HISTORY:
** During the 19th century, US forces confronted the Seminole people in a series of bitter wars over the fate of Florida. After the refusal of the Seminoles to move west to the Creek Reservation in Mississippi, the US government sent troops to bring Florida under federal control, marking the beginning of the Second Seminole War. On December 28, 1835, troops led by Major Francis Langhorne Dade were ambushed and massacred en route to Fort King. Two years of guerilla warfare ensued as the Seminoles evaded the troops sent to defeat them. Ordered to hunt down the Seminoles, a US force led by Colonel Zachary Taylor incurred heavy losses at the battle of lake Okeechobee (December 25, 1837), but the Seminoles were forced to withdraw. At the battle of the Loxahatchee River (January 24, 1838) forces under the command of Major General Thomas S. Jesup encountered a large group of Seminoles and met them with overwhelming numbers and greater firepower. Despite their stubborn efforts to resist the US military, the Seminoles were defeated and Florida became a state of the Union in 1845. This fully illustrated study assesses the forces fighting on both sides, casting light on the tactics, weaponry, and combat record of the Seminole warriors and their US opponents during the Second Seminole War. **
** Quoted from the back cover of the book.
THE BOOK:
Osprey Publications has released Seminole Warrior vs US Soldier - Second Seminole War 1835-42 as Number 61 in the Combat series. It is an 80-page soft cover book. Included with the text are black and white photographs, color illustrations, maps, individual profiles, detailed captions and more. It has a 2022 copyright, a publication date of January 20, 2022 and the ISBN is 978-1-4728- 4688-4.
THE CONTENTS:
- Introduction
- The Opposing Sides
- Origins and organizations
- Training and tactics
- Appearance, weapons, and equipment
- Dade’s Massacre
- December 28, 1835
- Lake Okeechobee, or Big Water
- December 25, 1837
- The Loxahatchee River, or Turtle Water
- January 24, 1838
- Analysis
- Dade’s Massacre
- Lake Okeechobee
- The Loxahatchee River
- Aftermath
- Orders of Battle
- Select Bibliography
- Index
THE TEXT:
Author Ron Field provides a well written text detailing three different battles between the Seminoles and United States military during the Second Seminole War during the years of 1835 through 1842. The three battles discussed are Dade’s Massacre, December 28, 1835, Lake Okeechobee (Big Water), December 25, 1837, and the Loxahatchee River (Turtle Water), January 24, 1838. Ron Field provides insight from both sides of each conflict giving information such as first-hand accounts from active participants in the fighting, actions taken by both sides as well as the outcome of each battle. Ron Field gives a step-by-step narration of each of the battles which with the accompanying maps helps place the reader at the battles and makes it easy for the reader to understand what took place and why. As well as providing information on the three separate battles Ron Field also details training, organization, weapons and equipment used by both sides as well as the fighting techniques of the combatants. Along with his own words Ron Field has also provided several quotes and first-hand accounts from key individuals providing specific details and pertinent information. The text in the book is nicely written and well detailed and provides a wealth of information in an easy-to-read format. As I read through the text, I didn’t notice any spelling or grammatical errors. Grammar and spelling might not be an important factor to everyone however it is something that I take notice of and pass on my findings. I feel that if the text is well written then it shows that the author has taken the time to be professional with their writing. Anyone wanting to add an excellent reference and history book on the Second Seminole War in the United States of America during the years of 1835 through 1842 to their personal library will be pleased with this informative and interesting book.
THE PHOTOGRAPHS:
A total of 21 black and white photographs and 29 color photographs are included in this volume. Author Ron Field stuck to the title of the book and chose subject specific photographs and did not include photographs that strayed from the main subject of the book. The majority of the photographs are of period drawings, paintings and portraits as well as one from a period US military manual and provide the reader with details of various weapons, gear and period uniforms and clothing. They also provide a good reference for coloring which can be used as a painting guide for modelers if so chosen. The images are obviously not always in scale and 100% accurate but I personally feel that they still do their job of providing information as artists were free to use artistic interpretation when they created their paintings and illustrations. The majority, if not all, of the photographs will prove to be a wealth of information to anyone interested in the Second Seminole War in the United States of America during the years of 1835 through 1842 due to the details they contain.
THE ILLUSTRATIONS:
There are four color illustrations by illustrator Adam Hook provided in this volume. One of the color illustrations is accompanied by a black and white copy of the same illustration that describes the scene and points out and describes key areas of interest. The illustrations are very well done, nicely detailed and are of:
Plate A
Seminole warrior – Dade’s Massacre, December 28, 1835. (See attached scan)
- Two-page front and back illustrations of a Seminole warrior with a well written caption that details and points our fifteen items of interest such as weapons, dress, and other items of the period.
Plate B
US infantryman – Dade’s Massacre, December 28, 1835. (See attached scan)
- Two-page front and back illustrations of a US infantryman with a well written caption that details and points our fifteen items of interest such as weapons, dress, and other items of the period.
Plate C
The 4th Infantry at lake Okeechobee
- A two-page action illustration showing a hand-to-hand conflict between infantrymen of the 4th Infantry Division and Seminole forces at Lake Okeechobee.
Plate D
“No Small Racket” at the Loxahatchee River
- A two-page double scene depicting the clash between Seminole warriors led by Tuskegee and Halleck-Hajo and US troops led by Major General Thomas S. Jessup. The two-page illustration provides the view from the Seminole warrior’s point-of-view and the view from the US troop’s point-of-view. On the following page there are detailed captions, which accompany two black and white copies of the same-colored illustrations, with informative captions detailing what is taking place in the two scenes as well as identifying key individuals portrayed.
THE CAPTIONS:
The captions are well written and explain the accompanying photographs and illustrations in great detail eliminating any doubt as to what is shown. The captions go into very specific detail as to specific individual’s names, dates, locations and other such pertinent information. As I read through the captions, I didn’t notice any spelling errors or grammatical errors. I was impressed by Ron Field’s captions as they are very helpful to the reader due to their detailed content as opposed to other captions that I have seen that are very brief and lacking in detail.
PROFILES:
There 2 individuals profiled in this volume, and they are:
- Micanopy
- Micanopy, also known as Micco-Nuppe, Michenopah, Miccanopa, and Mico-an-opa, and Sint-chakkee, was the leading chief of the Seminole during the Second Seminole War.
- Robert R. Mudge
- Robert R. Mudge in September of 1835, as a full second lieutenant, was deployed to Florida to serve in the Second Seminole War (1835-1842). Mudge served with Company B of the 2nd Artillery Regiment and fell during Dade’s Massacre on December 28, 1835.
MAPS:
There are 4 color maps included in this volume that are accompanied by well written captions and detailed keys that point out specific locations as well as movements and actions by both sides of each conflict.
The maps are of:
- The Second Seminole War
- Dade’s Massacre, December 28, 1835 (See attached scan)
- Lake Okeechobee, December 25, 1837
- The Loxahatchee, January 24, 1838
NOTES:
There are 3 notes included in this volume and they are:
- Acknowledgements
- Author’s Note
- Artist’s Note
Osprey Publishing also offers Combat - Seminole Warrior vs US Soldier - Second Seminole War 1835-42 as:
eBook (ePub) ISBN: 978-1-4728- 4689-1
and
eBook (PDF) ISBN: 978-1-4728- 4686-0
Combat - Seminole Warrior vs US Soldier - Second Seminole War 1835-42 is also available as an electronic Kindle version through Amazon.com.
PRICE:
US $22.00 / UK £14.99 / CAN $30.00
This book was provided to me by Osprey Publishing. Please be sure to mention that you saw the book reviewed here on the KitMaker Network when you make your purchase. Thank you.