Think you’re having a bad day? It’s nothing compared to the remarkably bad day George Armstrong Custer had on this date in 1876.
Exactly 138 years ago today, he and his 262 men topped a hill in present day Montana, looked down the slope to the Little Big Horn River, and saw thousands upon thousands of Sioux and Cheyenne warriors rushing their way.
June 25th was Custer’s Last Day.
I’ve always held Custer in minimal high regard. His arrogance took egotism to a new level; he would severely punish a man under his command at the drop of hat, yet he would blatantly disregard orders from his superiors. His refusal to take Gatling guns on the campaign, his insistence on dividing his command, and his refusal to properly reconnoiter the area before the battle all had deadly consequences.
The result: 262 good men died because of Custer’s magnificent blunders.
There ain’t much glory in that.
But there was at least one positive (though unintended) consequence of the Battle of Little Big Horn: America was spared a Custer presidency, for 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue was included within his sweeping visions of glory.
We can all, white, red, black, brown and yellow, be grateful for that.
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