Synopses & Reviews
The British attempt to recapture the Carolinas (1780-1781) is one of the most fascinating untold stories of the American Revolution. It was a campaign of attrition fought by "back country" rebels who invented new tactics to suit the terrain of their New World. Aligned with a few hardbitten Continental regiments, they took on brave British regulars and German J?gers whose discipline and skill would be wasted by their leaders. The savage warfare that ensued was crucial in deciding the great issue at stake.
The Road to Guilford Courthouse vividly recounts this little-known yet pivotal episode, a bloody campaign that led to what could only be called a hollow British victory. Beginning with the Battle for Sullivan's Island, when William Moultrie and his raw South Carolinians repelled the British as they tried to "restore the authority of the King's government in the four southern provinces," historian John Buchanan weaves a fascinating narrative that builds steadily to the campaign's riveting climax at Guilford Courthouse.
Scrupulously researched, this sweeping account offers fresh insights into the character and performance of such legendary figures as Lord Cornwallis, an instinctive combat commander whose dramatic reliance on bayonets and zeal could not salvage a crucial campaign. Here are compelling portraits of the brooding Sir Henry Clinton, the intelligent but deeply flawed British commander in chief who would become the scapegoat for the loss of America; and the dashing cavalryman Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton, hero in Britain, villain in America. Equally intriguing on the American side are the ego-ridden partisan commander Brigadier General Thomas Sumter, described by Light Horse Harry Lee as so "enchanted with the splendor of victory, he would wade in torrents of blood to attain it"; and the untutored but brilliant frontiersman Brigadier General Daniel Morgan, the innovative tactician of the War of the Revolution. Among many figures rescued from obscurity are James Collins, David Henry, and Thomas Young, three teenage partisan fighters whose adventures are hardly known outside the ranks of specialists. And towering above all, Major General Nathanael Greene, the Rhode Island ironmonger and self-taught master soldier who combined the talents of partisans and regulars to become the architect of victory in the South.
The Road to Guilford Courthouse is distinguished by the author's penetrating examination of the social and political tensions between the "Low Country" and the "Back Country"—conditions that had a profound impact on the nature and duration of the campaign. It became a series of deadly backwoods fights in a civil war between Rebels and Tories, the most famous of which was the Battle of Kings Mountain. Buchanan also challenges several myths, among them that British and German regulars could not adapt to fighting in thick woodlands.
A brilliant account of the proud and ferocious American fighters who stood up to the British forces, The Road to Guilford Courthouse is an important addition to the history of the American Revolution.
Advance Praise for The Road to Guilford Courthouse
The American Revolution in the Carolinas
"Buchanan makes the subject come alive like few others I have seen." —Dennis Conrad Editor, The Nathanael Greene Papers
"John Buchanan offers us a lively, accurate account of a critical period in the War of Independence in the South. Based on numerous printed primary and secondary sources, it deserves a large reading audience." —Don Higginbotham Professor of History, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Review
"Outstanding popular military history . . . an accomplishment of the same high order as McPherson's
Civil War historiography."—
Booklist"Chronologically connecting events from the siege of Charleston in April 1780, to the battle of Guilford Courthouse, almost a year later, Buchanan carefully weaves politics, battles and personalities into one of the fascinating stories of American independence."—Roanoke Times
"His compelling narrative brings readers closer than ever before to the reality of Revolutionary warfare in the Carolinas."—Raleigh News & Observer
"Buchanan makes the subject come alive like few others I have seen."—Dennis Conrad, editor of The Nathanael Greene Papers
Synopsis
An exciting history of a pivotal campaign In the Revolutionary War
Often overshadowed by the action in the North, the battle for the Carolinas is one of the most fascinating stories of the American Revolution. This book details the long and bloody campaign launched by the English to reclaim supremacy in the region. Although ostensibly victorious, culminating with Lord Cornwallis's triumph at Guilford Courthouse in Charleston, the campaign left the British forces in the south in rain, setting the stage for American general Nathanael Greene to ultimately reclaim the Carolinas. John Buchanan brings to life the people and events of this campaign in the march to Yorktown.
-- Offers coverage of renowned figures such as Thomas Sumter, Francis "The Swamp Fox" Marion, and others
-- The first book to detail the critical backwoods fighting that kept the rebellion alive
Synopsis
A brilliant account of the proud and ferocious American fighters who stood up to the British forces in savage battles crucial in deciding both the fate of the Carolina colonies and the outcome of the war.
"A tense, exciting historical account of a little known chapter of the Revolution, displaying history writing at its best."--Kirkus Reviews
"His compelling narrative brings readers closer than ever before to the reality of Revolutionary warfare in the Carolinas."--Raleigh News & Observer.
"Buchanan makes the subject come alive like few others I have seen." --Dennis Conrad, Editor, The Nathanael Greene Papers.
"John Buchanan offers us a lively, accurate account of a critical period in the War of Independence in the South. Based on numerous printed primary and secondary sources, it deserves a large reading audience." --Don Higginbotham, Professor of History, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 426-435) and index.
About the Author
JOHN BUCHANAN is a popular historian who was an archivist at Cornell University and The Metropolitan Museum of Art. During his nearly three decades on the staff of the museum, he was, for twenty-two years, chief registrar in charge of worldwide art movements. He lives with his wife in New York City.
Table of Contents
The Battle of Sullivan's Island.
The Rice Kings.
Southern Strategy.
The Approach March.
Charleston Besieged.
The Rise of Banastre Tarleton.
Into the Back Country.
Hearts and Minds.
Trouble in the Back Country.
More Trouble in the Back Country.
A Hero Takes Charge.
The Battle of Camden.
The Partisans Fight On.
The Rise of Patrick Ferguson.
To Catch Ferguson.
King's Mountain.
Retreat and Turmoil.
A General from Rhode Island.
The Stage is Set.
Tarleton Pursues Morgan.
Cowpens.
Bayonets and Zeal.
Patience and Finesse.
Guilford Courthouse: "Long, Obstinate, and Bloody".
The Major Characters in Order of Appearance and What Happened to Them.
Notes.
A Selected and Annotated Bibliography.
Index.