Braddock Expedition

This article is about the expedition. You may be looking for the memory of the same name.

The Braddock Expedition, or Braddock's Defeat, was the name given to the expedition led by the British Templar and British Army Major General Edward Braddock during the Seven Years' War.

The expedition aimed to capture the French Fort Duquesne in an attempt to expand the territory controlled by the British Crown. However, these efforts ended in disaster when the French Army, aided by a party of Native Americans led by Braddock's fellow Templar Haytham Kenway, ambushed and decimated the British formation in the Battle of the Monongahela, killing Braddock in the process.

Background

In November 1754, the French and British forces were in negotiations for a possible truce. The British Army's Commander-in-Chief Edward Braddock refused the offer and planned an expedition aiming to finally defeat the French. Claiming that letting the French retreat would only delay their inevitable attacks later, he drew up plans to capture Fort Duquesne and left them at Fort St-Mathieu, which was under the command of Colonel George Washington. On 15 November, Haytham infiltrated the fort and stole a copy of the plans in preparation for his ambush on Edward's army.

Braddock's defeat

In July 1755, Braddock began the march to the fort with nearly 2,000 men and a sizable amount of artillery. To try and maintain the element of surprise, Braddock marched his men through the thick forest, foolishly believing that no one would detect them there, and completely oblivious to the French who were waiting within.

Haytham's party, composed of his fellow Templars and native warriors from the Abenaki, Lenape, and Shawnee tribes, arrived at a point very close to the marching force and prepared their ambush, during which Haytham stole the attire of a Redcoat soldier in an attempt to sneak up on Braddock. When he had Braddock at the end of his pistol barrel, a small regiment of French regulars ignited the ambush, followed by the collaborating natives.

Charles Lee shot and killed the French commander Daniel Liénard de Beaujeu as he charged on horseback at Haytham and Braddock. Braddock then fled towards the river with Haytham in close pursuit. As the Templar gained on Braddock, French marksmen who were hiding in the thick of the trees shot at several British wagons holding gunpowder, causing them to explode and create chaos along the path.

Haytham chasing Braddock

Seeing that Braddock was in danger, George Washington killed Haytham's horse in an attempt to aid his commanding officer's escape. Despite this, Kaniehtí:io knocked Washington off his horse and pinned him to the ground with a knife to his neck, giving Haytham the opportunity to chase down and confront Braddock. Meanwhile, the far more prepared and organized French troops ended the expedition, after having inflicted devastating blows to the British regulars' numbers, causing the rest of the redcoats to flee. The natives then took to eliminating the remaining wounded.

Aftermath

As a result of the expedition, a large part of Braddock's forces were decimated during the battle, with at least eight French and 15 Native American casualties. Although Haytham believed he had killed Braddock in their confrontation by stabbing him in the heart, in truth, the Major-General barely survived his wound. However, the injury eventually proved fatal, and he lingered for four days before succumbing to it.

To keep the French from capturing Braddock's body, Washington ordered that it be buried in an undisclosed location and had the army march over the grave to erase all evidence of the burial.

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed III (first appearance)
• Assassin's Creed: Forsaken
• Assassin's Creed: Rogue (mentioned in Database entry only) (indirect mention only)
• Assassin's Creed Roleplaying Game – Legacy of the Brotherhood (indirect mention only)