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Battle of Fallen Timbers Facts

Battle of Fallen Timbers Facts
The Battle of Fallen Timbers took place on August 20, 1794 near what is today Toledo, Ohio between the United States Army and a Northwest Indian Confederacy. It was and American victory and proved to be the final battle in the Northwest Indian War (1785-1795). The Americans were victorious under General Anthony "Mad" Wayne, who took control of the war after the Army lost some significant engagements early, most notably "St. Clair's Defeat" on November 4, 1791. The Indian Confederacy was led by the able warrior leaders Blue Jacket, Little Turtle, and Buckongahles and had indirect and direct British support, but ultimately couldn't win a war of attrition against the Americans. The American victory opened up settlement in what is today Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan, but also ensured that another conflict with the British would happen.
Interesting Battle of Fallen Timbers Facts:
The American force consisted of about 3,000 men, which included allied Indian scouts.
The Northwest Indian Confederacy Force consisted of nearly 1,500, which included a British militia company.
The Northwest Indian Confederacy was comprised of a number of different tribes, the most prominent being the Miami, Shawnee, and Delaware.
The Confederacy has a community of villages on the Maumee River near its confluence with the Auglaize River near present day Defiance, Ohio. The community was called the Glaize.
The Glaize was formed in 1786 by Shawnee leader Blue Jacket.
Besides serving as the headquarters for the Northwest Indian Confederation, the Glaize also had British trading posts, which was a point of contention for the Americans.
Wayne led his force up the Maumee River in 1794 and constructed Fort Defiance to face off against the Confederacy.
The battle got its name because it was fought in an area on the west bank of the Maumee River where a number of trees had fallen from some tornados.
After the Indian force took a defensive position, Wayne decided to be aggressive instead of likewise taking a defensive position. He charged the Indian force with a bayonet charge and used his cavalry to mop up.
Although the British supported the Indians by selling them muskets and other supplies, their help was non-official. The British militia that fought alongside the Indians was purely voluntary and when the Indians retreated to the British Fort Miami, they were not allowed in for fear of starting a wider war.
Up to forty Indian braves were killed and thirty-three American soldiers lost their lives in the battle.
After the battle, Wayne and his force camped outside Fort Miami, burned the Glaize and British trading post, and then rode southwest and constructed Fort Wayne.
Among the notable veteran who fought at Fallen Timbers was Tecumseh, who would lead the Shawnee against the Americans in the War of 1812.
The Northwest Indian War in general and the Battle of Fallen Timbers specifically exposed the fact that the British were not following the Treaty of Paris (1783) by continually supporting Indians hostile to the U.S. and by keeping forts south of the Great Lakes.
The Treaty of Greenville (1795) officially ended the Northwest Indian War.


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