Kearny's Dragoons Out West: The Birth of the U.S. CavalryHaving banished eastern Native peoples to lands west of the Mississippi, President Andrew Jackson’s government by 1833 needed a new type of soldier to keep displaced Indians from returning home. And so the 1st Dragoons came into being. Will and John Gorenfeld tell their story—an epic of exploration, conquest, and diplomacy from the outposts of western history—in this book-length treatment of the force that became the U.S. Cavalry. The 1st Dragoons represented a new regiment of horsemen that drew on the combined skills and clashing visions of two types of leaders: old Indian killers and backwoodsmen such as loudmouth miner Henry Dodge; and straight-arrow battlefield veterans such as Stephen Watts Kearny, who had fought Redcoats in 1812 but now negotiated treaties with Indian tribes and enforced the new order of the West. Drawing on soldiers’ journals and other never-before-used sources, Kearny’s Dragoons Out West reconstructs this forgotten, often surprising moment in U.S. history. Under Kearny, the 1st Dragoons performed its mission through diplomacy and intimidation rather than violence, even protecting Indians from white settlers. Following the regiment up to the U.S.-Mexican War, when diplomacy gave way to open violence, this book introduces readers to future Civil War generals. Colorful characters appearing in these pages include Private Thomas Russell, a young attorney tricked by a horse thief into joining the army; James Hildreth, who authored two books on the 1st Dragoons; and English drill sergeant Long Ned Stanley, whose tenure in the 1st reveals much about American immigrants’ experience in 1833–48. The promises made in Kearny’s well-intentioned treaty making were ultimately broken. This detailed and in-depth look back at his legacy offers a glimpse of a lost world—and an intriguing turning point in the history of western expansion. |
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Contents
The First Expeditions | |
Dragoons on the Santa Fe Trail | |
Sumner Allen Wharton and Carleton | |
Kearny and His Dragoons at | |
A Glass to the Dead Already | |
Loves Defeat at Coon Creeks | |
Epilogue | |
Bibliography | |
Other editions - View all
Kearny's Dragoons Out West: The Birth of the U.S. Cavalry Will Gorenfeld,John Gorenfeld Limited preview - 2016 |
Kearnys Dragoons Out West: The Birth of the U.S. Cavalry Will Gorenfeld,John Gorenfeld No preview available - 2016 |
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1st Dragoons Adjutant Allen American Arkansas artillery Atkinson attack August battle California camp cannon Capt Captain carbines Carleton cavalry charge Chihuahua Colonel Kearny column Comanches command Company courtmartial Cruz de Rosales detachment Dodge’s Dragoon Campaigns Emory enemy enlisted escort expedition fire force Fort Atkinson Fort Gibson Fort Leavenworth Frémont frontier George Cooke Gibson Gillespie Henry Dodge Hildreth horses howitzers Ibid Indian infantry Iowa Territory James James Hildreth Jefferson Barracks Jones Journal June Kearny’s killed Leavenworth Letter Book Lieutenant Love Love’s LRAG Mason Mexican Mexico miles military Mississippi Missouri Mountains mounted mules NARA officers ordered Pawnee peace Pelzer Philip Kearny Philip St Plains prairie Price recruits regiment Report riding River sabers saddle San Pasqual Santa Cruz Santa Fe Trail Scott sergeant settlers Sioux soldiers squadron Sterling Price Sumner Taylor Texas tribes troopers troops Turner U.S. Army United volunteers wagons West Wharton William wounded wrote