The U.S Cavalry at war with the Plains Indian tribes There can be little doubt that Custer's catastrophic defeat at the Battle of Little Bighorn attracted more retrospective attention to the man than if he had simply retired from his military career having served during the Civil War and upon the American Western Frontier. Certainly, there have been far fewer books written about American soldiers of the period who arguably served with greater distinction. The author of this biography was a well regarded American novelist during the 19th century and his book on Custer's life-published in 1876- holds the distinction of being the first (of many ) biographies concerning his subject. Whilst some critics have referred to its content as 'adulatory', this verdict is possibly less accurate than that it is a document of its time and place and it therefore inevitably reflects the attitudes of both considerations. This biography indisputably benefits from the inclusion of opinions and recollections of participants who were still living at the time it was written. Whittaker's work-concerning Custer's entire life- was originally released as a single tome of approaching 700 pages of densely packed text delivered within large paragraphs. This Leonaur edition has therefore divided that work into two volumes each concerning a distinct portion of his military career. The text has been reformatted into smaller, easier to access paragraphs for the modern reader and has been enhanced by additional photographs and illustrations. This volume is accompanied by a short assessment of Custer as a soldier and man by Barrett.