COIN 1864-1868

INSURGENCY RED CLOUDS WAR

Red Clouds War consisted of the various raids by the Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapahoe
upon frontier settlements and emigrants between the years 1!" and 1! involving
rugged terrain, remote forts # outposts, tribal based enemy with a warrior culture, and
an elusive enemy whose tactics di$ered greatly from the Army%
Clausewit& said, 'War is an act of force to compel our enemy to do our will%( )n this case,
the *%S% +overnment had a desire to occupy and traverse an area ,-he .o&eman -rail/ )n
the short period 1!0/1!!, more than "122 civilians used the .o&eman -rail3 containing
the )ndians most sacred hunting grounds% -he 4owder River country was a land rich in
natural resources% .u$alo, deer # bear, as well as many other forms of game were
abundant% -he rivers teemed with 5sh, and the land in general was well watered from the
runo$ of the .ighorn 6ountains% )t had everything needed for the )ndians sustainment
and survival% 1!0/! was a loosely organi&ed, protracted e$ort with the desire to
wea7en the governments will to occupy native lands%
NATIVE AMERICAN TACTICS
)ndians fought as individuals8 their tendency was for no formal organi&ation and lac7ed a
uni5ed plan of attac7% )nstead, an )ndian war party operated as 'a body of loosely
organi&ed individuals acting toward a common cause%( 9ormally they attac7ed as raiding
parties using A6.*S: tactics aimed at stealing horses, cattle or a ;uic7 7ill% -he mass
migration of white settlers to the plains amounted/in their eyes/to a new tribe
trespassing the area% -he Army faced an enemy that blended extremely well with the
non/combatants% )ndians could switch rapidly from friend to foe, ma7ing it di<cult to
distinguish one from the other% -he )ndians 7new they could never prevail in a head on
assault upon the fort% :owever their numbers had grown to the point that they were
con5dent they could destroy a contingent of any si&e provided they could trap them
away from the fort%
COIN [COunt!-IN"u!#n$%&
Counterinsurgency or 'C=)9( as it is referred to, is a relatively new term, but the 5ght
with insurgents is much older such as the )ndian Wars of the 1>th Century%
?ver since the success of the Sand Cree7 6assacre 1!0 C=)9 involved8 ':ammer #
Anvil(, shoot as many )ndian horses as possible, burn as many -epees as possible, ta7e
women # children hostages and exterminate the bu$alo
=n @une 1A, 1!! Carringtons column departed Bt% Caramie with the eight companies of
the 1th )nfantry% Whats important here is what was missing% -he force was infantry
instead of cavalry% While at Bt% Caramie, Carrington had made repeated re;uests of the
post commander for his promised 122,222 rounds ammunition, horses and wagon
drivers% .ut the re;uests fell on deaf ears, and were never to be had% -he 1th )nfantry
had come to the 4owder River country e;uipped with the men, arms, and supplies to
build and garrison forts, not to wage war with an active enemy% Additionally, the troops
were out5tted with old mu&&le loading mus7ets, rather than newer Spencer carbines and
breech loading riDes% -he troopers had no experience in )ndian warfare% -hose who were
veterans were well versed only in battles li7e those experienced in the Civil War%
'ORT ()IL *EARNY
11
-:
@uly 1!! Carrington and his force arrived at the location he had chosen for fort 4hil
Eearny% :is 5rst tas7 was to build the post% .y concentrating on building and establishing
the fort at the expense of o$ensive operations, he was following orders and doing exactly
what he was sent there to do%
=n @uly 1!th, two civilians were 7illed during an )ndian raid% -he next day the 5rst soldier
was 7illed% Furing the period @uly G!
th
H G2
th
Fecember 1!! )ndians 7illed >1 soldiers, 1
civilians, wounded 12 soldiers, wounded G1 civilians, drove away "2! cows, "20 mules
and !1 horses
Reinforcements arrived "
rd
9ovember% -he reinforcements consisted of one troop of sixty
men from the Second Cavalry% While any help was welcome, those green recruits arrived
directly from the recruiting depot and could scarcely mount their horses without help%
Ced by Cpt%Betterman # Ct% +rummond% 'uno<cial leadership( fell to Betterman because
of his war record%
C)AIN O' COMMAND
1 C+,+n, C-!!.n#t+n/
Carrington was selected to command Bt% 4hil Eearny% Carrington spent the Civil War as
recruiter% As such he was generally well regarded by his seniors, but not by subordinates
because of his lac7 of combat experience% :e had nevertheless ac;uired a methodical
habit of leadership and led mostly through the written order%
0 C-1t-.n 'tt!2-n8
Betterman possessed a sterling record of combat in the Civil War and was considered a
genuine war hero% :is battle honours included Shermans +eorgia Campaign 1!0% :is
reputation for bravery came with an aggressive and con5dent attitude which became
contagious to those under his command% :is lac7 of respect for the commanding o<cer
was sowing discord within the ran7s% At one point Carrington tried to explain to his
o<cers that the situation re;uired a defensive posture% Betterman replied, 'give me 2
men and ) can ride through the whole )ndian nationI(
3 L.utn-nt G!u22+n4/
+rummond was rec7less and insubordinate% )n 1!0 whilst drun7 he had shot and
wounded Cpl% Walsh but was given a warning% +rummond had total disdain for )ndians%
=n Fec ! a wood wagon was attac7ed% Carrington dispatched Ct .ingham and "2
cavalrymen to drive the )ndians away% Ct +rummond >without permission3 also rode out
with G1 men, the intention of circling around Codge -rail Ridge and ambushing the
retreating )ndians, it would be a classic 'hammer and anvil( tactic% -he soldiers were too
late but +rummond convinced .ingham to chase 12 loitering )ndians% -he two charged
o$ on their own after the 12 )ndians% Suddenly another !2 appeared% .ingham was
dragged o$ his horse and 7illed% +rummond cut his way bac7 to safety using his sword%
+rummond was given a warning for disobeying the original order