Originally Posted by
jotabe
He made a very serious mistake, that has happened before to other honorable military leaders: he didn't realize that after you attack a civilian settlement, you become responsible for whatever happens to them. While having the best of intentions, yes, Hawthorne was responsible/guilty for their doom. And he knew it, himself.
When one doesn't want to hurt the civilian population, there are only 2 options: either you offer the settlement to surrender and be occupied peacefully, taking their weapons away, or you capture the civilians, making sure they are not to be hurt while in captivity, and then offer the enemy to hand them over peacefully.