On July 9, 1755, during the French and Indian War, a force of around 1,500 British soldiers led by General Edward Braddock was ambushed by French troops and Native American warriors near Fort Duquesne. The British, trained for open-field European warfare, were unprepared for the guerrilla tactics used by their opponents, who hid in the dense forests and fired from cover.

One by one, the British officers easily visible on horseback were shot down by the Native marksmen, until only one remained. Strangely, this last officer continued to ride into the thick of battle and yet remained untouched, even as his horses were shot from under him. Bullets flew around him, many of his comrades were killed, and yet he miraculously survived. The warriors took aim again and again, certain their rifles were accurate, but none of their shots struck him.

Amazed, the Native leader ordered his men to stop firing at the officer. He declared, “Stop shooting! This man is under the special protection of the Great Spirit.”

That evening, as the wounded were being tended to, the surviving officer inspected his uniform. He discovered several bullet holes through his coat but no injuries on his body. In total, six bullets had passed through his clothing without harming him. He later wrote to his brother:

“In the most intense moments of the battle, I was protected beyond all human probability or expectation; for I had four bullets through my coat, and two horses shot under me, yet I escaped unhurt, though death was leveling my companions on every side.”

That young lieutenant colonel was George Washington, who would go on to lead the Continental Army to victory in the American Revolution and become the first president of the United States on April 30, 1789. His survival in that battle became one of the most remarkable stories of divine protection in early American history