Siege of Fort Mose

Battle of Fort Mose
Part of the War of Jenkins' Ear

Site of the old fort
Date14 June 1740
Location
Fort Mose, Florida
29°55′40.01″N 81°19′31.01″W / 29.9277806°N 81.3252806°W / 29.9277806; -81.3252806
Result Spanish victory
Belligerents
 Great Britain Spain Spain
Commanders and leaders
Col. John Palmer † Cap. Antonio Salgado
Francisco Menéndez
Strength
170 regulars and Indians[1] 300 regulars
some militia
Indian auxiliaries
free black auxiliaries[1][2]
Casualties and losses
68[3]–75 killed[4]
34 captured[3]		 10 killed
20 wounded[5][6]
Siege of Fort Mose is located in Florida
Siege of Fort Mose
class=notpageimage|
Location within Florida
Siege of Fort Mose is located in North America
Siege of Fort Mose
Siege of Fort Mose (North America)

The Battle of Fort Mose (often called Bloody Mose, or Bloody Moosa) was a significant action of the War of Jenkins' Ear that took place on June 14, 1740, in Spanish Florida.[7] Captain Antonio Salgado commanded a Spanish column of 300 regular troops, backed by the free black militia under Francisco Menéndez and allied Seminole warriors consisting of Indian auxiliaries. They stormed Fort Mose, a strategically crucial position newly held by 170 British soldiers under Colonel John Palmer.[8] Palmer and his garrison had taken the fort from the Spanish as part of James Oglethorpe's offensive to capture St. Augustine.

Taken by surprise, the British garrison was virtually annihilated.[8] Colonel Palmer, three captains and three lieutenants were among the British troops killed in action.[6] The battle destroyed the fort. The Spanish did not rebuild it until 1752.[9][10]

  1. ^ a b Wasserman p. 61
  2. ^ Martínez Láinez/Canales p. 239
  3. ^ a b Quesada p. 49
  4. ^ Landers p. 37
  5. ^ Marley p. 254
  6. ^ a b Gómez
  7. ^ Fischer, David Hackett (2022). African Founders: How Enslaved People Expanded American Ideals. Simon and Schuster. p. 684. ISBN 978-1-9821-4511-8.
  8. ^ a b Burnett p. 167
  9. ^ Jones p. 13
  10. ^ Henderson p. 94