[460]
During the Great Sioux War that started after Sitting Bull refused to relocate to agency land, warriors led by Crazy Horse massacred George Armstrong Custer and 268 of his men at the Battle of the Little Big Horn. The slaughter took place during the Centennial, and the Indian victory was announced to the nation on July 4, while angry white settlers demanded retribution. Grant castigated Custer in the press, saying "I regard Custer's massacre as a sacrifice of troops, brought on by Custer himself, that was wholly unnecessary—wholly unnecessary."[461] Previously, Custer had infuriated Grant when he testified against Grant's brother Orville during a House investigation into trading post graft on March 1, 1876.[462] In September and October 1876, Grant persuaded the tribes to relinquish the Black Hills. Congress ratified the agreement three days before Grant left office in 1877.[463][as][at]

Election of 1872 and second term
Main article: 1872 United States presidential election
Cartoon by Thomas Nast on Grant's opponents in the reelection campaign
Grant's first administration was mixed with both success and failure.[467] In 1871, to placate reformers, he created the America's first Civil Service Commission, chaired by reformer George William Curtis.