Counterattacks, August–September 1856

This chapter scrutinizes the first two of the four reprisal raids undertaken by the Cheyenne warriors in the summer of 1856. While the four reprisal events are tragic in and of themselves, they should be viewed within the context of Captain Steuart’s overreach, the persistent breaking of recently-brokered Platte Road treaties, and a general mood among U.S. military leaders stationed on the Northern Plains of a lawless, homicidal aggression towards Native Americans.(Map 5.1).