The Sand Creek Massacre
The Sand Creek Massacre (1864) was a tragedy inflicted on the Cheyenne village of Chief Black Kettle by local Colorado troops.Antagonized by Colorado officials, Cheyenne and other Plains tribes had raided settlements and travel routes throughout the summer of 1864. With the approach of winter, the peace chiefs, of whom Black Kettle was the foremost, sought terms. The commander of the military district was Col. John M. Chivington, a former Methodist clergyman with political ambitions who had entered the volunteer service at the outbreak of the Civil War. He directed the chiefs to camp on Sand Creek until further arrangements could be made. Here Black Kettle believed himself at peace and under military protection.
Chivington, however, had raised a regiment of 100‐day militia to fight Indians, and citizens expected it to do so. With great secrecy, he concentrated a force of 700 men, consisting of the...
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