Analysis Of Nathaniel Philbrick s Mayflower - 1521 Words

Nathaniel Philbrick is an American author and novelist. He was born June 11, 1956 in Boston, Massachusetts but spent most of his early life in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where he grew up. He attended Brown and Duke Universities where he earned a BA in English and an MA in American Literature. Where he was born, what he studied in school, and where he currently resides (Nantucket, MA along with his wife Melissa) contribute greatly to his career. Philbrick used his acquired knowledge and experience from his schooling to become the award winning novelist he is today. He won National Book Award for Nonfiction, was a finalist for the 2007 Pulitzer Prize in History, and his book â€Å"Mayflower† was named one of the ten â€Å"Best Books of 2006† by the New†¦show more content†¦For many years and by many Americans the Battle of Little BigHorn was looked at as a valiant effort by brave Americans to fight for what they believed in under a well organized and successful com manding officer. Through the accounts in this book, Philbrick shows us this was not necessarily the case. Custer and his men went into the battle extremely too overconfident and he seriously underestimated the power of his opposing army. This overconfidence caused a great lack of proper preparation for the battle by the US army which ultimately helped lead to their demise in this battle. Other factors that contributed to this loss were the facts that Custer did not have such great command over some of his officers. Several of them purposely disobeyed orders and acted upon their own whims. One officer in particular, Sargent Reno, showed up to the battle drunk and was seen drinking from a flask of amber liquid. The confusion, disorder and underestimation of the enemy all lead to the chaos and massacre that ensued on Custer and his men. The fight between Custer’s men and the indians proved to be â€Å"a rout, a panic till the last man was killed.† Custer lead reckless charges down the hills and along the river and by Indian accounts, he was the first to be struck and killed. Without their leader so early in battle, the Seventh Cavalry was left in much disarray. A panic ensued among the men and according to