The Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument preserves the site of the famous Battle of the Little Bighorn, which took place on June 25 and June 26 of 1876. <br><br>“The continuous roar of gunfire rolled over the ridges to Custer. Whether or not Custer consciously realized it, his last chance for victory was gone. Now, the Battle of the Little Bighorn was about to become a desperate, brutal fight for survival.”

Tatanka Iyotaka, or a large bull buffalo at rest, remained resistant to takeover until his death, and was to be the last chief to surrender his rifle. Like Crazy Horse, he served as a combined military, spiritual and political leader, standing firm against land intrusion by those who would talk peace and not guarantee it. At the Battle of the Little Bighorn against General Custer, his spiritual vision of victory was powerful enough to inspire his warriors to succeed.

In June 1876, the Battle of Little Bighorn was fought along the ridges, steep bluffs, and ravines of the Little Bighorn River. The Lakota Sioux, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes battled the U.S. Cavalry’s 7th Regiment, rejecting the reservation system that conflicted with their nomadic culture. The park’s Custer National Cemetery includes the graves of known and unknown veterans, including women and children from isolated frontier posts, Indian scouts, and more.