Battle of Arkansas Post (1783) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Battle of Arkansas Post |
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| Part of the American Revolutionary War | |||||||
 Depiction of the Spanish sortie during the battle |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Great Britain |
 Spain |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| James Colbert | Jacobo Dubreuil Luis de Villars Alexo Pastor |
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| Strength | |||||||
| 82 (65 British Americans 11 Chickasaw Native Americans 5 former African American slaves 1 French American) |
40 (33 Spanish Americans 4 Quapaw Native Americans 3 French Americans) |
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 2 (1 killed 1 wounded) |
11 (2 killed 1 wounded 8 taken prisoner) |
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The Battle of Arkansas Post (also called the Colbert Raid) was a fight during the American Revolutionary War. It happened at Arkansas Post on April 17, 1783. This battle was part of many small fights between Spanish and British forces. These battles took place in the Lower Mississippi area. Spain joined the war in 1779 to help the United States.
The battle involved an attack on the Spanish-controlled post. British fighters, known as partisans, led by James Colbert, carried out the attack. The main part of the battle was a six-hour siege of the fort. A siege is when an army surrounds a place to try and capture it. After the siege, the Spanish defenders made a sudden attack, called a sortie. This caused the British forces to run away, which is called a rout.
This battle actually happened three months after a peace treaty was signed. The preliminary peace treaty between Spain and Great Britain was signed on January 20, 1783. But news of the treaty had not yet reached the Lower Mississippi region. This was the only battle of the Revolutionary War fought in what is now the state of Arkansas.
Contents
Why the Battle Happened
In the years before this battle, Spanish forces had won many victories. They pushed the British out of places like Manchac and Baton Rouge. They also took many British soldiers as prisoners. By 1783, British forces in the area were very spread out and weak. They were mostly small groups of partisans fighting a guerrilla warfare style. This means they used surprise attacks and small raids.
James Colbert was a former British army captain. He led one of these groups. He managed to gather a small number of loyalists. Loyalists were people who stayed loyal to Britain during the American Revolution. They wanted to keep fighting against the Spanish.
Colbert's main goal was to capture Arkansas Post. This was because of its important location. It was where the Arkansas and Mississippi rivers met. If Colbert could capture the post, his fighters could easily bother Spanish boats on the Mississippi River.
The post had a small group of 33 Spanish soldiers. They were from the Louisiana Regiment. There were also four Quapaw Native Americans. The post's commander was Jacobo Dubreuil. His second-in-command was Lieutenant Luis de Villars. Sergeant Alexo Pastor was also there. The post was protected by a simple stockade fort, called Fort Carlos. A stockade fort is a fort made of tall, strong wooden poles. It was located about half a mile upriver.
Getting Ready for Battle
In early April, Colbert and his group of boats started their journey. They left their camp on the Wolf River. On the Mississippi River, Colbert's group met American boats. These boats were heading downriver to Natchez to settle there. Colbert ordered these settlers to land and wait on shore for six days.
Further down the river, near the White River, Colbert found trading boats. These boats were from both New Orleans and Arkansas Post. He took these boats and their goods. Then, his group went up the Arkansas River.
On April 16, not far from the post, Colbert sent some Chickasaw scouts ahead. These scouts found the Quapaw village, Osotouy. They told the local chief, Angaska, that they were just going upriver. They said they had "a dozen Americans to shake hands with Captain Dubreuil." They gave the chief rum as a gift. Because of this trick, Chief Angaska did not tell Dubreuil that anything was wrong. The scouts then met back with Colbert's main group. They continued upriver.
By midnight on April 17, Colbert's fighters reached the shore near the village. To make sure no villagers or guards heard them, Colbert had the paddles of his boats wrapped in leather. Colbert landed his force a little downriver from the village. He left seven men to guard the canoes.
The Battle Begins
The battle started with a surprise attack on the village around 2:30 a.m. The attackers quickly took over the village. Four families escaped and ran to Fort Carlos for safety. But the attackers took most of the villagers prisoner. This included Luis de Villars and Alexo Pastor.
The noise woke up the soldiers in Fort Carlos. They launched a counter-attack, led by Jacobo Dubreuil. During this fight, the Spanish lost two men. Sergeant Pastor escaped from his captors and reached the fort in the confusion. No other prisoners escaped during this fighting. After this, the Spanish soldiers went back into the fort. The attackers did not bother them.
Around 3:00 a.m., the attacking force started to dig into a ravine. A ravine is a deep, narrow valley. This ravine was just outside the fort. It was hidden by trees and bushes. They could get "within pistol shot" of the fort. The two sides shot at each other for six hours. Neither side lost many people. This was because the fort's strong palisade walls protected the defenders. A palisade is a fence of strong wooden stakes. The attackers were also safe in their dug-in positions. They were protected from the fort's 4-pounder cannons.
At 9:00 a.m., Commander Dubreuil ordered Sergeant Pastor to get ready. Pastor, nine soldiers, and four Quapaw warriors were to make a sortie. Dubreuil thought the attackers might be setting up artillery to break through the fort walls.
At the same time, Colbert sent one of his officers forward. The officer carried a flag of truce. This means he wanted to talk peacefully. He was to deliver an offer for the Spanish to surrender. Marie Luisa Villars, the wife of Lieutenant Villars and a prisoner, went with Colbert's officer. This was to make sure he would not be shot as he approached the fort. At this point, the shooting stopped.
Colbert's officer suddenly got scared and ran away. Dubreuil received the peace offer from Madame Villars alone. It was written by Colbert in French:
M. Le Capitaine Colbert is sent by his superiors to take the post of the Arkansas and by this power Sir, he demands that you capitulate. It is his plan to take it with all his forces, having already taken all the inhabitants, together with the Lieut. Luis de Villars and his family.
Dubreuil refused to surrender. He ordered the sortie to begin. Sergeant Alexo Pastor and his group of 13 rushed out of the fort. They ran toward the 82 attackers. They shouted Quapaw war cries. The attackers were shocked by this sudden charge. The war cries and shots from muskets made them scatter. They immediately ran to the river and got into their canoes with their prisoners. According to Dubreuil, the attackers yelled, "Let's go! Let's go! The Indians are upon us," as they ran away. One attacker was killed during their retreat.
After the Battle
After the attackers ran away, Colbert stuck a tomahawk into the ground near the riverbank. This was a symbol that he planned to return. He also sent another message to Dubreuil through one of the villagers:
You can form an idea of my forces, at 12 today 500 Chickasaws are due to arrive and also two bateaux loaded with men, armed with four swivels and a cannon and if the Commandant of the fort does not surrender before the said hour and I am victorious, as I have no doubt I shall be, I do not know whether I can hold my people or not, and if the... [Quapaw] are used against us I myself will order the prisoners killed.
Dubreuil ignored this message. The extra fighters Colbert mentioned never showed up when Dubreuil did not surrender the fort.
Chief Angaska arrived at the post at noon that day. Dubreuil scolded him for not sending a warning about the approaching force. Angaska explained how Colbert's scouts had tricked him. Then, Dubreuil sent Angaska with 100 Quapaw warriors and 20 Spanish soldiers. Their mission was to get back the prisoners taken by the retreating attackers.
On April 24, Angaska reached Colbert's boats near the mouth of the Arkansas River. He started to talk with Colbert to get the prisoners released. Angaska pretended he had 250 men. This bluff convinced Colbert to release all but eight of his prisoners. Lieutenant de Villars and his wife were among those set free. Before being released, the lieutenant had to sign an agreement. This agreement would free five British partisans. These partisans had been arrested by the Spanish for rebellious actions in Natchez. De Villars agreed to this to avoid being imprisoned again or fined by Colbert. The agreement was later kept when the rebels were set free at Villars' request.
On May 5, Dubreuil wrote to the Spanish governor of Louisiana, Esteban Rodríguez Miró. He told the governor all about the battle. He also praised how well his men had fought.
On May 16, Miró wrote to Colbert. He told Colbert about the peace treaty signed on January 20. He asked Colbert to return all the property and prisoners without any conditions. The remaining prisoners were released. However, Colbert refused to return the property he had taken in the raid.
See also
In Spanish: Batalla del Puesto de Arkansas (1783) para niños
