Augustin de la Balme was born in 1733 in the French Alpine town of Saint-Antoine. He later joined a cavalry regiment and participated in the Seven Years War (1755-1763), European Theatre, never seeing service in America. After the War, he wrote a book on horsemanship and another on cavalry tactics and seemed set for a comfortable retirement. Like many European officers, though, he saw another chance at glory during the American Revolution and crossed the Atlantic, offering his services to Washington's army. He became Inspector General of Cavalry, but resigned when a Polish nobleman, Casimir Pulaski, was placed in overall command of the United States Cavalry.
La Balme drifted to Kaskaskia, Illinois. Inspired by George Rogers Clark's siege of Fort Sackville/Vincennes, he decided to attempt something similar. He galvanized the support of the local residents, most of whom were French-speakers of Canadian origin and were only too willing to help a French officer get one back on the British. He attacked the fur trading outpost at Fort St. Joseph, then moved to Vincennes and proceeded up the Wabash River, gathering French sympathizers and Native auxiliaries. His aim was Fort Detroit, which he intended to claim for France, not America.
At the Miami's main village of Kekionga, he intended to arrest the British Agent there, but he was elsewhere. So la Balme captured British stores and marched his force to a nearby trading post at Eel River. Enter Little Turtle of the Miami, who was very much on the British side at this point in his career. He gathered a force of warriors and ambushed la Balme's column before it reached Eel River. Sources differ on how long the battle lasted but the outcome was the same. Of La Balme's roughly 104 men, 30-40 were killed including Augustin de la Balme. The encounter cemented Little Turtle's reputation as a war chief. A marker records the defeat and an annual reenactment memorializes the battle.
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