Lyttelton's Expediton Part III - the salute or salute? at Keowee

This Keowee town sat on cliffs high above Fort Prince George. Nowadays the Fort's site sits below the water in a Reservoir created in 1971, thus somewhat disguising those heights for visitors today. The Lyttlelton Expedtion has finally reached the top left corner of the map on either 1 Dec 1759 or 9 Dec 1759. That spot on the top left corner is the Fort Prince George and the Cherokee Lower Town, Keowee.

The Cherokee are standing above the Lyttelton Expediton. They salute each other with musket fire. So what kind of salute was it?

Page 77 -- Carolina in Crisis: Cherokees, Colonists, and Slaves in the American .Southeast 1756-1763 By Daniel J. Tortora, published by the University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, 2015.

"Lyttelton left the sick soldiers at [Fort] Ninety Six and set out for Fort Prince George on Nov 29 [1759].

The terrified hostages looked on as the army practiced deploying into lines of battle on both sides of the rugged, narrow road approaching Twelve-Mile Creek. . . .

Two Days later [1 Dec 1759]

many" Cherokees gathered on the high hills of Keowee that overlooked Fort Prince George.

They watched in dismay as Lyttelton's army approached. The fort and the incoming army saluted each other in a symbolic welcome.

"Above 200 Indians," a soldier observe, "appeared on the Hills and gave two running Fires after their Manner."

A Salute

Some soldiers "looked upon [it] as a Salute."

A Defiance?

But others saw it "as bidding Defiance, and to shew that they had Ammunition to spare."

Lyttelton's army camped in the windswept plain below Keowee and outside the fort.

Page 77 The scene at Keowee Carolina in Crisis: Cherokees, Colonists, and Slaves in the American .Southeast 1756-1763 By Daniel J. Tortora, published by the University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, 2015.

This Keowee town sat on cliffs high above Fort Prince George.

Nowadays the Fort's site sits below the water in a Reservoir created in 1971, thus somewhat disguising those heights for visitors today.

Touch or click on to pull up interactive map.

But another source indicates 9 Dec 1759 as the date when this scene at Keowee occurred.

At eleven o'clock on the morning of December 9, as knots of Indians gazed from the wooded hill across Keowee River, the army trooped into the flats beside Fort Prince George.

The roar of saluting cannons and the answering rattle of musketry mingle as acrid gunpowder smoke rolled from the valley.

50 hostages released

While the soldiers prepared their camp, the Governor summoned his unwilling guests and sent fifty of them home.

28 hostages kept

Twenty-eight of the most prominent, including Oconostoata, Tistoe, Round O, and Wawhatchee, "who seemedinclined to promote the satisfaction of his excellency required," he detained at the fort.

Page 185 The Cherokee Frontier, Conflict and Survival 1740-1762, by David H Corkran, published by the University of Oklahoma Press 1962).

The source of that map is here

https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1201&context=archanth_books

It is also in the Library of Congress website. The map was drawn by Christian French in his journal of 1761. It is a map of Fort Prince George.

Compiled by Jim Moyer 12/6/2023, 12//10/2023

Before Lyttelton's Expedition arrived at Keowee

Before this arrival of the Lyttelton Expedition at Keowee and Fort Prince George, there was massive debate by the Cherokee at Keowee on what to do with this White army coming at them. The author said the Cherokees arguing were in confusion. But both sides of the debate appeared clear on what they wanted to do.

While Lyttelton;s army rested at Ninety-Six, confusion of council prevailed at Keowee.Chenallotehee urged immediate delivery of the [24 accused] killers demaned by the Governor [Lyttelton].

The war faction adamantly opposed him, encouraged by the Georgia smuggler Williams who, with ammunition to sell, spread the story that Carolina proposed to destroy the nation.

The young men and many of the warriors talked of waylaying the army in some bushy hollow, but the Governor's detaining so many important headmen deterred them.

Finally they agreed to stand with wary eyes behind a show of peace. They sent the Governor white beads, a British flag, and a talk; but Lyttelton, warned by Coytmore (leader commanding at Fort Prince George) that the deputies were spies, turned them back.

Page 184 The scene before Keowee Carolina in Crisis: Cherokees, Colonists, and Slaves in the American .Southeast 1756-1763 By Daniel J. Tortora, published by the University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, 2015.