Gunpowder Incident

Coordinates: 37°16′14.66″N 76°41′59.98″W / 37.2707389°N 76.6999944°W / 37.2707389; -76.6999944
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Not to be confused with Gunpowder Plot.
Gunpowder Incident
Part of the American Revolutionary War

The powder magazine in Williamsburg from which the gunpowder was removed
DateApril 21, 1775
Location
Williamsburg, Virginia
37°16′14.66″N 76°41′59.98″W / 37.2707389°N 76.6999944°W / 37.2707389; -76.6999944
Result British sailors remove military supplies
Militia uprising peacefully resolved

The Gunpowder Incident (or Gunpowder Affair) was a conflict early in the American Revolutionary War between Lord Dunmore, the Royal Governor of the Colony of Virginia, and militia led by Patrick Henry. On April 21, 1775, one day after the Battles of Lexington and Concord (and well before news of those events reached Virginia), Lord Dunmore ordered the removal of the gunpowder from the magazine in Williamsburg, Virginia to a Royal Navy ship.

This action sparked local unrest, and militia companies began mustering throughout the colony. Patrick Henry led a small militia force toward Williamsburg to force return of the gunpowder to the colony's control. The matter was resolved without conflict when a payment of £330 was made to Henry. Dunmore, fearing for his personal safety, later retreated to a naval vessel, ending royal control of the colony.

Background

Military tensions began to rise in the

Charlestown (in a location now in Somerville), and militia from all over New England had flocked to the area in response to false rumors that violence had been involved.[2][3] One consequence of this action was that the Congress called for the colonies to organize militia companies for their defense.[3] Another was that Lord Dartmouth, the Secretary of State for the Colonies, advised the colonial governors to secure their military supplies, and prohibited importation of further supplies of powder.[4]

In early 1775, Virginians began to organize militia companies and seek out military supplies (weapons, ammunition, and gunpowder) to arm and equip them.

Second Virginia Convention on March 23 that Dunmore "[thought] it prudent to remove some Gunpowder which was in a Magazine in this place."[5] Although British Army troops had been withdrawn from Virginia in the wake of the Powder Alarm, there were several Royal Navy ships in the Virginia waters of Chesapeake Bay. On April 19, Lord Dunmore quietly brought a company of British sailors into Williamsburg and quartered them in the governor's mansion. Dunmore then ordered Captain Henry Collins, commander of HMS Magdalen, to remove the gunpowder from the magazine in Williamsburg.[6]

Removing the gunpowder

Drawing of the octagonal Williamsburg Magazine

On the early morning of April 21, 1775 Royal Navy sailors went to the Williamsburg powder magazine, loaded fifteen half barrels of powder into the governor's wagon, and transported it to the eastern end of the

House of Burgesses, Peyton Randolph, that prevented the assembling crowd from storming Dunmore's mansion.[6] The city council demanded the return of the powder, claiming it was the property of the colony and not the Crown. Dunmore demurred, stating that he was moving the powder as protection against its seizure during a rumored slave uprising, and would eventually return it. This seemed to satisfy the assembled crowd, and it dispersed peacefully.[7]

Unrest however persisted in Williamsburg and spread throughout the countryside. After a second crowd was convinced to disperse by Patriot leaders, Dunmore reacted angrily, warning on April 22 that if attacked, he would "declare Freedom to the Slaves, and reduce the City of Williamsburg to Ashes."[6] He also told a Williamsburg alderman that he had "once fought for the Virginians" but "By God, I would let them see that I could fight against them."[8]

Patrick Henry, portrait by George Bagby Matthews c. 1891 after an original by Thomas Sully

By April 29, militia mobilizing in the countryside had learned of the battles at Lexington and Concord. Nearly 700 men mustered at Fredericksburg, and decided to send a messenger to Williamsburg to assess the situation before marching on the capital. Peyton Randolph advised against violence, and George Washington, a longtime leader of the Virginia militia, concurred. In response to their advice, the Fredericksburg militia voted by a narrow margin not to march.[9] However, militia from other parts of the colony did march to Williamsburg. The Hanover County militia, led by Patrick Henry, voted on May 2 to march on Williamsburg. Henry dispatched a small company to the home of Richard Corbin, who was the Deputy Collector of the Royal Revenue in Virginia, in a bid to force him to pay for the powder from Crown revenue in his possession; the remainder of the Hanover County militia, numbering about 150, marched toward Williamsburg, arriving about 15 miles (24 km) away on May 3.[10] That day Dunmore's family escaped Williamsburg to Porto Bello, Lord Dunmore's hunting lodge on the York River, and from there to HMS Fowey, lying at anchor in the York River.[11]

Corbin was not at home—he was in Williamsburg, meeting with Dunmore.

bill of exchange for £330 signed by a wealthy plantation owner, as payment for the powder (he refused the offer of payment from Crown accounts).[9] Henry then departed to take his place as a member of Virginia's delegation to the Second Continental Congress, promising to deliver the money to "the Virginia Delegates at the General congress".[13] On May 6 Dunmore issued a proclamation charging Henry with extortion of the £330, and forbidding the citizenry to assist Henry in any way.[9] Henry was offered protection by several counties, and was escorted by several companies of militia to the Maryland border as he made his way to Philadelphia.[12]

Aftermath

Portrait of Dunmore by Sir Joshua Reynolds, 1765

The incident burnished Henry's reputation while worsening Dunmore's popularity.

North Ministry to divide the colonies. In the wake of Dunmore's flight, the Burgesses rejected the proposal.[17]

Dunmore continued to make vigorous attempts to regain control of the colony, but after

Third Virginia Convention in July 1775; Patrick Henry became the independent state's first governor in July 1776.[19]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Russell, pp. 45–46
  2. ^ Richmond, p. 6
  3. ^ a b Russell, p. 48
  4. ^ a b Selby and Higginbotham, p. 1
  5. ^ Williamson, p. 54
  6. ^ a b c Russell, p. 52
  7. ^ Selby and Higginbotham, p. 2
  8. ^ Selby and Higginbotham, p. 3
  9. ^ a b c Russell, p. 53
  10. ^ a b Selby and Higginbotham, p. 4
  11. JSTOR 1921010
    .
  12. ^ a b c Selby and Higginbotham, p. 5
  13. ^ Vaughan, p. 88
  14. ^ Vaughan, p. 89
  15. ^ Colonial Williamsburg Magazine Archived 2005-12-03 at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ Selby and Higginbotham, pp. 41–43
  17. ^ Selby and Higginbotham, p. 44
  18. ^ Russell, pp. 68–76
  19. ^ Selby and Higginbotham, pp. 52,121

References

External links

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