Thomas - Antoine de Mauduit du Plessis Thomas - Antoine de Mauduit du Plessis or Thomas Duplessis or Thomas - Antoine du Plessis - Mauduit ( 12 September 1753 – March 1791 ) was a French officer who fought with the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War . Born in Brittany , he ran away to sea at age 12 and voyaged in the eastern Mediterranean Sea for a time . Later , he attended a famous French artillery school . He was among a number of volunteers to join the fledgling American army in 1777 , especially distinguishing himself for bravery at Germantown and skill at Red Bank . At Valley Forge he helped train American officers in the finer points of tactics and artillery handling . He defended a key position at Monmouth in the summer of 1778 . Receiving permission to resign from the American army at the end of 1778 , he later fought with Jean - Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur , comte de Rochambeau ' s army . In 1787 , he took command of a regiment in Haiti . He resisted the French Revolution , refusing to carry out instructions from the new government . Instead , he carried out a repressive counter - revolutionary program which provoked a revolt . When reinforcements arrived from France in March 1791 , the new soldiers immediately took the side of the revolutionary faction . Stirred up , du Plessis ' own regiment rioted and his men murdered him . Early career . Du Plessis was born in Hennebont in Brittany on 12 September 1753 . Sent to the famous artillery school in Grenoble at a very young age , he ran away to Marseilles when he was 12 years old . Joining a ship ' s crew as a seaman , he satisfied his thirst for travel by sailing to the Levant , Alexandria , and Constantinople . Eventually he returned to France and his military studies . In December 1776 , Philippe Charles Tronson de Coudray and a group of French officers left for America on the " Amphitrite " . The ship was soon forced to turn back to France . Anxious to get on with their journey , Lieutenant du Plessis and Philippe Hubert Preudhomme de Borre went aboard the " Mercure " . Du Plessis paid 400 livres for the price of his passage . Carrying a secret cargo of military supplies , the vessel left Saint - Nazaire on 5 February 1777 . The " Mercure " reached Portsmouth , New Hampshire on 17 March and de Borre arrived at Morristown , New Jersey exactly two months later . Appointed captain of artillery in the Continental Army , du Plessis ' commission dated from 15 April 1777 . He fought at the Battle of Brandywine on 11 September . Germantown and Fort Mercer . At the Battle of Germantown on 4 October 1777 , the American offensive stalled when Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Musgrave and 120 British soldiers of the 40th Foot stoutly defended the Chew House . After artillery and infantry assaults failed , du Plessis and other officers attempted to set the house on fire . To fellow aide John Laurens , du Plessis suggested the idea of fetching hay from the nearby barn and using it to ignite the structure . Using the kitchen outbuilding as cover , du Plessis reached a ground - floor window to the left of the servant ' s entrance . He smashed it and tried to climb in . Perched on the window sill , he found himself face to face with a pistol - wielding British officer who demanded his surrender . At that moment , a British soldier burst into the room and fired at du Plessis but hit the officer by mistake . After this close call , the Frenchman decided to retreat . With numerous American soldiers looking on , he refused to run for it . He later claimed that he retired at a walk , which he managed to do without being shot , though Laurens was slightly wounded in the shoulder . Two of Major General John Sullivan ' s aides , Captains John White and Edward Sherburne were killed while unsuccessfully trying to carry out this dangerous mission . Later that month , George Washington sent du Plessis to Fort Mercer to take command of the garrison ' s artillery and also to oversee its defenses . When he reported to Colonel Christopher Greene on 11 October , he found a sprawling fortress that was long and wide . The works were far too extensive for the 250 defenders and 14 cannons . Du Plessis immediately constructed a new wall that bisected the old works , effectively abandoning a large part of the fort in order to concentrate the defenses in a smaller area . Since fruit trees made excellent " abatis " , James Whitall ' s nearby orchard was entirely cut down for the purpose . For his part , Greene ordered every available man to help the French engineer improve the fort ' s defenses . Sir William Howe ordered an expedition under Colonel Carl von Donop to capture Fort Mercer . Donop took 2 , 000 infantry , including Ludwig von Wurmb ' s Hessian and Anspach Jäger Corps , the " Mirbach " Hessian Infantry Regiment , and the " Lengerke " , " Linsing " , and " Minningerode " Hessian grenadier battalions . These were accompanied by 10 Hessian 3 - pound battalion cannons and Captain - lieutenant Francis Downman ' s two 5 . 5 - inch howitzers of the British Royal Artillery . Donop ' s soldiers crossed the Delaware River into New Jersey on the morning of 21 October 1777 and camped at Haddonfield that night . Around noon on 22 October , the expedition approached the fort and initiated the Battle of Red Bank . That morning , Colonel Israel Angell ' s 2nd Rhode Island Regiment was ferried across the Delaware from Fort Mifflin to assist Greene ' s 1st Rhode Island Regiment . Altogether , Greene commanded about 500 defenders . Soon afterward , a Hessian drummer beat a parley and Major Charles Stuart , accompanied by a Hessian officer , came forward to demand the fort ' s surrender . Greene sent Lieutenant Colonel Jeremiah Olney to meet the British major . Though Stuart threatened in a loud voice that no quarter would be given to the defenders , Olney refused . Du Plessis later related to François - Jean de Chastellux that Stuart ' s overbearing tone inspired the defenders to greater resistance . Donop waited for two hours and sent a second surrender demand to the fort . When it was refused again , he prepared to attack . Donop ordered the " Minningerode " Grenadiers to attack the right or east side of the fort , the " Mirbach " Musketeers to assault the center , and the " Linsing " Grenadiers to charge the left or west side . He held the " Lengerke " Grenadiers in reserve . Jäger sharpshooters found positions where they could pick off the defenders . At 4 : 30 PM , the Hessian infantry advanced after a brief artillery bombardment . Donop led the " Minningerode " column which rushed into the abandoned eastern section of the fort . Though they were sprayed by grapeshot from American gunboats , the grenadiers forced their way into the abatis . At that moment , the defenders opened fire from point - blank range and simply mowed down the Germans . Despite the efforts of the officers to urge the men on , all three attacking columns were stopped with horrific losses and forced to retreat . The Hessians lost eight officers , seven non - coms , and 75 privates killed . There were 15 officers , 24 non - coms , and 188 privates wounded . One non - com and 68 privates were missing , making a total of 382 casualties . The Americans lost 14 killed , 21 wounded , and one captured . De Plessis sortied from the fort with a few men in the evening and captured 20 Hessians . That night , amid the horrible groans of the wounded Hessians , du Plessis heard a voice in English pleading for help . He went with a few men , found Donop with a shattered left thigh bone , and brought him into the works . Though some Americans taunted the wounded Hessian with his " no quarter " message , du Plessis managed to calm the men down and get medical treatment for his adversary . Donop died of his wound a week later . Though Stuart was in the forefront of the attack , he survived unscathed . Valley Forge and Monmouth . After the British successfully ended the Siege of Fort Mifflin on 16 November 1777 , only Fort Mercer barred the Delaware River to their shipping . Lord Charles Cornwallis crossed into New Jersey with 2 , 000 men to eliminate the fort . Greene evacuated his garrison on the night of 20 and 21 November . Du Plessis saved some artillery and supplies , and was responsible for detonating the fort ' s magazine before the British arrived . On 25 November 1777 , an American force harassed Cornwallis ' column as it withdrew from New Jersey . Gilbert Motier , marquis de La Fayette led about 300 Americans against the British rear guard in the Battle of Gloucester . The Hessian Jägers lost five killed , 14 wounded , and 10 missing . Du Plessis was involved in the skirmish and his horse was wounded . After receiving a letter from Washington praising du Plessis ' good work at Brandywine , Germantown , and Fort Mercer , the Continental Congress voted to promote the Frenchman to lieutenant colonel . The vote was taken on 19 January 1778 , but the commission was retroactively dated 26 November 1777 . Historian Robert K . Wright , Jr . asserted that du Plessis was " instrumental " in familiarizing American officers with the writings of Jacques Antoine Hippolyte , Comte de Guibert at Valley Forge during the 1777 – 1778 winter . After France ' s defeat in the Seven Years ' War , Guibert wrote " Essai Generale de Tactique " which was refined and published in 1772 . This work stressed that foot soldiers be trained to fight as both line and light infantry , and to use both columns and linear formations on the battlefield . Guibert was also influenced by artillery theorist Jean - Baptiste Vaquette de Gribeauval who urged gunners to group their guns into massed batteries and to mainly direct their fire on the enemy infantry . Although Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben played a more significant role in introducing professionalism among American officers , du Plessis was nevertheless highly respected as an instructor . At the Battle of Monmouth on 28 June 1778 , Charles Lee led the 5 , 000 - man American advance guard to attack Sir Henry Clinton ' s British army . Since Lee was a recently exchanged prisoner of war , he did not realize that the Continental Army had become a more professional force in his absence . Consequently , he mishandled his troops on the field . Washington arrived with the army ' s main body to find Lee ' s advance guard in full retreat in the face of Clinton ' s counterattack . He quickly set up a holding position and rode back to organize the main line of defense . At about the same time , Washington sent William Woodford ' s 3rd Virginia Brigade and four cannons under du Plessis to block any British attempt to turn his right flank . Soon afterward , the American commander encountered Lieutenant Colonel David Rhea who told him about high ground on the south flank . Washington ordered Rhea to find Nathanael Greene and lead him to the position . Around 3 : 00 PM Greene reached on Comb ' s Hill to find it protected on three sides by a swampy stream and overlooking the British left flank . Du Plessis , adjutant to American artillery chief Henry Knox , arrived with four 6 - pound cannons around 3 : 30 PM . Unlimbering their guns , his crews opened an enfilading fire against the British line at the hedgerow and their nearby artillery line . This probably caused Clinton to order a withdrawal soon after . Later , Anthony Wayne sallied forth to attack the British and Clinton sent the 1st Grenadiers and the 33rd Foot to push him back . As Wayne fell back , the British again came within range of du Plessis ' guns around 5 : 30 PM . According to legend , one well - aimed cannonball passed along the front of a grenadier platoon , knocking the muskets out of every man ' s hands . The British attack faltered and their troops finally retired . Haiti . On 5 November 1778 , Congress granted du Plessis leave to resign from the Continental Army and ordered that a letter be prepared testifying to his " zeal , bravery and good conduct " . Historian Francis B . Heitman related no more about his service with the American army and did not list him in his separate roll of French officers . However , another source stated that du Plessis fought under Jean - Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur , comte de Rochambeau . He was promoted to major in the French royal army and was posted to Haiti in 1787 as commandant of the " Port - au - Prince " Regiment . At the outbreak of the French Revolution , he announced himself to be hostile to it and was outspoken in his views against freeing the slaves . He and Governor Philibert François Rouxel de Blanchelande refused to carry out the decrees ordered by the revolutionary government . Instead , du Plessis disarmed the national guard and formed a royalist corps called the " Pompons Blancs " . He arrested the colonial revolutionary committee and dissolved the local assembly . His harsh policies provoked a general insurrection . On 3 March 1791 , the " Artois " and " Normandie " Regiments arrived from France as reinforcements for the colony . The new soldiers quickly made common cause with local revolutionary elements and told the men of the " Port - au - Prince " Regiment that their commander had been executing false orders . Aroused by this news , his troops mutinied and killed du Plessis .