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GEORGIA'S GERMAN-LANGUAGE PROCLAMATION:
AN APPEAL TO THE HESSIANS TO DESERT
By GEORGE FENWICK JONES
On 20 February 1782 the governor of Georgia issued a German-language proc-
lamation that was smuggled from Ebenezer to the Hessian troops in Savannah
by "slatternly women" urging the disgruntled garrison to desert.¹ This docu-
ment is of interest not only as Georgia's sole foreign-language proclamation but
also as Georgia's oldest surviving gubernatorial proclamation.² Its wording is
as follows:
State Georgia
Bey dem HochgeEhrten Hn Johann Martin, Esq. Capitaine Gouverneur
und Comander in Vorbesagter State Georgia
John Martin
Great Seal
Proclamation
Indem eine grosse Anzahl Von Germanien und Hessischen wie auch andere
Trouppen in Savannah jetzt in Brittanischer oder Englischer Linie und gebiete sich
befinden, und sind selbige gezwungen in besagte Dienst zu Verharren, welches Ihrem
Contract und Accord gäntzlich zu wider und entgegen gehandelt, und sind so
genöthiget, und gezwungen sich Ieglicher Mühe Arbeit und Gefahr darzustellen,
und zu streiten gegen ein aufrichtiges und unschuldiges Volck, welches die selbe
nie beleydiget auch in keiner Sache Misgehandelt hat und viele von welchen sind
auch deren Landtleuthe und Bluts Freunde, welche vielmehr verlangen und
Wünschen selbige in ihr Eigenthum zu nehmen, und mit aller güte und Wohltat
die disem Lande gemäss zu begegnen Und zu einem weiteren Zeugniss des Aufrich-
tigen Wunsches guter Intention und Meynung, der Einwohner und Bürger dieses
Landes, gebe und ertheile auf und mit gutbefinden und Beystimmung des Achtbaren
Executive Counsel oder geheimen Raths diese meine Proclamation mit Versprechung
Darbietung und ertheilung eines Stuck Lands Von Zwey Hundert Acker frey von
allen Unkosten, ingleichen eine gute Kuh und zwey Ziegel Schwein einem jeden unter
officier oder Soldaten; welcher den Brittanischen oder Englischen Dienst verlässet
und begehret ein Einwohner Bürger und mit Glied dieses Lands zu werden. Gegeben
unter meiner Hand und Siegel vorbesagter State zu Ebenezer den 20. Febr. 1782
Auf dessen HochgeEhrter Befehl,
Abraham Jones, Sec.
Transliterated into English this proclamation would read:
State of Georgia
Proclamation of the Honorable John Martin, esq., Captain General, Governor,
and Commander in said State of Georgia.
John Martin
Great Seal
[21]
Since a large number of Germans and Hessians and also other troops are now
found within the British or English lines and territory and are compelled to remain
in said service, which runs entirely contrary to their contract and agreement, and
are therefore required and compelled to expose themselves to every trouble, work,
and danger and to fight against an upright and innocent populace that has never
insulted them or mistreated them in any way and of whom many are also their com-
patriots and relatives and desire and wish rather to receive them into their homes
and to treat them with all the goodness and kindness that is customary in this land,
and as a further proof of the honest wish and good intention and desire of the
inhabitants and citizens of this land, I give and publish with the approval and agree-
ment of the honorable Executive Council this my proclamation with the promise,
offer, and presentation of a piece of land of two hundred acres free of all costs,
likewise a good cow and two brood swine to every non-commissioned officer or
soldier who leaves the British or English service and wishes to become an inhabitant,
citizen, and member of this land. Given under my hand and the seal of said state
at Ebenezer on 20 February 1782.
At his honorable command,
Abraham Jones, Sec.
This German proclamation was forwarded by Col. Friedrich von Porbeck, a
Hessian officer who had played a major role in the siege of Savannah of 1779,
to Gen. Friedrich Christian Arnold, Freiherr von Jungkenn, the minister of
state of Hesse-Cassel. The question arises as to whether the text had been
composed in German or first written in English and then rendered into German.
German origin is suggested by the fact that the entire proclamation is written
in one rambling sentence, as could be expected today of a German but hardly
of an Anglo-Saxon; but this argument is nullified by the fact that the 18th-
century Englishmen wrote equally desultory sentences, as a glance in the Colo-
nial Records of the State of Georgia will quickly verify. Secondly, no German
would have used the word Germanien, which was quite alien to the Germans.
Also, the retention of the words "Great Seal" and "State" indicates copying
from an English original. The only peculiar word is Ziegel Schwein, which does
not exist today in standard German but does still exist in various dialects in
the sense of "brood sow."³
To ascertain the original language of the proclamation, I searched until final-
ly, with the aid of Dr. Kenneth Coleman, I found an English version in the
Public Records Office in London,
4
which had been forwarded by Gen. Alexander
Leslie, the commanding officer in Charleston, to his superior, Gen. Henry Clinton
in New York, together with a German version, which was nearly identical to
the other translation in wording
5
but entirely different with regard to spelling
and capitalization. A collation of the three versions suggests that the two Ger-
man versions were copied from a single translation of the English original. In
the 18th century, when spelling, punctuation, and capitalization were strictly
private matters, letters were usually copied by dictation, since this allowed the
scribe to keep his eyes on the text and thus avoid skipping lines. Also, several
scribes could work simultaneously if many copies were needed, as they were in
this case.
6
[22]
Being familiar with the content of the proclamation, we might now consider
its cause and effect. The Wissenbach and Wöllwarth Regiments of Hessian
Soldiers had participated in the capture of Savannah by Col. Archibald Camp-
bell on 28 December 1778; and Col. von Porbeck had joined the garrison there
soon afterwards together with Gen. Augustine Prevost when the latter moved
up from St. Augustine to assume command of Savannah.
7
Morale remained
high during the successful repulse of the Allied siege and assault of October 1779,
which cost the British and Hessians only negligible casualties.
Ever since Vegetius formulated his rules of warfare, military commanders
have known that troops should never be left too long in one place; yet, by the
time the above proclamation was issued, the Hessians had been in Savannah for
three and a half years. Von Porbeck's many letters and reports to his superiors,
although clothed in the abject and submissive epistolary style of his time,
constantly referred to the poor quarters and rations given to the Germans and
to the mistreatment they suffered from the British authorities. Above all, he
complained that the troops were being kept too long in the unhealthy climate,
where sickness was decimating his command.
8
Typical complaints are found in his letter of 2 February 1782 to von Jung-
kenn. Because of von Porbeck's asyntactical style, lack of punctuation, and
strange rendition of British names, certain liberties have been taken in the fol-
lowing translations for the sake of clarity.
High Wellborn Baron!
Gracious Highranking Lieutenant General
I have had the great fortune to receive, along with the recruits at the end of
January 1782, Your Excellency's gracious answer of the 1st of April and the 12th
of September of 1781 from Weissenstein as well as your most gracious promotions
for the officers of this battalion. Your Excellency's gracious and most influential
intercession has cheered me and everyone extremely; and I am rendering my most
submissive thanks. The report to our most Serene Highness
9
will reveal in what a
situation this battalion now finds itself. Nineteen of the recruits died on the sea
voyage and in New York; and immediately upon their arrival here I had to send
thirty men to the hospital because of scurvy and rash.
10
Your Excellency will please graciously note that I am taking the liberty of en-
closing a list of losses incurred by this battalion during the time they have been
in this province. A gracious glance will clarify my submissive and most obliged
report that there is no hope that Europeans can learn to bear this climate or the
foul water for a long life. I also wish to report most submissively that the Second
Delancy Battalion and the First Georgia Loyalists have had so many deaths that
they have been integrated into two other battalions and the supernumerary officers
are going home on half pay until the battalions are brought back to strength again.
The enclosed service reports will show that we are performing fatiguing duties.
In addition there are the evil quarters that the officers and men must put up with,
also the bad bedding that consists of rice straw and is issued most frugally. The
commandant, Col. Clarke, blames the civil government and refers me to it; and
the latter claims that nothing is possible.
11
The best houses are rented to foreign
merchants at high rents. After our sudden departure from Ebenezer, the enemy
[23]
Rebel general Wayne
12
occupied Ebenezer and Cherokee Hill.
13
The number of
the enemy is said to be 300 militia on foot and 200 light dragoons. The enemy does
not show the least respect for our cavalry. Two weeks ago the Rebel general
Twyggs attacked 100 Creek Indians across the Little Ogeechee, shot most of them
dead, and plundered and chased the rest away.
14
The British lieutenant Montcrief
15
has built strong and large redoubts in the
vicinity of the city and also in its center; and there is no lack of artillery and am-
munition. According to a letter from New York, His Excellency the commanding
general Clinton has had troops embarked, which are to strengthen those in the
South, namely in Charleston, Savannah, and St. Augustine. I assume that all the
troops are going to Charleston under the command of General Leslie. If he cleanses
South Carolina of the Rebels, then Georgia will be covered. General Rochambeau
16
has made the inhabitants of Virginia do homage to His Most Christian Majesty.
17
The Rebels are sending patrols within one mile of the city. In order not to incon-
venience Your Excellency any longer and also because of the insecurity of letters
on the sea voyage,
18
I must close with the most submissive request that, if the op-
portunity arises, you will with your gracious intercession lay my temporal better-
ment at the feet of His Serene Highness the Landgrave. I have completed six
years of bitter service here in hope of sharing in his grace. I remain most respect-
fully.
Your Excellency's
Most Obedient Servant
Friedrich de Porbeck
Province Georgia
Savannah, 2 February 1782
Exactly a month later von Porbeck sent von Junkenn another letter voicing
similar complaints:
Highwellborn Baron!
Gracious Highranking Lieutenant General
Without fail I should report to Your Excellency concerning the garrison here
and this regiment. On the 28th of February a detachment was sent from here along
with a galley to Sandbury;
19
and there it attacked the Rebels, who have been per-
petrating shameful atrocities on the Royal subjects with murdering and burning.
Fifteen, among them one lieutenant, were shot dead; and one major by the name
of Wellsch
20
was brought in captive. Also, a single-masted ship along with six
flagboats, nine saddles, and seven horses, all of them delivered to the British com-
mandant. The latter has, to be sure, promised that the two non-coms and the ten
enlisted men from this regiment should take part in the booty; yet I fear that it
will turn out in this case as when Brigadier General Campbell, who led us here
in 1778, and Major General Prevost undertook the expedition to South Carolina.
21
Both these commanders gave orders that all enemy booty should be sent to the
troops: until now neither Your Excellency's regiment nor this one has received
anything at all; and it is known to every officer that the booty taken from the enemy
in the form of Moors,
22
indigo, silver plates, cows, and merchant wares has been
very considerable: a subaltern should have received from Georgia and South Caro-
lina some 150 pounds Sterling and an enlisted man 24 to 30 Spanish dollars. The
imprisoned Second Delancy Battalion, Commander Major Bowden and captains,
[24]
I and the captains attached to this regiment have sent three petitions to Sir Henry
Clinton, commanding general of the Royal Army in North America, but have re-
ceived no answer. In the year 1780, to be sure, I heard from Major Willmovsky,
in answer to the first letter, that His Excellency Henry Clinton wished to have the
booty pool
23
investigated by commissioners and to have justice done to everyone.
So far, after all these promises, nothing has been given to us.
Immediately upon the arrival of Major von Ende with the recruits, everyone
saw that our hope of being relieved from here had been frustrated. With the great
heat every year, everyone is expecting bad fevers and death. In addition, there is
the enclosed Rebel proclamation, which has been distributed about at night in many
places in the city by wicked rabble inhabitants and made known to every soldier in
the garrison. Also, the women are the most dangerous recruiters for the Rebels.
The French general
24
has just announced that all of His Majesty's subjects who are
in British service, if they do not stop, their property will be confiscated and they
can never look forward to being accepted again into the realm of the king.
25
This
is the reason why the Frey-Corporal
26
von Andlau deserted,
27
whom I had humbly
suggested as an ensign in the place of the late Lieutenant Justi. Will Your Ex-
cellency graciously apply your influential intercession so that Frey-Corporal Körber
will receive the vacant position as ensign. You will perhaps remember that he has
been a quartermaster in the guard of the praiseworthy Second Battalion and ar-
rived here in 1781 with the transport recruits. His older brother is serving as
first lieutenant in this praiseworthy battalion.
28
The company commanders have paid two guineas for every diserter brought in.
This has also been announced to the Indian nations and to the praiseworthy bat-
talion, so that both Moors and Indians ride patrols at night in the nearby forests
and bring in deserters dead or alive. According to letters from Charleston, a fleet
of fifty-two sails is said to have arrived with troops and provisions. Because of the
great heat the enemy will not undertake a siege either at Charleston or here be-
fore September or October. If only the British general Leslie chases the Rebels out
of South Carolina before May, the Southern parts will be freed of Rebels. The
Northern Americans have just withdrawn from Yorktown,
29
and General Washing-
ton has declared that he will not serve further to the south. The French are still
in Virginia and do not wish to support the siege of Charleston. With deepest re-
spect I remain
Your Excellency's
Obedient Servant
Friedrich de Porbeck
Savannah, 2nd of March
1782
Only a little later von Porbeck sent von Jungkenn an undated 30 letter of
similar tenor, which shows the efficacy of the proclamation:
Highwellborn Baron!
Gracious Highranking Lieutenant General
Your Excellency's gracious permission commands me to send this humble re-
port. During the month of March no ship has set sail from here to Europe,
Charleston, or New York, presumably through fear that the Georgia Packet Ship
might be captured by French frigates. On the 19th of this month our detachment
[25]
saw eight ships run in as far as the lighthouse;
31
but they were driven from the
bar and back into the sea by a storm-wind from the north, and we still do not
know whether they were Royal British or hostile ships of the line. Consequently,
I have been unable until now to send my humble reports and news or the enclosed
Rebel proclamation, which the Rebel general Wayne has had disseminated in our
garrison by slatternly women from Ebenezer, mostly in High German.
32
This and
the fact that the local British battalion, like this one, see no hope of being relieved
are the true causes of the desertions. In addition is the fact that the civilian gov-
ernment has laid a tax on incoming merchant ships so that everything is enormously
expensive. For four months no ship has entered with wine or other goods. A
small dozen bottles of wine cost from 37 shillings 4 pence to 50 shillings Sterling.
Beer is seldom to be had and is paid for at 18 shillings 8 pence Sterling per dozen.
Consequently, most people must be content to drink rum mixed with dirty stagnant
water. Sickness and dying have already begun among the inhabitants, and we are
surrounded by graves on all sides of the city.
In order to put a stop to the desertions, the British commandant of the province
of Georgia, Lieutenant Colonel Clarke, has promised to pay the light cavalry two
guineas for every deserter who is brought in. The praiseworthy battalion has re-
covered eight men arrested by the Moors. The Rebels immediately threatened with
burning and death any white inhabitants who dared to capture the deserters on
their plantations. On the ninth of this month four men deserted from Major Ende's
company and one from Major Göbels, two of them from their posts with full arma-
ment and amunition and the other three with their uniforms and side arms.
33
This
plot was at once reported to Lieutenant Colonel Clarke at night, and he im-
mediately commanded a Creek militia patrol on horse. At break of day these see
from the blunt shoes in the Rebel dew and in the sand
34
seven miles from here
that the deserters have gone to a plantation belonging to a Jew named Sheftal, whose
father fled here from Berlin and whose son still speaks good German.
35
The
Creeks pursue in the swamp and find the deserters together in a thicket. A Creek
by the name of Werner, who can speak German too, calls to them in the British
language, also in German, that they should surrender. "We will not surrender,"
and immediately raise their muskets. Hereupon the Creeks open fire and kill some,
and they still defend themselves with their sabers in their hands, as the enclosed
report to His Serene Highness shows.
36
Lieutenant Colonel Campbell had a dragoon
hanged. On the 27th of this month four men from the King's Rangers deserted at
the same time from their posts, the Creeks shot two of them dead four British
miles
37
from here; and then a strong Rebel...
Alas, the reader is left in suspense because the remainder of the letter is lost;
but he can hope that, unlike the poor Hessians, the two surviving deserters
may have been saved by a Rebel patrol. In any case, the desertion rate among
the Hessians was enough to alarm not only Gen. Clarke but also Gen. Leslie,
as we see from his letter to Gen. Clinton dated 2 March 1782:
I find that the Hessian Regiment has been there too long, they desert fast, and
I am afraid little dependence is to be put in them, I shall for this reason be under
the necessity of withdrawing them, I am very much at a Loss whom to send to re-
place that Corps,--I am sorry to observe that when the Hessian Troops are sent
to out Posts Desertion takes place, they being so long here has been the means of
[26]
their forming too many connexions, and the Enemy have taken every care to en-
courage desertion as much as in their power, this together with the assistance of
their friends within our walls enables them to seduce the foreigners from the en-
couragement they give them.
38
As shown by von Porbeck's undated letter, desertion was not limited to the
German troops: in fact the Hessians seem, despite their justifiable grounds, to
have deserted less often than the native militia, who often changed sides if for
no better reason than to collect double enlistment bonuses. Leslie's letter con-
tinues:
I am sorry to find some Leading people of our Militia going over to the Enemy
and persuading others to follow them, in fact to us they are of little use [a few
cavalry excepted] and are a great Expence to Government, but we cannot force
those that have been formerly our friends out of the Lines, who have come in for
our protection.
A letter from von Porbeck to von Jungkenn dated 1 June 1782 even related
an encounter in which three Hessians helped the Chickasaw Indians frustrate
an ambush by Gen. Wayne's troops:
Highwellborn Sir
Gracious and Highranking Lieutenant General
In accordance with Your Excellency's gracious command, I should not fail to
report most humbly that on the 15th of May, midday at 11 o'clock, three houses
burned all at once; and in a few minutes eight more of them, and Negro huts along
with stalls for the horses and also the Assembly House, were standing in full flames
until they burned to the ground with a southwest wind. Some of the inhabitants
believe that the fire was laid because of the Assembly House in order to annoy
the civil government and to disturb its scheduled court session. During the fire no
Rebel could be seen for two miles.
On the 20th of May the commandant, Brigadier General Clarke, sent two de-
tachments, one under Colonel Brown and the other with Colonel Douglas,
39
to the
Ogeechee to collect some fresh cattle. Both marched without flank patrols and did
not occupy the enemy who had been left in the rear. Four or five miles from here
the Rebel general Wayne laid an ambush of four troops on both sides of the road.
When the second of our detachments was marching in close order on a causeway,
the Rebel riflemen gave immediate fire. Our cavalry advances to the left through
the forest toward St. Augustine Creek and leaves the infantry alone, and a British
subaltern with twenty-four men desert. Hereupon one corporal and two men of the
regiment, together with fifty Chickasaw Indians,
40
retreated in such a way that the
enemy cavalry was unable to collect some two hundred horses, even though the
Rebels had destroyed said bridge
41
in order to make the retreat more difficult.
The losses on our side amount to seven or eight men dead and six wounded, among
them Colonel Douglas along with one subaltern. The enemy has eleven captives,
among whom one man from this regiment was wounded and captured. Neverthe-
less, General Wayne has not yet submitted a specification list.
42
Twenty-six horses
were lost too. On the other hand, the enemy had fourteen to sixteen killed; the
wounded cannot be ascertained. We took one man and twenty horses from the
enemy.
[27]
On several occasions His Serene Highness the Landgrave has most graciously
given me the hope that Your Excellency would order the commanding general von
Knyphausen
43
to transfer this praiseworthy regiment to the North, whereby the
annual sickening and dying would decrease and the praiseworthy regiment would
not be so dreadfully weakened. In this province there is no hope of recuperating.
At present four or five people among the inhabitants are already dying every day
from dysentary, hot fever, and cramps; and also, during the last few days, from
epilepsy.
44
I constantly hear complaints that eyes are tired and memories are
weakened. No British garrison has ever been quartered here for more than two
years; indeed, because of the mortality only two companies
45
have been quartered
here. The rich inhabitants travel from here to England, New York, and to the
North of this country, and some to the West Indian Islands. These are said to
be less dangerous for Europeans than Georgia and East and West Florida. Will
Your Excellency allow me to commend myself to your grace and to remain with
the most perfect respect Your Excellency's
Most submissive Servant
Friedrich de Porbeck
Province of Georgia
Savannah 1 June 1782
Although Gov. Martin's proclamation had almost instantaneous results,
46
it
is questionable whether it greatly influenced the outcome of the Revolution; for,
before word of it and the resulting desertions reached England, the evacuation
of Georgia had already been decided.
47
It is not known where the successful
deserters settled, but we may be sure that not many chose to remain on the
hot and malarial coastal plain. Some are known to have settled in North Caro-
line,
48
and we may assume that some sought the Southern Piedmont areas and
that others drifted North to the German communities of Pennsylvania, Mary-
land, and the Shenandoah Valley.
1
This document is among the Jungkenn Papers of the University of Michigan, attached
to a letter of 2 March 1782. I wish to thank the authorities of the William L. Clements
Library of the U. of Mich, for permission to publish this proclamation and the following
letters from that collection.
2
In a kind letter of 3 August 1978 Mr. d'Arcy W. Jones, Historical Research Advisor of
the State of Georgia, assured me, "with respect to Martin's proclamation to the German
troops serving in the forces of the English king I, having conducted a thorough search for
the same, am satisfied that the Archives does not possess a copy. Only one proclamation
from Martin's time as governor survives (to our knowledge)—it forbids trade with the
British!" In a letter of 30 March 1978, Dr. Kenneth Coleman had advised me that the
Proclamation Book AAA, apparently the only one known to exist when it was microfilmed
in the 1940's or 1950's, begins in November 1782, or well after Martin's German proclama-
tion.
3
J. Andreas Schmeller, Bayerisches Wörterbuch, Oldenburg, 1872, II, Col. 1098 gives
zügeln (to breed) and zügel (breeding); and Hermann Fischer, Schwäbisches Wörterbuch,
Tübingen, 1924, VI, Col. 1315 gives zügelkalb. The extensive acreage promised was due to
[28]
the barrenness of much of the soil and to the large number of loyalists, from whom un-
limited land could be confiscated. On 29 April 1778 in New Jersey, where land and
loyalists were scarcer, George Washington had offered the Hessians only fifty acres for
deserting. See Edward J. Lowell, The Hessians and other German Auxiliaries of Great
Britain, Port Washington, N.Y.: Kennikat Press, 1884 Repr. 1965, p. 286.
4
PRO CO 55/35-37-90. It appears that this proclamation was initiated by General Wayne,
who suggested to the Executive Council that "proclamations be issued for opening a door
for the absent citizens of this State and for encouraging desertion from the enemy." Upon
receiving his letter, the Executive Council ordered "That his Honor the Governor be re-
quested and empowered to issue the above proclamations, viz one. for opening a door for
the reception of citizens, and another to encourage desertions from the enemy." (The
Revolutionary Records of the State of Georgia, ed. Allen D. Candler [Atlanta, 1908], II,
320).
5
It included the last phrase "and the sixth year of our independence" (im sechsten
Jahr unserer Independence oder Freyhait).
6
Note mehrere Stuck aus streuen lassen in von Porbeck's letter of 2 March below.
7
See Ray W. Pettingill, trans., Letters from America, 1776-1779. Boston: Houghton
Mifflin, 1924, pp. 201, 203.
8
Von Porbeck stressed the unhealthy climate and the long time his men had served in
Georgia in all his letters in the Jungkenn Collection and in all his letters to his family,
which are now in the possession of his descendant, Dr. Jost von Trott zu Solz.
9
Sr Hochfürstlichen Durchlaucht, i.e. Landgrave Frederick of Hessia-Cassel who gracious-
ly sold his subjects to the British as cannon fodder.
10
At this point a marginal note indicates that these were the recruits who came with
Major Johann Christian von Ende.
11
In March of 1781, while serving as commanding officer of the garrison in the absence
of Col. Clarke, von Porbeck had quarreled with the civil governor, Sir James Wright. On 2
April of that year Wright wrote a complaint to Lord George Germain stating that he had
gotten on well with Col. Clarke and that "what makes his departure the More to be Re-
gretted is that the Command of the Military Now Devolves on a Gentleman who is a
Foreigner. Surely My Lord this is wrong and it is with great difficulty that things can
be kept in a Tolerable Way, Where the principal Officers on both Sides, know the Line of
Authority and are on the best Terms and desirous, & take Pains to Avoid altercation, What
is to be Expected Now? and I have been Informed that the Foreigners in General have an
Idea that they are totally Exempt from all Civil Power or Authority Whatever and I
much fear Disagreeable things may happen Which may affect the Peace of the Province,
and His Majesty's Service. (Allen Chandler, ed., The Colonial Records of the State of
Georgia, XXXVIII, Pt. II, 495, unpublished).
12
(Mad) Anthony Wayne, the Continental commander in Georgia, was from Pennsylvania.
13
Ebenezer, the second largest town in Georgia, lay some twenty-five miles from Savannah
on the Savannah River. It was inhabited almost exclusively by German-speaking people,
the first of whom had been Protestant exiles from Salzburg. See George F. Jones, ed.,
Detailed Reports on the Georgia Salzburgers, Athens, Ga.: U. of Ga. Press, 1968 ff. and
Salzburger Saga, Athens Ga.: U. of Ga. Press, 1984. Cherokee Hill appears to have been a
nearby plantation.
14
"John Twiggs, a Marylander was always in the field and never defeated in the fray
He came with his kinsmen, John and David Emanuel, and was a young mechanic. He was
first a captain and rose to the post of major-general. He chastized the Cherokee Indians,
and protected the frontier on the Ogeechee from the Creeks." George Gillman Smith, The
Story of Georgia and the Georgia People 1732 to 1860, Macon, Ga., 1900, p. 98-99.
15
The engineer Capt. James Montcrief had won acclaim for the successful defense of
Savannah in 1779. An excellent colored map of his lines of fire is in the possession of Dr.
Jost von Trott zu Solz.
[29]
16
Jean-Baptiste-Donatien de Vimeur, Comte Rochambeau, who aided Washington at the
siege of Yorktown. This is an example of the way von Porbeck would change the subject
without preparing the reader.
17
Louis XIV of France. Von Porbeck tended to believe, or at least to report, all rumors.
18
A good example of von Porbeck's many non-sequiturs.
19
Von Porbeck must have meant Sunbury, the port of Midway even if no attack there
is mentioned by Charles Colcock Jones in his The History of Georgia, Boston: Houghton
Mifflen, 1883.
20 This was probably von Porbeck's rendering of Welch.
21
Von Porbeck is alluding to the unsuccessful advance against Charleston in June of
1779. In his letter to his family of 5 March 1780 he complained that the Hessians had
been robbed of their share of the booty. Accompanying this letter is a battle map of the
Battle of Stono Ferry, which is now in the possession of Dr. Jost von Trott zu Solz. Pub-
lished in South Carolina Historical Magazine 82 (1981) 371-381.
22
Negroes. Because of their ability to resist heat and malaria, the Blacks played a
major role on both sides in the Southern colonies.
23
Beuthe Cassa. There seems to have been a common kitty for plunder.
24
Rochambeau. See note 16.
25
Of France.
26
This rank was a junior grade of commissioned officer usually borne by young men of
noble rank.
27
He must have been a French subject, possibly from Alsace or Zweibrücken (Deux
Ponts). It was normal at the time for mercenaries to fight for their employers even against
their own countries.
28
Johann Christoph Körber. According to Max von Eelking, the other officers mentioned
were Lt. Bernhardt Justi, Maj. Johann von Ende, and Maj. Johann Otto Goebel (J. G.
Rosengarten, German Allied Troops in the North American War of Independence 1776-1783,
trans, from Max von Eelking, Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Col, 1969, pp. 319-320. The
German original of this work does not give first names (Max von Eelking, Die deutschen
Hülfstruppen im nordamerikanischen Freiheitskrieg 1776 bis 1783, Hannover, 1863, Repr.
Kassel, 1976, Pt. II, p. 262).
29
Cornwallis had capitulated on 19 October 1781.
30
Because it, like the letter of 2 March 1782 mentions the enclosed proclamation, it must
have been sent under the same cover.
31
On Tybee Island.
32
Hoch Teustche. The English translation "High Dutch" was usually shortened to
"Dutch," with the consequence that all speakers of High German were called "Dutch,"
be they from Germany, Switzerland, Austria, or Alsace.
33
2 davon vom Posten mit voller Armatur und Munition die andere mit Mondirung und
seithen Gewehr. The word Mondirung (Muntierung) includes the entire get-up worn by
the soldier: uniform, cap, boots, belt, etc.
34
auf dem Rebell Thau, auch in Sandt. This odd expression is clearly written.
35
The plantation belonged to a son of Benjamin Sheftal, who had come from Frankfurt on
the Oder in the first year of the colony. His sons profited from their knowledge of Ger-
man, which helped them keep the trade of the Palatine and Salzburger settlers. This plan-
tation probably belonged to Levi Sheftal, who was later mildly punished for collaborating
with the British. His brother Mordecai, a "notorious rebel" and quarter-master of the
Continental troops, had been captured when Campbell captured Savannah in 1778.
36
This desertion is also described in Gen. Leslie's letter of 2 March 1782 to Clinton (PRO
CO 55/36-37-90): "Colonel Clarke ordered out a Party of Dragoons to recover five Hessians
who had gone off. The Dragoons came up with them and killed the whole—I intend to re-
lieve that Regiment as soon as a Ship of War can be spared for the purpose." The names
of these wretches are recorded in the regimental reports preserved in the Hessian State
Archives in Marburg (12 Kriegsministerium 8869/61, 63). It should be noted that many,
[30]
if not most of the deserters from von Porbeck's regiment were from German countries other
than Hessia (Ibid., pp. 64-74). Von Porbeck announced that the five deserters had been
shot by "Crackers" and that the other soldiers should learn from their example (Journal
des Knoblauch Regiments Murhardsche Bibliothek, Cassel. 4 Ms. Haas., 205, pp. 287, 288).
He mentions only those deserters who were captured, shot, or scalped.
37
It is usually unclear whether von Porbeck is measuring in British or German miles,
the latter of which are about five times as long.
38
PRO CO 55/36-37-90.
39
Col. Thomas Brown had been an implacable tory ever since being tarred-and-feathered
by the patriots of Augusta at the outbreak of the Revolution. Col. Douglas has not been
identified. This skirmish is described, but very differently, by C. C. Jones in his The History
of Georgia, II, 510-514.
40
Indiens Schick-Scha.
41
Von Porbeck had not mentioned a bridge, unless he implied one on the causeway
(Damm).
42
Specifique Liste. Prisoners were usually exchanged, according to rank, as soon as pos-
sible. Eighteenth-century warfare aimed to out-maneuver the enemy, not to destroy him;
and European officers were appalled at the carnage during the Revolution.
43
Lt. Gen. and Commander in Chief of the Hessians in America, Baron Wilhelm von
Knyphausen.
44
Doctors of the time diagnosed and treated the symptoms rather than their causes.
"Epilepsy" refered to any paroxism, such as that caused by malaria.
45
He must mean British companies.
46
Word of the proclamation must have reached Savannah in advance; for on the very
day after the proclamation was signed Sir Patrick Houston, who always knew how to turn
his cloak to the wind, surrendered at Ebenezer with a troop of Hessian and loyalist deserters.
(Kenneth Coleman, American Revolution in Georgia 1763-1789, Athens, Ga.: U. of Ga.
Press, 1958 p. 143).
47
James H. O'Donnell, III, Southern Indians in the American Revolution, Knoxville: U.
of Tenn. Press, 1973, p. 123, footnote 38. Dr. Krüger-Löwenstein of the Hessian State
Archives in Marburg has kindly written me that the garrison Regiment von Wissenbach/
von Knoblauch embarked on 14 August 1783, apparently from New York, and arrived at
Bremerlehe on 10 October.
48
Coleman, op. cit., p. 143.
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