Battle of St. Louis

In the late 18th century, as France and Spain fought Britain and American colonists fought for independence, the conflict spread west in 1780 to Saint Louis, a small French-born, Spanish-owned trading post on the Mississippi River. Expecting an English attack, Spanish officials built a series of stone towers armed with cannons along the riverbank facing east, with the central tower, Fort San Carlos, near this spot. On May 26, 1780, the British and several hundred Native American allies launched a major attack on St. Louis, but the small garrison of Spanish soldiers and the predominantly French inhabitants repulsed it. By day's end, the attackers retreated north, and both the fort and Saint Louis survived.

St. Louis, Missouri · United States