John Barnwell

John Barnwell (* 1671; † June 1724 in Beaufort ) was a settler, born in Ireland and emigrated to the province of South Carolina in the southeastern United States in 1701 , commander of the troops of South Carolina and later representative of the colony of South Carolina.

At the time of the outbreak of the Tuscarora War in 1711, he was an important representative of the colony. South Carolina sent two armies against the Tuscarora in North Carolina ; the first of the campaigns, which lasted from late 1711 to spring 1712, was commanded by Barnwell. The army consisted mostly of North American natives , especially the Yamasee . Barnwell defeated the Tuscarora, dismissed his troops and arranged peace negotiations. Hostilities between the Tuscarora and North Carolinians continued, and South Carolina once again sent troops to the region. North Carolina, who disagreed with Barnwell and blamed him for another escalation because he had not completely destroyed the Tuscarora, specifically requested another commander for the South Carolina's Second Army. Because of his role in the war, Barnwell was often referred to as "Tuscarora Jack" or "Tuscarora John".

In 1715 the Yamasee War broke out between South Carolina and the Yamasee as well as several other tribes. The Yamasee's first attack occurred near Port Royal . Many of the settlers living there were able to flee to Port Royal Island in Port Royal Sound and set off the alarm. Barnwell and the other colonists escaped from the island to Charles Town by ship .

When South Carolina fell out with its previous owners, the Lords Proprietor , and sought the status of a crown colony , Barnwell traveled to London to represent South Carolina in negotiations with the crown and to set up a new government. After his return to the colonies he tried for years to renew his friendship with the Yamasee, who had moved south to the Spanish colony of Florida. In 1721 he built an outpost called Fort King George to better control the Spanish influence on the region and the Indians living there. He never succeeded in reviving the previous alliance between the Yamasee and the settlers.

literature

• Alan Gallay: The Indian Slave Trade: The Rise of the English Empire in the American South 1670-1717 . Yale University Press, 2002, ISBN 0-300-10193-7 .

Web links

• Famous Americans: John Barnwell