Throughout the nineteenth century, the US government supported one way or another the expansion and colonization of the areas west of the Mississippi River, which were inhabited by North American Indians. The expansion was initially directed to the Great Plains, and one of the most important conflicts was, for example, the so-called The Dakota War of 1862. However, the particularly intensification of the conflicts with the Indians took place after the end of the Civil War, i.e. after 1865 and lasted until around 1890. In the course of these conflicts, the US Army cavalry regiments played a particularly important role, thanks to their mobility and firepower, they could effectively fight the Indians on the vast prairies of the Midwest. The regiments that became particularly famous in the course of these fights are, above all, the 7th, 9th and 10th Cavalry Regiments. In the 1860s and 1870s, these regiments had a total of 12 companies, combined into 3 squadrons, 4 companies each. A single regiment numbered about 910-950 men. The basic armament was a saber and a reciprocally loaded cavalry carabiner.
Currently, the term North American Indians is used to describe the entire indigenous (indigenous) population of this continent, with the exception of the Aleuts and Inuits. It is assumed that the ancestors of North American Indians appeared in this area about 12-14 thousand. years ago and came to this continent from Asia. However, this is only a hypothesis. Of course, the Indians were a veritable mosaic of tribes and tribes. You can meet both tribes engaged in agriculture (eg Huroni) and nomadic peoples (eg Apache). It is worth adding that probably in the 16th and 17th centuries, the North American Indians numbered about 10 million. people. It should also be remembered that, unlike the Aztecs or Incas, they did not create strong state organisms. Most often they were organized into tribes or tribes. They were often against white settlements - especially in the nineteenth century against the advancing westward colonization of the United States. They often used bows and captured rifles as weapons, as well as tomahawks. It is worth adding that the tomahawk originally had a "iron" made of stone, and later of steel. One of the most famous clashes between North American Indians and American troops was the Battle of Little Big Horn in 1876.