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Battle of Vincennes
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The Battle of Vincennes was a battle of the American Revolutionary War fought on February 23 – February 25, 1779, when a small force of American soldiers led by George Rogers Clark encircled Fort Sackville at Vincennes, Indiana, and continued marching around it until the Indians and British garrisoned there were convinced that there were hundreds of soldiers.
George Rogers Clark was able to achieve the advantage of surprise by making an approach from Kaskaskia through flooded and freezing terrain.
The actual number of attackers and defenders varies considerably from source to source. The version presented by the United States National Park Service numbers Clark's contingent at approximately 170 Americans and French.[1] Other sources number Clark's forces at 57 men.[citation needed]
Hamilton is said to have released his troops for the winter, and his garrison "now consisted of approximately 40 British soldiers and a similar number of French volunteers and militia from Detroit and Vincennes."
The Indians fled leaving about 150 British soldiers under the command of Lieutenant Governor Henry Hamilton. Clark sent a flag of truce asking for Hamilton's surrender. He refused Hamilton's terms however, and had four captured Indians killed in front of the fort with a tomahawk which caused Hamilton to acquiesce and surrender on Clark's terms.
After Hamilton's surrender, he was taken to Virginia where he was imprisoned by Thomas Jefferson. After his release in 1781, Hamilton served as the Governor of Quebec and later as Governor of the Island Colonies of Bermuda and Dominicana.