Legend into History (Custer Library) [Hardcover]

Charles Kuhlman (Author), Brian C. Pohanka (Designer)

Book Description

Series: Custer Library | Publication Date: March 1, 1994

With the possible exception of Gettyburg, no battle fought on American soil has caused so much discussion or widespread speculation as the epic Custer fiht on the wild, rugged terrain north of the Little Big Horn River in Montana on June 25, 1876. The stories that have been told and retold are legion, some of them lurid and without basis in fact or logic; Legends based on misconceptions and sunsound premises have come to be accepted as fact, and the definitive history can never be written because the 210 officers and men under Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer's immediate command were all killed. There is no mystery as to what happened, nor approximately when. The intriguing unknown factors have been the how and the why. Charles Kuhlman believed that the broken character of the terrain, unsuited to the irresistible cavalry charge that the Indians feared, played a major and often unrecognized part in the relative tactics of the opposing forces, and that time and space factors, synchronized with know facts painstakingly screened and analyzed, and limned against the background of the actual rerrain, would provide the clues to solve the mystery of why and how

Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Stackpole Books; Combined edition (March 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 081170453X
• ISBN-13: 978-0811704533
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,518,060 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A well researched book, August 27, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Legend into History (Custer Library) (Hardcover)

This is possibly the most complete work on the actual Battle of the Little Big Horn. Mr. Kuhlman presents his evidence very convincingly. More like reading a text book, it is sometimes hard to stay focused, but is a must read for anyone with more than a basic knowledge of the battle.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Detailed & opinionated by a great researcher & Historian, May 19, 2001

By 

Daniel Hurley (Chesapeake, VA.) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Legend into History (Custer Library) (Hardcover)

This is a great book by one of the classic researchers on Custer. Interesting to note that Kuhlman was a historian by profession whose deafness caused him to retire eventualy living near Billings a short hour drive from the Little Bighorn. Kuhlman probably spent more hours on the field than any other Custer writer which is quite a contrast to one of the greatest Custer writers of the early to mid 1900s , Colonel Graham who never visited the field. Kuhlman lacks the more recent knowledge of the archeological evidence and the story behind the accidental placement of the extra 40 grave markers but his reasoning of what and why events unfolded is fascinating. Bold opinions supported by facts in most cases make the book a pleasure, Kuhlman acknowledges that Benteen never had a good word for anyone and that he exagerated for his own benefit but states honestly that Custer respected him as a soldier and expected him to close up and support him. As Pohanka writes, Kuhlman conflicts with modern contemporaries in reasoning that Custer sent three companies south to Calhoun Hill to create a bridgehead to Benteen only after sighting him at Weir Point (as opposed to having stopped their much earlier while Custer and E & F moved forward). However, the thought that Custer slowed and stayed on the eastern side of the River after Reno's collapse makes good sense particularly if a reunification was expected. Kuhlman describes the Indian way of fighting extremely well and like another contemporary, suggests that the main attack ocurred near Custer Hill to it's west versus nearer Calhoun Hill as others state. Strong defense that Custer did not disobey his orders and he proves that General Terry's protective staff officer and relative exagerated the length of forced marches that Custer took and he demonstrates how Custer not sending a Scout to Terry made littl difference in the broad perspective of the events. More detail maps would have helped Kuhlman's finite description of the field as he provides minute details that a map would have conveyed much clearaer.