Key Events of the American Revolutionary War in the South
Initial Conflict and Southern Tensions
April 19, 1775: War for independence begins with a shot at Lexington Green.
Focus initially on New England, but conflict soon spreads to the South.
South Carolina Patriots seize Fort Charlotte and drive Georgia's royal governor from Savannah.
Battle of Great Bridge: British driven from Virginia.
South Carolina establishes a constitution independent of King George.
Mecklenburg County in North Carolina rejects British rule; Halifax Resolves call for independence.
Division and Early Battles
South Carolina deeply divided: Patriot stronghold in Charleston, Loyalists in the back country.
Battle of Ninety-Six (November 1775): Loyalist militia besieges Patriot garrison.
Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge (February 27, 1776): Patriots defeat Loyalists, ending Loyalist activity in NC for years.
British Southern Strategy and Major Engagements
1778: British focus on subduing southern colonies due to cash crops like rice and cotton.
Initial successes in Georgia: capture of Savannah.
Battle of Kettle Creek: Patriot victory, but not decisive enough.
Battle of Briar Creek (March 1779): British victory, subdues Georgia Patriots.
Attempts to capture Charleston fail until 1780.
Turning Point and Partisan Warfare
Battle of Sullivan's Island (June 1776): Failed British attempt to capture Charleston.
1780: Charleston falls to British, largest American surrender of the war.
Partisan war led by figures like Francis Marion and Thomas Sumter disrupts British.
Key Battles and Strategies
Battle of Camden: Defeat for Patriots under Horatio Gates.
Battle of King’s Mountain (October 1780): Overmountain Men defeat Loyalists; Major Patrick Ferguson killed.
Battle of Cowpens (January 17, 1781): Morgan’s strategic victory over Tarleton with double envelopment.
Conclusion of the Southern Campaign
Race to the Dan River: Greene’s strategy of exhaustion against Cornwallis.
Battle of Guilford Courthouse: British Pyrrhic victory.
British retreat to Wilmington, NC.
Final Campaign and Yorktown
Cornwallis moves to Virginia for supplies and reinforcements.
Battle of Green Spring: Nearly destroys Lafayette’s forces.
Siege of Yorktown (September - October 1781): Combined American-French forces defeat Cornwallis.
Final Stages and Independence
War continues minorly until the British evacuate Charleston (December 14, 1782).
Treaty of Paris (September 3, 1783): Official end of the war.
Nathaniel Greene’s summary: "We fight, get beat, rise and fight again." This captures the spirit of the Southern campaign and its role in securing American independence.
Significance
Southern battles were crucial in the American story of liberty and freedom.