Fairfield Swamp Fight

The Great Swamp Fight
Part of the Pequot War
Date July 13–14, 1637 Location present-day Fairfield, CT 41°10′33″N 73°16′19″W / 41.17583°N 73.27194°W / 41.17583; -73.27194Coordinates: 41°10′33″N 73°16′19″W / 41.17583°N 73.27194°W / 41.17583; -73.27194 Result English victory and the disbanding of the Pequot tribe
Belligerents
Pequot people	English colonists
Commanders and leaders
Sassacus	Capt. Israel Stoughton Capt. John Mason
Strength
100 warriors	120 under Stoughton
Casualties and losses
Nearly all Pequot warriors present	Several wounded, none killed
Location within Connecticut

Not to be confused with the Great Swamp Fight of King Philip's War

The Fairfield Swamp Fight (also known as the Great Swamp Fight) was the last engagement of the Pequot War and marked defeat of the Pequot tribe in the war and the loss of their recognition as a political entity in the 17th century. The participants in the conflict were the Pequot and the English with their allied tribes (the Mohegan and Narragansett). The Fairfield Swamp Fight occurred July 13–14, 1637 in what is present-day Fairfield, Connecticut. The town of Fairfield was founded after the battle in 1639.

The English (and their Narragansett and Mohegan allies) drove the Pequot from their homes in the wake of the Mystic massacre in May 1637. Fleeing westward along the Connecticut coastline, the Pequot arrived in Sasqua Village, present-day Fairfield, where they sought refuge with the Sasquas Indians, a tribe of some 200 members.

The Hartford General Court dispatched Captain Israel Stoughton and his troops numbering some 120 soldiers to southern Connecticut, with the goal of ending the Pequot War and the capture of Sassacus, the Pequot chief sachem. As they moved westward, the English encountered stragglers from the band of Pequots and obtained intelligence about the whereabouts of Sassacus and his fellow tribesmen. As the English forces approached Sasqua Village, several Pequot on a hill just beyond the English revealed their position. Recognizing this, they attempted to flee. The English followed them to investigate. The compromised Pequots rushed up the hill, the English following. The Pequot sought refuge in a swamp, later named Sadque, and the English continued to search the abandoned village and encircle the swamp the Pequots had sought refuge in. Lieutenant Davenport attempted to force his way through, but a volley of arrows prevented his success.

Among the participants in the battle were Captain John Mason, the man responsible for the massacre at Mystic, and Roger Ludlow, a statesman from Wethersfield. The combined English forces surrounded the swamp, firing rounds into the thickets. These acts were meant to force the Pequot into negotiations for the release of non-combatants.