Battle of Flint River
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Flint River was a failed attack by Spanish and Apalachee
Indian forces against Creek Indians in October 1702 in what is now the state of Georgia. The battle was a major element in ongoing frontier hostilities between English
traders from the Province of Carolina
and Spanish Florida
, and it was a prelude to more organized military actions of Queen Anne's War
.
The Creeks, assisted by a small number of Englishmen led by trader Anthony Dodsworth, ambushed the invaders on the banks of the Flint River
. More than half of the Spanish-Indian force was killed or captured. Both English and Spanish authorities reacted to the battle by accelerating preparations that culminated in the Siege of St. Augustine
in November 1702.
in 1663 and Charles Town (present-day Charleston, South Carolina
) in 1670 significantly raised tensions with the Spanish who had long been established in Florida
. Traders and slavers from the new province penetrated into Spanish Florida, leading to raiding and reprisal expeditions on both sides. In 1700, Carolina's governor, Joseph Blake
, threatened the Spanish that English claims to Pensacola
, established by the Spanish in 1698, would be enforced. Carolina traders such as Anthony Dodsworth and Thomas Nairne
had established alliances with Creek
Indians in the upper watersheds of rivers draining into the Gulf of Mexico
, who they supplied with arms and from whom they purchased slaves and animal pelts.
The Spanish population of Florida at the time was fairly small. Since its founding in the 16th century, the Spanish had set up a network of missions
whose primary purpose was to pacify the local Indian population and convert them to Roman Catholicism. In the Apalachee region (roughly present-day western Florida and southwestern Georgia) there were 14 mission communities with a total population in 1680 of about 8,000. Many, but not all, of these communities were populated by the Apalachee
; others were from different tribes that had migrated southward to the area. The Spanish had a policy of not arming these Indians with musket
s, and the Apalachee missions suffered from English and Creek raids in 1701.
In January 1702 Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville
, the French founder of Mobile
, warned the Spanish commander at Pensacola that he should properly arm the Apalachees and engage in a vigorous defense against English incursions into Spanish territory. D'Iberville even offered equipment and supplies for the purpose. Following the destruction by raiders of the Timucua
n mission of Santa Fé de Toloca in May 1702, Spanish Florida's Governor Joseph de Zúñiga y Zérda authorized an expedition into the Creek territories.
Dodsworth assembled his force, which numbered about 500, with the blessing of the Apalachicola chief Emperor Brim. The two forces met near the Flint River
when the Apalachee made a predawn attack on the Apalachicola camp. Anticipating the possibility of this sort of attack, Dodsworth and the Apalachicolas had arranged their blankets to appear occupied and concealed themselves near the camp. When the Apalachee attacked the false camp, the Apalachicolas fell upon them. With the superiority of their weapons, the British-supported Indians routed the Spanish force. Uriza was reported to have only 300 men when he returned to Apalachee.
had already secured approval for an expedition against St. Augustine after learning that war had formally been declared in Europe
between England and Spain. His expedition departed Charles Town in November and failed in its objective
, although Spanish-Indian mission communities in Guale Province were destroyed in the process. Moore, in 1704, led an expedition against the Apalachee missions that virtually wiped them out
. By the end of Queen Anne's War
in 1713, the English had practically depopulated present-day Georgia of Spaniards and their allied Indian tribes, leaving the Spanish in control of little more than St. Augustine and Pensacola.
Two widely separated highway markers have been erected in Georgia to commemorate the battle. The Georgia Historical Commission
erected a highway marker in central Georgia at 31.960667°N 83.910967°W in Crisp County
near Georgia Veterans State Park
in 1965, and the Historic Chattahoochee Commission
, in 1985, placed a marker at 30.913148°N 84.5672°W in the southern Georgia town of Bainbridge
.
Apalachee
The Apalachee are a Native American people who historically lived in the Florida Panhandle, and now live primarily in the U.S. state of Louisiana. Their historical territory was known to the Spanish colonists as the Apalachee Province...
Indian forces against Creek Indians in October 1702 in what is now the state of Georgia. The battle was a major element in ongoing frontier hostilities between English
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
traders from the Province of Carolina
Province of Carolina
The Province of Carolina, originally chartered in 1629, was an English and later British colony of North America. Because the original Heath charter was unrealized and was ruled invalid, a new charter was issued to a group of eight English noblemen, the Lords Proprietors, in 1663...
and Spanish Florida
Spanish Florida
Spanish Florida refers to the Spanish territory of Florida, which formed part of the Captaincy General of Cuba, the Viceroyalty of New Spain, and the Spanish Empire. Originally extending over what is now the southeastern United States, but with no defined boundaries, la Florida was a component of...
, and it was a prelude to more organized military actions of Queen Anne's War
Queen Anne's War
Queen Anne's War , as the North American theater of the War of the Spanish Succession was known in the British colonies, was the second in a series of French and Indian Wars fought between France and England, later Great Britain, in North America for control of the continent. The War of the...
.
The Creeks, assisted by a small number of Englishmen led by trader Anthony Dodsworth, ambushed the invaders on the banks of the Flint River
Flint River (Georgia)
The Flint River is a river in the U.S. state of Georgia. The river drains of western Georgia, flowing south from the upper Piedmont region south of Atlanta to the wetlands of the Gulf Coastal Plain in the southwestern corner of the state. Along with the Apalachicola and the Chattahoochee rivers,...
. More than half of the Spanish-Indian force was killed or captured. Both English and Spanish authorities reacted to the battle by accelerating preparations that culminated in the Siege of St. Augustine
Siege of St. Augustine (1702)
The Siege of St. Augustine was an action in Queen Anne's War during November and December 1702. It was conducted by English provincial forces from the Province of Carolina and their native allies, under the command of Carolina's governor James Moore, against the Spanish colonial fortress of...
in November 1702.
Background
English and Spanish colonization efforts in southeastern North America began coming into conflict as early as the middle of the 17th century. The English founding of the Province of CarolinaProvince of Carolina
The Province of Carolina, originally chartered in 1629, was an English and later British colony of North America. Because the original Heath charter was unrealized and was ruled invalid, a new charter was issued to a group of eight English noblemen, the Lords Proprietors, in 1663...
in 1663 and Charles Town (present-day Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
) in 1670 significantly raised tensions with the Spanish who had long been established in Florida
Spanish Florida
Spanish Florida refers to the Spanish territory of Florida, which formed part of the Captaincy General of Cuba, the Viceroyalty of New Spain, and the Spanish Empire. Originally extending over what is now the southeastern United States, but with no defined boundaries, la Florida was a component of...
. Traders and slavers from the new province penetrated into Spanish Florida, leading to raiding and reprisal expeditions on both sides. In 1700, Carolina's governor, Joseph Blake
Joseph Blake (governor)
Joseph Blake , the nephew of British Admiral Robert Blake, was governor of colonial South Carolina in 1694 , and from 1696 to his death 1700.-References:*-See also:*List of colonial governors of South Carolina...
, threatened the Spanish that English claims to Pensacola
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
, established by the Spanish in 1698, would be enforced. Carolina traders such as Anthony Dodsworth and Thomas Nairne
Thomas Nairne
Thomas Nairne was a Scots trader and the first Indian agent of the Province of Carolina. He is best known for recording Native American customs and practices in the 1690s and 1700s, and for articulating visions and policies that guided colonial policy toward Indians...
had established alliances with Creek
Creek people
The Muscogee , also known as the Creek or Creeks, are a Native American people traditionally from the southeastern United States. Mvskoke is their name in traditional spelling. The modern Muscogee live primarily in Oklahoma, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida...
Indians in the upper watersheds of rivers draining into the Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
, who they supplied with arms and from whom they purchased slaves and animal pelts.
The Spanish population of Florida at the time was fairly small. Since its founding in the 16th century, the Spanish had set up a network of missions
Spanish missions in Florida
Beginning in the second half of the 16th century, the Kingdom of Spain established a number of missions throughout la Florida in order to convert the Indians to Christianity, to facilitate control of the area, and to prevent its colonization by other countries, in particular, England and France...
whose primary purpose was to pacify the local Indian population and convert them to Roman Catholicism. In the Apalachee region (roughly present-day western Florida and southwestern Georgia) there were 14 mission communities with a total population in 1680 of about 8,000. Many, but not all, of these communities were populated by the Apalachee
Apalachee
The Apalachee are a Native American people who historically lived in the Florida Panhandle, and now live primarily in the U.S. state of Louisiana. Their historical territory was known to the Spanish colonists as the Apalachee Province...
; others were from different tribes that had migrated southward to the area. The Spanish had a policy of not arming these Indians with musket
Musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
s, and the Apalachee missions suffered from English and Creek raids in 1701.
In January 1702 Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville
Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville
Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville pronounced as described in note] Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville pronounced as described in note] Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville pronounced as described in note] (16 July 1661 – 9 July 1702 (probable)was a soldier, ship captain, explorer, colonial administrator, knight of...
, the French founder of Mobile
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
, warned the Spanish commander at Pensacola that he should properly arm the Apalachees and engage in a vigorous defense against English incursions into Spanish territory. D'Iberville even offered equipment and supplies for the purpose. Following the destruction by raiders of the Timucua
Timucua
The Timucua were a Native American people who lived in Northeast and North Central Florida and southeast Georgia. They were the largest indigenous group in that area and consisted of about 35 chiefdoms, many leading thousands of people. The various groups of Timucua spoke several dialects of the...
n mission of Santa Fé de Toloca in May 1702, Spanish Florida's Governor Joseph de Zúñiga y Zérda authorized an expedition into the Creek territories.
Battle
Zúñiga ordered Don Francisco Romo de Uriza, a Spanish captain, to San Luis de Apalachee, where he raised a force of about 800 Apalachee and Spanish from the surrounding mission communities. Uriza's report has not been found, so a breakdown of his force is not presently known. Word of this reached the Apalachicola community of Achita, where Carolina trader Anthony Dodsworth (referred to in Spanish documents as "Don Antonio") was meeting with the local tribes. According to a report an Indian woman made to Manuel Solano, the deputy governor at San Luis, about 400 warriors, principally Apalachicolas and Chiscas, went with Dodsworth, two other white men, and two blacks, to meet the Uriza's force. They left Achita on roughly October 7, the same day Uriza left Apalachee. The exact date of the battle is unknown; the woman reporting to Solana saw the battlefield on October 18, the day Uriza and the remnants of his force returned to the Apalachee town of Bacacua.Flint River (Georgia)
The Flint River is a river in the U.S. state of Georgia. The river drains of western Georgia, flowing south from the upper Piedmont region south of Atlanta to the wetlands of the Gulf Coastal Plain in the southwestern corner of the state. Along with the Apalachicola and the Chattahoochee rivers,...
when the Apalachee made a predawn attack on the Apalachicola camp. Anticipating the possibility of this sort of attack, Dodsworth and the Apalachicolas had arranged their blankets to appear occupied and concealed themselves near the camp. When the Apalachee attacked the false camp, the Apalachicolas fell upon them. With the superiority of their weapons, the British-supported Indians routed the Spanish force. Uriza was reported to have only 300 men when he returned to Apalachee.
Aftermath
The defeat immediately put Zúñiga on the defensive. He ordered the fort at San Luis to be completed and adequate supplies for a siege laid in. The battle further stirred up passions in Charles Town, where Governor James MooreJames Moore (South Carolina politician)
James Moore was the British governor of colonial South Carolina between 1700 and 1703. He is remembered for leading several invasions of Spanish Florida, including attacks in 1704 and 1706 which wiped out most of the Spanish missions in Florida....
had already secured approval for an expedition against St. Augustine after learning that war had formally been declared in Europe
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was fought among several European powers, including a divided Spain, over the possible unification of the Kingdoms of Spain and France under one Bourbon monarch. As France and Spain were among the most powerful states of Europe, such a unification would have...
between England and Spain. His expedition departed Charles Town in November and failed in its objective
Siege of St. Augustine (1702)
The Siege of St. Augustine was an action in Queen Anne's War during November and December 1702. It was conducted by English provincial forces from the Province of Carolina and their native allies, under the command of Carolina's governor James Moore, against the Spanish colonial fortress of...
, although Spanish-Indian mission communities in Guale Province were destroyed in the process. Moore, in 1704, led an expedition against the Apalachee missions that virtually wiped them out
Apalachee Massacre
The Apalachee massacre was a series of brutal raids by English colonists from the Province of Carolina and their Indian allies against a largely pacific population of Apalachee Indians in northern Spanish Florida that took place during Queen Anne's War in 1704...
. By the end of Queen Anne's War
Queen Anne's War
Queen Anne's War , as the North American theater of the War of the Spanish Succession was known in the British colonies, was the second in a series of French and Indian Wars fought between France and England, later Great Britain, in North America for control of the continent. The War of the...
in 1713, the English had practically depopulated present-day Georgia of Spaniards and their allied Indian tribes, leaving the Spanish in control of little more than St. Augustine and Pensacola.
Two widely separated highway markers have been erected in Georgia to commemorate the battle. The Georgia Historical Commission
Georgia Historical Commission
The Georgia Historical Commission was an organization created by the U.S. state of Georgia for purposes of historic preservation. The Georgia legislature created the commission in February 1951 to promote and increase knowledge and understanding of the history of Georgia...
erected a highway marker in central Georgia at 31.960667°N 83.910967°W in Crisp County
Crisp County, Georgia
Crisp County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. It was created on August 17, 1905 and named for Charles Frederick Crisp. As of 2000, the population was 21,996. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 22,125...
near Georgia Veterans State Park
Georgia Veterans State Park
Georgia Vererans State Park is a state park located on Lake Blackshear in Crisp County, west of Cordele, Georgia. It was established in 1931 as a memorial to U.S. Veterans...
in 1965, and the Historic Chattahoochee Commission
Historic Chattahoochee Commission
The Historic Chattahoochee Commission promotes an eighteen county area in Alabama and Georgia centered on the lower Chattahoochee River where it forms the boundary between the states. Organized in 1970, the HCC is charged with the responsibility of promoting tourism and historic preservation...
, in 1985, placed a marker at 30.913148°N 84.5672°W in the southern Georgia town of Bainbridge
Bainbridge, Georgia
As of the census of 2000, there were 11,722 people, 4,444 households, and 3,013 families residing in the city. The population density was 255.6/km² . There were 5,051 housing units at an average density of 285.2 per square mile...
.