Product Description
In August 1862, after decades of broken treaties, increasing hardship, and relentless encroachment on their lands, a group of Dakota warriors convened a council at the tepee of their leader, Little Crow. Knowing the strength and resilience of the young American nation, Little Crow counseled caution, but anger won the day. Forced to either lead his warriors in a war he knew they could not win or leave them to their fates, he declared, "[Little Crow] is not a coward: he will die with you."
So began six weeks of intense conflict along the Minnesota frontier as the Dakotas clashed with settlers and federal troops. Once the uprising was smashed and the Dakotas captured, a military commission was convened, which quickly found more than three hundred Indians guilty of murder. President Lincoln personally intervened in order to spare the lives of 265 of the condemned men, but the toll on the Dakota nation was still staggering: a way of life destroyed, a tribe forcibly relocated to barren and unfamiliar territory, and thirty-eight Dakota warriors hanged.
Written with uncommon immediacy and insight, 38 Nooses details these events within the larger context of the Civil War, the history of the Dakota people, and the subsequent United States–Indian wars. It is a revelation of an overlooked but seminal moment in American history.
So began six weeks of intense conflict along the Minnesota frontier as the Dakotas clashed with settlers and federal troops. Once the uprising was smashed and the Dakotas captured, a military commission was convened, which quickly found more than three hundred Indians guilty of murder. President Lincoln personally intervened in order to spare the lives of 265 of the condemned men, but the toll on the Dakota nation was still staggering: a way of life destroyed, a tribe forcibly relocated to barren and unfamiliar territory, and thirty-eight Dakota warriors hanged.
Written with uncommon immediacy and insight, 38 Nooses details these events within the larger context of the Civil War, the history of the Dakota people, and the subsequent United States–Indian wars. It is a revelation of an overlooked but seminal moment in American history.
Reviews/Praise
“A gripping narrative of this little-known conflict and a careful exploration of the relationships between events of the Civil War and America’s expansion west.... Although the reader knows the eventual outcome of these battles—near extermination of Indian tribes and cultures—Berg maintains suspense about individual fates to round out this nuanced study of a complex period.” —Publishers Weekly Starred Review
“A captivating tale of an oft-overlooked, morally ambiguous moment in American history.” —Kirkus Starred Review
“[Berg] strives successfully to present a balanced narrative of the conflict while providing excellent portrayals of some of the key participants. This is a valuable . . . account of an obscure but important episode in our history.” —Booklist
“Impressive. . . . Berg crafts a heady narrative. . . .Alongside his portrait of Lincoln [and Little Crow], Berg makes vivid his other protagonists.” —USA Today