Benoni Danks ( 1716 – 1776) was a New England soldier and politician who acted as the representative of Cumberland County in the

Nova Scotia House of Assembly The Nova Scotia House of Assembly (; ), or Legislative Assembly, is the deliberative assembly of the General Assembly of Nova Scotia, and together with the lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia makes up the Nova Scotia Legislature. The assembly is ...

from 1765 to 1770. He is best known as the commander of Danks' Rangers, a unit which operated during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

against the French.

Biography

Benoni Danks was born in

Northampton, Massachusetts The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of Northampton (including its outer villages, Florence, Massachusetts, Florence and ...

, the son of Robert Danks and Rebecca Rust. In 1745, he married Mary Morris. He first commanded a ranger company during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

. His company operated in the Chignecto area during the Petitcodiac River Campaign and later the St. John River Campaign as part of the

. He was active against the French and their

native Native may refer to: People * '' Jus sanguinis'', nationality by blood * '' Jus soli'', nationality by location of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Nat ...

allies—for the most part the

Mi'kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Mi'kmaw'' or ''Mi'gmaw''; ; , and formerly Micmac) are an Indigenous group of people of the Northeastern Woodlands, native to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces, primarily Nova Scotia, New Bru ...

. In 1756 his company, men raised mainly in

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

, was expanded and became an independent ranger unit —often referred to as Danks' Rangers. The company was active between 1756 and 1762, when it was disbanded. It averaged about 100 men. The unit was based out of Fort Cumberland on the Isthmus of Chignecto, and frequently skirmished with Mi'kmaq and Acadian raiders before and during the French and Indian War. It is alleged that his unit turned in the scalps of

Acadian The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern American region of Acadia, ...

s for bounties, falsely claiming that they were from natives.Letter of Hugh Graham, 1791, quoted in The rangers carried out raids against French settlers on the

Petitcodiac River The Petitcodiac River () is a river located in south-eastern New Brunswick, Canada. Local tourist businesses often refer to it as the "chocolate river" due to its distinctive brown mud floor and brown waters. Stretching across a meander length o ...

and also participated in the siege of Quebec. The unit suffered heavy casualties in the skirmishing around the edges of the siege, and for a time, after Danks was seriously wounded, were incorporated into the ranger company of Captain

Moses Hazen Moses Hazen (June 1, 1733 – February 5, 1803) was a brigadier general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Born in the Province of Massachusetts Bay, he saw action in the French and Indian War with Rogers' Ra ...

. In 1761, he was granted land in

Cumberland County Cumberland County may refer to: Australia * Cumberland County, New South Wales * the former name of Cumberland Land District, Tasmania, Australia Canada *Cumberland County, Nova Scotia United Kingdom * Cumberland, historic county *Cumberl ...

. His company often operated in tandem with

Gorham's Rangers Gorham's Rangers was one of the most famous and effective ranger units raised in colonial North America. Formed by John Gorham, the unit served as the prototype for many subsequent ranger forces, including the better known Rogers' Rangers.Car ...

, based out of Halifax, and after 1761, the two companies were combined into a Nova Scotia ranging corps, led by Major

Joseph Gorham Joseph Gorham (sometimes recorded as Goreham, 1725–1790) was an American colonial military officer during King George's War and later a British army commander during the Seven Years' War and the American Revolutionary War. He is best known ...

. As part of this corps, Danks and his company took part in the

Siege of Havana The siege of Havana was the successful capture of the Spanish-held city of Havana, Cuba in 1762 as part of the war between the two nations which formed part of the larger Seven Years' War. After the Spanish abandoned their former policy of neu ...

in 1762, where, according to

Israel Putnam Israel Putnam (January 7, 1718 – May 29, 1790), popularly known as "Old Put", was an American military officer and landowner who fought with distinction at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). He als ...

, he sold his commission in the rangers. Two years later, Danks was named a justice of the peace and militia commander for Cumberland County. In 1767, he was named collector of duties on alcohol, tea, coffee and playing cards. Sympathetic to the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

, Danks was captured after taking part in the Battle of Fort Cumberland led by Jonathan Eddy and died at

Windsor, Nova Scotia Windsor is a community located in Hants County, Nova Scotia, Hants County, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is a service centre for the western part of the county and is situated on Nova Scotia Highway 101, Highway 101. The community has a history d ...

from an infected wound. He is probably the namesake of Danks Point in Baie Verte, New Brunswick.

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Danks, Benoni 1710s births 1776 deaths 18th-century members of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly American Revolutionary War prisoners of war held by Great Britain American people who died in prison custody United States military personnel killed in the American Revolutionary War Prisoners who died in British military detention