My fifth great grandfather, Ezekiel Rawlings, served in Captain WIlliam Sebree's Company, in Boswell's Regiment. Sebree's company was already in the fort, having arrived in mid-April with two other companies. Sebree was involved in the spiking of the British batteries on the fort side of the river. Losses published in a Lexington newspaper three weeks after the siege was lifted showed 12 killed and 11 wounded in Sebree's unit. One of them was Ezekiel.
They belittle the name of Fort Defiance, but apparently do not recall that Forts Defiance, Recovery, Harmar, St. Clair, etc. were named by General Anthony Wayne during his 1790s campaign. The names were essentially chosen to thumb the nose up at the confederation of Northwest Territory tribes - who had defeated bot Harmar and St. Clair. prior to Wayne's selection as the commander of the Legion of the United States. This was an insult tot he tribes, and Wayne knew it would have a psychological effect on them during his campaign.
It was on May 5th, and it had been raining. The ground was muddy and rain was such that soldiers had to tilt their guns down to drain water out of them. 3 troops of men were arrayed against the British, who were encamped on the west side of the Maumee river. The British cannons were causing supply and personnel difficulties at Fort Meigs. so 800 men were ordered to attack the weapons emplacement firing on the fort across the river. The three companies of men rushed forward, many falling in the gunfire the British offered in answer. As they advanced, the left-most group of soldiers faced both Indian and British fire, but the Indians would retreat into the forest adjoining for protection. The Brits abandoned their cannons and followed the Indians as they retreated, leaving their cannons which were quickly spiked. However, contrary to their orders for some reason, the soldiers failed to roll the cannons into the river, as the men regrouped and celebrated their easy rout of the enemy. Col. Wm. Dudley moved to order his men to head for the river so they could cross to the safety of the fort, but the Kentuckians, in a moment of gleeful over-enthusiasm and having successfully captured their objective, got it into their heads to chase the Indians and clean them out of the forests. After all, why not really finish the job they started? When Col. Dudley saw that his men were not obeying, he was torn between continuing to the fort, or doing the "right" thing, and accompanying his men as they continued the fight, even though they were doing it outside of orders. No doubt in some consternation, he turned his back on the fort and followed after his men. This was a fatal decision. The excited soldiers ran off into the woods, while virtually none of them had any experience with combat within forests. The Indians, who quite possibly planned their retreat, led the men into a shallow gulley between two hills where many Indians had hidden. As the soldiers came rushing in, the Indians opened fire, turning the hoard of soldiers excited about winning into terrified pandemonium. Soldiers fell, unable to back out of the deadly trap that had been laid for them. Some ran for their lives, making a successful if harrowing escape. Others fell where they stood, unable to make effective return fire against the hidden enemies. The number of men that fell was overwhelming, and those that could, turned tail and headed for the river and the safety of the fort. Others were captured and held until the British returned a short time later. When the captured men knew they were to become prisoners, some dropped their weapons into the mud and stood on them to press them down, thus hiding them and preventing them being used by the enemy. They were then marched back to the cannon emplacement, where they were taken as a group. Reports vary, but about 120 men were taken prisoner on that day. The rest had been killed. Now in the hands of the British and the Indians, they were marched north to an older abandoned supply fort known as Fort Miamis (or Fort Miami). As to what happened to Col. Dudley, written accounts say that his body was found later in a forest clearing. Several large sections of his thigh had been removed. (A few years back, I did intensive research regarding the Battle of Dudley's defeat in order to fill in the history of one of my ancestors, George Skirvin, along with his brother Joel, who were both a part of this conflict. George and Joel both were prisoners after the battle, and both participated in the bloodthirsty gauntlet the Indians set up at Fort Miamis. George's military record is patchy because of misspellings of his name, but it mentions that he was released later at the mouth of the Huron river. I believe I found George listed in a first-hand account recalling the long walk back home to Kentucky, wherein his name is spelled "Sherwin". No other soldier had a name similar to Sherwin except for George, and the other men in the group that walked home were men from his own company. Later, George's sons had names or middle names based on these men. George made it home, as did the other men, and it was said that their country men, who had found out they were coming, met them on the road with food and grateful welcomes. George's story has many facets, and some of it came down to me, filtered as stories are, by time and history. It was a real eye opener to find out who George really was, and who his father John had been as an early settler of Grant County.) I'll end here by stating that the defeat was not a "failure" insomuch as it was a demonstration of the fortitude and energy Kentuckians were famed for at the time. Those men were called to battle by their President, and they answered that call by marching all the way north to boats that took them the final distance. When in sight of the Fort, they were ordered to capture the cannons, and help put a stop to the barrage which was taxing the Fort severely. They did all these things, just as they were supposed to, but when they went to celebrate their victory, they were betrayed by the enemy and slain. Col. Dudley did what any worthy commander would, and followed his men into yet another battle, in hopes of regaining control. The failure to completely disable the cannons, and the loss of the majority of the men can be seen as a failure, I concede. But to me, their stout hearted enthusiasm made each one of them a hero, no matter what history chooses to remember.
862 men went ashore to attack the batteries, only 150 made it back to the boats. The massacre that took place , ( Dudley's defeat) was so embarrassing the it was swept under the rug. If not for the Shawnee cheif Tecumseh who stopped the assault noone would have survived.
@@KentuckyHistoryChannel well it is on a bluff,over looking the river. Has rolling earthworks inside . The bridge for primarily attacking from the river since they were on the other side
My fifth great grandfather, Ezekiel Rawlings, served in Captain WIlliam Sebree's Company, in Boswell's Regiment. Sebree's company was already in the fort, having arrived in mid-April with two other companies. Sebree was involved in the spiking of the British batteries on the fort side of the river. Losses published in a Lexington newspaper three weeks after the siege was lifted showed 12 killed and 11 wounded in Sebree's unit. One of them was Ezekiel.
Great video
They belittle the name of Fort Defiance, but apparently do not recall that Forts Defiance, Recovery, Harmar, St. Clair, etc. were named by General Anthony Wayne during his 1790s campaign. The names were essentially chosen to thumb the nose up at the confederation of Northwest Territory tribes - who had defeated bot Harmar and St. Clair. prior to Wayne's selection as the commander of the Legion of the United States. This was an insult tot he tribes, and Wayne knew it would have a psychological effect on them during his campaign.
It was on May 5th, and it had been raining. The ground was muddy and rain was such that soldiers had to tilt their guns down to drain water out of them. 3 troops of men were arrayed against the British, who were encamped on the west side of the Maumee river. The British cannons were causing supply and personnel difficulties at Fort Meigs. so 800 men were ordered to attack the weapons emplacement firing on the fort across the river. The three companies of men rushed forward, many falling in the gunfire the British offered in answer. As they advanced, the left-most group of soldiers faced both Indian and British fire, but the Indians would retreat into the forest adjoining for protection. The Brits abandoned their cannons and followed the Indians as they retreated, leaving their cannons which were quickly spiked. However, contrary to their orders for some reason, the soldiers failed to roll the cannons into the river, as the men regrouped and celebrated their easy rout of the enemy. Col. Wm. Dudley moved to order his men to head for the river so they could cross to the safety of the fort, but the Kentuckians, in a moment of gleeful over-enthusiasm and having successfully captured their objective, got it into their heads to chase the Indians and clean them out of the forests. After all, why not really finish the job they started?
When Col. Dudley saw that his men were not obeying, he was torn between continuing to the fort, or doing the "right" thing, and accompanying his men as they continued the fight, even though they were doing it outside of orders. No doubt in some consternation, he turned his back on the fort and followed after his men. This was a fatal decision.
The excited soldiers ran off into the woods, while virtually none of them had any experience with combat within forests. The Indians, who quite possibly planned their retreat, led the men into a shallow gulley between two hills where many Indians had hidden. As the soldiers came rushing in, the Indians opened fire, turning the hoard of soldiers excited about winning into terrified pandemonium. Soldiers fell, unable to back out of the deadly trap that had been laid for them. Some ran for their lives, making a successful if harrowing escape. Others fell where they stood, unable to make effective return fire against the hidden enemies. The number of men that fell was overwhelming, and those that could, turned tail and headed for the river and the safety of the fort. Others were captured and held until the British returned a short time later. When the captured men knew they were to become prisoners, some dropped their weapons into the mud and stood on them to press them down, thus hiding them and preventing them being used by the enemy. They were then marched back to the cannon emplacement, where they were taken as a group. Reports vary, but about 120 men were taken prisoner on that day. The rest had been killed. Now in the hands of the British and the Indians, they were marched north to an older abandoned supply fort known as Fort Miamis (or Fort Miami). As to what happened to Col. Dudley, written accounts say that his body was found later in a forest clearing. Several large sections of his thigh had been removed.
(A few years back, I did intensive research regarding the Battle of Dudley's defeat in order to fill in the history of one of my ancestors, George Skirvin, along with his brother Joel, who were both a part of this conflict. George and Joel both were prisoners after the battle, and both participated in the bloodthirsty gauntlet the Indians set up at Fort Miamis. George's military record is patchy because of misspellings of his name, but it mentions that he was released later at the mouth of the Huron river. I believe I found George listed in a first-hand account recalling the long walk back home to Kentucky, wherein his name is spelled "Sherwin". No other soldier had a name similar to Sherwin except for George, and the other men in the group that walked home were men from his own company. Later, George's sons had names or middle names based on these men. George made it home, as did the other men, and it was said that their country men, who had found out they were coming, met them on the road with food and grateful welcomes. George's story has many facets, and some of it came down to me, filtered as stories are, by time and history. It was a real eye opener to find out who George really was, and who his father John had been as an early settler of Grant County.)
I'll end here by stating that the defeat was not a "failure" insomuch as it was a demonstration of the fortitude and energy Kentuckians were famed for at the time. Those men were called to battle by their President, and they answered that call by marching all the way north to boats that took them the final distance. When in sight of the Fort, they were ordered to capture the cannons, and help put a stop to the barrage which was taxing the Fort severely. They did all these things, just as they were supposed to, but when they went to celebrate their victory, they were betrayed by the enemy and slain. Col. Dudley did what any worthy commander would, and followed his men into yet another battle, in hopes of regaining control. The failure to completely disable the cannons, and the loss of the majority of the men can be seen as a failure, I concede. But to me, their stout hearted enthusiasm made each one of them a hero, no matter what history chooses to remember.
862 men went ashore to attack the batteries, only 150 made it back to the boats. The massacre that took place , ( Dudley's defeat) was so embarrassing the it was swept under the rug. If not for the Shawnee cheif Tecumseh who stopped the assault noone would have survived.
Have you been to the Fort, cause it don't sound like you have
Nope, haven’t been but it’s on the list of places to visit.
@@KentuckyHistoryChannel well it is on a bluff,over looking the river. Has rolling earthworks inside . The bridge for primarily attacking from the river since they were on the other side
Births attacked from the river