General William Sherman is a minor character in the book, but he appears in more chapters than any other. A famous, and infamous, Civil War general, Sherman organized the “March to the Sea,” which destroyed huge amounts of Southern agriculture in the mid-1860s. Later in his military career, he participated in the colonization of the western United States, an endeavor which required him to approve the relocation and, in some cases, the murder of thousands of Native Americans. In spite of his bloodthirsty reputation, Sherman is portrayed as a deeply conflicted man—someone who’s willing to spill blood for his country, but who “had suffered and knew the pain of it in others.” (Notably, Sherman’s middle name was Tecumseh, after the Pawnee chief.)
General William Sherman Quotes in Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
The Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee quotes below are all either spoken by General William Sherman or refer to General William Sherman. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Note: all page numbers and citation info for the quotes below refer to the Picador edition of Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee published in 2007.
Chapter 6
Quotes
Incidents such as this, combined with Red Cloud’s continuing war, which had brought civilian travel to an end through the Powder River country, had a strong effect upon the United States government and its high military command. The government was determined to protect the route of the Union pacific Railroad, but even old war dogs such as General Sherman were beginning to wonder if it might not be advisable to leave the Powder River country to the Indians in exchange for peace along the Platte Valley.
Related Characters:
General William Sherman, Red Cloud
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General William Sherman Character Timeline in Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
The timeline below shows where the character General William Sherman appears in Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2: The Long Walk of the Navahos
...original lands in exchange for promising peace. At the meeting, the chiefs met the famous General William Sherman . Sherman already had a reputation for killing Native Americans, but the Navahos noticed that...
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Chapter 11: The War to Save the Buffalo
...guns, or else risk further raids. The agents told Satanta that he should meet with General Sherman . Soon afterwards, a group of Kiowa chiefs, including Satanta, met with General Sherman. Sherman...
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Chapter 12: The War for the Black Hills
The news of the Bighorn “massacre” incensed white America. In July, General Sherman was ordered to treat all Sioux tribesmen as prisoners of war. The government passed further...
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Chapter 13: The Flight of the Nez Percés
...Park, which at the time was the only official national park in the United States. General Sherman chased the Nez Percé through the Park, and sent the Crows north to ambush Young...
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Chapter 15: Standing Bear Becomes a Person
...Nebraska, many of the Poncas already living in Kansas were forbidden to leave their reservation. General Sherman was sent in to arrest any Poncas who tried to escape from Kansas; publicly, he...
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In October, General Sherman arrested Big Snake, the brother of a Ponca chief. According to eyewitnesses, Big Snake refused...
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