As part of my research on the Siege of Fort Boonesborough (Kentucky) in 1778, I've been looking with little success for information on the level of formal military training that French militia officers (in British employ) operating out of Detroit would have had. I know that training of American militia was limited (although I'd like to know more about that too). One of the classic siege tactics tried at Boonesborough was the excavation of a tunnel from the river to the fort wall, a tactic that was probably suggested by the French militia officers accompanying the large Indian force. The archival sources I have suggest that the French may have anticipated digging a tunnel and brought tools along so I'm thinking they might have been better trained in military tactics than the settlers. On the other hand, it rained all through the siege and the tunnel collapsed so it doesn't seem to have been adequately shored up.  I'm trying to characterize and contrast the levels of knowledge of military strategies between the settlers in the fort, the French militia officers and the Indians. Does anyone know of sources?





Nancy O'Malley
Assistant Director
William S. Webb Museum of Anthropology and
Office of State Archaeology
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University of Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky 40506
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