Custer: From the Civil Wars Boy General to the Battle of the Little Bighorn

About Gary BloomfieldTed Behncke

Ted Behncke is a retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel having served 30 years in varied command and staff positions across the globe. He comes from a military family that saw distinguished service in the Revolutionary War Civil War WWII and service during nearly every major conflict to the present. While serving in the Army he commanded an infantry rifle company in the 17th Infantry Regiment the same regiment that had two companies in the Little Bighorn Campaign. He was a training instructor and has a thorough knowledge of cavalry tactics and campaigns including those from the Civil War and the Indian Wars. Stationed at both historic Fort Riley and Fort Leavenworth Kansas he gained hands-on knowledge of the Custer residences the weapons and accoutrements used by cavalry soldiers in the 1800s and retraced the routes of the 7th Cavalry campaign against the Plains Indians. This included leading fellow Army officers and NCOS to the Little Bighorn battlefield and discussing the movements of both opposing forces. He has written numerous military papers and book reviews including the prestigious Military Review the Professional Journal of the U.S. Army. Gary Bloomfield is a former Army Journalist of the Year and managing editor for VFW magazine. He was the senior editor for the two-volume illustrated series on WWII titled Faces of Victory. He wrote Duty Honor Victory: Americas Athletes in WWII followed by Duty Honor Applause: Americas Entertainers in WWII which he co-wrote. His other books include Maxims of General Patton the citizenship study guide I Will be an American Someday Soon illustrated bios on George Patton and Mark Twain (the latter co-written). He completed The Devils Playground about the Korean DMZ in the Summer of 2019 and The One a compilation of stories from military doctors and nurses published in the Spring of 2020.