While the weather was better yesterday than it was 250 years ago, the result for Col. George Washington was the same.

Outnumbered and surrounded, the young officer once again had to surrender at Fort Necessity.

V.W.H. Campbell, Post-Gazette

Re-enactors portraying British regulars and Virginia militia fire at French and Canadian troops and their Indian allies yesterday at Fort Necessity. Two and a half centuries after his first defeat there, a young colonel named George Washington again met his match at the Fayette County site, where he was forced to surrender in the first major battle of the French and Indian War. Re-enactors and living history interpreters are taking part in the 250th anniversary of Washington's surrender at Fort Necessity. Click photo for larger image.

More than 200 re-enactors, dressed in 18th-century uniforms, native American dress and frontier clothing, faced off for tactical demonstrations on the very ground where the first major battle of the French and Indian War took place. About 2,600 spectators watched the events unfold from the edge of the Great Meadow where Washington had built his small stockade and earthworks.

Soldiers and Native American warriors were among more than 400 living-history interpreters who are taking part in four days of commemorative events that end today in Fayette County.

"Thanks to all the re-enactors and all the volunteers," said Ken Mabery, superintendent of Fort Necessity National Battlefield. "Things have come off without a hitch ... we could not have done something on this scale if we had to pay participants."

The French and Indian War, which began about 20 years before the American Revolution, united Colonists and the British government in a fight with France for control of North America. That meant that in this war Washington was fighting with the British, not against them.

The actual battle, which lasted about nine hours, saw about 400 Virginia militia and British regulars face about double that number of French and Canadian troops and their Indian allies. While the British and Colonials had time to dig crude trenches and build a wooden stockade, the French and Indians were able to fire on them from the cover of nearby trees.

Once torrential rains started on the afternoon of July 3, 1754, Washington's position became hopeless. British trenches filled with water that also dampened their powder, leaving them almost defenseless.

When the French offered terms that would allow his army to return to Virginia, Washington jumped at the chance to give up.

Soldier re-enactors, dressed in woolen clothing, didn't have to deal with a summer storm but they had to march and maneuver as temperatures climbed into the 80s. Tyler Wells, 14, of Marysville, Tenn., kept sipping warm water from his metal canteen. He portrayed a drummer boy with the South Carolina Independent Co. "I started doing this when I was three months old," he said, explaining that he first went to re-enactments with his father, Jeff.

Native American re-enactors, dressed in breechcloths, sleeveless shirts and lots of body paint, had an easier time of it under the mostly sunny skies.

Yesterday's demonstration of the fighting styles and military techniques of the three combatants -- British, French and Native American -- lasted about an hour. Actor Larry Nehring, who looked remarkably like the Washington who appears on the quarter, provided narration. Nehring plays George Washington in WQED's upcoming film about the French and Indian War.

In describing plans for the commemoration, Ranger Brian Reedy had been careful to emphasize that yesterday's demonstration was not to be a mock battle, but an event to honor the skills and courage of those on all sides who made sacrifices in the struggle for North America. Reedy coordinated the activities of the hundreds of re-enactors.

About a dozen more-peaceful 18th century skills also were being demonstrated on the grounds of Fort Necessity by artisans who showed visitors the secrets of hand-making shoes, rifles, jewelry and baskets. Spectators also could visit several encampments where living-history interpreters sought to recreate the conditions of life on the Pennsylvania frontier.

The military demonstration was followed by a memorial service honoring the 30 Colonial and British dead and the three French and Indian casualties. The service included recitation of the names of all the known victims of the battle, performance of a song by Eastern Woodland Indian re-enactors and an ear-blasting salute from 200 flintlock muskets.

French diplomat Jean Pierre Collet drew applause from the crowd when he described France as America's oldest ally. "If Louis XV had paid more attention to the struggle for what he called 'a few acres of snow,' you would all be speaking French," he said.

This weekend's events at Fort Necessity were sponsored by the National Park Service with help from The French and Indian War 250 consortium, the National Road Heritage Corridor and the Braddock Road Preservation Association.

Concluding events today will include tactical demonstrations at 1:30 p.m. and a memorial service at 2:30.

Today's forecast calls for rain showers, which was the kind of weather Washington faced in 1754. "If you want historical accuracy, come back [Sunday]," Mabery joked.

A new nine-minute film, "George Washington Remembers," will be screened all day in the park's visitors center. Based on an autobiographical manuscript in Washington's own hand, the movie illustrates what filmmaker Peter Argentine calls Washington's "moments of deliverance." Its three scenes show Washington risking his life and learning from disaster at Fort Necessity, Braddock's Defeat and a friendly-fire skirmish near what is now Ligonier.

Washington's original manuscript will be on display at the visitors through today as well.

Fort Necessity National Battlefield is located along Route 40, about 11 miles east of Uniontown. Public parking is banned at the park this weekend, and visitors will be shuttled to Fort Necessity from lots along Route 40. Tickets are required for all commemoration events and can be purchased at the park gate.