Two events in the 19th century turned the minds of Americans westwards towards eventual and inevitable conflict with the Plains Indians. The first was victory in the Mexican-American War, which brought millions of acres of new land in the West. The second was the discovery of gold in California. One of the results of this migration was conflict with the Indians who inhabited the Plains. So it was natural that the Army, the nation's armed peace-keepers, should be sent to garrison the West. This book by Philip Katcher tells the absorbing story of the US cavalrymen who patrolled the Plains from 1850-90.

The 1850s · The Civil War Years · The Climax: 1866-76 · The Sioux War, 1876-77 · The Last Campaigns: 1881-91 · Cavalry Organisation · Army Life on the Plains · The Plates