Tag Archives: Battlefield

American Revolution

The British Army In The Colonies

The British Army in the Colonies

The British Army In The Colonies

 

The plaque above is part of small monument outside the visitor’s center at the Cowpens National Battlefield. Look back through the site and you will see some articles about Cowpens itself and some of the actors, but this plaque is a reminder that there are always two sides that  fight in a war. For the British Army serving in America during the revolution, it was not all fun and games.

At the opening of the war the British Army numbered around 45,000 men  scattered across the globe. The army at the time was not supplied or staffed and in the decade since end of the French & Indian war was arguably in decline. It should also be noted that a number of the troops were stationed in Ireland that was pretty much always in an active state of rebellion. (Thanks guys!)

This was the force that would be needed to face off against approximately 3 million unruly colonists three thousand miles away from their home base. It was simply not enough.  While efforts to recruit more men were put into overdrive, they needed backup. This backup would come from the German states. German mercenaries, numbering about 30,000 would be used  both in the colonies. They would also be used  as garrison troops in other British possessions to free up regular troops. These two forces were joined by close to 20,000 American Loyalists.

By the end of the war approximately 4,000 British and 2,000 German soldiers were killed. By comparison the American battle casualties number about 7,000.

It is easy to pick sides during a war, especially when the war is from our past. It must never be forgotten that the other side was fighting for its own reasons. Seeing that plaque is just a reminder of that.

American Revolution

General Nathanael Greene, Unlike Any Other

Anything But Greene...
This is the statue commemorating General Nathanael Green at the Guildford Courthouse National Battlefield.

Anything but Greene

Nathanael Green is one of those men that never made the top-tier in the history classes. Having died shortly after the war he never had the chance to take part in the founding or the early years of the republic. Still, he had such a huge impact in the execution of the war, and in his battles with Congress that we owe him a huge debt. He certainly was a Washington acolyte and Washington would always consider Greene one of his best. Even so far as to say that if anything ever happened to him, Greene would be his choice to replace him.

After the fall of Charleston in 1780 and the total defeat of General Gates at Camden later that year, the South looked lost and Washington knew of only one man who could save revolution in that region and he sent him with his prayers and little else.

The Natural

Greene was a natural at war. From the start he had a grasp of strategy that few in the fledgling Continental Army had and this served him well in the South. One example is his desire to know as much about the terrain as possible in the theater. Upon arriving in the region he immediately dispatched men to learn every river, every crossing, every trail and almost every tree and rock to the point where some locals even commented that he knew the area as if he had grown up there.

This knowledge would be invaluable to him during the “Race to the Dan” and would allow the army to stay in one piece.  Green dove into the aspects of the guerrilla war in the theater and used it to his advantage, understand when a small strike could gain the same effect as a major battle, but he also knew when the rules could be broken, such as dividing his army when needed.

The Artist

When it comes to operational artistry Greene again showed a natural ability. The main forces in the south fought more of a war of maneuver.  Whether it was Greene staying one step ahead of Cornwallis, or Cornwallis trying to catch Green. Both armies stayed constantly on the move.

It could almost be looked at like boxing; Green was against a stronger foe with more reach. He had to keep the army moving. Dancing as it were. Striking blows when he could and being careful to not get caught. Cornwallis knew that all he had to do was pin Greene down to a general engagement. Then the knockout would come. He was constantly outclassed and out maneuvered by Greene. In the classic underdog context, even when the battle was engaged at Guilford Courthouse, the British only won on points, held the field, but had to be helped out of the ring as Greene took the moral victory. In Greene’s own words, “”We fight, get beaten, rise, and fight again.”

The Bane of Cornwallis

So tenacious was Greene that General Cornwallis opted to move his army to Virginia, rather than face Green again. Eventually he would end up under siege in Yorktown and the war was won. Greene continued to fight in South Carolina. Constantly driving the British from the back country. Eventually only Charleston remained under their control. All of this without having won a single battle himself.

Civil War

The Devil is in the Details

Devils Den Devil in the Details

The Devil is in the Details

This pic was taken at Gettysburg in 2013 from Little Round Top. Looking to the center of the picture you will see a rock formation (you can make out the cars parked around it). That formation is known as Devils Den.

During the second day of the battle (June 1-3, 1863) this position changed hands several times and was used both for artillery and infantry. Once the Confederates had secured the position it was used heavily by snipers as it gave a great view of the Union positions on Little Round Top and some of the surrounding areas. We could literally talk for days about the actions that happened in and around Devils Den, but we come to this now for  another reason.

You see when I was first studying the Civil War whenever I came across Gettysburg there was always Devils Den. It is not uncommon for certain places on the battlefield to take on  names that denote certain “character”. Bloody Lane, The Peach Orchard, The Sunken Road. To students of the war those names immediately bring up images of the actions fought at those places. Devils Den though was different. That outcropping of rock was called Devils Den before the war.

Before the War

As early as 1856 the rocks were known for a large snake named the Devil. His home became known as the Devils Den. After the war the area was known by a few different variations of it until the original name stuck.

Now I know that sometimes tour guides like to embellish and tell stories, it’s part of the job. A little digging in the archives of the Gettysburg Times seems to collaborate at least a part of the story. In the Jan 23rd 1932 issue a brief paragraph relates a sighting of the famous snake in 1881, right where it had been known to be for at least a quarter of a century. Here is a link to the article. It is easy to forget these battles took place near homes and communities that had a history before the war.

American Revolution

The Trees of Guilford Courthouse

Guilford Courthouse

The Trees of Guilford Courthouse

On March 18th, 1781 British General Cornwallis led his army against the Americans led by General Greene into battle at Guilford Courthouse in North Carolina. This was the largest battle fought between the two sides in the Southern Campaign and proved to be one of the most important battles of the American Revolution.

Which is weird because it was not an American victory. The British “won” the day and held the field, but Cornwallis‘s army was so devastated that he decided to stop chasing Greene and pull back to the Wilmington on the North Carolina coast for reinforcements and supply. Once there he decided it would be best to take the fight into Virginia. That decision led him to a little place called Yorktown, and we know how that ended.

One of the striking things about this battle is the ground over which it was fought. Most of the time when you picture battles of the Revolution you probably still think of them as old-fashioned.  “Two sides line up in an open field and shot at each other from real close”. Of course at the time many of the battles were fought like that. Even Guilford Courthouse started that way, but a large portion of the battle occurred in a forest. This made it difficult to form lines and concentrate fire. Inside this battle within a battle a bloody melee became the order of the day.

The View of the Field

The picture above is from the site of the battle at Guilford Courthouse which still maintains a very close feel to how it was back in 1781. Placed among the trees are several silhouettes that show you  it may have looked like during the height of battle. You have to imagine the plumes of smoke that would have obscured your vision as much as the trees..

 

Civil War

Too Tents

During the Civil War, shelter was one of the main concerns for the troops. Rain, cold, heat, any of the elements were just as deadly to the army as the guns of the enemy. The most basic level of shelter for the soldiers was the cotton tent.

For ease of transport the standard issue tent came in two halves with poles so that each man would be responsible for his half of the tent. Designed to be connected at the top, either through grommets or snaps, they would come with other options such as A-frames and front and back pieces.

The half tent in the picture belonged to a union soldier who took the time to inscribe his half of the tent with the battles and campaigns that he had participated in. He saw a lot of action and took part in most of the major engagements of the Atlanta campaign and looks to have actually been used during Sherman’s March to the Sea.

Vietnam

Another Bad Day

If this is how your flight ended up, well you have had a bad day. This transport plane was shot down by a surface to air missile as it made its approach to the airfield.  Another ghost of the war in Vietnam.

According to the story told by US Navy Corpsman William Hatfield, who took this picture, this was the third plane shot down that week.  Unfortunately Hatfield was not able to document where the airfield was before passing. He did recall that when ever planes were coming in there was always a feeling of mixed emotions.  Often they would be bringing reinforcements and even supplies, two things that there was never enough of, but there was also a feeling of dread.

No matter how often they patrolled the perimeter or how well the area was “secured” every flight in and out was in danger. “Sometimes we would just watch as the missiles flew up towards the planes, wondering if they would make it or not,” he relayed in a 2012 interview.

“As soon as the missiles were in the air artillery would fire on the position and Marines would be sent. By the time anyone got there was never any sign of the VC (Viet Cong). They sure did have a system figured out.” Hatfield went on. In this case, to the best of his recollections the flight crew did not survive the attack. “It was always tough when is happened like that, as a corpsman I usually had to help with the casualties and recovery. Gunshots, shrapnel, grenades were all things you learned to deal with, but messes like this were just something else.”

Of course being determined to document what he could of his time “in country” once the debris was cleared he took the picture above.

Civil War

Monumental (Part Three)

 

The image of Confederate General Robert E. Lee astride his white charger could bring his men to tears. Filled with pride and the knowledge that he was there helped the men to fight harder and longer than should have been possible. The men loved Lee as a father and they would follow him to the end of the world.

His monument at Gettysburg, officially the monument of Virginia, shows Lee in all his glory staring stoically out across the open field, surveying the Union lines on the third day of battle. The third day, the day that would not only seal the loss of the battle for Lee, but would be the death kneel of the Confederacy.

This was the day that lee sent General Pickett and his troops across the field, over a mile in the open to try to smash their way through the center of the Union line. A line that had been beaten and bashed for two days. Against the advice of his right hand General Longstreet, Lee knew in his heart he had made the right decision.

The attack got off slow. The bombardment that was to soften the defenses fell short, lack of ammunition kept the fire rate lower than expected. When the time came though Picket and his men advanced. The story of Pickett’s charge is one for another time. Regardless of whose side you sympathize with the bravery and sheer will power that the Confederate soldiers showed as they reached the Union line is beyond measure.

Yet they failed. Crushed by Union artillery. Raked by a withering flanking fire that decimated them as they closed in. Fences, fences that the men had to stop and climb over as rifle and cannon fire tore gaping holes in their lines. They failed and those that could crawled, ran, walked, shuffled back to the stating point of their attack. And there when they arrived was Lee. Tears in his eyes as he realized he had made a mistake and hundreds of men paid the price.

His monument sits at the very spot where he solemnly greeted those that survived the attack. A stone face stares out at the fields of what had to have been worst day of the war for him. The high point of the rebellion had come and gone, and Lee will forever bear witness to that failed attack.

American Revolution

Monumental (Part 2)

This obelisk is the monument located at Kings Mountain. We have looked at a couple of the plaques at the base before and even talked about the battle some in a previous post. This monument is located at the top of the “mountain” and it is quite a sight to see. The battle and people who it memorialize though is an interesting story in and off itself.

At the time of the revolution that Southern colonies were a society that was fractured along many different lines. The planter class in the tidewater regions did not think much of the people in the interior, which led to political issues well before the first shots were fired.  The families in the back country tended to be more recent immigrants, many Scots, Scots-Irish and some German groups.  All of these groups tended to be clan based, family based and a lot of the times they did not necessary like their neighbors.

When the war broke out, the back country erupted into a true civil war as many of these clans took the chance to settle old scores with rivals and the opportunity to increase their own standing. For the most part, patriot or loyalist was more an issue of being on the side opposite your “enemy” so that whatever you dis to them could be justified as “for the cause”.  Some families simply jumped back and forth with their support depending on which army was closest and what they had to gain by it.

By the time that British troops had taken Charleston and started moving into the interior, there had been somewhat of a lull in the fighting as both sides found themselves fighting the Cherokee, Once that fight was done whoever they turned back to killing each other.

Kings Mountain stand out in the line of bloody conflict for one main reason, it was fought by the two sides with no regular troops. Every man engaged was militia and American, with the exception of Patrick Ferguson, the British commander. That fact made the battle unique. The victory also served as the pivot point for the war. From that point on, especially in the South, the number of loyalists willing to fight dwindled robbing the British army a source of badly needed manpower.

Bloody and terrible Kings Mountain stand above many other battles in the South. Interesting enough, of the men that survived the fight about fourscore and seven years later their descendants would be involved in another war, this time mostly fighting on the same side this time around.