We all know leaders that have inspired, motivated, pushed us to do better, be better. We also all know leaders who have belittled, ignored or punished us. There are many books about what makes a good leader; about what types of skills and abilities the good, and great, leaders have in common.
When I think of a great leader, I instantly think of George Rogers Clark. Clark has often been called, "The George Washington of the West", due to his achievements in keeping the Northwest Territories safe and ultimately, in America's hands. George, the oldest brother to William Clark (of the Lewis & Clark Expedition), was appointed Major in the Kentucky County Militia prior to the Revolutionary War. Then, at only 26 years of age, George was commissioned a Lt. Colonel in the Virginia Militia during the Revolutionary War. He and his motley band of 175 soldiers were able to carry out a daring and hazardous campaign, deep in enemy territory, that would develop into not only the only successful American campaign in the war for Independence in 1778, it was also one of the greatest successful campaigns in American history.
During the Revolutionary War, America's western boundaries were sparsely populated with Indians, frontiersfolk, French citizenry (now residing in what was recently America's territory from the French & Indian War) and British soldiers. Colonel Clark knew how British Officers were paying Indians to kill Americans (buying scalps), scaring the French villagers into turning their backs on Americans and having troops burn and loot American homesteads and towns. Colonel Clark knew Americas' western flank was open for attack and could be taken and held by the British, if something wasn't done.
Colonel Clark sat one night by his fire, thinking ( he called it "reflecting on things in general") of how to defend the western flank. In his minds' eye, he saw America as a chess board - the British on one side, America on the other. He knew that the British had more soldiers in this area than all American colonists combined in the same area; specifically, that there were two British outposts that were the base for British to continue attacking the western territories. So, Colonel Clark devised a plan to capture those 2 British outposts. One of my favorite sayings of his began as a thought while he was planning - "Great things can be accomplished by few men well conducted".
His strategic plan was bold, unheard of and had to be kept secret for it to have a chance at success. In fact, his plan had an official order and an unofficial order. The official order basically stated that he was to be provided soldiers and arms for a campaign for the "defense of Kentucky". The secret order was to attack the two British forts and then move on to Detroit, the seat of the British Army in the Northwest Territories. When his plan was approved, he was given less men than what he had requested. He then stated, "I knew my case was desperate, but the more I reflected on my weakness [lack of men] the more I was pleased with the enterprise".
The campaign was from May 12, 1778 - February 25, 1779. Colonel Clark's first route was from Redstone, PA to Fort Kaskaskia, the town of Cahokia and Fort Vincennes in the Illinois "Country". He only shared the unofficial order with his men when they were far enough away from their deportation location that they couldn't easily desert. A side note: When Clark and his men left Corn Island (at the Falls of the Ohio), on June 24, an eclipse of the sun happened just as the men were about to shoot the falls. Colonel Clark stated, "This caused various conjectures among the suspicious", so he simply let them believe that it was a good omen.
Fort Kaskaskia (taken on July 4th), the town of Cahokia and Fort Vincennes were originally taken without spilling ANY blood because of Colonel Clark's strong leadership skills. He knew that he had to be stealthy, because his men were so outnumbered. He commanded his troops to be spread out, to keep moving, to never group together for too long, to never let the number of troops be counted. Once Henry "Hair Buyer" Hamilton, the British Lt. Governor in Canada, heard of the taking of the forts, he sent his army to retake Fort Vincennes, which they did in December of 1778. Then Colonel Clark found out the fort had been retaken. He knew he had to take it back. That second trip from Kaskaskia to Vincennes was one of the most brutal marches in American history. They marched, during an incredibly harsh February winter, 240 miles from Fort Kaskaskia to Fort Vincennes, in territory that was flooded to the point of not being able to distinguish rivers from streams from land from islands. 18 days of brutal conditions, with Colonel Clark leading the way. In a feat of strategic brilliance, Colonel Clark forced Hamilton to surrender the fort.
Prior to leaving for retaking the fort, Colonel Clark stated, "The enemy could not suppose that we should be so mad as to attempt to march 80 leagues through a drowned country in the depth of winter... they would not think it worthwhile to keep out spies. If we fell through, the country would not be in a worse situation than if we had not made the attempt... perhaps we might be fortunate".
In a letter that Colonel Clark left to be forwarded to Governor Patrick Henry on the day they left to retake Fort Vincennes, he stated, "I am resolved to take advantage of this present situation and risk the whole on a single battle... I know the case is desperate, but Sir, we must either quit the country or attack Mr. Hamilton. No time is to be lost... we have this consolation, that our cause is just and that our country will be grateful, and not condemn our conduct in case we fail".
While the Indians and the French citizenry at first were against the American's, Colonel Clark's tactics won them over to the American side. However, when either the Indians or the French villagers wanted to join in the American cause, Colonel Clark respectfully turned them down - stating that he neither wanted them to fight for nor against the Americans, simply to stay out of their way (which made them love Colonel Clark & America - so much so that all of the villagers took an oath of allegiance to the American cause). A side note: Colonel Clark completed treaties with at least 10 Indian Tribes during the campaign; something completely unexpected and a positive for both sides.
The campaign was a success, even though Colonel Clark did not march on Detroit. After the incredibly arduous months to take the Forts and town and to retake Fort Vincennes, his men were in desperate need of rest and recuperation and he knew the march to Detroit would be grueling, especially on top of what they had already endured. Colonel Clark had pushed his men, urged them on, encouraged them. During the campaign, he had them thinking they were superior to other men. Even during the tough winter march, even when the water wasn't getting lower, he sent men ahead to say that it was; singing songs, bringing a drummer boy to keep the men's spirits up. Colonel Clark even stated that "I acted as though crossing the water would be only a piece of diversion to keep them in high spirits". It had worked.
What strong leadership qualities did Colonel Clark have? He held his plans close to his vest; he knew how important the element of surprise was; he turned the populace in his favor, but not to his aid; he made his army seem larger than it actually was; he controlled his men and he made his men believe they would be successful, which partly attributed to their actual success. Where are the strong leaders of today? I say, the strong leaders are We the People. We have the power to plan our freedoms, to surprise our government by our fervor and resolve, to work a grass roots movement for change, to control our destinies and believe in ourselves, in our cause. What's our cause? To better America.
