t THE NEST OF ROBBERS ALFRED P. JAMES A letter in French to a friend in Europe, written from "Fort InDuquesne" on December 3, 1758, Colonel Henry Bouquet described the place as having been a "nid de Corsairs qui a coute tant de sang" (a nest of robbers which has cost so much blood). This of course is a one- sided statement reflecting merely the English point of view. The French concept of Fort Duquesne would differ very much, and even the Indians who aided the French probably did not consider themselves in the light of mere robbers. But from the history of Fort Duquesne from 1754 to 1758, it is easy to understand that the English, imperial and colonial, actually looked upon the establishment at the Forks of the Ohio as a robbers' den. The role of Fort Duquesne as "a nest of robbers" really began after Braddock's defeat on July 9, 1755. 2 This great victory of the French and Indians was followed that evening by a big celebration at the fort. On the following day Contrecoeur, the commandant, visited the battle- field.3 On the same day, however, disagreement arose at the fort be- tween the French and the Indians, and many of the Indians, laden with the spoils of the battlefield, returned home. 4 Two days later it was the 1Read at a meeting of the Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania on February 25, 1936. Ed. 2 The founding and early history of Fort Duquesne are adequately treated in Charles W. Dahlinger, "The Marquis Duquesne, Sieur de Menneville, Founder of the City of Pittsburgh," ante, 15:130-151, 219—247. 3 James Smith, An Account of the Remarkable Occurrences in the Life and Travels of Colonel James Smith...during His Captivity with the Indians, in the Years 1755, '56, y 57> \5#> &f 59> (Philadelphia, 1834)5 Francis-J. Audet, Jean-Daniel Dumas, le heros de la Monongahela; esquisse biographique, 57 (Montreal, 1920). 4 See Dumas to the minister, July 24, 1756, in Archives Nationales, AC, C 11, 101 :321; F 3, 14:119; and Pennsylvania Colonial Records, 6:602, 604. It is stated on p. 137 of Voyage au Canada dans le nord de VAmerique— Septentrionale fait depuis I'an ijs!a 1761, par J. C. B. (edited by Henri R. Casgrain Quebec, 1887), that 300 of «ie 850 Indians at Fort Duquesne went home taking 16 prisoners. The remainder of the 8avages, 550 in number, must have remained to go on expeditions against the English 'ettlements. 165 Sept. 166 ALFRED P. JAMES sad duty of Father Denys Baron to inter in the cemetery of the fort the % French officers and privates who had fallen on the field of battle along the Monongahela. 5 On July 14, 1755, after the excitement of the first days had quieted down, Contrecceur made a report to Vaudreuil, the governor-general of New France. 6 Although some Indians returned home after the battle, others evi- dently remained to join with the French in attacks upon—the English frontiers. Some of them were doubtless local Indians Delawares, Shawnee, and Mingo.In slightly more than a week after the battle six or seven parties of French and Indians were dispatched against the ter- rified and defenseless frontiersmen. 7 The activities of these parties against frontier settlements in Pennsyl- vania, Maryland, and Virginia are easily traced from the records of those colonies. They willnot be dwelt on here, since the emphasis in this account is upon Fort Duquesne as a center from which radiated both organized and sporadic attacks upon the English. In fact itmight be said that from 1755 to 1758 Fort Duquesne, now Pittsburgh, was the gateway to the East rather than to the West. Fort Duquesne must have been a lively place in the late summer and autumn of 1755. The parties sent out against the frontiers in July brought back scalps and prisoners and tales of destruction, which spread over North America and even Europe. Early in September, French and Indians to the number of fifteen hundred set out from the fort and, as in July, spread out in detachments and harried many different parts of the frontier. Other parties followed, such as that of 160 men late in September. 8 The French at this time doubtless hoped to retain per- manently the Ohio Valley. They had long realized its value in connec- tion with transportation and communication between Quebec and New 5 John G. Shea, Relations diverses sur la bataille de la Malangueule, introduction, P' *5 (New York, i860). The burial certificates are included in this pamphlet. > Vaudreuil to the minister, August 5, 1755, in Archives Nationales, AC, F 3, 14' II^ 128. 7 Dumas to the minister of the marine, July 24, 1756, in Archives Nationales, AC> C 11, 101: 321. 8 Pennsylvania Gazette, November 6, 17555 Richard Peters, in Pennsylvania Colonial Records, 6:766-7685 Croghan to Swaine, October 9, 1755, in Pennsylvania Colonial Records, 6: 642-643. THE NEST OF ROBBERS 1938 167 Orleans. The authorities at Quebec also realized that the garrison at Fort Duquesne controlled a region rich in resources which would sup- port, in the not distant future, a large population. 9 These operations were carried out under Contrecoeur, who, after the Battle of Braddock's Field, remained as commandant at Fort Du- quesne. But a change in commandants was decided upon, and on No- vember 5, Contrecoeur left the scene of his memorable exploits, never to return. His successor was Captain Dumas, who, after the death of Captain Beaujeu, had so ably commanded on the battlefield against Braddock. 10 The new commandant, in spite of the favorable military situation, did not find himself in a bed of roses. News and instructions from Can- ada were lacking, and in addition, supplies of many kinds, particularly food supplies, were scarce. Dumas realized fully his isolation, and inhis distress turned to the Illinois settlement for succor. To remedy "the most sad want of provisions," he sent Sieur Ducharme to Major Ma- carty, commandant at the Illinois to bring back as much as could be secured. 11 Months would be required to carry through the plan, but even more time would have been necessary to get the provisions from Canada, and winter was coming on. And the winter that followed was one of great severity. Heavy snows in the region temporarily stop- ped the comings and goings of Indian parties, for, unlike the Canadian Indians, those of the Ohio Valley did not use snowshoes for rapid move- ments in winter. Moreover, Fort Duquesne, even after improvements ln j755j was still small and weak and considered to be unable to with- stand an artillery attack. 12 9 Vaudreuil to the minister, October 30, 1755, in Archives Nationales, AC, C 11, 100: 126. 10 Contrecoeur to the minister, November 28, 1755, in Archives Nationales, AC, C II, 1oo:25o; Audet, Dumas, 65-775 M. Pouchot, Memoir upon the Late War in North America, between the French and English, 1755—60, 1:73 (translated and edited by Franklin B. Hough —Roxbury, Massachusetts, i860). Pouchot says flatly that Contrecceur was "not sufficiently intelligent for a difficult post." 11 Dumas to Macarty, November 10, 1775, in Archives Nationales, AC, C•13, 39:172 (printed in New York Colonial Documents, 10:407). 12 Departmental abstract, in Archives Nationales, AC, C 11, 101:3765 (printed in "*w York Colonial Documents, 1:423—428)5 memoir by Chevalier Lemercier, Quebec, October 10, 1756, in Archives Nationales, AC, C 11, 101:294. 168 ALFRED P. JAMES Sept. But, though troubled by such difficulties, Dumas was untiring in his efforts to terrify and drive back the English. Early in 1756 he planned heavy attacks on the frontiersmen. Writing on January 20, he re- ported that the Shawnee already had from four to five hundred pris- oners. 13 And in May, abundant supplies were received from Illinois— "about thirty batteaux ...ladened with pork, flour, brandy, tobacco, peas, and Indian corn." Itis interesting to note that it took 150 men three months to bring these supplies from Illinois to Fort Duquesne. 14 In 1756, as in other years, the early months saw high water on the rivers of the region. A freshet almost carried away the fort, which was located far down on the point. But the high water was used to trans- port to Niagara the artillery that had been taken from the English, some of it from the battlefield of July 9, 1755, and more of it,along with a considerable quantity of shell, shot, and bullets, from Dunbar's aban- doned camp in the mountains. 15 So far as Fort Duquesne itself was concerned, it remained in 1756 what it was called later by a French critic, "a place of pillage without limit." Vaudreuil sent ammunition and three hundred Canadians to Dumas and estimated that Dumas would have at the fort from twelve hundred to fifteen hundred men, exclusive of Indians. 16 The total forces converging upon the English frontiers of Pennsylvania, Mary- land, and Virginia in 1756 were estimated at 3,250, as follows: "one thousand French, seven hundred Delawares and Chouanons [Shaw- nee] ,besides a number of Illinois,as many as three hundred French and Indians, under the care of Sieur de Villiers,about 250 Miamis and Out- agnons [Ottawa], under M.de Belestre, 300 from Detroit and 700 from Michilimakinac, commanded by Chevalier de Repentigny." 17 *3 Dumas to Macarty, November 10, 1755, in Archives Nationales, AC, C 13, 39: 1725 Bigot to the minister, in Archives Nationales, AC, F 3, 14:231.