Red Cloud, the Solitary Sioux: A Story of the Great Prairie

by William Francis Butler

Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

382 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1882

About the author

Lieutenant General Sir William Francis Butler, GCB, FRGS, PC (Ire.)

Born into an upper middle-class Roman Catholic family in Suirville, County Tipperary, Ireland, he was educated by the Jesuits and commissioned an Ensign (2nd Lieutenant) in the 69th Regiment of Foot. He had a long and distinguished career in the British Army, which at the time was unusual for a Catholic Irishman. He was also an explorer, appointed an Aide-de-Camp (ADC) to Queen Victoria, appointed a Member of the Irish Privy Council (PC), a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (FRGS), invested a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB), a member of the senate of the National University of Ireland, a commissioner of the Board of National Education, supporter of Home Rule for Ireland, and a frequent lecturer. He was a veteran of many British campaigns in the second half of the 19th century including the Red River Expedition (Canada), the Ashanti War (South Africa), the Anglo-Zulu War (South Africa), and the Nile Expedition (Egypt and the Sudan). He was the husband of the artist Elizabeth Southerden Butler (née Thompson), also known as Lady Butler. His books are noted for their diversity: biographies, history, memoirs of his experiences exploring western Canada, travel literature, recollections of Victorian military campaigns in which he participated, and finally his own autobiography.

Reviews

[Liam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got this book from my father when I was 8 years old . It was the first book that I read. Great discription of life in the American West and the live of the native American Indians.

[Patricia Joyce]

I was lucky enough to receive a facsimile copy of this book as a present, I had been looking for a copy of the original for years, they are long out of print.
The long wait was far from disappointing. I absolutely loved the story of Red Cloud, the solitary Sioux.
William Francis Butler tells of his childhood in Tipperary,where with his faithful friend Donogh they discovered the area in which they lived and had many adventures there but dreamed of more.
Butler dreams of going further afield, not in search of gold or adventure, just to see what the world he had extensively read about was really like and to experience it.
Together he and Donogh set off, and before long they are on the great plains of America. There they encounter Red Cloud - the Solitary Sioux, and there their adventures begin in earnest.
I absolutely loved the descriptive writing of Butler, I could practically see the beautiful sunsets over the plains, the way the sky changed colour and I could hear the wind rustling through the grasses.
His descriptions of all the skills that they learned from Red Cloud in their daily lives were fascinating, from setting up camps, to foraging, hunting and fishing.
In short, this is a great adventure story for any person of any age, any person who just likes to get into a book and be a part of it.
Great read, absolutely loved it, a story the way stories should be told!