Custer

Colorful, charismatic, and controversial, George Armstrong Custer became a national hero at the age of 23 when he was promoted to the rank of general - barely two years after graduating at the bottom of his class from the military academy at West Point. Dubbed the "Boy General" by the press, Custer was the youngest man to attain that rank in the Civil War. The public idolized him and his men worshipped him because he never asked them to do anything he would not do himself. Even today, well over a century after his death, Custer remains a romantic hero to many. He endured two court martials and temporary dismissal from the Army, redeemed himself through his actions at the front, and resurrected his former glory with a stunning victory over the Cheyenne Indians using tactics he had perfected during the Civil War. Custer was one of those larger-than-life figures, whose flamboyant, daring, and dashing personality vigorously defied conventional standards and became symbols of invincibility. Here, military historian Duane Schultz explores the strategies and legacy of one of the most fascinating figures in American military history.