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The heart of everything that is : the untold story of Red Cloud, an American legend

Drury, Bob. (Author). Clavin, Tom, 1954- (Added Author).

The great Oglala Sioux warrior Red Cloud was the only First Nations military leader in history to defeat the United States Army in a war. At the peak of Red Cloud's powers the Sioux could claim control of one-fifth of the contiguous United States and the loyalty of thousands of fierce fighters. But the fog of history has left Red Cloud strangely obscured. This is the story of America's most powerful and successful First Nations warrior. Born in 1821 near the Platte River in modern-day Nebraska, Red Cloud lived an epic life of courage, wisdom, and fortitude in the face of a relentless enemy. He grew up an orphan and had to overcome numerous social disadvantages to advance in Sioux culture. Red Cloud did that by being the best fighter, strategist, and leader of his fellow warriors. As the white man pushed farther and farther west, they stole the land, slaughtered the venerated buffalo, and murdered with impunity anyone who resisted their intrusions. The final straw for Red Cloud and his warriors was the U.S. government's frenzied spate of fort building throughout the pristine Powder River Country that abutted the Sioux's sacred Black Hills -- Paha Sapa to the Sioux, or 'The Heart of Everything That Is.' The result was a gathering of angry tribes under one powerful leader. What came to be known as Red Cloud's War (1866-1868) culminated in a massacre of American cavalry troops that presaged the Little Bighorn and served warning to Washington that the native Plains peoples would fight, and die, for their land and traditions. But many more American soldiers would die first.

Book  - 2013
978.00497 Red-D
1 copy / 0 on hold

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  • ISBN: 9781451654684
  • ISBN: 9781451654660
  • Physical Description xii, 414 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm
  • Edition 1st Simon & Schuster trade paperback ed.
  • Publisher New York : Simon & Schuster, 2013.

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Bibliography, etc. Note:
Includes bibliographical references and index.

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Syndetic Solutions - Summary for ISBN Number 9781451654684
The Heart of Everything That Is : The Untold Story of Red Cloud, an American Legend
The Heart of Everything That Is : The Untold Story of Red Cloud, an American Legend
by Drury, Bob; Clavin, Tom
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The Heart of Everything That Is : The Untold Story of Red Cloud, an American Legend


This acclaimed New York Times bestselling biography of the legendary Sioux warrior Red Cloud, is " a page-turner with remarkable immediacy...and the narrative sweep of a great Western" ( The Boston Globe ). Red Cloud was the only American Indian in history to defeat the United States Army in a war, forcing the government to sue for peace on his terms. At the peak of Red Cloud's powers the Sioux could claim control of one-fifth of the contiguous United States and the loyalty of thousands of fierce fighters. But the fog of history has left Red Cloud strangely obscured. Now, thanks to the rediscovery of a lost autobiography, and painstaking research by two award-winning authors, the story of the nineteenth century's most powerful and successful Indian warrior can finally be told. In this astonishing untold story of the American West, Bob Drury and Tom Clavin restore Red Cloud to his rightful place in American history in a sweeping and dramatic narrative based on years of primary research. As they trace the events leading to Red Cloud's War, they provide intimate portraits of the many lives Red Cloud touched--mountain men such as Jim Bridger; US generals like William Tecumseh Sherman, who were charged with annihilating the Sioux; fearless explorers, such as the dashing John Bozeman; and the memorable warriors whom Red Cloud groomed, like the legendary Crazy Horse. And at the center of the story is Red Cloud, fighting for the very existence of the Indian way of life. "Unabashed, unbiased, and disturbingly honest, leaving no razor-sharp arrowhead unturned, no rifle trigger unpulled....a compelling and fiery narrative" ( USA TODAY ), this is the definitive chronicle of the conflict between an expanding white civilization and the Plains Indians who stood in its way.