River Raisin Massacre
Early in 1813, Winchester took part in an attempt to recapture Frenchtown (present day Monroe, Michigan). On January 18, his men drove off a smaller Canadian and Indian force and recaptured the American town. However, his men were attacked four days later by a combined British/Indian/Canadian force under Col. Henry Procter in the Battle of Frenchtown. Winchester himself was captured by Roundhead while trying to reach his men. Following the loss of hundreds of his soldiers in the initial assault, he agreed to order a conditional surrender of the remainder of his troops in exchange for "a pledge of protection". Despite Procter's pledge, Indians accompanying the British slaughtered 68 seriously wounded American soldiers in the Massacre of the River Raisin.
Winchester was imprisoned in Canada for more than a year. He was released in a prisoner exchange and assigned to command the District of Mobile. After the war's end, he resigned his regular commission in March 1815 and returned home to Tennessee.
Read more about this topic: James Winchester
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