Battle of Horseshoe Bend (1832) - Battle

Battle

According to personal accounts of the battle, after dismounting Dodge offered his men a chance to back out of the operation. No one opted out, and 21 men advanced with Dodge in an extended firing line, unsure of the enemy's location. The remaining eight soldiers were posted as guards on high grounds and near the horses. Unlike the disorganized and undisciplined troops at Stillman's Run, the volunteers at Horseshoe Bend adhered to military discipline; they waited for Dodge to give the order before they entered the thicket and swampland in search of their enemy, and once searching they awaited their commander's order to attack.

After the militia advanced about 200 yards (200 m), the Kickapoo suddenly let loose a loud yell from their hidden position on the bank of an oxbow lake along the river. The warriors fired a volley toward the advancing militia and three men, Samuel Black, Samuel Wells and Montaville Morris, were hit and went down. Dodge did not hesitate and ordered his men to charge, they obeyed and waited until they were within six feet of the Kickapoo before discharging their weapons. The fight, after the initial charge and volley, descended into a hand-to-hand struggle with tomahawks, bayonets, muskets and spears the weapons of choice. The fighting only lasted a few minutes: nine Kickapoo were killed on the spot and the other two were felled while fleeing across the lake. During the hand-to-hand combat a fourth member of the militia, Thomas Jenkins, was wounded. Though short, the Battle of Horseshoe Bend had a lasting impact and influence on the rest of the war.

Read more about this topic:  Battle Of Horseshoe Bend (1832)

Famous quotes containing the word battle:

    Women’s battle for financial equality has barely been joined, much less won. Society still traditionally assigns to woman the role of money-handler rather than money-maker, and our assigned specialty is far more likely to be home economics than financial economics.
    Paula Nelson (b. 1945)

    Each reaching and aspiration is an instinct with which all nature consists and cöoperates, and therefore it is not in vain. But alas! each relaxing and desperation is an instinct too. To be active, well, happy, implies courage. To be ready to fight in a duel or a battle implies desperation, or that you hold your life cheap.
    Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)

    The thundering line of battle stands,
    And in the air Death moans and sings:
    But Day shall clasp him with strong hands,
    And Night shall fold him in soft wings.
    Julian Grenfell (1888–1915)