After being stymied in the north, the British changed strategy and sent an army to the south, believing that the area was full of loyalists just waiting to rise up and join the British. The British did crush a rebel army at Camden, but that actually was a turning point in favor of the patriots because Washington sent his best general to take command in the south. Nathanael Greene is going to give the British fits, although he never won a battle. Several of them were near wins and over time, Greene’s refusal to lose and his army’s infliction of casualties on the British army, forced it to give up the dream of controlling the south and even just South Carolina. In 1781, the British were on the retreat to the coast. Greene’s army dogged them. On Sept. 8, 1781, Greene’s army ran into a British force under Lt. Col. Alexander Stewart in the early morning. Stewart had 2,000 men to Greene’s 2,200. The battle began when one of Greene’s units ran into some foragers digging for yams. 400 of them were taken captive and Greene followed this up with an attack on the British camp. The British were caught mid-breakfast.
Greene led with his militia. They pushed to the British camp, but the results were mixed. Some of the militia panicked, others stood up to hand-to-hand fighting, some fired as many as 17 rounds. When holes broke in his front line, Greene moved up Continental regulars. The British retreated to a mansion called the Brick House, which also had a walled garden. It was a strong defensive position. Meanwhile, Col. William Washington’s cavalry assaulted the British flank in thick woods. Unfortunately, he was unhorsed and captured. His war was over. The British got their second wind and launched a counterattack. Some of the Americans were busy ransacking the British camp and eating their breakfasts. Greene’s army had to fall back. The day ended with two exhausted armies with heavy casualties. Greene lost 579 and Stewart lost 882. Greene intended to resume the battle the next day, but a storm prevented that. The day after, Stewart retreated. It was officially a British victory, although a pyrrhic one, but a strategic victory for Greene. The battle was the last battle of the war, Yorktown being a siege. It put the last nail in Britain’s effort to control South Carolina. And it cemented Greene’s position as the greatest American general to never win a battle.
https://www.battlefields.org/learn/revolutionary-war/battles/eutaw-springs
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Eutaw_Springs
http://theamericanrevolution.org/battledetail.aspx?battle=28
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