The Battle of Stillman's Run proved a turning point. Before the battle, Black Hawk had not committed to war. Now he determined to avenge what he saw as the treacherous killing of his warriors under a flag of truce. Whiteside too was incensed when he returned to the battle site with a burial party and viewed the mutilated corpses. After Stillman's defeat, American leaders like President Jackson and Secretary of War Lewis Cass refused to consider a diplomatic solution; they wanted a resounding victory over Black Hawk to serve as an example to other Native Americans who might consider similar uprisings.