the killing of Morgan Earp in March 1882, Holliday joined Wyatt on his notorious vendetta ride, and he participated in the killings of Frank Stilwell and Florentino Cruz. He left Arizona a fugitive, never to return. He died in

Glenwood Springs, Colorado, in 1887.

black foot indians

Sihasapa ('black feet', so called because they wore black moccasins). A small division of the Teton Sioux. The name, like the names of some other Teton tribes, does not appear to have come into notice until a recent date, no mention being made of it by Lewis and Clark, Long, or earlier authorities. Catlin in his Letters and Notes, written during his stay among the northwestern Indians (1832-39), mentions the Blackfoot Sioux. In a note to De Smet's Letters (1843) they were estimated to number 1,500. Culbertson (Smithson. Rep. 1850, 141, 1851) estimated the tribe at 450 lodges, an exaggeration, and mentions five bands or subtribes, but does not locate them. It was not until Gen. Warren and Dr. Hayden visited their country that definite information in regard to them was obtained. The former (1856) makes the following brief notes: "Sihasapas Blackfeet. Haunts and homes same as the Unkpapas; number, 165 lodges. These two bands have very little respect for the power of the whites. . Many of the depredations along the Platte are committed by the Unkpapas and Sihasapas, whose homes are farther from it than those of any other of the Titonwans." Hayden (1862) says that they, the Hunkpapa and Sans Arcs, "occupy nearly the same district, and are so often encamped near each other, and otherwise so connected in their operations, as scarcely to admit of being treated of separately. That part of the country under their control lies along the Moreau, Cannonball, Heart, and Grand. rivers., seldom extending very high up on Grand river, but of late years reaching to the Little Missouri [in North Dakota]. Although the bands just mentioned are often stationed near each other, they are sometimes found several days' journey apart, and each is headed by its own chief." His estimate is 220 lodges. Subsequently the Sihasapa were gathered partly at Cheyenne River reservation, South Dakota, and partly at Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota.
      The number on the former in 1878 was 224, and on the latter 590, a total of 814. They are no longer separately reported. J. O. Dorsey mentions the following bands: It is hard to say how many years ago the Dakota Indians of the Northern Mississippi River began to spill over the Missouri in search of game, and became hostile toward the other tribes claiming the western country. Dakota was their traditional tribal name, but as they crossed this Northwestern Rubicon they became known by the name the Chippewas had given them years ago: 
"Sioux". It was by that  moniker they became known as the most numerous and powerful nation of Native Americans -- warriors, women, and children -- to be found in the Northern Hemisphere. They were proud warriors when they launchedout on their expedition of conquest west of the Missouri. The Yellowstone river belonged to the Crows; the grassy prairie of Nebraska was the home of the Pawnees; the Black Hills were stomping grounds of the Cheyennes and Arrapahoes; the western side of the Big Horn range and the broad valleys between them and the Rocky Mountains were controlled by the Snakes; while roving parties of Crees rode down along the north shore of the Missouri river itself.

With the Chippewas behind them, and with the white settlers and soldiers in front, the Sioux waged relentless war. They drove the Pawnees across the Platte all the way to Kansas; they pushed both the Cheyennes and Arrapahoes out of the Black Hills, and down to the head waters of the Kaw and the Arkansas rivers; they fought the Snakes back into the Wind River Valley, with demands never to cross the boundary of the Big Horn River; and they sent the Crows running up the Yellowstone valley.When the Civil War broke out in 1861 the Sioux aided the rebels considerably by raiding Northern settlements in Minnesota, massacring hundreds of women and children, families which had encroached on Sioux lands. General Sully was sent to punish them for these attacks.  He marched far into their territory, and would fight them wherever he could find them, but it did no real good. The attempts to keep the Sioux in check during the Civil War did consume precious military resources. When the Civil War ended, and settlers began to move west, further encroaching into Sioux territory, they found the Sioux more aggressive than ever. The army was called on to protect these pioneers, and to escort the surveyors and railroad workers. In the years between 1866 and 1876, the cavalry had no rest; they fought year round; and during those ten years of "peace" more army officers were killed  in combat with the American Indians than the British army lost in the entire Crimean war. The Indians had always been brave and skilled warriors, but in 1874 and 1875 the Sioux succeeded in arming themselves with modern rifles, becoming a foe more dreaded than any European cavalry. This combination of modern arms, incredible bravery, and superb horsemanship created a formidable fighting force.

Treaties were made and broken with the Sioux. A road had been built through the heart of the Big Horn and Yellowstone. Wooden forts were built, and manned by small groups of cavalry and infantry. From Ft. Laramie on the Platte up to the  Gallatin Valley only those little forts: Reno, Phil Kearny, and C. F. Smith, guarded the way. Naturally the Sioux were concerned about these settlements on their lands. One day vast hordes of Sioux gathered in the ravines around Fort Phil Kearny.

Red Cloud was the fearless Sioux leader. He sent a small raiding party to attack the wood cutters from the fort, who were working with only minimal military protection. Two companies of infantry and one of cavalry went out to the rescue. They were quickly surrounded and then massacred. After that the Sioux had undisputed dominion over their territory for ten years. The US government's forts were burned and abandoned. The allies of the Sioux joined with them, and a powerful nation of nearly 60,000 people ruled the country from the Big Horn River to the Union Pacific Railway. The Sioux would not go south of the Union Pacific Railroad.

Taking Cheyennes and Arrapahoes, who they had intermarried with, the Sioux went back to the North Platte and the territory beyond. From there they routinely raided in all directions. Attempts were made by the Government to bribe them, but with no lasting success. The U.S. established Indian Agencies and reservations at convenient points. Here the old men, the sick, and the women and children made their homes. Here the young warriors, laughing at the White Man, filled up their bags with ammunition and supplies. They then went on the war path, attacking any white settlers they could find.  They would return to the reservation when they needed more supplies.

Two large reservations were created southeast of the Black Hills in the White River Valley. Red Cloud, the hero of the attack at Phil Kearny, made his home here. Many of his chiefs also gathered here: some "good", like Old-Man-Afraid-of-his-Horses and his worthy son, but most of them crafty and combative, like Red Dog, Little-Big-Man, and American Horse. Further downstream, some twenty miles away, were the headquarters of the Brules. Their chief, Old Spot, was loyal to the U.S., but he had no control over the actions of the  young warriors. Other reservations there were along the Missouri, and the Interior Department wanted to gather all of the Sioux Nation into these reservations, in order to help keep them out of trouble, or so it was thought.

The Sioux tradition, however, called for deeds of bravery in battle in order to win distinction. The vacillating policy of the US government allowed the Sioux warriors to make raids against white settlers, and to then return to the sanctuary of the reservation.
Chief Sitting Bull	The warrior had won his spurs according to Sioux tradition, and was therefore a "brave". But there were those Great Chiefs who never came in and never made peace.  One of those who refused, and whose stand was a rallying point for the disaffected of every tribe, was a shrewd "medicine chief", the now celebrated Sitting Bull. Sitting Bull and his followers were living happily and peaceably in the Valley of the Little Big Horn.  Though the winters were cold and hard, they enjoyed life, as they hunted abundant game.  But because of the US government's new policy, all the renegades from other tribes flocked to this location. The wild and angry Ogalalla, Brule, Blackfoot, and Sans Arc warriors all made a home here, and then set about to attack pioneers, settlers, surveyors and prospectors.
At this time, more white settlers were entering the Sioux lands in the Black Hills, most looking for gold. The Ogalallas and Brules killed the settlers, claiming them to be invaders. Sitting Bull's followers quickly grew. The Interior Department found it useless to delay any longer. The army received orders to either bring in Sitting Bull, or Snuff Him Out. Early in March of 1876 General George Crook  was sent into Sioux country with a strong force of cavalry and infantry. Crook's forces struck a big Indian Village on the snowy shores of the Powder River. It was thirty degrees below zero; the troops were poorly led by the officer entrusted with the duty, and the Sioux had recently developed impressive new fighting tactics under a new and daring leader, "Choonka-Witko" -- known as Crazy Horse. Crook's advance retreated, being defeated by the renegades from the Red Cloud and Spotted Tail tribes. Early in May three expeditions moved into the territory, where by this time over 6,000 braves had joined Sitting Bull. From the south came Gen. Crook, with nearly 2,500 soldiers. From the east marched General Terry, with almost as many infantry and cavalry as had Crook, and a few light pieces of artillery. From the west General Gibbon led a group of frontier soldiers, scouting, and definitely finding the Indians on the Rosebud before forming his rendezvous with Terry near the mouth of the Tongue. If Sitting Bull had been aware of the situation, Gibbon's small force could never have finished that movement.

Early in June Crook's company was on the northeast slope of the Big Horn, and General Sheridan, planning the entire operation, saw with fear that large numbers of Indians were daily leaving the reservations south of the Black Hills and going around General Crook to join Sitting Bull. The Fifth Regiment of Cavalry was sent from Kansas to Cheyenne, and marched rapidly to the Black Hills to cut off these reinforcements. The great mass of the Indians lay between Crook at the head waters of Tongue River and Terry and Gibbon near its mouth, completely stopping  all communications between the commanders. They harassed Crook's outposts and supply trains, and by June Crook decided to engage them and see the strength of their force. On June 17th Crook skirmished with the Sioux on the bluffs of the Rosebud. He had several hundred Crow allies. The combat lasted much of the day; but long before it was half over Crook was on the defensive and was actually withdrawing his men. He had found a hornets' nest, and knew it was too much for his small command. Pulling out as best he could, he fell back to the Tongue, sent for the entire Fifth Cavalry and all available infantry, and rested until they could reach him. Crook had not managed to even get within site of Sitting Bull's Great Indian Village. Meantime Terry and Gibbon sent their scouts up stream. Major Reno, with a strong battalion of the Seventh Cavalry, left camp to scout up the Wolf Mountains. Sitting Bull and his people decided it was time to move.  Their camp stretched for six miles, and their thousands of horses had eaten all the grass.  While they had been victorious, they decided it was time to move to the valley of the Little Big Horn. Marching up the Rosebud, Major Reno was confronted by the sight of an immense trail turning suddenly west and crossing the great divide over toward the west. Experienced Indian fighters in his command told him that thousands of Indians had crossed that way within the last few days. Reno wisely turned back, and reported what he had seen to Terry.

Enter George Armstrong Custer At the head of Terry's cavalry was  Brevet Major-General George Armstrong Custer,  a daring, dashing, impetuous soldier, who had won high honors as a division commander during the Civil War, and who had developed a reputation as an Indian Fighter when he led his gallant regiment against the Kiowas and the Cheyennes on the Southern plains.  Custer had entered the Sioux country two times in recent campaigns.  While Custer no doubt had experience, there were those who were superiors and subordinates who feared that Custer lacked the judgment needed to face a man like Sitting Bull on the Battlefield.

THE WAR AGAINST THE INDIAN

Plains warfare between various American Indian groups; and various European American groups was influenced and precluded by changes in technologies and military strategies in the Eastern Woodlands and Southwest from earlier colonial contacts of French,Below are 30mm willie,no one ever came near to getting the great artistic flair of willie. Dutch, English, Spanish and others from the late 1500's into the mid 1800's. Even during the peak conflicts (1851-1890) the American army tactics and techniques of warfare change, as well as the Plains cultures.
Warfare has many aspects and analysis begins with the reasons and goals humans propose for engaging in such futile and wasteful action. Tactics and Techniques are the terms military historians use to refer the methods of conducting war. It is generally accepted but not readily admitted that warfare is magnified and intensified in conjunction with the development of agriculture/civilization and further with industrialization. This created a contradiction when   the term civilization is used since cultures became more violent with the never ending competition for resources as agriculture produced increased populations. In our own arrogance we see pre-industrial cultures as being inferior and less civilized; when in fact from the crucial perspective of human behavior and relationships contemporary culture is mired in cultural regression.
American Indian cultures of the Eastern Woodlands, Plains and Southwest had developed a more competitive agricultural lifestyle with intensification of warfare. Europeans by the 1600s were also agriculturalists but had moved more quickly in industrial pursuits of metal and gunpowder acquired from China. European warfare was certainly more organized and pervasive in the idea of conquest by destruction of property and slaughter of men, women and children. Certainly American Indians were equally ruthless but tended to conduct smaller scale raids and captured women and children for adoption to replace their own losses. Initial conflicts in the East and Southwest indicate that American Indians were impressed with firearms, metal, and horses; but that the bow and arrow had a greater rate of fire. It also was recognized by European Americans that disease was the more effective weapon for the removal of Indian populations. Further, the use of Indian mercenaries could be effective in tracking, guerilla warfare and even in conventional battles (e.g. Battle of Horseshoe Bend).In March 1814, General Jackson's army left Fort Williams on the Coosa, The fort is now under this artificial lake.cut a 52-mile trail through the forest in three days, and on the 26th made camp six miles north of Horseshoe Bend. The next morning, Jackson sent General John Coffee and 700 mounted infantry and 600 Cherokee and Lower Creek allies three miles down-stream to cross the Tallapoosa and surround the bend. He took the rest of the army - about 2000 men, consisting of East and West Tennessee militia and the Thirty-ninth U.S. Infantry - into the peninsula and at 10:30 a.m. began an ineffectual two-hour artillery bombardment of the Red Sticks' log barricade. At noon, some of Coffee's Cherokees crossed the river and assaulted the Red Sticks from the rear. Jackson quickly ordered a frontal bayonet charge, which poured over the barricade. Fighting ranged over the south end of the peninsula throughout the afternoon. By dark at least 800 of Chief Menawa's 1,000 Red Sticks were dead (557 slain on the field and 200-300 in the river). Menawa himself, although severely wounded, managed to escape. Jackson's losses in the battle were 49 killed and 154 wounded, many mortally. As both sides fought as allies or enemies, tactics and techniques changed as the gun began to be more effective. In the 1600s the matchlock and flintlock were rather inaccurate and had a slow rate of fire. From 1750-1840 the muzzle loading flintlock musket (smooth barrel) evolved to the much more accurate flintlock rifle (rifled/grooved barrel) that is sometimes referred to as the 'Kentucky Rifle'.

Pennsylvania/Kentucky Rifle
From about 1840-1851 the percussion breech loading rifle was common like the famous Hawkins Rifle which was effective in the slaughter of the Plain's Bison.
Just after the time the frontier that had jumped from St. Louis/ Independence, Missouri to the Far West via the Oregon Trail, California Trail, Immigrant Trail and Sante Fe Trail settlers began to covet land and resources in the Plains around 1850 the cartridge and breech loading weapons were developed such as early Spencer and Springfield rifles and carbines in the US.

Prior to the Indian Wars of the mid-1870s, the preferred weapons of the U.S. Army were the Spencer repeating carbine and .50 caliber, single shot Springfield rifle and Sharpscarbine. The Army selected the Springfield .45 caliber rifle in 1873 as the weapon for the infantry and the shorter carbine of the same caliber for the cavalry. These were the arms primarily used by the Army during the Red River War. Like the Springfield .50 caliber, the Springfield .45s were single shot weapons that had to be reloaded after each fired round. The best effective range for the Springfield .45 carbine was less than 400 yards, but significant hits could be made up to 600 yards. The bullet was driven out of the muzzle at a velocity of about 1,200 feet per second, and it could travel more than 1,000 yards

Archeological evidence gathered from the Red River War battle sites indicates that the Indians were primarily using repeating rifles such as the Spencer that fired a .50 caliber cartridge and could fire seven rounds before loading, and the Winchester or Henry rifles that fired a .44 caliber cartridge and could each hold up to 16 rounds of ammunition. Most likely, the Indians acquired the Spencers, Winchesters, and Henrys after the Civil War when large numbers of these weapons became available to frontier traders and gunrunners.

With the Indians using repeating rifles and the Army using single shot weapons, it might appear that the Indians had the superior arms. In fact, many officers who served the Union during the Civil War and were familiar with the Spencer's firepower were very reluctant to exchange the repeating Spencer for the new single shot Springfield .45. So why did the Army change from the Spencer to the Springfield? There appear to be two main reasons the Army made the change—one financial and one tactical. After the Civil War, the Army was forced to cut back on expenditures. The Army had recognized that a soldier armed with a repeating rifle would expend a large amount of ammunition during battle whether he had a clear target in sight or not. The belief was that with a single shot rifle, the soldier would become more efficient with his ammunition and take only clear shots at his target.

Further, many officers had come to believe that the single shot Springfield was a weapon superior to the Spencer. The new .45 caliber Springfield cartridge had greater accuracy and velocity at long ranges. Many of the Army officers who had experienced warfare on the Plains realized they needed those advantages in combating what could be characterized as "guerilla warfare." Indians tended to stay at a distance from the soldiers and to engage in close range combat only when the enemy was clearly outnumbered or could be surprised with a sudden attack. Therefore, even though the Spencer, Winchester, and Henry repeating rifles could fire more rounds in a shorter amount of time than the single-shot Springfield, it appears the Springfield, with its longer range, was the superior gun of the Indian Wars.

Prior to the Indian Wars of the mid-1870s, the preferred weapons of the U.S. Army were the Spencer repeating carbine and .50 caliber, single shot Springfield rifle and Sharps carbine. The Army selected the Springfield .45 caliber rifle in 1873 as the weapon for the infantry and the shorter carbine of the same caliber for the cavalry. These were the arms primarily used by the Army during the Red River War. Like the Springfield .50 caliber, the Springfield .45s were single shot weapons that had to be reloaded after each fired round. The best effective range for the Springfield .45 carbine was less than 400 yards, but significant hits could be made up to 600 yards. The bullet was driven out of the muzzle at a velocity of about 1,200 feet per second, and it could travel more than 1,000 yards
The Springfield Trapdoor came about in 1873, as a redesign of the Army’s Allin Trapdoor rifle. The Springfield Trapdoor was made to hold the new, more powerful .45-70 military cartridge. Full-stocked, 32" barreled rifles as well as half-stocked, short-barreled carbines were produced for the military. civil war rifles

With their new 1873 Trapdoor Carbines, Custer and the 7th Cavalry rode off to the Little Big Horn and into the pages of history. The powerful Trapdoor single shot rifle was also quite popular with many famous Indian warriors. Sitting Bull was carrying a Trapdoor Carbine when he surrendered to American troops at Fort Buford, North Dakota. And Geronimo the greatest American military leader of all time( along with sitting Bull) was carrying his faithful Trapdoor Carbine when he turned over his arms to General Miles in 1886.

Along with seeing service on both sides during the Indian Wars in the American West, the Trapdoor was also widely used by American troops during the Spanish American War, both in Cuba and the Phillipines.

Archeological evidence gathered from the Red River War battle sites indicates that the Indians were primarily using repeating rifles such as the Spencer that fired a .50 caliber cartridge and could fire seven rounds before loading, and the Winchester or Henry rifles that fired a .44 caliber cartridge and could each hold up to 16 rounds of ammunition. Most likely, the Indians acquired the Spencers, Winchesters, and Henrys after the Civil War when large numbers of these weapons became available to frontier traders and gunrunners.

With the Indians using repeating rifles and the Army using single shot weapons, it might appear that the Indians had the superior arms. In fact, many officers who served the Union during the Civil War and were familiar with the Spencer's firepower were very reluctant to exchange the repeating Spencer for the new single shot Springfield .45. So why did the Army change from the Spencer to the Springfield? There appear to be two main reasons the Army made the change—one financial and one tactical. After the Civil War, the Army was forced to cut back on expenditures. The Army had recognized that a soldier armed with a repeating rifle would expend a large amount of ammunition during battle whether he had a clear target in sight or not. The belief was that with a single shot rifle, the soldier would become more efficient with his ammunition and take only clear shots at his target.

Further, many officers had come to believe that the single shot Springfield was a weapon superior to the Spencer. The new .45 caliber Springfield cartridge had greater accuracy and velocity at long ranges. Many of the Army officers who had experienced warfare on the Plains realized they needed those advantages in combating what could be characterized as "guerilla warfare."wargames foundry Indians tended to stay at a distance from the soldiers and to engage in close range combat only when the enemy was clearly outnumbered or could be surprised with a sudden attack. Therefore, even though the Spencer, Winchester, and Henry repeating rifles could fire more rounds in a shorter amount of time than the single-shot Springfield, it appears the Springfield, with its longer range, was the superior gun of the Indian Wars.monday night

There were weapons other than rifles and carbines that were used by the U.S. Army and the Indians during the Red River War. 
The Indians, for example, also used the bow and arrow. Metal arrowpoints that were either made by the Indians or were acquired through trade were found at several of the battle sites. Although bows and arrows may have played a part in the battles, the long range at which most of the fighting occurred during the battles did not allow the bow and arrow a prominent (Paper terrain below  )  role.

In 1874, the U.S. Army also used the Colt single action Army revolver. This pistol fired six .45-caliber cartridges. The effective range of the Colt revolver dropped off rapidly over 60 yards. During the campaign, the Army employed various kinds of artillery as well. Colonel Nelson A. Miles, for example, had two Gatling guns that fired a .50 caliber bullet. The Gatling gun was capable of firing up to 300 rounds per minute.                   blue moon

Another piece of artillery that was used by the Army during the Red River War was the mountain howitzer. The howitzer was a short-barreled cannon designed to fire projectiles with relatively small powder charges at short ranges. The howitzer was capable of firing either the spherical shell or the cylindrical canister.

There were weapons other than rifles and carbines that were used by the U.S. Army and the Indians during the Red River War. The Indians, for example, also used the bow and arrow. Metal arrowpoints that were either made by the Indians or were acquired through trade were found at several of the battle sites. Although bows and arrows may have played a part in the battles, the long range at which most of the fighting occurred during the battles did not allow the bow and arrow a prominent role.

In 1874, the U.S. Army also used the Colt single action Army revolver. This pistol fired six .45-caliber cartridges. The effective range of the Colt revolver dropped off rapidly over 60 yards. During the campaign, the Army employed various kinds of artillery as well. Colonel Nelson A. Miles, for example, had two Gatling guns that fired a .50 caliber bullet. The Gatling gun was capable of firing up to 300 rounds per minute. At the Battle of Red River on August 30, 1874, Col. Nelson Miles used the Gatling against the Southern Cheyenne—the first time the gun was used in combat west of the Mississippi River. Miles also brought along a 10-pounder Parrott rifle, which was actually a small cannon. The Parrott rifle fired a shell that measured 8.8 inches long by 2.86 in diameter. The shell exploded upon impact and the shell casing became the shrapnel. The maximum range of the 10-pounder Parrott rifle at five degrees elevation was about 2,000 yards.

Another piece of artillery that was used by the Army during the Red River War was the mountain howitzer. The howitzer was a short-barreled cannon designed to fire projectiles with relatively small powder charges at short ranges. The howitzer was capable of firing either the spherical shell or the cylindrical canister.

Prior to the Indian Wars of the mid-1870s, the preferred weapons of the U.S. Army were the Spencer repeating carbine and .50 caliber, single shot Springfield rifle and Sharps carbine. The Army selected the Springfield .45 caliber rifle in 1873 as the weapon for the infantry and the shorter carbine of the same caliber for the cavalry. These were the arms primarily used by the Army during the Red River War. Like the Springfield .50 caliber, the Springfield .45s were single shot weapons that had to be reloaded after each fired round. The best effective range for the Springfield .45 carbine was less than 400 yards, but significant hits could be made up to 600 yards. The bullet was driven out of the muzzle at a velocity of about 1,200 feet per second, and it could travel more than 1,000 yards

Archeological evidence gathered from the Red River War battle sites indicates that the Indians were primarily using repeating rifles such as the Spencer that fired a .50 caliber cartridge and could fire seven rounds before loading, and the Winchester or Henry rifles that fired a .44 caliber cartridge and could each hold up to 16 rounds of ammunition. Most likely, the Indians acquired the Spencers, Winchesters, and Henrys after the Civil War when large numbers of these weapons became available to frontier traders and gunrunners.

With the Indians using repeating rifles and the Army using single shot weapons, it might appear that the Indians had the superior arms. In fact, many officers who served the Union during the Civil War and were familiar with the Spencer's firepower were very reluctant to exchange the repeating Spencer for the new single shot Springfield .45. So why did the Army change from the Spencer to the Springfield? There appear to be two main reasons the Army made the change—one financial and one tactical. After the Civil War, the Army was forced to cut back on expenditures. The Army had recognized that a soldier armed with a repeating rifle would expend a large amount of ammunition during battle whether he had a clear target in sight or not. The belief was that with a single shot rifle, the soldier would become more efficient with his ammunition and take only clear shots at his target.

Further, many officers had come to believe that the single shot Springfield was a weapon superior to the Spencer. The new .45 caliber Springfield cartridge had greater accuracy and velocity at long ranges. Many of the Army officers who had experienced warfare on the Plains realized they needed those advantages in combating what could be characterized as "guerilla warfare." Indians tended to stay at a distance from the soldiers and to engage in close range combat only when the enemy was clearly outnumbered or could be surprised with a sudden attack. Therefore, even though the Spencer, Winchester, and Henry repeating rifles could fire more rounds in a shorter amount of time than the single-shot Springfield, it appears the Springfield, with its longer range, was the superior gun of the Indian Wars.

There were weapons other than rifles and carbines that were used by the U.S. Army and the Indians during the Red River War. The Indians, for example, also used the bow and arrow. Metal arrowpoints that were either made by the Indians or were acquired through trade were found at several of the battle sites. Although bows and arrows may have played a part in the battles, the long range at which most of the fighting occurred during the battles did not allow the bow and arrow a prominent role.

In 1874, the U.S. Army also used the Colt single action Army revolver. This pistol fired six .45-caliber cartridges. The effective range of the Colt revolver dropped off rapidly over 60 yards. During the campaign, the Army employed various kinds of artillery as well. Colonel Nelson A. Miles, for example, had two Gatling guns that fired a .50 caliber bullet. The Gatling gun was capable of firing up to 300 rounds per minute. At the Battle of Red River on August 30, 1874, Col. Nelson Miles used the Gatling against the Southern Cheyenne—the first time the gun was used in combat west of the Mississippi River. Miles also brought along a 10-pounder Parrott rifle, which was actually a small cannon. The Parrott rifle fired a shell that measured 8.8 inches long by 2.86 in diameter. The shell exploded upon impact and the shell casing became the shrapnel. The maximum range of the 10-pounder Parrott rifle at five degrees elevation was about 2,000 yards.

Another piece of artillery that was used by the Army during the Red River War was the mountain howitzer. The howitzer was a short-barreled cannon designed to fire projectiles with relatively small powder charges at short ranges. The howitzer was capable of firing either the spherical shell or the cylindrical canister.

Plains tribes had acquired horses between 1650 and 1750, which they adapted in hunting and warfare. They had acquired early flintlock and percussion weapons but retained traditional weapons for back up and greater reliability. In fact Plains Indians kept up with the advancement of weapons and at certain times they had more modern weapons than the US Army.
Springfield 45-70
At the time of Red Cloud's War 1866-1868 early Henry and later Winchester repeating carbines and rifles came out. It was also clear that the small scale and individualistic tactic of counting coup by young warriors was no longer effective with the US Army sustaining a fire fight. The increased amount of ammunition that could be carried and fired contributed to this with the additional determination to drive the European American settlers out the Bozeman Trail area. This was an arrogant and aggressive violation of the Treaty of Ft. Laramie for Northern Plains Lakota (Sioux), Cheyenne and Arapaho and threatened some of the last existing northern herds of bison. Red Cloud (Lakota) began to sustain engagements and stop young men from going ahead to count coup and gain traditional honors. The Fetterman Fight (B. of the 100 Slain) was the best and most successful example of these changes.


Subsequent leaders like Crazy Horse continued these strategies during the Little Bighorn Campaigns. This led to the Battle of the Little Bighorn on June 25, 1876, in which George Armstrong Custer was defeated by a substantial force of Sioux and Cheyenne. In 1876 the Plains Indians had a substantial number of firearms including repeating Winchester rifles/carbines and Colt revolvers. The US Army was still equipped with the single shot Springfield rifle/carbine. For this short moment in history American Indians had the skill, will and technological edge that gave them victories. However, the US Army command knew that their best weapon was to destroy the life blood of the people, their food base, the bison. The humiliation of defeat gave uninhibited freedom for the US Army to launch a new winter campaign 1876-1877 that would bring in most of the people to the forts/reservations and drive some , like Sitting Bull, to Canada.
The later part of the 19th century (1880-) was limited to various acculturation policies to include reservations, boarding schools, allotment and missionaries. In 1890 some of the northern Plains people became so despondent that they tried to effect change through the Ghost Dance Movement. The US government Indian agent and military panicked and tried to suppress the movement which ended with the  massacre at Wounded Knee on Dec 29, 1890. By this time smokeless cartridges and howitzers with explosive shells were part of the US armies issue weapons. The Lakota victims were poorly armed and this resulted in heavy casualties (300+), including women and children. Many of the soldier casualties were from their own crossfire, reflecting on the loss of control on the part of the 7th cavalry.
Though the Red Sticks had been crushed at Tohopeka, the remnants of the hostile Creeks held out for several months. In August 1814, exhausted and starving, they surrendered to Jackson at Wetumpka, near the present city of Montgomery, Alabama. The Treaty of Fort Jackson ending the conflict required the Creeks to cede some 20 million acres of land - more than half of their ancestral territorial holdings - to the United States. The state of Alabama was carved out of this domain and admitted to the Union in 1819.

In 1829, partly as a result of his fame from the battles of Horseshoe Bend and New Orleans, Andrew Jackson was elected President of the United States; a year later he signed the Indian Removal Bill forcing all the tribes east of the Mississippi River to move to Oklahoma, a journey the Cherokees called the "Trail of Tears." The Southeast, cleared of most Indians and free from the threat of foreign intervention, thus became part of the United States and was opened for settlement.