Forlorn Hope

Rating:
Summary: Well-researched, riveting account of a landmark event
Review: Forlorn Hope: The Nez Perce Victory At White Bird Canyon is the true story of one of the worst defeats that the American military encountered during the Indian wars. The Nez Perce won a victory at White Bird Canyon that raised their hopes of keeping their homeland, and led to a four-month, 1,000-mile running battle that came to an end with Chief Joseph's surrender at Bear Paw, Montana, only 100 miles from safety. Presenting the White Bird Canyon battle from both Indian and white points of view, Forlorn Hope is a well-researched, riveting account of a landmark event of the western Indian wars.


Rating:
Summary: A model study
Review: John McDermott's FORLORN HOPE on the White Bird Canyon battle was originally published in 1978 by the Idaho Historical Society, 101 years after the battle. McDermott does an excellent job of recounting in an engaging way the events prior to the battle, the actual engagement itself, and its aftermath. Each chapter is preceded by a page entitled "What They Said" that contains direct quotes from participants in the events subsequently described. Indeed, this reliance on original sources throughout is a noteworthy attribute of this fine book.

The battle at White Bird Canyon heralded the opening of the Nez Perce War, resulting in a stunning defeat for two companies of the First cavalry sent out to interdict the Nez Perce, some of whom had killed white men, women, and children as the result of rising tensions described in the first chapter of the book. The military was totally unprepared for the fighting ability of their foe. The author examines the charges of cowardice leveled at Captain David Perry of the First Cavalry but personally feels there were other factors at work in the defeat other than the perceived failing of the senior officer in charge. These reasons are described in a chapter near the end of the book that I found to be most useful in their application to not only this battle but other engagments in the Indian Wars. Among his conclusions:
*The loss of trumpets left the cavalry companies unable to communicate effectively in a way that would have stemmed the panic retreat of many of the enlisted men (A similar problem beset G Troop of the 7th Cavalry when Reno ordered their departure from the Valley fight portion of the Little Big Horn battle).
*Judgment-Perry allowed armed citizen volunteers to occupy a piece of high ground guarding his flank. When these citizens quickly fled the fight, the Indians began to outflank the troops, contributing to their fearful and disorganized retreat.
*The troopers (many were urban recruits) were poorly trained in both horsemanship and marksmanship, unlike their Nez Perce foe to whom using guns and horses came quite naturally. It should be noted that the 1873 Springfield Trapdoor carbine (the same weapon that many like to blame for Custer's defeat the preceding year) is described by the author as "the best military rifle in the world." The problem with the weapon was that those who were trying to use it did not know how to do so effectively. One non-commissioned officer who survived the White Bird Canyon recalled that many of the pieces were rusty and foul, thereby degrading their effectiveness before the poorly trained troopers could even attempt to fire them. Furthermore, at one point in the battle, the troopers attempted to fire their weapons while MOUNTED, a difficult proposition for the even the best trained troopers, which these men were not.
*Perry underestimated the ability of his foe. It must be remembered that in this battle, as well as those such as the Little Big Horn, the soldiers lost in large measure due to the fighting ability of their foes.

The author has included thirty pages of the 1878 Court of Inquiry testimony from the inquiry convened to investigate Perry. The court ruled in his favor, that no further adjudication (i.e.,a court-martial) was necessary. This section will be very helpful to those who thrive on unedited first hand accounts. In all, an excellent book that includes numerous photographs of battle participants.

Rating:
Summary: BACK IN PRINT, WELL WORTH OWNING
Review: John McDermott's FORLORN HOPE on the White Bird Canyon battle was originally published in 1978 by the Idaho Historical Society, 101 years after the battle. McDermott does an excellent job of recounting in an engaging way the events prior to the battle, the actual engagement itself, and its aftermath. Each chapter is preceded by a page entitled "What They Said" that contains direct quotes from participants in the events subsequently described. Indeed, this reliance on original sources throughout is a noteworthy attribute of this fine book.

The battle at White Bird Canyon heralded the opening of the Nez Perce War, resulting in a stunning defeat for two companies of the First cavalry sent out to interdict the Nez Perce, some of whom had killed white men, women, and children as the result of rising tensions described in the first chapter of the book. The military was totally unprepared for the fighting ability of their foe. The author examines the charges of cowardice leveled at Captain David Perry of the First Cavalry but personally feels there were other factors at work in the defeat other than the perceived failing of the senior officer in charge. These reasons are described in a chapter near the end of the book that I found to be most useful in their application to not only this battle but other engagments in the Indian Wars. Among his conclusions:
*The loss of trumpets left the cavalry companies unable to communicate effectively in a way that would have stemmed the panic retreat of many of the enlisted men (A similar problem beset G Troop of the 7th Cavalry when Reno ordered their departure from the Valley fight portion of the Little Big Horn battle).
*Judgment-Perry allowed armed citizen volunteers to occupy a piece of high ground guarding his flank. When these citizens quickly fled the fight, the Indians began to outflank the troops, contributing to their fearful and disorganized retreat.
*The troopers (many were urban recruits) were poorly trained in both horsemanship and marksmanship, unlike their Nez Perce foe to whom using guns and horses came quite naturally. It should be noted that the 1873 Springfield Trapdoor carbine (the same weapon that many like to blame for Custer's defeat the preceding year) is described by the author as "the best military rifle in the world." The problem with the weapon was that those who were trying to use it did not know how to do so effectively. One non-commissioned officer who survived the White Bird Canyon recalled that many of the pieces were rusty and foul, thereby degrading their effectiveness before the poorly trained troopers could even attempt to fire them. Furthermore, at one point in the battle, the troopers attempted to fire their weapons while MOUNTED, a difficult proposition for the even the best trained troopers, which these men were not.
*Perry underestimated the ability of his foe. It must be remembered that in this battle, as well as those such as the Little Big Horn, the soldiers lost in large measure due to the fighting ability of their foes.

The author has included thirty pages of the 1878 Court of Inquiry testimony from the inquiry convened to investigate Perry. The court ruled in his favor, that no further adjudication (i.e.,a court-martial) was necessary. This section will be very helpful to those who thrive on unedited first hand accounts. In all, an excellent book that includes numerous photographs of battle participants.

Rating:
Summary: A model study
Review: The Battle of White Bird Canyon at the beginning of the Nez Perce War ("Chief Joseph's War") was an intense and unusual fight that confounded the U.S. Army's expectations of how Indians fought. McDermott's _Forlorn Hope_ was a thorough and perceptive study of the battle that did and can serve as a model for writing on Indian wars engagements. The style is clear, the subject interesting, and the maps are unusually good. Unfortunately, the old hardcover edition has been getting harder and harder to locate. Having this reprint come out--and at an affordable price--is very good news. Dr. Michael A. Hughes, Founding Editor, Journal of the Indian Wars.