Jumonville

At sunrise on May 28, 1754, Colonel George Washington and Seneca Chief Tanacharison, "The Half King," led forty Virginia militia and Iroquois warriors in an attack on thirty-three French soldiers camped along the large ledge of rocks now known as Jumonville Glen. Surprised, the French were defeated in fifteen minutes, with ten killed, twenty-two taken prisoner, and one escaping. Among the dead was the French commander, Joseph Coulon de Jumonville. His death had international repercussions because France and England were not at war, but both claimed the Ohio Country. According to the French, Jumonville had been on a peaceful diplomatic mission, was ambushed, and tried to summon Washington before he was killed, claims Washington denied. The undeclared conflict escalated when a French force defeated Washington at Fort Necessity on July 3rd, and the French commander, Louis Coulon de Villiers, Jumonville's brother, witnessed Washington sign a surrender document that included a phrase admitting to the "assassination" of Jumonville. Although there was debate over whether Washington knew he had admitted to murder, the affair was widely publicized in Europe and helped lead England and France toward another war for empire in North America.

Pennsylvania · United States