Ranald Slidell Mackenzie is not a household name in American history, but in military history of the 1870s he occupies a significant position.

He was, by the time of the Red River War, one of the most effective field commanders in the United States Army’s experience with the Southern Plains.

Mackenzie had graduated first in his class from West Point in 1862 and served in the Civil War with distinction — he was wounded multiple times, lost parts of two fingers that gave him the Comanche nickname “Bad Hand,” and rose to brevet rank of major general by the war’s end despite being only in his mid-twenties.

After the war, he took command of the 4th Cavalry and was assigned to the Indian frontier in Texas.