3rd Colorado Cavalry Regiment
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The 3rd Colorado Cavalry Regiment was a
Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...
unit formed in the mid-1860s when increased traffic on the United States emigrant trails and settler encroachment resulted in numerous attacks against them by the
Cheyenne The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enroll ...
and
Arapaho The Arapaho (; french: Arapahos, ) are a Native American people historically living on the plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Lakota and Dakota. By the 1850s, Arapaho band ...
. The Hungate massacre and the display in
Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
of mutilated victims raised political pressure for the government to protect its people.
Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
John Evans sought and gained authorization from the
War Department War Department may refer to: * War Department (United Kingdom) * United States Department of War (1789–1947) See also * War Office, a former department of the British Government * Ministry of defence * Ministry of War * Ministry of Defence * Dep ...
in
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
to found the Third. More a militia than a military unit, the "Bloodless Third" was composed of "100-daysers," that is, volunteers who signed on for 100 days to fight against the Indians. (Its nickname came from its lack of battle experience.) The unit's only commander was Col. George L. Shoup, a politician from Colorado. The regiment was assigned to the District of Colorado commanded by Col. John M. Chivington.


Early Operations

At the
Camp Weld Fort Weld, also called Camp Weld, began as a military camp on 30 acres east of the Platte River in what is now the La Alma-Lincoln Park neighborhood of Denver, Colorado. It was named for Lewis Ledyard Weld, the first Territorial Secretary. The ce ...
Council of September 28, 1864, Evans and Chivington met with five chiefs, including
Black Kettle Black Kettle (Cheyenne: Mo'ohtavetoo'o) (c. 1803November 27, 1868) was a prominent leader of the Southern Cheyenne during the American Indian Wars. Born to the ''Northern Só'taeo'o / Só'taétaneo'o'' band of the Northern Cheyenne in the Black ...
of the Cheyenne and White Antelope of the Arapaho. They had been brought to Denver to parlay for peace under military escort by Major Edward W. Wynkoop, commander of
Fort Lyon Fort Lyon was composed of two 19th-century military fort complexes in southeastern Colorado. The initial fort, also called Fort Wise, operated from 1860 to 1867. After a flood in 1866, a new fort was built near Las Animas, Colorado, which oper ...
. The chiefs agreed to peacefully settle their people on the reservation on Big Sandy Creek about 40 miles northwest of Fort Lyon. The reservation was created under the Fort Wise Treaty of 1860. With Wynkoop's assuring their safety, the chiefs settled their bands in a large village at the curve of Sand Creek. Some Indians set up lodges closer to Fort Lyon. On November 5, Major Wynkoop was removed from command and replaced by an ally of Chivington, Major Scott Anthony. He ordered all Indians camped around the fort to the reservation. On November 26, Wynkoop departed for reassignment to
Fort Riley Fort Riley is a United States Army installation located in North Central Kansas, on the Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, between Junction City and Manhattan. The Fort Riley Military Reservation covers 101,733 acres (41,170 ha) in Gear ...
,
Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
. On November 28, Chivington arrived at Fort Lyon, having traveled in great secrecy with 700 Third Colorado Cavalry and a battalion of the First Colorado Cavalry. Encouraged by Governor Evans and spurred by his own ambitions, Chivington felt pressure to use the "Bloodless Third" before the volunteers' terms expired. He sealed off the fort. Officers loyal to Wynkoop were held at gunpoint. That night, reinforced by artillery from the fort and 125 troops of the First Cavalry, Chivington set off for the Cheyenne-Arapaho village at Sand Creek.


Sand Creek massacre

Arriving at dawn on November 29, 1864, the volunteer cavalry attacked. Although Black Kettle had flown an American flag on his tipi to signal peace (as directed by Wynkoop), the volunteers killed indiscriminately. Historians have not agreed on the number killed, but they often cite 150, mostly women and children, as the warriors had gone out on a hunt. The cavalry mutilated some of the corpses, taking body parts as souvenirs. Now called the "Bloody Third," the regiment returned to Denver in December. It mustered out on December 31, 1864. For months the men displayed the body parts as trophies in Denver saloons. Although Chivington and his forces were lauded by many at the time for a heroic "battle," critics complained about the military conduct of the men.Laura King Van Dusen, ''Historic Tales from Park County: Parked in the Past'' ( Charleston,
South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...
: The History Press, 2013), , p. 33.


Aftermath

The
US Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washingto ...
investigated the attack. The hearings were widely covered, leading to national shock and outrage about the brutality of the attack and the betrayal of promises made to the Cheyenne and Arapaho. Because the Native Americans believed the Cheyenne had been targeted by the US, major
Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...
and Arapaho bands allied with them from 1865 on to attack the ''Vehos'' (whites) and try to drive emigrant settlers out of their lands.


See also

*
List of Colorado Territory Civil War units On April 12, 1861, South Carolina artillery opened fire on Fort Sumter to start the American Civil War. While many gold seekers in the Colorado Territory held sympathies for the Confederacy, the vast majority remained fiercely loyal to the Unio ...


References

;Bibliography *Hoig, Stan, ''The Sand Creek Massacre'' (Univ of Oklahoma Press, 1961). *Hyde, George E. ''The Life of George Bent, Written from his Letters.'' Univ. of Oklahoma Press, 1968. *38th Congress, Second Section, ''Massacre of Cheyenne Indians'' Washington, DC, 1865. (transcript of the investigation). *Wynkoop, Edward. ''The Tall Chief: Autobiography of Edward W. Wynkoop''. Ed. by Christopher Gerboth. Colorado Historical Society, 1993.


External links


"Sand Creek Massacre Historic Site"
National Park Service

''The West'', PBS; see John S. Smith testimony to Congress {{DEFAULTSORT:3rd Colorado Cavalry Regiment 1864 disestablishments in the United States Units and formations of the Union Army from Colorado History of Colorado C Arapaho Cheyenne tribe 1864 establishments in Colorado Territory Military units and formations established in 1864 Military units and formations disestablished in 1864 ja:サンドクリークの虐殺