Battle
“General, I won’t have any fighting around my house.” — Mrs. Mary Blackstone to rebel commander Thomas Sumter, as his militia occupied her property. [17]
Sumter placed Colonel Henry Hampton and his South Carolina riflemen in the farm outbuildings. Some units he stationed behind stout fences and others he screened in the surrounding woods. [13] Tarleton came up late in the fall afternoon and chose to make a frontal attack against a numerically superior force, not waiting for his infantry and artillery to catch up. [18] At first he was successful. The Patriot militia fired at too great a distance, and before they could reload Major John Money, commanding the 63d Regiment, hit them with the bayonet. [19] Nevertheless, in doing so, the 63d advanced too close to the farm buildings and came under fire from Hampton's men inside. Money and two of his lieutenants were killed, and perhaps a third of the privates as well. Meanwhile, other partisans worked their way around their right flank and attacked Tarleton's dragoons who were in their saddles but only watching the action. [20]
Realizing that the battle was going against him, Tarleton desperately ordered an uphill cavalry charge against riflemen firing from cover. As Henry Lumpkin has written, "caution never was Tarleton's outstanding virtue." So many dragoons were knocked from their horses that "the road to the ford was blocked by the bodies of men and fallen chargers, the wounded, still targets, struggling back over their stricken comrades and kicking, screaming horses." [19] Still, the British forces fell back in good order. [21] [22]
When Sumter, as "reckless as Tarleton", moved into position to watch the British withdrawal, members of the 63d fired a volley at him and his officers. Sumter was severely wounded and had to relinquish command to his most senior colonel, John Twiggs. [23]
Tarleton retreated two miles to await his reinforcements for another attack the next morning. But Twiggs left camp fires burning and disappeared into the night. The next morning Tarleton's troops buried the dead of both sides, vastly disproportionate. Tarleton claimed that 51 of his men were killed or wounded. [1] A contemporary American account claimed higher numbers for the British casualties: 92 killed and 75-100 wounded. [2] American casualties were 3 killed, 4 wounded, and 50 captured. [3] [24]
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Patriot militia
Banastre Tarleton 