George Rogers Clark and the War in the West

3 / The Vincennes Campaign

THE VINCENNES CAMPAIGN NCOMPLETE NEWSofthe American invasion,sped northward by one Francis Maisonville who had been in the Illinois country when the American arrived, reached Detroit on August 6. The news came as both a shock and a disappointment to Lieutenant Governor Henry Hamilton , who had been marshaling resources for an attack on Fort Pitt. Simon Girty,among others, had been collecting information about the disposition of military forces in western Pennsylvania. Now Hamilton's attention would have to be turned elsewhere. Hamilton came from a Scottish family with Irish holdings , and many of his kinsmen had been prominent in government and military service. His infantry regiment had been sent to America during the French and Indian War, and he had been wounded while serving in General James Wolfe's command. During a visit to some of the American colonies, Hamilton had described their inhabitants as "naive, simple, kindly and uncorrupted"—an opinion he later changed. Appointed lieutenant governor in charge ofthe Detroit district in April 1775, he arrived at his new post on November 7. Detroit was considered of minor importance by the British command, and Hamilton , like Clark, failed to obtain the assistance that he 39 3 i requested. His authority did not extend to the regular army troops in the region, and their commander, Sir Guy Carleton, was preoccupied by his efforts to hold the Saint Lawrence valley for the king.1 Carleton was replaced during the summer of 1778 by General Sir Frederick Haldimand, but the change did little to improve Hamilton 's position. Such British officials in the West as Edward Abbott argued that the use of Indians did more harm than good by driving frontier loyalists into the rebels' camp, and until June 1777 Hamilton was under orders to restrain the Indians from raiding American settlements, while retaining their friendship.2 Then the British government decided to unleash the red man, and Henry Hamilton carried out his instruction with such zeal that he became known among white settlers as "the Hair Buyer." Hamilton paid well for captives brought to Detroit, and it is doubtfulthat he actually purchased scalps. But he did give presents to Indians to encourage raids, and indirectly there was some justification forthe sobriquet. He was an honest, efficient, ambitious man of considerable cultural and artistic ability , who found himself engaged in tasks that he must at times have found distasteful. But orders were orders, and he executed them to the best of his ability. When Hamilton learned of the invasion of Illinois he reacted with too great alacrity.The supplies accumulated for the Fort Pitt expedition were available, and he moved swiftly to change the direction ofhis movement in accord with General Haldimand's order "to employ every means which offers, if not to retrieve the injury done, at least to stop its further progress." By October 7, 1778, Hamilton was ready to leave Detroit with a pickup army that included 33 regular army officers and men, 142 other whites, and 70 Indians. Other Indians were expected to join the force on its way to the Illinois country.3 It was unfortunate for the British that Hamilton had to depend heavily upon the French militia and volunteers, for with few exceptions he disliked and distrusted them. They were "igno40 rant Bigots and busy rebels," he complained, and added upon another occasion that he firmly believed there was "not one in twenty whose oath of allegiance would have force enough to bind him to his duty . . . ." He summed up his sentiments by declaring, "To enumerate the Vices of the Inhabitants would be to give a long catalogue, but to assert that they are not in possession of a single virtue, is no more than truth and justice require . . . ."4 A fleet of 13 bateaux could carry 39,300 pounds, and 17 canoes and pirogues were capable oftaking an additional 33,700 pounds of supplies. Advance parties were sent ahead to construct supply points and to remove obstacles from the route Hamilton had selected. He labored diligently to hold Indian allies and to persuade others tojoin him on the undertaking. Despite many delays, Hamilton led his men from Detroit on the afternoon of October 7.5 They went down the Detroit River to Lake Erie and crossed its southern end to the mouth of the Maumee River. Then they worked their way up the Maumee to Post Miami, the future site...