the border ruffians also engaged in general violence against free-state settlements. they burned farms and sometimes murdered free-state men. ruffians twice attacked lawrence, kansas, the free-state capital. on 1 december 1855, a small army of mainly border ruffians laid siege to lawrence, but were driven off. (this was the nearly bloodless climax to the "wakarusa war".) on 21 may 1856, an even larger force of border ruffians and pro-slavery kansans captured lawrence, which they sacked. in retaliation, john brown and 7 followers committed the pottawatomie massacre. in this incident, brown and his followers dragged five unarmed men and boys from their houses and murdered them with swords, guns and knives. this started a rash of violence.