Confederate knights by John R. Stuart

Author:John R. Stuart [Stuart, John R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: JOHN R. STUART
Published: 2016-09-26T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SIX

COUNTING COUP

Knight of the Confederacy

DRAKE KENSINGTON - a.k.a BIG DRAKE

May 10th, 1890 - 4pm - Rielville, Manitoba, Victoria’s Canada

In 1890 an army comprised of Métis warriors, Indians, and rebellious Canadians had formed in the wild and disputed territory of the North American West known as the Cauldron. Their goal was to drive the British from Canada and establish their own independent government. After a series of raids and battles, the Métis Rebellion was gaining strength - despite the madness of its leader Lois Riel. With the assistance of Confederate secret agent –Black Judah Lee, a small band of desperados and Métis outlaws had launched numerous attacks against the Mounties and British troops. This led to a full-scale rebellion against the Crown. The co-leader of this rebel band was a diminutive Canadian Métis outlaw named Drake Kensington. Drake was a dangerous and insane outlaw gunman who lived by the code of the gun. He and Riel had gathered their soldiers at Rielville in Manitoba in preparation for a full-scale attack on the British city of Winnipeg.

The rebel town of Rielville was set between a rough craggy series of steep cliffs and a wide half mile diameter ox-bow loop of the Assiniboine River. The river was wide and deep there and provided protection from attack from the north. Any assault from that direction required boats and Riel had built an earthworks embankment with a deep ditch to make any waterborne assault a treacherous affair.

The narrow southern access path, which was no more than fifty feet wide as it cut through the cliffs had been closed with a barrier wall twenty feet high and five feet thick consisting of a double wall of wooden tree trunks that were filled with rocks.

It had been constructed as an outlaw stronghold which over time had grown into a town. Its purpose was to provide a secure place for the Métis and other outlaw bands; it was built to withstand an attack by Queen Victoria’s Mounted Police (QVMP), but not to withstand a full-scale attack by a modern British army. But Riel and Kensington were delusional and believed Rielville was an invincible fortress, soon they would realize their folly.

Drake Kensington was known by his nickname - Big Drake, not because of his physical stature, but because of his over-inflated ego. In his mind, he was a giant and his twin Smith & Wessons had earned him an impressive reputation. As of 1890 he had killed in excess of fifty men and had given up counting his victims. His recent killing spree, combined with a series of bank robberies and train attacks had placed him at number two on the QVMP’s most wanted list. His partner and leader of the Jackdaws outlaw gang - Black Judah Lee was number one on that list.

Drake was short and slight in build, he stood just five feet tall and weighed less than one hundred pounds. He wore his black curly hair long and sported a goatee and waxed handlebar mustache. However, Drake saw himself as a big man and hence he called himself Big Drake.

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