The question is "Do the Rough Riders deserve their fame?" Well let's see exactly what the Rough Riders did to get their fame and we will see if they do. At the outbreak of war with Spain in 1898, the U.S. Army was very small in numbers. This situation needed an immediate call for volunteers. President McKinley’s appeal was overwhelmingly answered by a generation that had grown up in the shadow of their elders. One group answering the call was the First Regiment of the U.S. Cavalry Volunteers, headed by Colonel Leonard Wood, and Roosevelt, realizing his own lack of military experience, suggested that Leonard Wood be given command of the volunteer cavalry regiment; and accordingly Wood became colonel, and TR was made lieutenant colonel, of the First U.S. Volunteer Cavalry, soon popularly known as the "Rough Riders.”

The Rough Riders, as the regiment was soon known, comprised 1,250 men, including cowboys, Native Americans and eastern college athletes. They got as many men as they could not care for their race or achievements. The Rough Rider uniform was a slouch hat, blue flannel shirt, brown trousers, leggings, and boots, with handkerchiefs knotted loosely around their necks. They looked exactly as a body of cowboy cavalry should look. It was the 'rough and tumble' appearance and charisma that contributed to earning them the title of The Rough Riders. More than one-third of the Rough Riders were casualties in the Spanish-American War. They could ride and shoot and were in shape, and could be ready for war with little training. They were men who were ordered to fight and that’s what they did.

The regiment was assembled at San Antonio, Texas in May, and shipped out to Cuba from Tampa, Florida on June 14, 1898. They landed at Daiquiri on June 22 and two days later served with distinction in a battle at Las Guásimas. The United States had full control of this Spanish outpost on the road to Santiago by the end of the battle.

Roosevelt basically told these young men what to do and who to hurt. All for his selfish needs.

These young men were simply following orders but they did win the Spanish-American war and the Battle of San Juan Hill. War is war and even though lives were lost the Rough Riders became famous for their duties. The Rough Riders helped Roosevelt conquer the lands he wanted to claim. If you ask me, the name “Rough Riders” is pretty catchy.

They came up with this appearance and a name that fit their description and were known by it. The Rough Riders did however deserve their fame. They are no different from other men that fought the war to gain control over another country, they just pulled it off in style with Roosevelt leading them. The men in all the other wars became known for the actions they took and the Rough Riders did the same thing. Their appearance and their actions were new and people will always remember the Rough Riders as the large amount of men that helped Roosevelt conquer. The Rough Riders did deserve their fame.

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