General Pulaski Memorial Day

General Pulaski Memorial Day
Observed by	United States
Type	National Holiday
Date	October 11
Next time	October 11, 2024 (2024-10-11)
Frequency	annual
Related to	Casimir Pulaski Day

General Pulaski Memorial Day is a

. The observance was established in 1929 when Congress passed a resolution (Public Resolution 16 of 1929) designating October 11 as General Pulaski Memorial Day. Every President has issued a proclamation for the observance annually since (except in 1930).

This is a separate holiday from the regional holiday in the Chicago area titled Casimir Pulaski Day that commemorates Pulaski's birth on March 4, 1746.

Regional celebrations

.

General Pulaski's Day is a holiday recognized by the

, United States, "in commemoration of the death of revolutionary General Casimir Pulaski". General Pulaski's Day is observed on October 11 of every year in Kentucky. General Pulaski's Day was created by a statute enacted by the Kentucky General Assembly sometime prior to 1942.

History of the battle and Pulaski's role

Kazimierz Pulaski, by Jan Styka

The

Lieutenant-Colonel Archibald Campbell

. The siege itself consisted of a joint Franco-American attempt to retake Savannah from September 16, 1779, to October 18, 1779. On October 9, 1779, a major assault against the British siege works failed. During the attack, General Kazimierz Pułaski, leading the cavalry, was mortally wounded. With the failure of the joint American-French attack, the siege failed, and the British remained in control of Georgia until July 1782, close to the end of the war.

The battle is much remembered in Haitian history; the Fontages Legion, consisting of over 500 gens de couleur—free men of color from Saint-Domingue—fought on the French side. Henri Christophe, who later became king of independent Haiti, is thought to have been among these troops.

In 2005 archaeologists with the Coastal Heritage Society and the LAMAR Institute discovered portions of the British fortifications at Spring Hill. The brunt of the combined French and American attack on October 9, 1779, was focused at that point. The find represents the first tangible remains of the battlefield. In 2008 the CHS/LAMAR Institute archaeology team discovered another segment of the British fortifications in Madison Square.

Observances

References