Siege of Fort Detroit

Native forces made a determined but failed push to seize Fort Detroit in what became known as the siege of Fort Detroit, a major episode within Pontiac's War. Pontiac, an Ottawa chief and military leader, stood at the head of this effort. In the end, this uprising helped spur the issuance of the Proclamation of 1763, a development that would later feed into the chain of events culminating in the American Revolution.

First attempt

Before launching any full-scale attack on the stronghold, Pontiac traveled to Fort Detroit accompanied by 40 to 50 Ottawa warriors, intending to scout the fort's defenses, gauge how many soldiers guarded it, and mark out trading posts worth looting. Once inside, he distracted British officers with a ceremonial dance, all while ten of his men quietly spread out across the stockade grounds. On May 6, 1763, a small survey team traveling the St Clair River from the fort fell victim to an ambush; its members were killed or taken prisoner, and Sir Robert Davers, 5th Baronet, was among the dead.

The next day, on May 7, Pontiac walked into the fort accompanied by roughly 300 men who concealed weapons beneath their blankets, hoping to seize control through surprise. His scheme called for him to address Major Gladwin while clutching a wampum belt, and once he gave the signal, the sixty Ottawa stationed inside would strike at British forces. Meanwhile, Huron and Pottawatomi fighters would ring the fort's perimeter, seizing settlers and cutting off any British reinforcements. Yet Major Henry Gladwin, commanding the British troops, seems to have learned of the scheme beforehand, and his garrison of about 120 men stood armed and prepared. Faced with this, Pontiac pulled back, and two days afterward he began a formal siege of the fort.

On May 9, Pontiac came back leading 64 canoes packed with his followers, asking to be admitted so he could share a smoke with Gladwin. Gladwin allowed only Pontiac himself to enter, a response that led Pontiac to abandon his covert approach and commit fully to the siege. As soon as the siege began, several British soldiers and civilians caught outside the fort's walls were either killed or captured; one soldier's body underwent ritual cannibalism, a practice observed among certain Great Lakes Indian communities. This hostility fell exclusively on the British, sparing French settlers in the area entirely. In time, the siege drew support from more than 900 Indian warriors representing roughly six different tribes.

Siege

When the siege began, Pontiac relocated his camp two miles north of Fort Detroit, settling at the mouth of what is now called Bloody Run Creek, previously known as Parent's Creek, a location destined to become the scene of a significant ambush. Not long into the siege, Pontiac arranged a meeting with two British officers at a Frenchman's house to discuss the possibility of peace. During this encounter, he seized the pair and held them as prisoners pending the outcome of negotiations. When talks failed to produce results, Pontiac resumed attacking the fort, though his forces lacked the firepower to breach its defenses. Eventually his warriors withdrew their forward positions, giving the British an opening to leave the fort and clear away trees, fences, and other cover that had sheltered the Indians surrounding the post.

At the outset of the siege, Fort Detroit stood as a square stockade roughly 1,000 yards around, enclosed by a palisade and defended by cannons and mortars positioned on its bastions. Around 2,500 people sheltered within its walls, protected by only 120 fighting men drawn from a company of the 60th Royal American regiment, the Queen's Rangers, armed traders, and Frenchmen loyal to the British cause. Provisions were running low, with a mere ten days of rations remaining when the siege commenced. Anchored on the Detroit River just outside the fort were the schooner Huron, carrying six cannons, and the sloop Michigan, armed with ten. Desperate for supplies and additional men, a party of nearly a hundred set out across Lake Erie bound for Fort Detroit. Survivors of this expedition headed to Fort Sandusky, only to discover it in ruins, forcing them back to Fort Niagara. Meanwhile, Indians brought captives to Detroit where they tortured and mutilated them, casting the bodies into the river so they would drift past the fort, a sight that badly damaged the defenders' spirits. The small boats making up this relief force, under the command of Lieutenant Cuyler, had stopped to camp on the north shore near the river's mouth when they came under attack. Just 40 men, along with Cuyler himself, managed to escape, while nearly 60 others were killed or taken prisoner. This clash later became known as the Battle of Point Pelee.

Soon afterward, the Huron repelled canoes attempting to surround and board it from every direction, killing 14 of Pontiac's warriors without suffering a single British casualty. Pontiac targeted the vessels again on the night of July 9, launching small boats loaded with burning sticks and tar meant to set the wooden ships ablaze. The crews maneuvered clear of the flaming hazards, and a similar attempt the next night likewise ended in failure for Pontiac's men.

On July 29, reinforcements reached the river in the form of 260 British troops under Captain James Dalyell, accompanied by a detachment of Queen's Rangers personally led by Robert Rogers.

Battle of Bloody Run

Just one day after reaching the fort, Captain Dalyell talked Major Gladwin into letting him lead 247 soldiers against Pontiac's camp in a surprise strike. They set out at 2:30 am, heading for Parent's Creek, known today as Bloody Run Creek, only to find the tables turned: French spies had tipped off Pontiac's warriors beforehand, and 150 of them lay in wait. Pontiac had already devised a scheme to catch the British in a trap, dispatching 250 warriors to seal off any path back to the fort. The moment the soldiers crossed the river, gunfire erupted from the Indian positions, throwing the column into disorder and forcing a chaotic pullback. Eventually, though, the British managed to punch through the encirclement by seizing a nearby barn, using it to lay down covering fire while the remaining men clawed their way back toward the fort's entrance. The toll came to 23 killed, 34 wounded, and among the fallen was Captain Dalyell himself.