Jean-Daniel Dumas (24 February 1721 – 2 August 1794) was a French officer in 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 ...

. The French and

Indians Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

launched an attack on General

Edward Braddock Edward Braddock (January 1695 – 13 July 1755) was a British officer and commander-in-chief for the Thirteen Colonies during the start of the French and Indian War (1754–1763), the North American front of what is known in Europe and Canada as ...

's column at the

Battle of the Monongahela The Battle of the Monongahela (also known as the Battle of Braddock's Field and the Battle of the Wilderness) took place on July 9, 1755, at the beginning of the French and Indian War at Braddock's Field in present-day Braddock, Pennsylvania, ...

. Dumas and

Charles Michel de Langlade Charles Michel Mouet de Langlade (9 May 1729 – after 26 July 1801)''Dictionnaire Généalogique Tanguay'' was a Great Lakes fur trader and war chief who was important in protecting French territory in North America. His mother was Ottawa and hi ...

took charge when their commanding officer,

Daniel Liénard de Beaujeu Daniel Hyacinthe Liénard de Beaujeu (9 or 19 August 1711 – 9 July 1755) was a French officer during King George's War and the French and Indian War. He participated in the Battle of Grand Pre (1747). He also organized the force that attacked ...

, was shot dead in the opening moments of the battle.

Biography

In 1742, Dumas joined the Agenais Regiment and participated in the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession was a European conflict fought between 1740 and 1748, primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italian Peninsula, Italy, the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Related conflicts include King Ge ...

. He used to serve in

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

and

Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...

. In the spring of 1750 he sailed to

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

for

Acadia Acadia (; ) was a colony of New France in northeastern North America which included parts of what are now the The Maritimes, Maritime provinces, the Gaspé Peninsula and Maine to the Kennebec River. The population of Acadia included the various ...

as captain of a company of naval troops, where he was assigned to

Fort Gaspareaux Fort Gaspareaux (later Fort Monckton) was a French fort at the head of Baie Verte near the mouth of the Gaspareaux River and just southeast of the modern community of Port Elgin, New Brunswick, Canada, on the Isthmus of Chignecto. It was built du ...

during its construction. In the summer of 1753, he was stationed at

Fort Le Boeuf Fort Le Bœuf (often referred to as Fort de la Rivière au Bœuf) was a fort established by the French during 1753 on a fork of French Creek (in the drainage area of the River Ohio), in present-day Waterford, in northwest Pennsylvania. The fort ...

. From 1754 he was posted to

Fort Duquesne Fort Duquesne ( , ; originally called ''Fort Du Quesne'') was a fort established by the French in 1754, at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers. It was later taken over by the British, and later the Americans, and developed ...

. He commanded the French regular forces, militia, and Native Americans who defeated

General Edward Braddock Edward Braddock (January 1695 – 13 July 1755) was a British officer and commander-in-chief for the Thirteen Colonies during the start of the French and Indian War (1754–1763), the North American front of what is known in Europe and Canada as ...

's British army at the

on July 9, 1755. Dumas was knighted for his military services on 17 March 1756 at the age of 35. Commanding Fort Duquesne, after the reassignment of

Claude-Pierre Pécaudy de Contrecœur Claude-Pierre Pécaudy de Contrecœur () was an officer in the colonial regular troops ( troupes de la marine), seigneur, and member of the Legislative Council of New France. Born on December 28, 1705, at Contrecœur, Quebec, son of Francois-Anto ...

, Dumas organized several Franco-Canadian raids with the Amerindian allies on the border of the province of

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. In 1757 Dumas returned to

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

and took part in the expedition to capture Fort William-Henry. He was in

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

for the siege of the city in 1759. In January 1759, he was appointed major general of naval troops. He participated in the

Battle of Sainte-Foy The Battle of Sainte-Foy () sometimes called the Battle of Quebec (), was fought on April 28, 1760, near the British-held town of Quebec in the French province of Canada during the Seven Years' War (called the French and Indian War in the United ...

in the spring of 1760. He took part in the Montreal Campaign which led to the city's surrender, following which he returned to France. On July 17, 1766, Dumas was appointed first governor general of the

Mascarene The Mascarene Islands (, ) or Mascarenes or Mascarenhas Archipelago is a group of islands in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar consisting of islands belonging to the Republic of Mauritius as well as the French department of Réunion. Their na ...

following the surrender of the archipelago to the

King of France France was ruled by monarchs from the establishment of the kingdom of West Francia in 843 until the end of the Second French Empire in 1870, with several interruptions. Classical French historiography usually regards Clovis I, king of the Fra ...

by the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

, then became brigadier-general before being recalled to metropolitan France in 1768. He was promoted to

field marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army (in countries without the rank of Generalissimo), and as such, few persons a ...

in 1780.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dumas, Jean-Daniel French and Indian War 1721 births 1794 deaths