USA > Georgia > A history of Georgia : from its first discovery by Europeans to the adoption of the present constitution in MDCCXCVIII. Vol. II > Part 11
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undertaking, the results thus far in driving the ene- my from Georgia, and obliging them to evacuate Fort Tonyn, and the various impediments in the way of a further advance over roads rendered impassable to the artillery. He added that he had not sufficient horse power to carry the necessary baggage and ammunition ; that his force was reduced by sickness, from eleven hundred to three hundred and fifty men fit for duty, and that he could not expect the co-operation of the naval armament. He then proposed to the officers the following questions :-
1st. " As driving the enemy out of Georgia, and demolishing Fort Tonyn, were the objects principally aimed at ; have not these purposes been effected ?
" Resolved unanimously in the affirmative.
2d. " As it appears from information above recited, that the enemy do not mean to oppose us in force on this side of St. John's River; is there any other object important enough in our present situation to warrant our proceeding ?
" Resolved unanimously in the negative.
3d. " Is the army in a situation to cross St. John's River, attack the enemy, and secure a retreat in case of accident, though they should be aided by the militia, now embodied under Governor Houstoun and Colonel Williamson ?
" Resolved unanimously in the negative.
4th. " Does not the sickness which so fatally pre- vails in the army, render a retreat immediately requi- site ?
" Resolved unanimously in the affirmative.
" The general then proceeded to inform the council that the Governor had denied him the right to com-
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mand the militia, even if a junction had been formed between them and the Continental troops, notwith- standing the resolution of Congress declaring 'that as to the propriety of undertaking distant expeditions and enterprises, or other military operations, and the mode of conducting them, the general or command- ing officer, must finally judge and determine at his peril.'"
The General therefore thought proper to put the following questions :-
Ist. "Can he, with propriety, honor, and safety to himself, or consistent with the service, relinquish the command to the Governor?
" Resolved unanimously in the negative.
2d. "Can the army, whilst the command is divided, act with security, vigor, decision, or benefit to the common cause ?"
" Resolved unanimously in the negative."
These resolutions were agreed to and signed by all the officers who composed the council of war.
Agreeably to the advice thus given, the army began its retreat by water to Sunbury, and thence in small parties returned to their several posts or homes. This abortive attempt upon St. Augustine resulted in an immense loss to the invaders. More than one-third of the troops were either dead or were disabled, and, although it had the temporary effect of driving the enemy out of Georgia, yet the weakness of the mea- sures pursued, the vacillation of purpose in the com- manding officers, and the waste of life and money incurred by the expedition, were such as lost the con- fidence of the Georgians in their own efforts, and in- cited to new attacks the loyalists of Florida, who now
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waited but a proper opportunity to return invasion for invasion, with every prospect of success.
General Howe soon repaired to Charleston, and Georgia was left in her feebleness to bear the innu- merable troubles created and fostered by this disas- trous expedition. Throughout the summer the south- ern borders of the Province were constantly assailed by small marauding parties of five or six from Florida, who, attacking single houses, destroyed the people, cat- tle, and crops, and then, suddenly retiring, eluded pur- suit. The Creeks on the north, were restless and tur- bulent; and many murders were committed by the Indians, though there was no general rising of the tribes, such as demanded military subjugation. In addition to these troubles from without, the patriot Georgians were harassed by the disaffected and the dis- appointed, and by the partisan broils and jealousies which disgraced the conduct of many of the leading politicians of that day.
Harmony and wisdom seemed to forsake the coun- sels, as success did the efforts of the Georgians; and though some remained firm and devoted, many wa- vered, many despaired, and all suffered in the addi- tional distresses which gathered around them. The rumors of an invasion from Florida, which had so long floated through the Province, gathered strength and probability as the autumn advanced; and General Howe returned to Georgia to prepare for any emer- gency that might occur.
Sir Henry Clinton had failed in many of his schemes at the north, and the Commissioners appointed by his Majesty "to treat, consult, and agree upon the means of quieting the disorders now subsisting in certain of
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the colonies, plantations, and provinces in North Ame- rica," having received no overtures, nor seen any pros- pect of effecting a reconciliation, the British General resolved to secure the southern provinces ; and for this purpose, designated Georgia as the first point to be at- tacked, proposing, if successful, to follow it up with the subjugation of the Carolinas.
In pursuance of this design, Sir Henry Clinton planned two expeditions against the province : one from the north, under Lieutenant-Colonel Archibald Campbell; and one from Florida, under Colonel Au- gustin Prevost, who commanded in East Florida, and who was directed, on the junction of the two bodies of troops, to take command of the whole. Colonel Pre- vost received his orders on the 27th November, but previously to this had sent off two parties of troops, one under his brother, Lieutenant-Colonel James Mark Prevost, and the other under Lieutenant-Colonel Fuser, purposing to follow himself in time to effect the desired junction with Colonel Campbell.
The troops under Lieutenant-Colonel Prevost (con- sisting of about one hundred regulars and three hun- dred refugees and Indians, under the deserter Mc- Girth, who joined him at Fort Howe) ravaged the country as they advanced, meeting the Americans first at Bull Town Swamp, who, being entrapped in an ambuscade, after a slight skirmish, retreated; the commander of the Americans, Colonel Baker, and two officers, being wounded. A more general engagement took place about a mile and a half south of Medway Meeting-house, when both parties, seeking to ensnare each other in an ambuscade, were brought into direct collision. General Scriven, who commanded the Ame-
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rican side, fell early in the fight, of a wound that proved mortal the next day. This misfortune did not altogether damp the ardor of his troops; for they fought so bravely, that at one time the enemy were thrown into confusion, and the shout of victory rose from the lips of Major James Jackson, one of the gal- lant officers ; but the cry was premature : the British, momentarily confused by the unhorsing of Lieutenant- Colonel Prevost, were rallied, when he was remounted, and returned to the struggle with such spirit, that Colonel White, on whom the command now devolved, retreated with order, first to the Meeting-house, and then, pressed by superior numbers, to the Ogeechee, where a slight breastwork had been thrown up by Colonel Elbert. Prevost advanced only about six or seven miles north of the Medway Meeting-house, when, learning that Colonel Fuser had not arrived at Sunbury, nor any transports from New York at Sa- vannah, and that Colonel Elbert was prepared to dispute the passage of the Ogeechee, "he suddenly de- camped, and began a retreat,"2 blackening his march with the ruins of settlements, crops, and families; for his force was but a horde of freebooters, glutting themselves with blood and spoil.
Owing to head winds, Lieutenant-Colonel Fuser did not reach his destination, Sunbury, until after Lieu- tenant-Colonel Prevost had retreated to Florida. He had with him a large force, and siege-guns, light artil- lery, and mortars. Encamping before the fort, he summoned it to surrender, in terms of marked fero- city. Lieutenant-Colonel John McIntosh, though he
2 Steadman's History of the War, 68.
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had under him scarcely a hundred men, and was con- scious that the place could not hold out against an ordinary assault, sent back the laconic answer, "Come and take it !" This courageous and unexpected reply, combined with the fact that Lieutenant-Colonel Pre- vost had retreated, and that the American troops were marching from Savannah to oppose him, caused him to raise the siege at once, and return to Florida.
General Howe arrived at Sunbury shortly after the retreat of Fuser. "The town," he said, "is not de- fensible for half an hour, should it be attacked the least formidably; and its present safety is entirely owing to the spirited conduct of the troops in the fort, and the want of enterprise in the enemy."
The expedition under Lieutenant-Colonel Campbell sailed from New York on the 27th November, 1778. The squadron that was to convoy and assist, consisted of the Phoenix forty-four, the Fowey twenty-four, the Rose twenty-four, the Vigilant twenty-eight, the Kep- pel, an armed brig; the Greenwich, an armed sloop, and the Comet galley ; besides several transport ships, under command of Commodore Hyde Parker, having on board the 71st Regiment of foot ; the Wellworth and Wissen- bach battalions of Hessians ;3 1st and 2d battalion of De Lancey's corps, New York volunteers ; 4th battalion of Skinner's corps; and a detachment of the Royal Artillery; numbering, in the whole, 3500 men.
Of this designed attack upon Savannah, the Geor- gians had no notice, until the 6th of December, when a deserter from one of the transports gave the alarm.
3 Beatson's Naval and Military Memoirs of Great Britain, iv, 371 ; Stead- man's History of the American War, ii, 66.
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General Howe was then at Sunbury, where, conjointly with this news, he received an express from the south, notifying him of the northward march of Colonel A. Prevost, with all his available troops. General Howe hurried to Savannah; the Governor called out the militia; Continental troops were ordered from South Carolina ; and every effort was made to prepare for the threatened invasion.
Bad weather prevented the arrival of this squadron off Tybee, until the 23d December, though it was not until the 27th, that all the vessels anchored inside the bar. Both the naval and military officers were igno- rant of the condition of things in Georgia; and to gain the desired information, Sir James Baird, with a company of light infantry, and Lieutenant Clark, of the Phoenix, were despatched in two flat-boats, on the night of the 25th, to scour Wilmington Island, and secure all persons on it. They found but two men, and such was the information which they gave of the defenceless state of Georgia, that Colonel Campbell resolved to land at once, and attack Savannah, with- out waiting for the arrival of Colonel Augustine Pre- vost. Owing to the grounding of several galleys, it was not until daybreak on the 29th, that the troops of the first division, consisting of all the light infantry, the New York volunteers, and the 1st battalion of the 71st, under Lieutenant-Colonel Maitland, were landed on the river, down in front of Gerridoe's plantation, about two miles, in a straight line, from Savannah. From this embankment a narrow causeway, one-third of a mile long, led to a bluff about thirty feet high, called Brewton's Hill, and distant, by road, three or
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four miles from town. Captain Cameron's company of light infantry-the first that effected a landing- pushed on to this bluff, where they were opposed by Captain John C. Smith, of South Carolina, with about forty men, who opened an effective fire on the assail- ants, killing Captain Cameron and two Highlanders, and wounding five more; but, overpowered by num- bers and the impetuous charge of the British, the hill was soon cleared, as Captain Smith had received orders to retreat, as soon as it was untenable, to the main works.
As the several portions of the army landed, they formed in order of battle on the high ground in front of Mr. Gerridoe's house, and there remained, until Colonel Campbell, by reconnoitring, could ascertain the force and position of the Americans. These, under the command of General Howe, were drawn up about half a mile to the southeast of Savannah, in two brigades, one commanded by Colonel Huger, and the other by Colonel Elbert : the whole did not amount to eight hundred, a portion of whom were militia; the suddenness of the attack not allowing the calling in of the militia in greater numbers, to protect the capital. Expecting the attack on the great road lead- ing to Brewton's Hill, General Howe had burnt down a little bridge that crossed a small rivulet, and about three hundred feet in the rear of this marshy rivulet, 'a trench was cut, which soon filled with water, so that the trench, the stream, and the marsh through which it flowed, offered serious embarrassment to the advance of the enemy. At this point General Howe had placed two cannon, that flanked the causeway, and three that
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bore directly on its front. Thus stationed, the Ame- ricans awaited the onset.
Colonel Campbell had discovered their position, and having detailed a proper guard to cover the landing, pressed on to the attack. The light infantry, under Sir James Baird, advanced first, supported by the New York volunteers, under De Lancey. These were fol- lowed by the first battalion of the 71st, with two six- pounders; the Wellworth battalion of Hessians, with two three-pounders ; and part of Wissenbach's bat- talion of Hessians, which formed the rear. By 3 P. M., they had reached the open country near Tatnall's plantation, and halted awhile, as if preparing for the battle.
Advantageously posted as the Americans were, it would have been quite hazardous to have offered them battle in front, for they were too well protected by the intervening marsh and stream and ditch. The aim of Colonel Campbell, therefore, was to gain, if possible, their rear, or turn their extended flanks. In this desire he was fortunately aided by an old negro, Quash Dolly, who informed him of a private path, leading through the wooded swamp, by which he could gain, unperceived, the rear of the Americans. This path had been pointed out to General Howe, in the morning, by Colonel Walton, as being a place necessary to guard and secure; but it was culpably and, as the event proved, disastrously neglected. Ma- nœuvring in front, as if about to attack the left flank of General Howe, the Americans opened their fire upon the enemy, who, however, received it in silence, not a gun being fired in return. Perceiving the Ame- ricans thus deceived by the feint, the British com-
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mander lost no time in directing Sir James Baird, with the light infantry and the New York volunteers, to follow the guidance of the negro, and secure the rear of the Americans. They reached their destined point, unperceived by General Howe, and suddenly issuing from the swamp, attacked a body of militia, which had been posted to secure the great road leading to the Ogeechee. As soon as this firing gave notice to the commander that Major Baird had effected his pur- pose, he gave orders for the whole British column to advance at a rapid pace; while the artillery, which had been previously formed behind a slight rising ground, to conceal it from view, was instantly run forward to the eminence, and began to play upon the Americans. With a destructive fire thus unexpect- edly pouring in upon them in front and rear, our troops were thrown into confusion, and thus were compelled to make a hasty retreat. The centre of the American line, with the commanding General, were enabled, by the exertions of Colonel Daniel Roberts, -who had partially secured the road leading to the causeway over Musgrove's Swamp,-to pass in compa- rative safety; the right flank, under Colonel Huger, attempting to go through the town, rushed between two fires, and many were bayoneted in the streets; the left, under Colonel Elbert, finding it impracticable to pass the causeway, now in possession of the British, cast away their arms and accoutrements, and, throw- ing themselves into the swamps and rice-fields, sought, by swimming the creek, then in full tide, to reach the Augusta road, though thirty lost their lives in this perilous attempt.
While Colonel Campbell had been thus successful
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by land, Sir Hyde Parker had not remitted his vigi- lance in the fleet. As soon as he discovered that the troops had made an impression on the American line, he moved up the small armed vessels to the town, sending the Comet galley as high up as the ebb-tide would permit, securing the shipping and commanding the town from all approaches on the Carolina side. This movement completely shut in Savannah from succor, and was effected with the loss of only one sea- man killed and five wounded; while the squadron captured one hundred and twenty-six prisoners, and seized three ships, three brigs, and eight smaller ves- sels.
The British entered Savannah without opposition, and, notwithstanding the assurance of Colonel Camp- bell in his official despatches, " that little or no depre- dation took place, and that even less than had ever happened to a town under similar circumstances," yet the soldiers and officers did commit atrocities and cruelties upon the inhabitants, of a character more worthy of savages than of men. The houses of the " rebels," as they were called, were given up a prey to the spoiler, and their pilfering hands and brutal out- rages carried terror to every heart, and made Savannah a scene of anguish and distress. Nothing could exceed the consternation of the inhabitants, when they saw their defenders flying before the victorious march of the enemy, and that enemy, with rolling drums and flying colors, and a thirst for blood and spoil made keen by victory, enter their streets, with their hands and bayonets dripping with the blood of their hus- bands, fathers, brothers, and sons; their faces be- grimed with sweat, and dust, and powder, and their VOL. II.
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countenances lowering with rage and the pent-up lusts, that chafed to be let loose upon the vanquished.
In this encounter-for it can hardly be called a battle-the English lost but two captains and five privates killed, and one officer and eight privates wounded; while the American loss was nearly one hundred killed and wounded, besides thirty, who lost their lives in the swamp; and seven officers and four hundred and sixteen non-commissioned officers and privates taken prisoners. With the town, they cap- tured, of course, the fort, having in it forty-five pieces of cannon, nine of which were brass, twenty-three mortars and howitzers, ninety-four barrels of powder, and six hundred and thirty-seven small arms, besides shell and shot.
Thus, the expedition of Colonel Campbell had been entirely successful. An army had been defeated, and mostly captured ; the capital of the State was taken ; its commerce destroyed; the officers of government dispersed ; provincial rule was broken, and the yoke of ministerial tyranny was again fastened on its neck.
The military author of the Memoirs of the War of the Southern Department has well said :4 " How- ever we must applaud the judgment displayed by the American general in selecting and improving his position; however, we must honor his gallant determination to receive the enemy's attack with an inferior force, yet, as this resolution in prudence must have been formed in the advantages of his ground, we cannot excuse the negligence betrayed by his ignorance of the avenues leading to his camp. How happens it that he who had been in command
4 Lee's Memoirs, ii, 70.
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of that country for many months should not have discovered the by-way, passing to his rear, when Lieutenant-Colonel Campbell contrived to discover it in a few hours ? The faithful historian cannot with- hold his condemnation of such supineness." His conduct in this matter has been severely animad- verted on by military critics, and as severely censured by the people whom he was expected to defend. It became a matter of inquiry, by a committee of the General Assembly of Georgia, who, on the 17th Janu- ary, 1780, brought in the following report : "The committee appointed to take into consideration the situation of the State since the 29th of December, 1778, report, that the capital and troops in this State were sacrificed on the said 29th of December, which was the first cause of the distresses and consequences which ensued. Your committee are of opinion that the delegates of this State should be directed to pro- mote a trial of Major-General Howe, who commanded on that day. They find that the good people of the State were still further discouraged by the said Major- General Howe crossing Savannah River the next day, with the troops that escaped from Savannah, and ordering those at Sunbury and Augusta to do the same ; leaving the State at the mercy of the enemy, without any Continental troops ; instead of retreating to the back country, and gathering the inhabitants. The country, thus abandoned, became an easy prey to the British troops, they marching up, and taking post at Augusta, and sending detachments to every part of the State."
General Howe was subsequently brought before a Court of Inquiry, but was acquitted, though he was
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never after employed in active service. In fact, at the capture of Savannah, he was only holding his com- mand until the arrival of General Benjamin Lincoln, who, on the 26th of September, 1778, was appointed by Congress to the command of the army in the Southern Department of the United States, and whose arrival was looked for by the people of the South with hope and satisfaction.
CHAPTER V.
BATTLES OF KETTLE CREEK AND BRIER CREEK.
As soon as Colonel Campbell had secured Savannah, he placed it under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Innes, aid-de-camp to Sir Henry Clinton, and pushed forward a portion of his army to Cherokee Hill, which was taken possession of on the 1st January, 1779. The next day he took the town of Ebenezer, after securing all the intermediate posts. On his march, he collected twenty horses for dragoons, and several hun- dred head of cattle; and the day after the last scat- tered remains of General Howe's army had crossed over Sister's Ferry into Carolina, he established a post at that ferry. He then proceeded, with his corps of infantry and cavalry to Mount Venture, scouring the country for fifty miles above the town, " without find- ing," as he says, " a single rebel to oppose him."
On the 4th of January, Colonel Campbell and Com- modore Parker jointly issued a proclamation, setting forth, that "a fleet and army were now actually arrived in Georgia, for the protection of the friends of lawful government, and to rescue them from the bloody per- secution of their deluded fellow-citizens." It assured all those well-disposed citizens, who reprobated the idea of supporting a French league, and who wished to embrace the happy occasion of cementing a firm
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union with the parent state, free from the imposition of taxes by the Parliament of Great Britain, and secured in the irrevocable enjoyment of every privi- lege, consistent with that union of force on which their mutual interests depend, should meet with the most ample protection, on condition "they forthwith returned to the class of peaceful citizens, and acknow- ledged their just allegiance to the crown." But to those who should attempt to oppose the re-establish- ment of legal government, the proclamation denounced against them " the utmost rigors of war." This paper, sustained by the presence of so large a force, and the expected arrival of still further reinforcements, induced many to accept its proffered mercy and protection; and they accordingly took an oath, swearing allegiance to the King, and support of his government, renouncing, as "unlawful and iniquitous," the confederacy called the " General Continental Congress ;" also, "the claim set up by them to independency, and jurisdiction of any sort, assumed by or under their authority."
It was the boast of the British commander, and one too much verified by the conduct of those who took the offered protection, that " many respectable inhabi- tants joined the army on this occasion, with their rifles and horses." These were organized into a corps of rifle dragoons, for the purpose of patrolling the country between the advanced posts of the English ; and some of the Germans at Ebenezer, also formed themselves into a corps of militia, to act in the same capacity in the vicinity of their settlement.
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