Off the Wall: Pickett's First Charge Was Against the Brits
Tales from the Great and Glorious Pig War of 1859
Tales from the Great and Glorious Pig War of 1859
(Mark Twain once said that Truth is stranger than fiction, because fiction has to make sense. - DD)
(Commonplace Fun Facts) - History is replete with stories of wars that were fought over the love of a woman, the quest for power, and ideological differences. In 1859 two of the world’s greatest military powers prepared for battle over a pig.
The San Juan Islands, located north of Seattle, Washington, were part of a disputed territory claimed by the United States and Great Britain. Ownership of these islands rested upon ambiguity in the description of the borders defined in the Oregon Treaty of 1846.
By 1859 Great Britain, claiming sovereignty of the islands, turned the real estate over to the Hudson Bay Company, which established a sheep ranch. The United States, also claiming legal possession, opened the islands to settlement.
Citizens of both countries maintained a relatively-peaceful co-existence until June 15, 1859. On that day American farmer Lyman Cutlar found a large black pig digging through his crops, eating his potatoes. Cutlar took decisive action to protect his crops and killed the pig, which happened to be owned by Charles Griffin, an employee of the Hudson Bay Company. Cutlar offered Griffin $10 for the loss of the pig. Griffin refused; he wanted $100.
As tension grew between the two gentlemen, Brigadier General William Harney dispatched 66 US soldiers under the command of Captain George Pickett to defend Mr. Cutlar and to prevent the…
Hey look it's Starmer 😀😀
Damn Hogs causing trouble as usual