George Armstrong Custer (December 5, 1839 – June 25, 1876) was a
United States Army officer and
cavalry commander in the
American Civil War[1] and the
American Indian Wars.
[2]
Custer graduated from
West Point in 1861 at the bottom of his class,
[3] but as the Civil War was just starting, trained officers were in immediate demand. He worked closely with General
George B. McClellan and the future General
Alfred Pleasonton, both of whom recognized his qualities as a cavalry leader, and he was brevetted brigadier general of volunteers at age 23. Only a few days after his promotion, he fought at the
Battle of Gettysburg, where he commanded the
Michigan Cavalry Brigade and despite being outnumbered, defeated
J. E. B. Stuart's attack at what is now known as the
East Cavalry Field. In 1864, Custer served in the
Overland Campaign and in
Philip Sheridan's army in the
Shenandoah Valley, defeating
Jubal Early at
Cedar Creek. His division blocked the
Army of Northern Virginia's final retreat and received the first flag of truce from the Confederates, and Custer was present at
Robert E. Lee's surrender to
Ulysses S. Grant at
Appomattox.