War Erupts

While King Philip raided plantations in East Florida, in Central Florida, Osceola had his revenge. In the bushes outside of Fort King, he and six followers lay in wait for Wiley Thompson, the U.S. Indian Agent who had placed Osceola in irons and delivered so many pompous speeches from "the Great White Father." Between three and four o'clock, Thompson finally emerged for a walk. The Seminoles opened fire. They hit the agent fourteen times, killing him almost instantly. Six more soldiers died in the ensuing melee, which the Seminoles concluded by plundering the sutler's store.