Non-Profit Dedicated to Historical Education of the American Revolution and the Colonial Period
Speak of South Carolina’s role in the American Revolution and four names rise above all others: William Moultre, Andrew Pickens, Thomas Sumter, and of course, Francis ‘Swamp Fox’ Marion. But turn the browned pages of early historical texts, and one name appears first and foremost among South Carolina’s founding fathers; Richard Richardson (May, 1704[1] – …
The summer of 1778 saw Supreme British commander General Henry Clinton with troop concentrations in three major locations; Newport, Rhode Island, New York City, and East Florida at St. Augustine. New York City and East Florida would remain in British hands, but Rhode Island’s troops would soon be contested by an expedition that combined French …
On April 14, 1780, at 3 AM, Banastre Tarleton’s Partisan Legion, a loyalist mixture of dragoons and mounted infantry, thundered out of the dead of the night in a terrifying charge. Sabers slashed downward on startled Americans torn from their sleep. The surprise attack on mainly patriot light dragoons, both Continental troopers and South Carolina …
At the Battle of Waxhaws, May 29, 1780, also labeled Buford’s Massacre, Colonel Abraham Buford’s troops were defeated by Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton’s saber welding mounted Partisan Legion forces. A victory by Loyalist and British regulars, this action resulted in a brutal slaughter and horrendous injuries to most of the Continental soldiers; wounds that later …
More a major skirmish, the Battle of Black Mingo, just prior to midnight, September 28, 1780, [some accounts incorrectly give the date as September 14th] helped propagate the legend of one who would be termed the ‘Swamp Fox.’ Lt. Colonel Francis Marion was a militia leader and obstinate patriot who preferred to fight his war …
Literally caught between a rock and a hard place, the American position at Brier Creek, Georgia, on March 3, 1779, commanded by Brigadier General John Ashe of North Carolina militia, proved to be a death trap. Situated on a triangular plot of land, the American choice of encampment was fatally flawed. Their backs were to …
Steno Ferry was fought on June 20, 1779 just southwest of Charleston, South Carolina, between the British and a slightly larger American force. It was a battle ill-conceived and did nothing to alter the situation of the two opposing armies. England’s troops were completing their retreat from ‘rebel’ defenses outside Charleston, South Carolina, when American …
Throughout the American Revolution the British demonstrated a wonderful incapacity to evolve an over-all strategy to crush the rebellion. They first moved against New England, regarded as the prime instigator of sedition. When that move failed, [the British forces, with a fleet of Tories in tow, evacuated Boston to Halifax], they transferred their main operations …