Lewis and Clark Expediton: Before the West was Wild

While Napoleon was engaged in his European conquests and in need of funding, he struck a deal with American President Thomas Jefferson for the now-famous “Louisiana Purchase” of 1803. Napoleon had plenty on his plate already, and could not afford to maintain his vast holdings on the American Continent. At the time, little was known about the vast territories West of the Mississippi River, including just how vast they were.

Once acquired by the United States, President Jefferson was interested in exploring his new territories to find a navigable waterway to the Pacific Ocean for commerce, as well as to discover just what lay in the areas between. To accomplish these objectives, he commissioned a friend–US Army Captain Merriweather Lewis–to lead an exploratory and mapping expedition across the great expanse of land. History has since shown the Lewis and Clark trek to be one of the most successful of such expeditions undertaken in history. Unlike numerous expeditions to explore the Arctic regions–which often ended with the explorers perishing from cold, disease and starvation–the Lewis and Clark expedition (later dubbed the Corps of Discovery) suffered few casualties along the way, and was an unqualified success which not only reached the Pacific, but ended with the triumphant explorers returning to report their findings.

Lewis Chose William Clark, a Second Lieutenant in the US Army, as his partner and leader of the expedition. For appearances, during the expedition, Clark was often referred to as “Captain” even though this actual rank was not yet official.

The expedition originally departed from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on August 31, 1803. But the party was still being formed, with training activities and other organization by Clark taking place in the Illinois territory, East of the Mississippi River. The more famous part of the expedition–the one where uncharted lands were to be explored—embarked from Camp Dubois in the Illinois Territory on May 14, 1804, and met up with Lewis shortly afterward at St. Charles, in the Missouri Territory. The expeditionary party consisted of 33 people.

Traveling in a northwesterly direction across the Great Plains, the Corps of Discovery traversed the Continental Divide, which at the time was presumed to be a day’s journey, but proved to be much longer and considerably more difficult than the party anticipated! They encountered many Native Americans along the way. On the plains of what would become North Dakota, they built Fort Mandan in the winter of 1804-1805, and recruited a French-Canadian trapper named Toussaint Charbonneau. Charbonneau’s teenage wife, a member of the Shoeshone tribe, joined the expedition as a translator and guide. Sacajawea would go on to secure her own place in history for being of invaluable assistance and crucial to the success of the expedition. The sight of her carrying her baby in a cradleboard on her back had a disarming effect when the party approached native villages, and along with her translation skills, she helped to ensure that the expedition’s encounters with native tribes were mostly peaceful. There is no doubt that her presence saved the expedition a great deal of trouble. Lewis and Clark’s peaceful trek across the west was in sharp contrast to the chaos and bloodshed that erupted in the decades after the Civil War. By that time, due to the incursion of thousands of westward-migrating pioneers, building of the railroads and the resulting destruction of the great buffalo herds on the plains, relations with the native tribes had become much more strained.

The expedition collected many samples of plant life along the way, drew maps, and sampled exotic indigenous cuisine (including boiled dog!) At one point, a “return” team was dispatched east from Fort Mandan carrying a live prairie dog as a gift for President Jefferson. Amazingly, the little animal—which the expedition had dubbed a “barking squirrel”– was alive when it was delivered to Jefferson. Research to discover what became of Jefferson’s famed pet prairie dog afterward proved fruitless. Apparently its fate was lost in history. It would be reasonable to expect the creature would have been stuffed and ended up in the Smithsonian or some other museum, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Chalk it up as one more historic mystery.
During their visit to the Great Plains, at least, there was an abundance of wild game to help provision the expedition. There were reported to be numerous weapons carried on the expedition–many of which were traded to native tribes for food and supplies to fuel their treks through mountains where food was less plentiful. Weapons carried by members of the expedition included Charleville muskets, Harpers Ferry and Springfield Armory muskets, a scattering of Kentucky Rifles, and some French St. Etienne AN IX flintlock pistols. Since many French weapons had found their way to American shores during the American War for Independence a few years before, the abundance of French firearms carried by the party was no surprise. There was also a scattering of blunderbuss weapons, mounted on swivels on the gunwales of the party’s canoes and pirogues–a standard seagoing tactic for that day–and the lead boat even had a small cannon mounted on its bow. I should not fail to mention the famous air gun carried on the expediton. It was a strange thing, with an air tank in the stock, and compared to a regular gun that used powder, it was much quieter. The strange weapon fired lead balls, but was not always reliable for maintaining enough air pressure to get off more than a few shots. It was often used to impress Native Americans –and whoever else they happened upon–and was regarded as a curio or an entertaining novelty by many on the expedition.

The Lewis and Clark Expedition shattered the national illusion that one might be able to sail a boat from the East coast to the Pacific Ocean by inland waterways, since no such passage exists. Westward passage would have to wait for the stagecoaches, railroads, and later the interstate freeways and airlines.

The legendary expedition reached the mighty Columbia River (I’m from the Portland, Oregon area, so the wide and swift-moving Columbia is a familiar sight to me) and followed it out to its estuary in what is now Astoria, Oregon. I know just how they felt. They were ecstatic to lay eyes on the vast mouth of the Columbia where it empties into the Pacific. The expedition faced a long and dreary winter on the coast, which consisted mostly of rain. I doubt anyone who’s ever lived in the region will dispute that. It was a long and hungry winter for the Lewis and Clark group. Wild game is a scarce commodity on the Pacific Northwest coastline in winter, and it was the wrong season for them to take advantage of the area’s most abundant meat source–the Pacific salmon that migrate upstream to spawn in the summer. It’s a shame they didn’t get a chance to sample a barbecued “steak of the sea”, as the rich, red fish meat has been called. I’m not sure when barbeque sauce was invented, but evidently the Lewis and Clark expedition was not meant to experience such delicacies.

Regarding Sacajawea, I’d rather not get into a discussion of the etymology of her somewhat confusing name, the many different spellings and pronunciations of it, or the tribal meanings of it. The most commonly accepted version of her name is a native word meaning “Bird Woman”, or some variation thereof. Suffice it to say that Sacajawea did a great service to the Expedition and to the history of America. Her image and story is immortalized on coins, sculptures and other monuments. Hats off, a standing ovation and a warm toast to her accomplishments!

Considering the scope and danger of this marathon round-trip expedition through inhospitable wilderness and bad weather, and a few disputes involving fair trade with the Teton Sioux tribe and other native peoples they encountered –it’s truly amazing that the party suffered only one fatality. Sergeant Charles Floyd died from what was thought to be appendicitis, and was buried at what is now Sioux City, Iowa. Two Blackfeet Indians were also killed in a skirmish on the return trip when they attempted to steal some weapons from the Lewis and Clark party.

The expedition had made it to the Pacific Ocean, naming their landing place “Cape Disappointment” when the ship they expected to carry them back east failed to materialize. They built Fort Clatsop, and when the expected ship still hadn’t arrived, were forced to make their way back east in a reverse of the perilous trek they had just completed. Upon their triumphant return to civilized society, they enjoyed a short-lived popularity. I guess people have short attention spans when it comes to westward exploration and expansion. If not for the famed expedition, there wouldn’t be a rather large arch dominating the St. Louis, Missouri skyline. Widespread public attention to their accomplishments was not given until the 1960’s, when they finally started to receive the historical accolades they had earned 150 years earlier. Their mapping of the vast open regions paved the way for a massive migration of settlers to the West, who wasted no time striking out in large numbers to claim land, mine gold and silver, build towns, have shootouts, and in general, raise ten different kinds of Hell before settling down. However little their feats of derringdo were noticed back then, Lewis and Clark and Sacajawea are household names today. There are monuments to Lewis and Clark scattered along the very lengthy trail of their epic Expedition. Many buildings, highways, and even institutions like Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon commemorate the pair’s journey. Sacajawea, too, has her share of monuments and namesakes. She is a true national heroine and a certified part of American history.

When the expedition ended in 1806, the significance of their discoveries was mostly unacknowledged. Most had given the members of the party up for dead, since they had been gone for over two years. It wasn’t until years later that the significance of the expedition became widely known. In addition to taking many scientific samples, they also contributed a much better understanding of the vast expanse of territory through which they had traveled. The party also produced a large quantity of maps, which came in handy when the United States exploded Westward in its quest for “Manifest Destiny.” President Jefferson was evidently pleased with their accomplishments, and the careers of both Lewis and Clark prospered after their return. Both Merriweather Lewis and William Clark later served terms as Governor of Missouri Territory.

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Fancy Flintlocks of the 17th, 18th and 19th Centuries

There are some very sleek and modern pistols being produced today, with major advances in technology and accuracy. But they are in a different class from the old flintlock pistols of the past. Ornately engraved and scrolled decorative finishes are something that is no longer produced, except in custom work, made to order at a high price. Many European gunsmiths were producing beautiful flintlock pistols in the 18th and 19th century. The few that have survived are now fetching high prices at auction, or on display in museums.

French design is legendary for its classical elegance and ornate decor. It is evident in French furniture and architecture. It can also be found in flintlock muskets and pistols produced by the famed armory at St. Etienne, the Manufacture d’armes founded in 1764 in Charleville, France. St. Etienne is only one of many locations for armories bearing the name. Small arms have been produced here since the middle ages, including the many weapons used in the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. Napoleon Bonaparte himself had personal weapons made here for him by his personal gunsmith, Jean-Baptiste Gribeauval. Among these are a double-barrelled flintlock pistol, and Napoleon’s personal St. Etienne 1806 traveling flintlock pistol with his crowned mongram “N” on the grip. Though customized, it is clearly a variation of the AN XIII flintlock pistol, used by French Cavalry in the Napoleonic wars. Polished wood, and intricately scrolled brass and pewter fittings make a resplendent contrast to the plain and the utilitarian. There are also the Versailles dueling pistols made by Nicholas Boutet in the time of Napoleon. Carved exotic woods and precious metals were used in the production of these pistols, which were presented to high-ranking officials.

A lot of the St. Etienne flintlocks made their way to America also. Merriweather Lewis and William Clark carried some of these flintlock pistols on their famous 1804-1806 expedition to explore the open western lands for expansionist and president Thomas Jefferson, accompanied by a native-American guide, Sacajawea. These were variations of the St. Etienne Model AN IX, which were issued to French infantrymen in the Napoleonic Wars. Most of these flintlocks can be identified by the famous St. Etienne stamp in the metal on the side of the lock mechanism.

Around 1680, Italian gunsmith Lorenzoni produced some magnificent triple-barrel flintlock pistols for the Medici family, with ornately carved ivory grips. Around 1795, Kumbley & Brum of London also made flintlock pistols with beautifully-carved ivory grips and bas-relief brass engraving.

First American President George Washington had a favorite pistol, a 1748 Hawkins, made in London had his name engraved on a silver plate on the grip. It is now housed in the museum of the United States Military Academy at West Point. He was also presented with a brace of flintlocks by the Marquis de LaFayette. The famous first shot of the American War for Independence, the “Shot heard ’round the world” was fired by a 1760s Scottish flintlock pistol, an all-metal piece of extraordinarily ornate design. These are but a few examples of the fine art and craftsmanship that went into gunmaking in the 17th through the 19th centuries. When compared with today’s utilitarian, sleek and modern hanguns, which are faster and more powerful, there is still something magnificent about the time-honored practice of handcrafted elegance.

The first flintlock firing mechanism was created by a French courtier for King Louis XIII, and by 1630 was in use in Europe for warfare. Flintlock weapons were in use for around two hundred years, until they were succeeded by the invention of the percussion cap. The percussion cap was a short-lived technology, bridging the gap between flintlocks and the later self-contained metal cartridges.

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Napoleon: Not as Short as You Think

Everyone has heard of Napoleon. The historical French leader, presumed to be short, who rose to great heights, and then fell to great lows when he was defeated at Waterloo. For the most part, that’s all that most people know about him. The truth is a little different. Like all people, he had his good points and his bad points. The first thing one needs to do when considering history is to actually CONSIDER history. It wouldn’t be fair to judge a person who acted in the late 1700’s based on 21st century politics. Things were a little different then than they are now. Sometimes that’s good. Sometimes not. Whichever the case, here you’ll get a brief, unrevised look at the life and career of Napoleon Bonaparte I of France.

Born on 15 August, 1769 in Ajaccio, Corsica to Italian parents, and christened Napoleone di Buonoparte, he came from a background of minor nobility. Because of this moderate affluence, he was able to study, among other things, to be a French artillery officer. He served as a second lieutenant until just after the outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789. At around this time, he was involved in fighting in a complicated campaign in Corsica between Corsican royalists, revolutionaries and others. At one point, he even battled against a French army. This did not prevent him from later being promoted to the rank of captain in Paris. He was at odds with the Corsican leader, Pasquale Paoli, and eventually, Napoleone di Buonoparte and his family were forced to flee into what is now France to escape from Corsica. He later changed his name to the more French-sounding moniker of Napleon Bonaparte.

The French and the British had more or less been at war since medieval times. This was at a time before the existence of nation-states, when most of Europe was a collection of loose alliances and small Holy Roman Empire Papal States. A complicated mess, left over from the collapse of the Roman Empire, and lasting hundreds of years, well past the renaissance. Other than the currently-serving Popes, the rest of the continent was more-or-less a disorganized and decentralized jigsaw puzzle of small sovereignties and wavering loyalties. The alliances of these small states changed frequently, and there was usually a lot of discontent to breed trouble. Rather than nations fighting each other, there were coalitions, some large, some very small. Some were merely representing a single city. It would make your head spin for me to list all of the coalitions and states that existed at the time. The same goes for keeping track of which ones were aligned for or against each other.

Napoleon used his influences within the French military and leadership to rise to power, mainly through his unique grasp of artillery placement and use, and his ability to write compelling opinions. He was said not to be a very good speller, but that he was quite good at math and geometry. And he was certainly credited in his lifetime as being a very capable military tactician. He was instrumental in driving the British out of Toulon in 1793, and rose to the rank of Brigadier General, and later, even higher. The French had an army in Italy, and Napoleon’s success there further increased his position of standing with the French leaders. French involvment in these coalition battles eventually led to widespread French power and influence. In one of Napoleon’s most successful campaigns, he was able to defeat Rome, ending an 1,100 year-long independence, and creating a much better position for the French. It was at this time that Napoleon’s political influence grew vastly.

For a time, Napoleon was away in Egypt, attempting to expand the French Empire there, but had a great deal of difficulties due to numerous local uprisings and harassment from the British Royal Navy. (Britain largely owes its Empirical strength to its Navy) While Napoleon was away and busy in Egypt, the French were again being beset by coalition warfare, and also going bankrupt, and had lost a lot of the support of its people. Upon his return to France, there was a coup by Napoleon, his brother and some other supporters. Leading an army into Paris, he eventually triumphed over opponents, drafted a new constitution, and shortly thereafter elected himself as First Consul, the most powerful position in France. This allowed him to take up residence in the Tullieres Palace. He returned to Italy with his troops and drove out the Austrians in another of many coalition skirmishes. The large number of battles and struggles between these coaltions came to be known as the Napoleonic Wars.

After the narrow victory over the Austrians, there was a short-lived peace in Europe, followed by yet more coalition warfare. With the French colony in Haiti being lost to a revolution there, and in general a state of near-bankruptcy, Napoleon realized that he could not hold onto or defend the vast tracts of French territory in America, so he made an offer to United States President Thomas Jefferson to sell that land. His offer was accepted, and Napoleon got some money, and the United States got a huge, massive tract of real estate to call its own. This of course, was the famous Louisiana Purchase of 1803. This land was sold for less than three cents an acre. Quite the deal for the United States, and worth a lot more now.

Napoleon was mostly victorious in his military campaigns, and enjoyed many successes, and suffered a few failures. While in power in France, he instituted many reforms, most notably a set of laws called the Code Civil or Napoleonic Code. These were sweeping reforms to what was before a feudal system. Now there was a legal system of due process and justice, commerce laws, private property laws, the formation of a central bank, and many others. He instituted an infrastructure system of roads and sewers, and other improvements to civil engineering, ushering in the modern age from the medieval age. These reforms worked so well that many of them are still used today in Europe and abroad, including the United States. He changed the military model of using small units to a large, centralized force, and wisely accepted the ideas of arms designers to standardize the production of weapons, rather than having a large assortment of mismatched weapons in the field. At around this time, the British and the Americans were doing likewise.

In 1804, Napoleon crowned himself Emperor of the French, and the next year, he was crowned the King of Italy. His reigns as leader of Italy and France overlapped each other. After the military victories and reforms, pushing out the old medieval ways, many saw this as a throwback to the feudal and imperialist system, and were displeased. Among the displeased was the famous composer, Ludwig von Beethoven, a former admirer of Napoleon, now bitterly disgusted with him. He even went so far as to scratch homage to Napoleon from his Third Symphony.

More coalition wars, campaigns and skirmishes followed. While Napoleon was on a roll across a vast portion of the European continental mainland, the British were holding their own at sea with their vastly superior Royal Navy. Also, Britain’s island geography made the British homeland more defensible. For the most part, Napleon enjoyed victory in his coalition wars and conquests. Then came his 1812 invasion of Russia. France and Russia had an alliance from 1807, but like so many others in Europe, it deteriorated, and once again, war visited Europe. Napoleon was able to push the Russian forces clear beyond Moscow, and it looked like certain victory for Napoleon, until he experienced a natural Russian advantage: the Russian Winter. Russia has winters like no other, and throughout time, it has aided the Russians in driving off would-be conquerors. Basically the same thing happened to Hitler’s Army in World War II. The bitter cold took a very heavy toll on Napoleon’s forces, who were wracked with frostbite, starvation and disease. What the bitter cold of a Russian winter did not take away from attackers, it sucked into the deep mud of the Russian spring thaw. Mud so widespread and deep that it hinders troop movements and bogs down everything. Even if his men and horses could find food, they couldn’t negotiate the famous Russian mud. It also produces a crop of disease-carrying mosquitoes that won’t quit. For the most part, Napoleon won the battle for Russia. But the Russian habit of leaving nothing behind for conquering forces to take (Scorched Earth Policy) and the winter and spring is too much for any attacker. The Russians burned Moscow, rather than let Napoleon have it. Originally 400,000 strong, fewer than 40,000 soldiers remained of Napoleon’s Army, which gave up on Russia and retreated back to France.

Upon returning to France, some of Napoleon’s generals staged a mutiny, and he was forced to abdicate the throne, and was exiled to the Island of Elba in the Mediterranean. This is a result of the Treaty of Fontainebleu. In his exile, Napoleon was given sovereignty over the island, and while there, put together a small army and navy, but his wife and son were living in exile in Austria. He knew that there was a plan to exile him to another island in the Atlantic, so he escaped from Elba and made his way back to France. When he landed on French soil, a regiment sent to intercept him was instead won over by him, and together they returned to Paris, causing Louis XVIII to flee. Evidently, Napoleon still inspired some fear and respect with his presence. Neighboring Austria caught wind of his return, and acted to raise up a large coalition force against him.

Napoleon reigned in Paris for around a hundred days, and had built up an army of some 200,000 troops. Upon the advance of the Austrian coalition army, Napoleon launched an offensive attack, in an attempt to divide their forces. They met up in Waterloo, in what is now Belgium, and fought. The British forces led by the Duke of Wellington, aided by the arrival of the Russian coalition were able to drive back Napoleon’s forces, which fled in disarray. The coalition forces then marched on Paris and restored Louis XVIII to the throne.

After a brief imprisonment, Napoleon was again exiled, this time to the small island of St. Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean, very far away from any main land mass. Some members of the British Parliament and even some Lords sympathized with him. There were a few other intrigues, plans of escape and rumors, but further conquest was not to be. Living in Longwood House, the former Deputy Territorial Governor’s decaying mansion, Napoleon’s health declined, and he died of stomach cancer on 5 May, 1821. Napoleon remained buried in obscurity until the French King Louis-Phillipe had his remains returned to France in 1840. He was given a state funeral and intombed at the chapel in Les Invalides, a hospital campus for French war veterans in Paris, where he remains to this day. It is now a famous and very popular military museum that leaves a lasting impression on those who visit.

There are a number of things that Napoleon is noted for, such as having a very profound effect on the history and future of France. He did some bad or questionable things, such as ordering disease-wracked soldiers in his army poisoned, to keep them from falling into the hands of the enemy while leaving Egypt. During his reign, he reinstituted slavery in outlying French colonies, and when it came to politics and the military, he was a sly operator. But he also paved the way for the abolition of the loose coalition of Papal States, in favor of autonomous nations, which still endures. From what was once a mass of disorganized sovereign and combative hotspots is now the mighty nation of Germany, for better or for worse, even after its travails of the 20th Century. Continental mainland Europe is now a strong collection of sovereign nations. Many of his Code Civil/Napoleonic Code laws and ideas are still practiced worldwide, including the UK and the United States. While he was in part, defeated by the British, many Brits, including some high-ranking Lords still admired him. He is also viewed as a military genius, having easily proved that through his many conquests and tactics. He also enacted the Jewish Emancipation, which allowed Jews to own private property, and other rights. Oh, I almost forgot; Napoleon’s height. The Duke of Wellington stated that Napolen was approximately 1.7 meters tall, or about 5 feet, 8 inches. A tad under 6 feet. The normal, average adult height.

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