Event: United States

Custer's Last Stand Re-enactment

When:	27 - 29 Jun 2008 (annual)
Where:	Re-enactment Site
Costs:	US$16; children US$7; under 6s free
Opening Hours:	Fri 1.30pm; Sat 1.30pm & 5pm; Sun 1.30pm

Immortalised in the American psyche, Custer's Last Stand remains one of the most infamous battles of the Plains Indian wars. This re-enactment, although a sanitised version, brings it to life under the deep blue expansive skies of Montana, near the town of Hardin.

Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer made his name during the American Civil War for his daring battle tactics, and the backdrop to the Plains Indian wars is one of broken promises, poor communication and greed.

The Sioux tribe had been granted exclusive use of the Black Hills in 1868 but, once gold was found there six years later, the miners poured in and the US ordered the Sioux to return to their reservations. Many of the Indians either refused or were out of communication range as the US Army prepared to force them back.

In 1876 Custer and his men were due to meet up with reinforcements when they came across Sitting Bull's force of more than 3000 Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapahoe warriors encamped on the Little Bighorn River. Christened "Yellow Hair" by the Indians, Custer chose to attack immediately, but the forces of Sitting Bull and the legendary Crazy Horse were too much for him. The Battle of the Little Bighorn famously lasted less than an hour, during which time Custer and 265 of his men, including his brother, died.

This was a rare victory for the Indians in their quest to protect their nomadic lifestyle. The victory stunned the wider American public and led to harsh reprisals as the Indians were forced back into their reservations.

For decades, the only source of information on the battle was passed down in Indian oral history. Today a narrative, written by a Crow tribal elder and historian called Joe Medicine Crow, accompanies the re-enactment. It not only tells the story of the battle but also details the wider issues of the clashes between the Indian buffalo culture and that of the European Settlers.

The dramatic re-enactment is watched by more than 10,000 people and is part of a larger festival, called Little Big Horn Days, that includes Libbie Custer's High Tea, the 1876 Grand Ball and Trader's Row, where Native American food and merchandise are on sale.