3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
When War was Fun, Travel and Adventure, January 2, 2010
This review is from: The March of the Montana Column: A Prelude to the Custer Disaster (American Exploration and Travel Series) (Paperback)
It's hard to remember in this era of roadside bombs, suicide attacks and general nastiness that not so long ago, the U.S. Army could provide a fun and rewarding career. First Lieutenant James H Bradley, a 32-year-old veteran of the Civil War, wrote an intriguing account of campaign life while attached to Colonel John Gibbon's Montana Column during the fateful Sioux Campaign of 1876. Bradley writes in a day-to-day style, but inserts diversions on topics of interest to him. The book covers the period from 17 March to 26 June 1876 and stops just as the Montana Column reaches the Little Bighorn and the remnants of George Custer's command. While there is relatively little fighting in this book, Bradley offers great insight into the comradeship and sense of purpose that held these troops together while serving in remote areas. Indeed, as a retired army officer myself, I couldn't help but be struck by the freedom of action that Lieutenant Bradley enjoyed, particularly when acting as a scout for Gibbon's column. He moved across a vast, sparsely populated landscape with no radios dictating his next move to him. Overall, the book is both interesting and possesses historical value
Bradley's narrative begins as Gibbons' column moves out of Fort Ellis in Western Montana in March 1876 as part of the converging columns moving against the Sioux. Gibbons' column was small - only about 450 troops from the 7th Infantry and the 2nd Cavalry - but it was mobile and capable of moving up to 20 miles per day. In these early chapters, Bradley notes the difficulties of marching while winter snows were still on the ground and the incessant drain of soldiers deserting (something the John Wayne version of the West omitted). Bradley was also keenly interested in Western history and adds in sections on the Crow tribe, the fur trade and local terrain oddities such as Pompey's Pillar. There's lot of nice army-detail in these pages, probably not interesting to civilian readers but poignant for former rankers, such as when Bradley finds Lewis and Clark's names carved in a stone and then one of his soldiers defaces this historical artifact with graffiti. Typical.
It would also be useful for readers accustomed to the Indian version of history to see the point of view of someone who dealt with them on a daily basis. Bradley worked very well with his Crow scouts but did not always respect their truthfulness or dedication to the mission. He also demonstrates a great deal of cynicism about the Indian willingness to fight Americans until defeated but then revert to "good, peaceable Indians" who cry "Peace! Peace! Until the storm blows over..." The later chapters, which cover Gibbons approach to the Little Bighorn are the best and Bradley was out in front with his Crow scouts. He gives good descriptions of the limitations of using Indians as scouts (e.g. tendency to exaggerate enemy strengths) and scouting tactics. It is also clear that the 7th Infantry was a tight outfit, with the 27 officers in the column all long-service professionals. At one point, while waiting for General Crook's column, a supply column arrives with a keg of beer for the officers and they have a good old time, while the enlisted men fish for salmon. Bradley opines: "it looked more like picnicking than going to war, to see officers and men comfortably reclining in the shade reading books and newspapers, writing letters, posting diaries, playing cards, talking or dozing..."
Three weeks later, Bradley was in the forefront of the advance to Little Bighorn and as they approached the battlefield, his small force of scouts encountered numerous Sioux warriors. However, the Sioux were retiring and Bradley's scouts were not attacked. He was one of the first to reach the scene of Custer's `Last Stand" and this is where the book ends. This is one of the classic accounts of frontier warfare, replete with saddle sores, days of boredom intermixed with moments of fear, tired feet, bad food and good company, portrayed against the canvas of the vast prairie.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Montana History, January 7, 2010
This review is from: The March of the Montana Column: A Prelude to the Custer Disaster (American Exploration and Travel Series) (Paperback)
It is too bad this soldier died before he could finish this book. He is the man that found the dead soldiers at the Little Big Horn. A much noted book in other books that I have read about the Indian wars.
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0 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
first class, September 5, 2005
This review is from: The March of the Montana Column: A Prelude to the Custer Disaster (American Exploration and Travel Series) (Paperback)
Excellent international service, book delivered in just over a week to UK and in pristine condition. Great service
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