The Army's Sioux Campaign of 1876 by Major Mark V. Hoyt

Author:Major Mark V. Hoyt [Hoyt, Major Mark V.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Biography & Autobiography, Criminals & Outlaws, Rich & Famous, Social Science, Ethnic Studies, Native American Studies, History, United States, 19th Century
ISBN: 9781786251589
Google: 7rFvCwAAQBAJ
Publisher: Pickle Partners Publishing
Published: 2015-11-06T04:19:57+00:00

Figure 18. Crook Splits His Forces. Source: Dr. William G. Robertson, Dr. Jerold E. Brown, Major William M. Campsey, and Major Scott R. McMeen. Atlas of the Sioux Wars (Fort Leavenworth, Kansas: Combat Studies Institute, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, 1995), 15

As Mills started to disengage, the Sioux again pressed an attack on the soldiers. As the Indians pressed home their attack they closed the range and started inflicting casualties (all wounded) on some of Mills’ men{111}. Mills had to stop his movement while Major Evans brought forward the two companies under Van Vliet to augment his force. Eventually, Chambers with his infantry came up and formed a dismounted skirmisher line which allowed Mills to break contact to the south while Van Vliet extended the skirmisher line to the east of the infantry (see figure 18).

While Mills was starting his movement, Royall was involved in an increasingly heavy fire fight on the left (or west) flank. Even before Mills movement, Finerty noted that the engagement seemed to be shifting toward the west due to the amount of gunfire coming from that direction.{112}

Royall’s first attempt to extend his right (obeying orders from Crook) and close with the main body was to send one company under Captain Charles Meinhold to Crook’s force which was over a mile away. Simultaneously, Mills started to move his three companies to attack the suspected enemy village. Mills proceeded with his force down the Rosebud expecting that Captain Noyes, with his five companies, would be following him.{113}

Crook had been trying to close up his main body to support Mills in his attack on the suspected village. However, Royall’s failure to move his main command and link-up with the rest of his command, frustrated Crook’s plan. Crook sent another courier to give Royall precise instructions to withdraw his entire force and rejoin the main body with his remaining four companies. Even though Royall’s force had been successfully holding off the enemy charges, Crook felt the need to pull Royall into the main body to eventually support Mills and Noyes as they moved to attack the supposed village location.{114}

Royall started his withdrawal with a skirmisher screen protecting his horses led by the horse holders. When the Indians witnessed the withdrawal of Royall’s force they immediately started to mass and occupied the set of bluffs that Royall had held. Withdrawing to the east his force had to cross a depression that ran between the two sets of bluffs he had occupied. At this point the Indians started pouring an intense fire down on his troops from multiple angles. A couple of the skirmishers were separated from Royall’s main body and cut down. Casualties on Royall’s force started to escalate and he still had to cross the major ravine that separated him from the main command to the east. Now facing several hundred Indians massing in the area, Royall decided to leave one company under Captain Peter Vroom to hold a crest and protect the withdrawal of the other three companies.

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