Red Cloud was a prominent leader of the Oglala Lakota who served from 1865 to 1909. He is recognized as one of the most capable Native American opponents faced by the United States Army in the western territories during the 19th century.
He led the Lakota to victory over the United States during Red Cloud's War, establishing the Lakota as the only nation to defeat the United States on American soil. The largest action of this conflict was the 1866 Fetterman Fight, in which 81 US soldiers were killed. This event represented the worst military defeat suffered by the US Army on the Great Plains until the Battle of the Little Bighorn ten years later.