Columns of Vengeance: Soldiers, Sioux, and the Punitive Expeditions, 1863–1864

by Paul N. Beck

In summer 1862, Minnesotans found themselves fighting interconnected wars—the first against the rebellious Southern states, and the second an internal war against the Sioux. While the Civil War was more important to the future of the United States, the Dakota War of 1862 proved far more destructive to the people of Minnesota—both whites and American Indians. It led to U.S. military action against the Sioux, divided the Dakotas over whether to fight or not, and left hundreds of white settlers dead. In Columns of Vengeance , historian Paul N. Beck offers a reappraisal of the Punitive Expeditions of 1863 and 1864, the U.S. Army’s response to the Dakota War of 1862. Whereas previous accounts have approached the Punitive Expeditions as a military campaign of the Indian Wars, Beck argues that the expeditions were also an extension of the Civil War. The strategy and tactics reflected those of the war in the East, and Civil War operations directly affected planning and logistics in the West. Beck also examines the devastating impact the expeditions had on the various bands and tribes of the Sioux. Whites viewed the expeditions as punishment—“columns of vengeance” sent against those Dakotas who had started the war in 1862—yet the majority of the Sioux the army encountered had little or nothing to do with the earlier uprising in Minnesota. Rather than relying only on the official records of the commanding officers involved, Beck presents a much fuller picture of the conflict by consulting the letters, diaries, and personal accounts of the common soldiers who took part in the expeditions, as well as rare personal narratives from the Dakotas. Drawing on a wealth of firsthand accounts and linking the Punitive Expeditions of 1863 and 1864 to the overall Civil War experience, Columns of Vengeance offers fresh insight into an important chapter in the development of U.S. military operations against the Sioux.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

330 pages, Hardcover

First published May 17, 2013

Reviews

[Luke Koran · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have three words for you: NEW MILITARY HISTORY!!! Beck beautifully illustrates a harsh, violent era built on vengeance that encapsulated the plains of North Dakota and Minnesota in the early 1860s in a way that other scholars have failed to do. By painstakingly seeking out, researching, and drawing conclusions from hundreds of primary sources left by the thousands of ordinary soldiers that took part in a war - and not JUST the official documents created by generals who wished to make every battle look like it was a complete success - Beck has accomplished detailing the complete story of the U.S. - Dakota War of 1862-65. Furthermore, sources detailing the actions and rationale of the Dakota Sioux, who was the military opponent of these previously-mentioned white American soldiers, are used throughout this book. Detailing the Indian's perspective on this three-year-long war - from the reasons they felt compelled to attack the whites as well as their excellent plan of attack at various battles like Big Mound, Killdeer Mountain, and The Badlands - is an aspect often ignored, or at least less emphasized, by Beck's predecessors.

It is likely still wise to read other histories (see Michael Clodfelter's and Doreen Chaky's works) of this time period in order to gather more detail on the entirety of this war (especially concerning the predicament of the Dakota in the decades before this final act of rebellion), but Beck's book remains a true treasure for the scholar or casual reader interested in how the ordinary soldier dealt with all aspects of this great war on the northern Plains.

[Shrike58 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I thought that there was a lot of virtue in Pekka Hamalainen's study of the wider Lakota nation, it is to be admitted that it is not at its strongest when dealing with military matters. As such, Beck's study of the follow-up to the Sioux War of 1862, while a little dry, I found to be very informative. This is as Beck goes to some lengths not to treat the punitive expeditions as a sideshow to the greater war between Richmond and Washington, but as an integral component of larger strategic concerns. Though it's hard to avoid concluding that John Pope was looking for personal compensation for his military failures back east. Beck also works at giving the reader some insight to the perspective of the fighting men on the ground, between those Lakota/Dakota fighters trying to stave off the onrush of the White Man, those soldiers of Minnesota who wanted personal revenge, and other soldiers of the U.S. Army who, on the whole, would have preferred to have fought in what they considered the "real" war.

[Rey Dekker · Rating 4 out of 5]

...very readable history...sometimes it can be as dry as cardboard...unfortunately more of the same injustice that was buried under the glamorous and brave recounting by The White Man Writing History...

[Thomas Isern · Rating 5 out of 5]

My review of Columns of Vengeance, recorded today for Prairie Public radio, is pasted into the "New Work on the Dakota War" thread established below.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent use of sources, great bottom-up history, but Beck is not a particularly good writer. He's a good historian but not a great storyteller.