PULASKI  DAY

HISTORY

      Casmir Pulaski was born March 4th, 1747,  in Warka, Poland. (There is some uncertainty about the date of birth so some other sources may have 1746 or 1748.)   When Casmir was eight he received a pony from his father,  Joesph,  who taught him to ride and thus begun his love for riding.  In 1758,  he went to the School of Teatine Order in Warsaw where he learned about music, art,  and manners.  He earned average grades and kept up his riding.  He also learned to shoot a gun and hit a bull's eye from horseback.  This was the start of the famous cavalry man. As a young man,  Pulaski got his first taste of battle when he was a young man.  He and 200 fellow Poles broke through 4,000 Russian soliders and encircle them in Courland.  He became a national hero in 1771,  when he and his army overwhelmingly defeated Russian forces in Czestochwa,  Poland.  Pulaski was wrongly accused in a plot to capture and kill the King of Poland and was banished from Poland.

       While in Paris in the November of 1776,  Casmir heard of the Revolutionary War and the United States' struggle to break free from mother England.  He wrote Benjamin Franklin,  who was in Paris to ask if he would consider hiring him to fight against the British.  Franklin decided to recommend him to General George Washington after hearing of his sparkling reputation of being a great leader.  Washington knew that the Colonists had no trained cavalry,  so he met with Pulaski and introduced him to LaFayette and John Hancock.  They discussed his ideas for a cavalry.  In September of 1777, Washington convinced Congress to give Pulaski temporary command of the small,  new calvary detachment.  On the same day Pulaski saved military supplies and pushed back the British at the Battle of Brandywine.  The next day he prevented a surprise attack at an area called Warren's Tavern.  Congress acknowledged Pulaski's leadership and bravery and decided to commission him as Brigadier General and gave him command of four light calvary regiments. During the winter at Valley Forge in 1777-78,  Pulaski wanted to train the calvary properly,  but was instructed by Congress to rest his men during the winter,  as customary at the time.  Later in 1778,  Pulaski became frustrated that his calvary had not been involved in any important battles.  He decided to resign, but soon changed his mind when he came up with a new idea.  He asked Washington to start his own legion.  He offered to recruit men,  outfit them,  and train them his own way.  He would prepare this calvary for active duty. After many convincing letters from Pulaski,  congress finally agreed.  With 68 horses and 200 foot soliders,  the Pulaski Legion would become the colonists' first true fully-trained calvary.  That was how Casmir Pulaski became known as the Father of American Calvary.  He recruited many men,  European and some Americans.  At first,  several of the American soldiers did not like him because he did not speak English,  but they soon began to respect him in battle for his courage and intelligence.

      Casmir died from a complication of a cannon wound,  during a battle in Savanna, Ga.  That is also the site of the statue erected for him at the Fort Pulaski National Monument.  He did not die immediately but later on a boat he finally gave in to his injury and was buried at sea.  The first Monday in March has been signified as Pulaski Day here in Illinois.  There is also Pulaski County honoring this great war hero.  The Pulaski National Monument is located in Savanna, GA.

Casmir Pulaski Day is celebrated on March 5.

SOCIAL STUDIES:  Students can research Pulaski's life and write facts about him on a polish flag.

LANGUAGE ARTS/S.S.:  Have students compare Pulaski to other great heroes.  For example, students can create a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast Pulaski and George Washington.  (They lived around the same time).

FINE ART: Students can learn about the Polish art of paper folding, or egg decorating.
 
 

     1776 -  Pulaski appeals to be allowed to return to Poland,
                 but doesn't get a reply, so he tries to get into the
                 American army.
     1777  - He is recommended to George Washington by Ben
                 Franklin to join the army.
     1777  - He is nominated a general in the cavalry.
     1778  - He joins General Wayne in fighting against he
                 British in New Jersey.
     1778  - He helps to form a Legion in Baltimore, and heads
                 the Legion.
     1779  - Pulaski is mortally wounded in an attack on
                 Savannah.