It deserves to be treated as historical testimony — not dismissed, not uncritically accepted as proven fact, but engaged with seriously and honestly as part of the full historical record of the battle.

This is how good historical practice handles contested evidence: by presenting what is known, being honest about what is uncertain, and letting the weight of the evidence speak without distorting it in either direction.

EXTENDED SECTION: THE BROKEN PROMISES — TREATY RIGHTS AND THE POLITICS OF SURVIVAL

The battles of 1876 did not happen in isolation from the broader political history of the United States’ relationship with Native nations.

They were the violent culmination of decades of broken promises, violated treaties, and the systematic application of federal policy to destroy the way of life of Plains peoples.

The Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 — signed just eight years before the Little Bighorn — had been the most comprehensive agreement between the United States and the Lakota Sioux, guaranteeing the Great Sioux Reservation (all of present-day South Dakota west of the Missouri River), including the Black Hills, as permanent Lakota territory.

The treaty also guaranteed hunting rights in a broad territory to the north and west.

The government promised to keep settlers out of these areas.

Within six years, this promise was broken.

Custer’s 1874 expedition confirmed gold in the Black Hills and the rush of settlers followed.