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Frederick William Benteen (August 24, 1834 – June 22, 1898) was a military officer during the American Civil War and then during the Indian Campaigns and Great Sioux War against the Lakota and Northern Cheyenne. Benteen is best known for being in command of a battalion (Companies D, H,& K) of the 7th U. S. Cavalry at the Battle of the Little Bighorn in late June, 1876. While scouting the area, Captain Benteen received an urgent note from his superior officer George Armstrong Custer ordering him to bring up the ammunition packs and join him in Custer's surprise attack on a large Native American encampment. Benteen's failure to promptly comply is one of the most controversial aspects of the famed battle, which resulted in the death of Custer and the complete annihilation of the five companies of cavalrymen which comprised Custer's detachment. ==Early life and career== Frederick Benteen was born August 24, 1834, in Petersburg, Virginia to Theodore Charles Benteen and his wife Caroline (Hargrove) Benteen. Benteen's ancestors had emigrated to America from the Netherlands in the 18th century, settling in Baltimore. The family had moved to Virginia from Baltimore shortly after the birth of their first child, Henrietta Elizabeth, in October 1831. Frederick Benteen was educated at the Petersburg Classical Institute, where he was first trained in military drill. His family moved to St. Louis, Missouri in 1849. In 1856, he became acquainted with Catharine "Kate" Louisa Norman, a young woman recently arrived in St. Louis from Philadelphia. The election of Abraham Lincoln as U.S. President in 1860 polarized the country. Theodore Charles Benteen, an ardent secessionist, vehemently opposed his son's associating with Unionists. A family crisis was ignited when Frederick joined the Union Army on September 1, 1861 as a first lieutenant in the 1st Missouri Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, although Len Eagleburger's book places Benteen at the Battle of Wilson's Creek in August 1861. The 1st Missouri Volunteer Cavalry was often referred to as "Bowen's Battalion." It was later redesignated the 9th and then merged into the 10th Missouri Cavalry. Frederick married Catherine Norman on January 7, 1862 at St. George's Church in St. Louis. In July 1863, Catherine Benteen gave birth to the couple's first child, Caroline Elizabeth, but the daughter would die before reaching her first year. Benteen participated in numerous battles during the American Civil War, for which he was awarded the brevet ranks of major and then lieutenant colonel. Among his engagements were Wilson's Creek, Pea Ridge, Vicksburg and Westport. On February 27, 1864, Benteen was promoted to lieutenant colonel and commander of the 10th Missouri Cavalry. Benteen was mustered out at the war's end in the spring of 1865, and shortly thereafter was appointed to the rank of colonel as commander of a ''"Buffalo Soldier"'' regiment, the 138th U.S. Colored Volunteers. He led the regiment from July, 1865 to January, 1866, when it was mustered out. Later that year, he was appointed a captain in the 7th U.S. Cavalry. Meanwhile, the Senate finally approved awards of brevets to distinguished veterans of the Civil War. Benteen received brevets of major for the Battle of Mine Creek and lieutenant colonel for the Battle of Columbus (1865). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Frederick Benteen」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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