Casimir Pulaski (6 March 1745 – 11 October 1779) was a Brigadier-General of the United States who fought in the American Revolutionary War. A Polish nobleman who fought for the Bar Confederation, he later fled to France in 1770, and joined the Americans alongside many other French nobles. He was killed in the Siege of Savannah.
Biography[]
Casimir Pulaski was born in Warsaw, Poland-Lithuania in 1745. He followed his father's footsteps as a politician, and became a leader of the Bar Confederation rebels that opposed Russia in 1768-1770. He was driven into exile in France after the quelling of the revolt, but was invited by Benjamin Franklin to join the Continental Army. He commanded the Pulaski Legion of cavalry, and is called the "father of American Cavalry" due to his skills at their head. He fought in the Battle of Little Egg Harbor on the Jersey Shore and took part in a few battles, but he is mainly known for his reform of the cavalry. He was mortally wounded by grapeshot at the 1779 Siege of Savannah while leading a reckless charge against the British.