War of Jenkin's Ear in Florida and Georgia

[orca]

I could have them included, BUT (no small but!) there are two key elements I would miss:

* detailed OOB for this
* lack of proper units bitmaps (and relevant sources), as I guess uniforms were different back then

Well I took this as a challenge, so I've compiled information on OOB and uniforms for the War of Jenkin's Ear in Georgia and Florida (1740-1743). No need for any new map, and I think it could be an interesting scenario.

[orca]

Nice summary here

Here's my summary of what happened historically.

Throughout the late 1730’s both the British colonists in Georgia and the Spanish colonists in Florida had been anticipating a conflict. Both sides fortified and gathered reinforcements in anticipation of the coming conflict. On October 23 1739 Britain declared war.

When James Oglethorpe, the governor and founder of Georgia learned of the declaration he led a raid into Florida, briefly taking some of the forts around St Augustine. Seeing that the defenses of Florida were weak he decided to launch a full invasion before St Augustine was reinforced. He spent the winter in Charleston where he convinced South Carolina to provide a large battalion of militia, gained the use of a squadron from the navy and of some artillery from the Bahamas (mortars and small caliber coehoorns). In May 1740 part of his force advanced on St Augustine by land and part was transported by the navy.

Oglethorpe had hoped to take the citadel by a coup de main, but the naval contingent didn’t arrive until June, and then found out that the ships couldn’t cross the bar to St Augustine under the guns of the few galleys the defenders could muster. On May 28 1740 Oglethorpe had to settle in for a siege of the fortress, and suffered a minor reverse when the defenders wiped out a small British detachment in Fort Mose two miles north of the fortress. The British army wasn’t big enough to invest the fortress, and it’s artillery were too small to make much of an impression on the walls. Both sides suffered seriously from lack of supplies and the summer heat, but the Spanish managed to slip a convoy from Havana past the blockading British ships, ensuring that the garrison could not be wiped out. The South Carolina militiamen’s term of service was up at the end of June, and the naval vessels refused to remain in Florida after the start of the hurricane season in July. On July 5 1740 the British abandoned their siege and their artillery and marched home. Neither the Royal Navy nor the colony of South Carolina would have any further participation in the war.

1741 saw raiding and preparations by both the Spanish and the British. In June 1742, with the British threat to Cuba gone, Manuel de Montiano, the governor of Florida was reinforced by a large force from Cuba, with the army under de Rodendo and the fleet under Roderigo de Torres. With Montiano in overall command the entire force was transported to Georgia. On July 5 1742 Montiano landed at St Simon’s Island, where Frederica, the only significant fortification in the colony of Georgia, was located.

The British abandoned everything but the fortress. The Spanish had trouble locating it and on July 7th Oglethorpe mauled a scouting party and badly beat the small force sent to relieve the scouting party (only very small parts of each army was engaged). After an aborted night attack on the Spanish camp on July 12th 1742, Oglethorpe then tricked Montiano into thinking that a relief force from South Carolina was about to arrive. On the 14th of July Montinao withdrew his army and fleet to St Augustine, leaving his guns behind.

1743 saw more raids, including one that Oglethorpe led to the walls of St Augustine. He had no artillery and posed no serious threat to Spanish control of the town.

So each side has numerical superiority and control of the sea for some period of time, which I think makes this much more interesting than (say) the attack on Louisbourg during King George's War. It's obviously a very small scenario, but historically either side could have won (with soem difficulty) rather than reach the stalemate that they reached.

[orca]

The war aims of the two sides were pretty much absolute.
The British aimed to capture St Augustine. They planned to hold the entire colony until the peace, or destroy it if they couldn’t hold it.
The Spanish aimed to wipe out the new colony of Georgia, which was in their view, illegally established on Spanish territory. Once they had accomplished that they hoped to harass and possibly invade South Carolina.

In my view South Carolina and everything north would be out of play – the game would be in Georgia and Florida alone.

In 1740 East Florida consisted of St Augustine and a series of outlying forts at a radius of about 10 miles. The population was around 1,300 (reference). This can be compared with a population of 2,000 in 1771. (reference).
The defenses of St Augustine in 1740 were as good as ever as they had just been refurbished. Certainly they were in better shape than they would be in 1775 (the city was not attacked during the Seven Year’s War). Should be a level 2 fort.

Most of the Yamassee Indian tribe had been driven out of South Carolina by the British and had settled outside St Augustine under Spanish protection. By 1740 they were declining in numbers but were still important allies. They should have a village near St Augustine, say in Santa Maria.

In 1740 Georgia was only eight years old and consisted of Savannah as the only main settlement, Ebenezer, settled by protestant refugees from Salzburg a few miles away, Darien at the mouth of the Altamaha River, Fort Frederica on St Simons Island and Augusta as a trading outpost up the Savannah river. The total population of the colony in 1750 was only 3,000, with only 613 in Savannah (reference). Frederica was the only significant fortification in Georgia and was seen by both sides as the key to controlling the colony.

Savannah should be a level 1 town. Frederica should be a fort in the King George area (it’s actually south of the Altamahu river, but the map is a little mixed up about the outlet of that river). Augusta could be a level 1 town if needed for gameplay – in principle Oglethorpe could have retired upriver from the Spanish.

The Indian allies of the British who participated in the invasion of Florida were
-A band of Chickasaw who had a settlement across the Savannah river from Augusta. Say in Amelia area.
-The Euchee (or Yuchi or Uchee) tribe who had a village on the Chatahoochie near modern day Macon. They were subordinate to the Creek. Perhaps their village would be in Seminole area.
-The lower Creek tribe, whose main settlement was at Coweta near modern Fort Benning. (Some sources mention the participation of the Seminoles in the siege of St Augustine. The Alachua band, led by their chief Cowkeeper, who was a sworn enemy of the Spanish, participated in the siege. This band became part of the Seminole tribe in the late 18th century. In 1740 they were still part of the lower Creek.) I think Coweta did move between 1740 and 1775, but the location in the 1775 game is good enough.

And the Indians who fought for the British during the Spanish invasion in 1742 were the Yamacraw tribe, a small band who settled in Savannah.

[PhilThib]

Excellent...thanks

[orca]

References
The Florida War by Sprague
-p. 345 Letter of Montiano July 28 1740 with British strength by unit.
-p. 346 strength of Montiano on 25 March 1740, and population of St. Augustine.
-pp. 343-344 Montiano's letters from the start of the siege.

National Park Service
Letter of Montiano 28 July 1740 (same as previous link)

History of Georgia by Bacon
-pp 168-176 seige of St Augustine (pp. 170-171 British OOB for 1740)
-pp. 182-194 Spanish invasion of Georgia (pp. 184-185 Spanish fleet composition, p. 186 Spanish army OOB)

This site on the Spanish navy
-The composition of the British fleet in the 1740 attack on Saint Augustine.
-If I understand the Spanish correctly it also lists Antonio Castañeda (not Rodrigo de Torres) as the commander of the Spanish fleet in 1742.

Popular History of the United States by Bryant
pp 158-164 Spanish invasion of Georgia (p.159 description of British forces in 1742)

Lincoln, Lee, Grant and other Biographical Addresses by Speer
pp 129-130 Oglethorpe's account of the battle of bloody marsh of 1742
pp 137-150 Montiano's account of the invasion (says the fleet was under the command of Torres)

British

The forces available in Georgia to Oglethorpe in 1740 consisted of:
-The 42nd foot, the regiment that Oglethorpe had brought from Europe to defend Georgia. Oglethorpe was the colonel . Establishment of 650 officers and men. About 350 participated in the siege of St Augustine.
-The Highland Independent Company raised from the highlanders settled in Darien. Commanded by Hugh MacKaye
-One company of highland rangers (also known as the Georgia Mounted Rangers or Highland Mounted Rangers)
-One company of English rangers (the Georgia Coastal Rangers)
-One company english militia (Georgia militia? These were raised in Savannah)
-Some artillery procured from the Bahamas
Additional forces were:
-The South Carolina militia battalion available from March 1740 (in Charleston, so maybe April 1740 in Savannah) under Colonel Vander Deusen. This was an overstrength unit of 600 men.
-two marine companies of boatmen raised in 1741 under Noble Jones and Mark Carr

Upon the invasion of Florida in 1740 Oglethorpe had 1100 Indians with him. By the time the siege was lifted only the Alachua were left with 130 warriors. His Indian strength in 1742 was under 100 warriors, although this site (http://www.hsgng.org/pages/marsh.htm) claims there were Chickasaws, Creek and Yamacraws present.

In game terms I see these as one battalion of regulars, one battalion of Georgia militia, one battalion of South Carolina militia, an artillery unit, one battalion of rangers and three Indian warbands. Only one warband should be available after 1740.

The ships available to Oglethorpe in 1740 (until July 5) were
-The frigate Hector, 40 guns under Commodore Peyton Yelverton, RN
-The schooner Squirrel, 24 guns under Captain Peter Warren RN
-The schooner Seaford, 24 guns under Captain Henry Scout RN
-The schooner Flamborough 20 guns under Commodore Vincent Pearce. This was a Georgian ship and remained in theater throughout the war.
-The brig Phoenix 20 guns under captain Fanshaw
-The brig Tartar 20 guns under captain Townshend
-The sloop Spense under captain Lans
-The sloop Wolf under captain Dandridge

This is probably a single unit in game terms

Spanish

Montiano’s force in St Augustine consisted of:
-8 companies of regulars or 308 men In typical Spanish fashion these consisted of detachments from the Tercios of Asturias, Catalonia, Valencia and Murcia
-The St Augustine permanent garrison of 80 men
-one battery of artillery, 100 men (basically part of the garrison)
-one squadron of dragoons about 100 men
-St Augustine militia company 61 men
- Company of free black grenadiers 40 men strong , commanded by Francisco Menendez
-A company of drafted convicts, fewer than 100 men
-50 Yamassee warriors
-6 galleys (probably shouldn’t be included in the game)

In game terms I think this is a ‘Tercio de Florida’ (as in 1779) for the regulars, possibly with one dragoon company, a fixed garrison with one company and maybe some artillery, and a militia battalion with two or three companies – the urban militia, the free slaves and the convicts. Finally an under strength Indian unit for the Yamassees.

These units were built up a little between 1740 and 1742. The reinforcement army that joined the invasion of Georgia consisted of
General De Rodendo
-One regiment of artillery
-One regiment mulatto infantry
-The Havana battalion of regulars (10 companies of 50 men each)
-The Havana militia battalion (10 companies of 100 men each)
-600 marines

The fleet that arrived with these reinforcements was
Rodrigo de Torres
-One vessel of 24 guns
-Two vessels of 20 guns
-Two scows of 14 guns
-4 schooners
-4 sloops
-23 galliots

The reinforcements left Havana in May 1742, so they could arrive offshore then. They returned to Havana by August 1742 with the failure of the expedition.

I see the reinforcements as a battalion of regulars, a battalion of militia, a battalion of marines and a battalion of Mulattos with a single company.

Almost all of the St Augustine forces joined the invasion army, including the Indians.

[orca]

42nd foot uniform


Georgia militia and rangers uniforms

Example of uniforms of Spanish in St Augustine in 1740
http://www.artifacts.org/Early%20Buttons.htm

I can probably find better examples of correct Spanish uniforms if there is interest, but it's more difficult than finding the British uniforms.

For the free black company the picture on this site may or may not be accurate


James Oglethorpe
Several pictureshere

Picture of Manuel de Montiano
No idea if it has anything to do with real life.

[IronBrigadeYankee]

Brilliant! Excellent work there

[PhilThib]

Woah

[orca]

Spanish fleet commander

I think that I misread Montiano’s letter quoted in Speer above. I think Montiano referred to the battle fleet in the Indies to oppose Vernon, and that was under Diego de Torres (he was ‘theater commander’). At several other point sin the letter he refers to Antonio Castañeda as the commander of the fleet that transported him. This [ulr=http://www.todoababor.es/articulos/comi_gue_1739.htm]Link[/url], cited in my previous post also says that Antonio Castañeda commanded the fleet.

Commander of the Cuban element of Montiano’s invasion force in 1742

[url=http://books.google.com/books?id=-WGC_TwkJMwC&pg=PA192&dq=Oglethorpe++Montiano#PPA190,M1[/url]Bacon[/url] referred to “de Rodondo” as the commander of the Cuban forces in 1742.

This link says (p. 348) “General Antonio de Redondo was chief engineer. He and two brigadiers accompanied the forces that cam from Cuba.”

And this link says of Antonio de Arredondo “In 1742 he was chief-of-staff in the Spanish campaign against Georgia."

Montiano's letter in Speer also mentions Arrendondo as Major General along with Francisco Rubiani and Antonio Salgado as the colonels (presumably the breveted brigadiers).

So I guess the second in command in 1742 should be Antonio de Arredondo. Can’t find any pictures of him.

Composition of the forces from Cuba

In my previous post I was relying on Bacon

He lists the combined Floridian and Cuban armies as including
1 reg. Art
1 reg. Dismounted dragoons
1 reg. black grenadiers
1 reg mulattos
Havana battalion
Havana militia
St Augustin Forces

I took the “black grenadiers” to be the company of escaped slaves in St Augustine who were on the expedition. In fact several other sources (with a common original source I suspect) are more explicit. These are:

biographical Memorials of James Oglethorpe by Harris. Right near the end
History of Georgia by Jones
Chronological History of the West Indies by Southey (p.292)

The last is more explicit on the identity of the various units:
“These forces were commanded by Don Manuel do Montiano, governor of St Augustine, commander-in-chief of the expedition; M General Antonio de Redondo engineer-general, and two colonels with brevets of brigadiers; and consisted of one regiment of dragoons, dismounted with their saddles and bridles, the regiment called the battalion of the Havana; ten companies of fifty men each draughted off from several regiments at Havana; one regiment of the Havana militia, consisting of ten companies of 100 men each; one regiment of Negroes regularly officered by Negroes, one ditto of Mulattoes, one company of Miquelets; one company of train with proper artillery, Augustin forces consisting of about 300 men, ninety indians, and 15 Negroes who ran away from South Carolina.”

The Miquelets were, as far as I know, irregular troops from Catalonia. At any rate the regulars from Havana were known as the Havana battalion, but were in fact drafts from various parent regiments. The black troops (and the mulattoes) were part of the Havana militia, which was known as the “free disciplined militia of Havana” – so in effect there were three battalions of the Havana militia, one white, one mulatto and one black. From what I’ve seen the Havana garrison included dragoons from the “Dragoons of America” regiment.

The establishment strength of Montiano’s army was:
One Regiment dismounted dragoons 400
Havana Regiment 500
Havana militia 1000
Regiment of artillery 400
Florida militia 400
battalion of Mulattoes 300
Black Regiment 400
Indians 90
Marines 600
(The “Florida militia” includes regulars from the St Augustine garrison - the population of florida was too small to support a militia of 300).

The army would not be at establishment at this point. It had fought off a British attack on Guantanamo bay in 1741, and the Spanish forces were chronically below establishment throughout the Bourbon era.

[orca]

Spanish uniforms have been tough to nail down. I did find a couple of links that might be helpful:

Uniform of the black militia of Havana (1770-1776, so a little later than the War of Jenkins' Ear)

Uniform of the Spanish marines in 1748 (bottom of the page)

Spanish colonial uniforms of a slightly later era.