June 17 marks the anniversary of an important but not widely celebrated battle in the “Sioux Wars” of the last half of the 19th century. Occurring eight days before the Battle of the Little Big Horn, June 25, 1876, “Custer’s Last Stand,” the Battle of the Rosebud made the Sioux victory over Custer possible. The following are lyrics to what is not quite yet a song, written mostly from my idea of the Indian point of view. They called it “The Battle Where the Woman Saved Her Brother.” A finished song on the “Battle of the Greasy Grass,” what the Indians called the Little Bighorn river will follow on June 25.
The Battle of the Rosebud, Where the Woman Saved Her Brother
“Three Stars” (1) came marching from the South; John Gibbon from the West;
While “Long Hair’s” (2) men rode from the East, Lakota to arrest.
So Sitting Bull sent out a call to plan how to react.
The Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho all made a common pact.
When they camped near the Greasy Grass, (3) the village grew and grew.
Such size was never seen before; they soon must leave, they knew.
And then the scouts came to report Three Stars just days away.
When he arrived he would attack; that was the White Man’s way.
The Battle of the Rosebud: there soon would be another.
The Battle of the Rosebud, where the woman saved her brother.
When Crook was thirty miles away, near where the Rosebud streamed,
Lakota warriors rode all night to catch Crook while he dreamed.
The morning sun arose to find the men of Crazy Horse
Just north of Three Star’s sleeping camp, poised to attack in force.
“Lakota coming!” Crow scouts screamed and fired some warning shots.
Crook’s men, at breakfast, grabbed their guns and left their cooking pots.
A young brave charged; his horse was shot; he thought he’d die that day.
His sister pulled him on her horse and carried him away.
The Battle of the Rosebud: there soon would be another.
The Battle of the Rosebud, where the woman saved her brother.
The battle raged ’til afternoon: attack, retreat, attack.
Both sides saw fighters bleed and die, lost ground then won it back.
Lakota, with the sun still up, retired from blood-soaked ground.
But victory went to Crazy Horse; Crook’s army turned around.
The Battle of the Rosebud: there soon would be another.
The Battle of the Rosebud, where the woman saved her brother.
In eight more days, when Long Hair’s men came to Lakota land
And found the camp on Greasy Grass, it would be their “last stand.”
Stephen Baird, August, 2015
- “Three Stars” was what the Lakota (Sioux) called General George Crook. He was a brigadier general with one star on each shoulder and one star on his hat.
- “Long Hair” was the Lakota name for Custer.”Greasy Grass” is the Little Big Horn.
- The Battle of the Rosebud took place on June 17. The Battle of the Little Bighorn was on June 25, 1876. If not for the Battle of the Rosebud, Custer and Crook would have linked up and attacked the village together.