Steven M Baule THE BRITISH MILITARY PRESENCE IN THE MIDWEST, 1760-1786
CONTEMPORARY LONDON MAP, 1755
THE MIDWEST IN 1760 Ft. Michlimackinac Ft. Niagara Ft. Detroit Ft. St. Joseph Ft. Sandoske Ft. Ouiatenon Ft. Miami Ft. Ligonier Ft. Chartres Vincennes
INDIAN ATTACKS IN 1763
AFTERMATH OF PONTIAC S REBELLION After the Indian Uprisings of 1763 & 1764, the British consolidated to a few larger posts Exceptions were the single company posts at Kaskaskia and Cahokia in the American Bottom
POSTS ABANDONED IN 1764/1765 Fort Le Boeuf Fort St. Joseph Fort Venago Fort Sandusky Fort Presque Isle Fort Ligonier Fort Miami Fort Ouiatenon POSTS ABANDONED IN 1772 Cahokia Fort Chartres Fort Pitt POSTS ABANDONED IN 1776 Fort Gage (Kaskaskia)
FT. CHARTRES (1765-1772) RECONSTRUCTED
FORT CHARTRES FROM THE ILLINOIS STATE HOUSE
ILLINOIS COUNTRY POLICIES No civil government in the Old Northwest Military Court at Ft. Chartres Parliament would like to abandon the area, but the King refuses Quebec Act allowed for the development of civil government & protected the Catholic Church The entire Illinois Country was formally included within the Province of Quebec Trade, mostly exports of fur, were to be sent down river to New Orleans and then to London
1774 June - Quebec Act incorporated settlements along the Wabash and Mississippi Rivers into the Province of Quebec Ft. Sackville was [re]built by the British at Vincennes, but was not garrisoned Replacement of the palisade was completed at Ft. Gage
FORT GAGE ON THE MAP (1772)
APRIL 1775 BRITISH POSTS Fort Gage Fort Michlimackinac Royal Irish 2 Coys. King s Regt. 2 Coys Detroit King s Regt. 3 Coys Ft. Erie Fort Niagara King s Regt. 3 1/2 Coys Fort Pitt Ft. Oswegatchie Royal Irish 4 men King s Regt. 1 Coy
1775 Dr. John Conolly hatched a plan to order Cpt. Lord s Garrison from Kaskaskia to come up river and take Virginia back with the help of backwood Loyalists and Indians Conolly was captured near Ft. Pitt and the plan never reached the troops in the Illinois Country.
1776 Troops were ordered from Illinois to be concentrated at Detroit in anticipation of a Congressional attack (May June). A former French officer was appointed governor in Illinois, Pierre de Rochebleve Troops on the Great Lakes remained in place; troops from Illinois were drafted into the 8 th (Kings) Foot in July 1776 and scattered between at least Mackinac and Detroit It does appear that that troops had intended to return to Kaskaskia and some families remained in Illinois for years
1777 Extremely quiet on the Western Frontier. British were anticipating an attack on Detroit that never materialized. Fighting in Kentucky (Boonesborough) between settlers and Shawnee under Blackfish, but no direct British involvement. Daniel Boone was wounded in a skirmish.
1778 George Rogers Clark captured Kaskaskia without resistance from the French habitants on July 4, 1778 Fr. Gibault helped prepare the way for the Virginians British troops were sent to from Detroit to Vincennes to fortify the village against Congressional forces
1779 Troops at Vincennes are surrendered in February 1779 transported to Williamsburg treated like criminals and not as POWs Remaining troops at Detroit and Mackinaw remain stationary Spain enters the Revolution as an Ally of France and Congress British under Bird besiege Ft. Laurens, Ohio in February 1779; Lift siege by the end of the month; Congressional forces withdraw to Ft. Pitt by August 1779
FT. LAURENS, OHIO On February 22, 1779, Captain Henry Bird, 8 th Foot, with a handful of British soldiers and a couple hundred Wyandot, Mingo, Munsee, and Delaware warriors laid siege to the fort. The siege continued until mid-march, and the men inside the fort reportedly were reduced to making a stew of boiled moccasins. British forces were also weakened by the long siege and lifted the siege on March 20, 1779.
FT. LAURENS AFTERMATH Relief forces from Fort Pitt arrived three days after the British lifted the siege on March 23, 1779 leaving a force of 106 men behind under the command of Major Fredrick Vernon. Colonel Daniel Brodhead replaced McIntosh as commander at Fort Pitt and felt the fort was inadequate for mounting an attack on Detroit, so the fort was abandoned on August 2, 1779.
BRITISH PLAN TO RECAPTURE THE ILLINOIS COUNTRY AND ELIMINATE THE SPANISH THREAT British Comprehensive Plan of 1780 for Illinois Country Attack Spanish posts at St. Louis, New Orleans and Natchez Attack Virginia Forces at Cahokia and Kaskaskia Forces from Pensacola to attack New Orleans Instead Spanish forces took Mobile in 1780 and Pensacola in 1781 Troops at Cahokia and St. Louis were stymied by Spanish
1780 Prairie du Chien was the gathering point for British forces Plan to attack both St. Louis and Cahokia Troops were gathered on May 2, 1780 Travelled downriver to Rock Island About 250 Sauk & Fox joined here Continued to St. Louis
MAY 26, 1780 Attack on St. Louis in Missouri State Capital
Ft. Michlimackinac Prairie du Chien St. Louis Cahokia
1781 Troops at Michlimackinac moved into the straights on Mackinaw Island to be more well protected (the post will remain for nearly 150 years); buildings were moved over the ice; oldest stone buildings remain from the British occupation Detachment sent to Duluth, MN (Grand Portage) to oversee the fur traders at Chippewa village
FT. MACKINAC 1780 Officers Quarters British Era Well
CRAWFORD EXPEDITION, 1782
FEBRUARY 12, 1781 The Spanish took Fort St. Joseph by surprise on 12 February 1781. Captain Pouré had the Spanish colors raised and claimed Fort St. Joseph and the St. Joseph River for Spain. They plundered the fort; departing the next day. The Spanish returned to in St. Louis on 6 March, where Pouré delivered the British flag to the Spanish governor.
SANDUSKY OR BATTLE ISLAND, JUNE 4, 1782 A mounted company of Butler s Rangers, Detroit militia and Indians attacked a column of 500 Pennsylvania militia outside of Sandusky
BATTLE OF THE OLENTANGY, JUNE 6, 1782
AUGUST 8, 1782 Battle of Piqua (near Springfield, OH) G. R. Clark led over 1000 militia to burn five Shawnee villages along the Little Miami. Also burning the trading post of Peter Loramie, a Loyalist
AUGUST 15-17, 1782 Attack on Bryan Station At Bryan Station, founded in 1775-1776 Near present day - Lexington, KY British militia and Shawnee warriors besieged the settlement in August 1782 Cpt. Wm. Caldwell and Simon Girty led the British The siege was lifted when Kentucky militia were reported in the area
AUGUST 19, 1782 Battle of Blue Licks near present Mount Olivet, Kentucky On a hill next to the Licking River in what is now Robertson County, a force of about 50 British militia and 300 Shawnee ambushed and routed 182 Kentucky militia. It was the worst defeat for the Kentuckians during the war.
1783 Troops remained in place at Mackinac and Detroit & Niagara 1784-1796 British Troops remained in place at Mackinac, Detroit & Niagara. The Jay Treaty of 1796 actually led to the removal of British Troops from the Old Northwest. They would return in 1812.
IMPACT OF THE REGULARS Through 1776, the British are nearly entirely reliant on the small forces of regulars to garrison and keep the peace in the Illinois Country. After 1778, with the entry of France and Spain into the war, regulars are only present in token levels. Two regulars accompanied the forces attacking St. Louis and Cahokia for instance.
BRITISH FOCUS 1763 to 1770 Establish Control of the Ohio Valley and Great Lakes (with regulars) 1770-1771 Prepare for War with Spain 1772-1775 Keep the peace with Indians 1775-1779 Protect Detroit (and Great Lakes) 1780-1782 Regain control of Mississippi/Ohio Valley (with allies) Defeat Spain 1783-1796 Retain commercial control of Indians and Great Lakes
BRITISH REGIMENTS IN THE MIDWEST 8 th (King s) Foot Individuals on Mississippi 1780 18 th (Royal Irish) Foot Illinois garrison, 1768 to 1776 34 th Foot reached Ft. Chartres from Louisiana in 1765 to 1768 42 nd Foot reached Ft. Chartres by Ohio in 1765 Small detachment of Royal Artillery
POST 1796 British regulars finally abandon Detroit, Mackinaw and Niagara in 1796 British continue to try to control Indians from the north side of the Great Lakes Americans build several posts specifically to deal with British influence War of 1812 sees the final effort of British troops to control Old Northwest
DOCUMENTARY SOURCES ON THE TROOPS IN THE MIDWEST Haldimand Papers (Newberry Library) Papers of the Continental Congress U of Michigan Gage Papers (good through 1775) Amherst Papers NA UK Archives Guy Carleton (Lord Dorchester) Papers WO 4 / 27 / 28 / 71 Draper Manuscripts (includes GR Clark Papers)
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