Since the creation of the state, Pulaski County has been the focus of politics and business for the state of Arkansas as the home of the state capital. Few people may know who the county was named for. Count Casimir Pulaski, a Polish general, arrived in the United States during the American Revolution, trained American troops, and gave his life for the freedom of the new land. Pulaski became a hero for the generation of men who fought for American independence.
Casimir Pulaski was born in March 1746 in Warsaw, the capital of what was then the Confederation of Poland and Lithuania. His family was part of the Polish nobility, and his family made sure he received the best education. In 1762, at the age of 16, he entered the military, serving as an aide to the Duke of Courtland.
Poland had once been the most powerful nation in East Europe; but now its power was on the decline, and it was under increasing threat from Russia. In 1764, King Stanislaw II came to power in Poland, and Russia increasingly worked its tendrils into the country, eventually forcing Poland to allow Russian troops to be stationed there. Believing that Russia must be stopped and that the new king was betraying the country, Pulaski and his father joined the Bar Confederation in 1767 to fight against Russia, in defiance of the king. Though only 21, Pulaski was made a colonel in charge of a cavalry unit and worked to convince other Polish troops to join their cause against Russia.
By early 1768, Pulaski and the Bar Confederation were fighting both Russian troops and the Polish king’s army. He won several impressive victories at first. By June, he was briefly captured by the Russians but later exchanged for another captive. He quickly developed a reputation for daring raids and sometimes disobeying orders when he saw a bigger military opportunity. He won several battles against more numerous Russian forces and earned a respected reputation across Europe. Eventually, he was promoted to general. However, in spite of several dramatic victories and surviving several long sieges, the Bar Confederation was steadily losing ground. In May 1772, Pulaski was forced to leave Poland, and the effort against Russia collapsed. Russia would seize a third of Poland’s territory, the first of several partitions of the country.
Russia forced King Stanislaw II to order his parliament to ratify the partition of Poland in 1772. Several months later, Pulaski was convicted by the assembly for attempting to assassinate the king. Eventually, Russia would swallow all of Poland. In the meantime, Pulaski was on the run.
Pulaski was in France by 1775. His attempt to join the French army was rejected, and he fell deeply into debt. At one point, he was imprisoned for failure to pay these debts. In 1777, he met Ben Franklin, who was then serving as ambassador to France. Pulaski was inspired by the American cause of freedom against a more powerful foe. Impressed by Pulaski’s experience, he encouraged the general to go to America.
In July 1777, Pulaski arrived in Massachusetts. He presented himself in a letter to Gen. George Washington, famously declaring, “I came here, where freedom is being defended, to serve it, and to live and die for it.” He joined Washington in Pennsylvania and quickly began advising Washington on new cavalry tactics. At the Battle of Brandywine in September, Washington’s forces were being overwhelmed, and the British were about to cut off the American retreat. Pulaski leapt into action, gathered a few of Washington’s men, and led a daring cavalry charge to broke through the British advance, allowing the faltering Continental troops to get to safety.
During the bitter winter at Valley Forge in 1777, Washington allowed Pulaski to reorganize the cavalry forces for the Continental Army. Pulaski often clashed with other officers. His European command style and difficulty speaking English made it difficult to lead American troops. By 1778, he was promoted to brigadier general in the Continental Army and allowed to form his own cavalry unit. He soon had a unit of hundreds of men, both immigrant and Americanborn. He was known for his strict discipline but also for clever tactics that even won the grudging respect of British generals. Military historians have since credited Pulaski with the birth of the American cavalry.
By May 1779, Charleston, South Carolina, was on the brink of capture by the British. Pulaski arrived and decided to break the siege of Charleston by leading a raid on nearby Savannah, Georgia, which had fallen a year earlier. His attempt pushed back the British but cost many of his fellow cavalrymen. Nevertheless, they managed to capture a nearby British outpost. In October, with the arrival of French reinforcements, Pulaski decided to try to retake Savannah once again. Again, they met heavy resistance. The French lines broke during the battle, and Pulaski rode to rally the troops. In the chaos, he was cut down by British fire. He died two days later at age 33.
Arkansas’s Pulaski County was named for him when it was created in 1818. With nearly 400,000 residents, it is by far the largest county in the state and has been since statehood. Arkansas is one of seven states to name a county after him, including Georgia, Missouri, Illinois, and Virginia. He has been honored in many other ways. In 1824, the Marquis de Lafayette, the French general who had fought with American forces during the American Revolution and one of the last surviving generals from the war, laid the cornerstone for the Pulaski Monument in Savannah. In 1929, Congress named October 11 as General Pulaski Memorial Day. In 2009, he was posthumously made a United States citizen, one of only a handful of people so honored.
