In 1702 a decisive battle took place along the nearby Flint River when nine hundred Apalachees, allied with the Spanish, fought English traders and five hundred Creek allies. Warned of an impending attack, the Creeks placed empty sleeping blankets by their campfires and hid in the surrounding woods. At dawn the Spanish Apalachees fired into the blankets, but before they could reload their muskets, the Creeks attacked them. The Battle of the Blankets diminished Spanish influence in North America and served as a prelude to Queen Anne’s War.