Bloody Marsh, Battle of , was a British victory over Spanish forces in North America in July 1742. General James Oglethorpe drove Spanish forces from the British colony of Georgia, in what is now the southeastern United States. At the time, Great Britain (now the United Kingdom) and Spain were on opposing sides of a general European struggle, the War of the Austrian Succession (1740-1748). Related fighting in North America was part of two conflicts, the War of Jenkins’s Ear (1739-1743) and King George’s War (1744-1748).
Background.
In the Americas during the 1700’s, Spain and Britain frequently clashed over colonial boundaries and control of trade routes. In the 1730’s, several incidents involving Spanish reprisals (punishment) against alleged British smugglers pushed the two sides closer to war. In 1739, the British declared war on Spain and began raiding wealthy Spanish ports and settlements in South America and the Caribbean Sea. In January 1740, Oglethorpe led a small expedition against Spanish outposts in northeastern Florida. From June to July, Oglethorpe besieged Saint Augustine , the capital of Spanish Florida, but could not capture the town. The British continued their raids on Spanish colonial ports, and both sides worked to disrupt the other’s trade routes.
In late June 1742, Manuel de Montiano, the governor of Spanish Florida, arrived at St. Simons Island with a fleet of 36 ships. The island lay just off the coast of southeastern Georgia . Oglethorpe had established the fortified settlement of Fort Frederica there in 1736 to protect Georgia from a potential Spanish invasion. Montiano’s fleet anchored off St. Simons Island, beyond the range of British artillery. Oglethorpe called forth Georgia colonial soldiers, British regulars, local volunteers, and allied Chickasaw, Creek, and Yamacraw warriors to repel a Spanish attack. According to most accounts, the British-allied force numbered fewer than 1,000. On July 5, Spanish soldiers began to disembark at the southwestern end of the island. By the next morning, about 1,500 troops had come ashore.
The battle.
Early on July 7, a Spanish reconnaissance (information-gathering) force of about 120 men scouting north along the 6-mile (10-kilometer) road to Fort Frederica encountered a small British patrol group. Members of the patrol rushed back to warn Frederica. Oglethorpe rapidly gathered what men he could and rode out. He led a charge against the scouting force and forced the Spanish to flee. The British suffered few casualties but killed, wounded, or captured several dozen Spaniards. Later that afternoon, a group of about 300 Spanish soldiers marched toward the fort. As the Spanish advanced across a broad marsh, British troops fired upon them from behind thick brush. The ambush caught the Spanish by surprise, and they became confused as smoke from gunfire filled the swampy battlefield. After an hour of heavy fighting, the Spanish ran short on ammunition and retreated. The battle, also known as Battle of the Bloody Swamp, takes its name from the marshland where it was fought. Few British were killed or wounded during the day’s fighting. According to Spanish accounts, their own losses numbered about 50 troops in the two clashes combined. Some later sources indicated higher casualties for the Spanish.
Aftermath.
Although the British had had success on the battlefield, they remained significantly outnumbered on the island. Over the following several days, each side probed the other’s defenses but launched no major attacks. Oglethorpe arranged for a falsified message, detailing the imminent arrival of British reinforcements, to fall into the hands of the Spanish. His ruse, along with the appearance of several British ships on the horizon, helped persuade the more numerous Spanish force to withdraw from St. Simons Island on July 13.
During the Spanish force’s return to St. Augustine, de Montiano’s forces destroyed coastal forts on nearby islands that the British had abandoned. The Spanish would never again launch a major offensive into Georgia.
Today, the Fort Frederica National Monument preserves the ruins of the Fort Frederica settlement and the Bloody Marsh battlefield. It is operated by the United States National Park Service.
