Braddock's Campaign

Braddock’s Campaign

Major General Edward Braddock [Etching] The British Government decided to take the threat posed by the French and their Native American allies more seriously after appeals from the colonial governors, including that of Governor Dinwiddie of Virginia.  The King sent Major General Edward Braddock to North America with two regiments of infantry. Braddock, a career soldier, had risen through the ranks. After forty-five years of military service, he became commander-in-chief of all British forces in North America. The British plan for 1755 was to simultaneously attack many of the French forts in North America. Braddock was to lead the expedition against Fort Duquesne personally. That spring, he disembarked his army at Alexandria, Virginia. After adding colonial troops and a few Indians to his force, Braddock had about two thousand four hundred men. George Washington joined the campaign as a volunteer aide to General Braddock. In 1754, the Virginia Regiment was under the command of Colonel Joshua Frye when it left Williamsburg for the “Forks of the Ohio.”  Lieutenant Colonel George Washington was second in command.  The army assembled near Fort Cumberland, the present site of Cumberland, Maryland.  On the 31st of May 1754, Colonel Joshua Frye fell from his horse and died. Lieutenant Colonel George Washington received a field promotion to Colonel and assumed the command while at Willis Creek where the army had assembled. Braddock had previously decided to follow the road which Washington had blazed over the mountains on his way to Fort Necessity to speak with the French stationed in that area the previous year. Due to the fact that this trail was inadequate for the army's artillery and large wagons, it was widened to twelve feet, after great effort and expenditure of time.  The British force seemed to move at a snail's pace. Finally the army was split in two with Braddock moving ahead with the bulk of the men and a few pieces of artillery. The remainder was to follow under the command of Colonel Dunbar. In early July, the advance group approached the “Forks of the Ohio.” On July 9th, they made a second crossing of the Monongahela River.  From this point it was but a short march to Fort Duquesne. The woods in front of the British column exploded with musket fire and the whooping of Indians with their French allies as they collided, head-on, with the British soon after the river crossing. Adding to the confusion, the advance British units fell back upon the main body as the rear units continued to move forward, adding to the total confusion. Both fear and disorganization seized the British. Discipline all but ended as many British officers were killed early on in the battle. The Battle lasted three hours even though the smoke of the battle made it impossible to see the enemy. As Braddock was finally carried from the field severely wounded, the surviving British soldiers fled. Out of the one thousand four hundred British soldiers participating, a British loss of more than nine hundred casualties was horrendous. They were completely beaten by a force which they could not see in a wilderness where they did not want to be. Their retreat to the safety of Dunbar's camp was hasty and disorganized. Washington reported, "The shocking Scenes which presented themselves in this Nights March are not to be described.  The dead, the dying, the groans, lamentations, and crys ... of the wounded for help were enough to pierce a heart of adamant". On July 13th, the British camped about one mile west of the Great Meadows which was the site of Fort Necessity.  That evening, General Braddock died. Colonial Washington officiated at Braddock’s ceremony the next day. The General was buried in the road which his men had built. After his ceremony, the army marched over the General’s grave in order to obliterate any traces of it to keep his body from being mutilated by the Native Americans who were allied with the French. Washington with the remains of the British army continued to eastern Pennsylvania. It is impossible to imagine the horror that must have went through Braddock’s mind after the battle. He had commanded what was considered to be an invincible army which was not ambushed. How could disciple have broken down with just an unexpected encounter? This rout was a total disgrace. Doctors later reported that anxiety was more the cause of General Braddock’s  death than were his wounds. George Washington in his British Uniform Washington later wrote "...Thus died a man, whose good and bad qualities were intimately blended. He was brave even to a fault and in regular Service would have done honor to his profession. His attachments were warm, his enmities were strong, and having no disguise about him, both appeared in full force." The French used this British retreat to their advantage. Soon afterwards, French-inspired Indian attacks occurred throughout the entire frontier.  As war spread, terrorized settlers streamed eastward.  In the ensuing decade, France lost all her North America colonies. The removal of external threats to colonists and the increased cost of governing the British Empire set the stage for the American Revolution.