15. Chivington attacked the Cheyenne camp with over 650 men
Despite protesting vigorously over the attack on his fellow officers, Soule led his company with the rest of the command under Chivington on a night march, November 28-29, 1864. They arrived at the camp at Sand Creek just before dawn, with many of the men having spent the night consuming whiskey as a means of keeping warm. When Chivington ordered his men to attack the village, killing all found within, Soule and Cramer ordered their men not to fire, unless they were forced to in self-defense. The attack included the use of artillery by the Colorado troops, who also took some casualties from the resistance of the few warriors in the village.
Some of the Cheyenne fled along the banks of the creek, escaping the fusillade and reaching the camp at Smoky Hill River. Black Kettle was among the escapees, leaving his wife behind during the attack. Accounts of the number killed during what Chivington dubbed the Battle of Sand Creek varied among the participants and observers, but it was generally reported that 163 Cheyenne were killed, most of them women and children. When Ulysses Grant, then commanding the Union forces in Virginia, heard of the attack he called it “nothing less than murder” and called for a Congressional investigation.