USA > Georgia > A history of Georgia : from its first discovery by Europeans to the adoption of the present constitution in MDCCXCVIII. Vol. II > Part 13
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grace and ruin upon the State. Had not the wretched spirit of faction driven McIntosh from our borders, a different story might have been told of the British operations in Georgia.
The defeat of General Ash was very beneficial to the English. It opened to them the upper and back parts of the country and put them in connection with the Indian tribes; and their boast was that fourteen hun- dred of the inhabitants of these districts had given in their adhesion to the crown, and had organized them- selves into twenty companies of militia for the defence of their property against the incursions of the rebels from South Carolina.
To the Americans it was peculiarly disastrous. The well-laid plans of General Lincoln were thwarted, the spirit of the people depressed, and the gathering rein- forcements of militia dispersed to their homes, more than ever impressed with the prowess of the British arms, and the hopelessness of the American cause.
The operations during the remainder of the spring and summer were of a very desultory character. A few troops under such gallant leaders as Colonels Twiggs, Dooly, and Clarke, kept the field as skir- mishers, moving rapidly here and there, as the exigen- cies of the times required ; now striking down a body of Tories, and now fighting hand to hand with perfidious Indians. The demonstrations which the enemy now made upon Carolina, and especially Charleston, diverted for a time their attention from Georgia, which they regarded as completely in their power. There were not wanting, however, gallant men and gallant deeds to signalize this sad period, when hope of freedom seemed to have fled from Georgia forever. The
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surprise of a party of officers at Medway, on the 4th of June, by Captain Spencer, and his capture of a British vessel of six guns in Sapello Sound; the total defeat of Captain Muller and his grenadiers, by Twiggs, at Hickory Hill, on the Ogeechee; the rout which this same gallant officer made of the party of McGirth ; and the victory which Major Baker gained the same day over a detachment under Captain Goldsmith ; diversified the history of the war, and infused for a time new energy into the few and faithful adherents of the cause of freedom.
CHAPTER V.
SIEGE OF SAVANNAH.
THE treaty between France and the United States which engaged France as our revolutionary ally, was signed at Versailles on the 6th of February, 1778, and was hailed by Americans as a happy presage of victory and independence. Agreeably to the provisions of this treaty, the French government sent to America a fleet, which sailed from Toulon on the 12th of April, 1778, composed of twelve ships of the line and four frigates, and placed it under the command of Count d'Estaing. The special object of the fleet was, by a secret and rapid movement, to blockade the mouth of the Dela- ware, then occupied by the British fleet; and, with Washington's forces on the land, besiege the British troops in Philadelphia, and thus compel Lord Howe to surrender both fleet and army to the allied powers. A passage of nearly three months across the Atlantic threw d'Estaing upon the coast twenty days too late, and the whole design was therefore frustrated. A variety of joint operations were subsequently concerted by the American and French officers, but misfortune seemed to attend all; and, somewhat discouraged, d'Estaing sailed with his ships for the West Indies,
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and there captured Grenada and St. Vincent. While at the West Indies, he was met by letters from M. Gerard (the French minister who came out in the fleet), General Lincoln, and M. Plombard, the French consul of Charleston, soliciting his co-operation with General Lincoln in the capture of Savannah, which they represented might be carried by a coup-de-main.
The Count acceded to the proposal; sailed for Ame- rica, and arrived off the coast of Georgia on the 3d of September, 1779, with twenty line of battle, two fifty- gun ships, and eleven frigates. So sudden was his ap- pearance off the bar, that he captured part of the fleet of Sir James Wallace (the son-in-law of Sir James Wright,) who was then in command of the Tybee station. The arrangements for the combined opera- tion of the armies had been determined on in Charles- ton between General Lincoln and the Vicomte de Fontanges, Adjutant-General of d'Estaing's army. Colonel Cambray, Major Thomas Pinckney, and Cap- tain Gadsden were requested by Lincoln to join d'Es- taing, who had desired some American officers conver- sant with the French to assist in the deliberations and interpretation necessary between the two nations. The time fixed upon for the junction of Lincoln and d'Estaing before Savannah, was the 17th September, previous to which the former was engaged in crossing the river with his army, rallying the militia, and calling in recruits ; while the latter proceeded with his ships to Tybee,-which post the British immediately evacu- ated,-and thence to Ossaba, where he was met by Colonel Joseph Habersham, who had been despatched to point out a place of landing, and make every arrange- ment necessary for the debarkation of the troops. At
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nightfall, on the 12th September, the soldiers were transferred to the boats of the fleet, and vessels of light draught furnished by Carolina, and proceeded twelve miles up the river to Beaulieu, the old seat of President William Stephens. The 13th, 14th and 15th were consumed in landing the troops and artillery at Beau- lieu, and in sending ashore entrenching tools at Thun- derbolt. By the evening of the 15th it had all been effected. Count Pulaski, with his cavalry, had joined the French; and, on the morning of the 16th, the French army took up the line of march for Savannah, and encamped at Greenwich, within three miles of the town. The Georgia Continentals, under General Lach- lan McIntosh, stationed at Augusta, were ordered down by Lincoln, to secure the British outposts, and open the way to the seaboard, which McIntosh effected, and then fell back to Millen's plantation, a short distance from Savannah, to await the arrival of the troops under Lincoln.
The preparations made by the British commander, for the reception of this combined army, were also prompt and vigorous.
On the 4th September, General Prevost received the first intelligence of the arrival of the French fleet off the bar. He immediately sent orders to all the out- posts to hold themselves in readiness to join him, as it was yet uncertain whether the French designed to proceed to Charleston, or land at Savannah. But, on the 7th, when it was ascertained that the fleet was designed for Georgia, expresses were sent to all the outposts, requiring them to join the commanding General at Savannah.
On the 9th, the Fowey and the Rose, of twenty
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guns each, and the Keppel and the Germain, armed vessels, retired up the river; the battery on Tybee was destroyed, the guns spiked, and the munitions removed. On the same day the following orders were issued from the head-quarters in Savannah :-
" The Regiment of Wissenbach to take their ground of encampment; likewise the 2d battalion of General Delancey's. In case of an alarm, which will be known by the beating to arms, both at the Barracks and main guard, the troops are to repair to their seve- ral posts, without confusion or tumult.
" Captain Stuart, of the British Legion, will take post with his men in the work on the right, near the river.
" The main guard to be relieved by convalescents from the Hessians.
" Major Wright's corps to send their convalescents in the old fort. Twenty-four men in the small redoubt, and seventy men in the left flank redoubt, upon the road to Tatnall's.
" The militia to assemble in rear of the Barracks.
" The Light Infantry, the Dragoons, and Carolina Light Horse, as a reserve, two hundred yards behind the Barracks.
"The King's Rangers, commanded by Lieutenant- Colonel Brown, in the small redoubt on the right, with fifty men, the remainder extending towards the larger redoubt on the right.
" The Carolinians divided equally in the two large redoubts.
"The battalion men of the 60th Regiment in the right redoubt. The Grenadiers on the left, extending along the abatis towards the Barracks; the Hessians
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on their left, so as to fill up the space to the Bar- racks.
"On the left of the Barracks, the 3d battalion of Skinner's, General Delancey's, and the New York volunteers; and on their left, the 71st Regiment, lining the abatis to the left flank redoubt, on the road to Tatnall's.
" If all orders are silently and punctually obeyed, the General makes no doubt that, if the enemy should attempt to make an attack, but that they will be re- pulsed, and the troops maintain their former well- acquired reputation ; nor will it be the first time that British and Hessian troops have beat a greater supe- riority of both French and Americans than it is probable they will have to encounter on this occasion. The General repeats his firm reliance on the spirit and steady coolness of the troops he has the honor to command."1
Having confined his views to the sole object of defending the town, General Prevost bent all his energies to make it impregnable. The cannon and ammunition of the ships of war were landed at Sa- vannah; the seamen were appointed to the different batteries, and the marines incorporated with the gre- nadiers of the 60th Regiment. The troops were employed in making fascines and cutting pickets ; while a large body of negroes were at work night and day with the engineer, Major Moncrief, making and strengthening fortifications. Fifteen batteries, thirteen redoubts, communicating, each with each, and protected by an abatis in front, were begun, and when completed manned with seventy-six guns, ranging in calibre from
1 From the original Order Book of General Prevost, in possession of I. K. Tefft, Esq., of Savannah.
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six to eighteen pounds. Even the captains and crews of the merchantmen in the river were assigned to posts of duty ; every available resource of men and means being subsidized by General Prevost.
It being apprehended that the French fleet might move up the river, the landmarks which pointed out the ship channel were cut down; the armed vessels, Rose and Savannah, and four transports, were sunk below the town, to stop up the passage; and several small vessels were also sunk above the town, and a boom laid across, to prevent the descent of fire-rafts, or the landing of troops in their rear. Such were the energetic measures taken by the British general to defend his post.
On the arrival of the American troops under Gene- ral Lincoln at Zubly's Ferry, they met with so many obstacles, that they did not reach Cherokee Hill, on the Louisville road, until the 16th; where they halted, so as to be ready, by an early march on the follow- ing morning, to join, as agreed upon, the army of d'Estaing. But d'Estaing had no sooner reached Savannah, on the 16th, than, without waiting for General Lincoln, he demanded of General Prevost a surrender of the city to the arms of the King of France, in the following summons :-
" Count d'Estaing summons his Excellency General Prevost to surrender to the arms of the King of France. He apprises him that he will be personally responsible for all the events and misfortunes that may arise from a defence, which, by the superiority of the force which attacks him, both by sea and land, is ren- dered manifestly vain and of no effect.
" He gives notice to him, also, that any resolution
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he may venture to come to, either before the attack, in the course of it, or at the moment of the assault, of setting fire to the shipping or small craft belonging to the army, or to the merchants, in the river of Sa- vannah, as well as to all the magazines in the town, will be imputable to him only.
" The situation of Hospital Hill, in the Grenadas, the strength of the three intrenchments and stone redoubts, which defended it, and the comparative dis- position of the troops before the town of Savannah, with a single detachment which carried the Grenadas by assault, should be a lesson to futurity. Humanity obliges the Count d'Estaing to recall this event to his memory ; having so done, he has nothing to reproach himself with.
" Lord Macartney had the good fortune to escape from the first transport of troops who entered a town sword in hand; but, notwithstanding the most valua- ble effects were deposited in a place supposed by all the officers and engineers to be impregnable, Count d'Estaing could not have the happiness of preventing their being pillaged.
" ESTAING."
" CAMP BEFORE SAVANNAH, the 16th of September, 1779."
The reply of Prevost, to such a grandiloquent sum- mons, was, as might have been expected, calm, but decided.
" CAMP, SAVANNAH, September 16, 1779.
"SIR-I am just now honored with your Excel- lency's letter of this date, containing a summons for me to surrender this town to the arms of his Majesty the King of France, which I had just delayed to an- swer, till I had shown it to the King's civil Governor.
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" I hope your Excellency will have a better opinion of me, and of British troops, than to think either will surrender on a general summons, without any specific terms.
" If you, sir, have anything to propose that may with honor be accepted of by me, you can mention them, both with regard to civil and military, and I will then give my answer. In the mean time, I will promise, upon my honor, that nothing, with my con- sent or knowledge, shall be destroyed, in either this town or river."
To this d'Estaing replied :-
" CAMP BEFORE SAVANNAH, Sept. 16, 1779.
" SIR-I have just received your Excellency's an- swer to the letter I had the honor of writing to you this morning. You are sensible that it is the part of the besieged to propose such terms as they may desire; and you cannot doubt of the satisfaction I shall have in consenting to those which I can accept, consistent with my duty.
" I am informed that you continue intrenching your- self. It is a matter of very little importance to me ; however, for form sake, I must desire that you will desist during our conferences together.
" The different columns which I had ordered to stop, will continue their march, but without approaching your post, or reconnoitring your situation.
"P. S. I apprise your Excellency that I have not been able to refuse the army of the United States uniting itself with that of the King.
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" The junction will probably be effected this day. If I have not an answer, therefore, immediately, you must confer in future with General Lincoln and me."
As General Prevost was hourly anticipating the arrival of the Honorable Colonel Maitland, with some eight hundred troops, from Beaufort and vicinity, he was anxious to gain time by negotiation, to enable them to reach Savannah before hostilities commenced ; and therefore he sent this note to the French com- mander :-
" September 16th, 1779.
"SIR-I am honored with your Excellency's letter in reply to mine of this day.
" The business we have in hand being of importance, there being various interests to discuss, a just time is absolutely necessary to deliberate. I am, therefore, to propose that a suspension of hostilities shall take place for twenty-four hours from this date; and to request that your Excellency will direct your columns to fall back to a greater distance, and out of sight of our works, or I shall think myself under the necessity to direct their being fired upon. If they did not recon- noitre anything this afternoon, they were sure within the distance.
" A. PREVOST."
D'Estaing suspected, and even intimated his suspi- cions of the temporizing policy of Prevost, and yet granted the boon, confident of final success over every advantage which this truce could give to the besieged, in the following terms :-
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" CAMP BEFORE SAVANNAH, September 16, 1779.
" SIR : I consent to the truce you ask. It shall con- tinue till the signal for retreat to-morrow night, the 17th, which will serve also to announce the recom- mencement of hostilities. It is unnecessary to observe to your Excellency, that this suspension of arms is entirely in your favor, since I cannot be certain that you will not make use of it to fortify yourself, at the same time that the propositions you shall make may be inadmissible.
"I must observe to you also, how important it is that you should be full aware of your own situation, as well as that of the troops under your command. Be assured that I am thoroughly acquainted with it. Your know- ledge of military affairs will not suffer you to be igno- rant, that a due examination of that circumstance, always precedes the march of the columns; and that this preliminary is not carried into execution by a mere show of troops.
"I have ordered them to withdraw before night comes on, to prevent any cause of complaint on your part. I understand that my civility in this respect, has been the occasion, that the Chevalier de Chambis, a lieutenant in the navy, has been made a prisoner of war.
"I propose sending out some small advanced posts to-morrow morning. They will place themselves in such a situation, as to have in view the four entrances into the wood, in order to prevent a similar mistake in future. I do not know whether two columns, com- manded by the Viscount de Noailles and the Count de Dillon, have shown too much ardor, or whether your VOL. II.
14
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cannoniers have not paid a proper respect to the truce subsisting between us; but this I know, that what has happened this night, is a fresh proof that matters will soon come to a decision between us one way or another.
" I have the honor to be, with respect, &c., " ESTAING."
The next day General Lincoln joined the French army, and, as mildly as possible, remonstrated against the precipitancy of the Count's movements in demand- ing a surrender prior to the stipulated junction. By the noon of the 17th, Lieutenant-Colonel Maitland, with eight hundred men from Beaufort, reached Sa- vannah, favored by a thick fog, unperceived by the French; and his presence so stimulated the besieged that, at a consultation of the higher officers of the navy and army, with the Governor and Lieutenant Governor, -it was unanimously determined to defend the place to the last extremity; and the resolution was com- municated to Count d'Estaing, with the statement that the evening gun fired an hour before sunset, would be the signal for recommencing hostilities.
Before the arrival of Colonel Maitland, with a force nearly equal to the Continentals and militia of the Americans, serious thoughts, and even incipient mea- sures had been taken for a capitulation; but the acces- sion of so much strength turned the wavering decision to firm resolve and determined resistance.
The feeling of the English, at this succor, may be inferred from the orders of the day for the 17th Sep- tember, when hostilities were to commence :-
" GENERAL ORDERS.
" CAMP BEFORE SAVANNAH, 17th September, 1779.
" Parole, Maitland. Countersign, St. George.
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" Field officers for to-morrow, Lieutenant-Colonel Cruger and Major Graham.
" The troops to be under arms this afternoon at four o'clock ; as the enemy is now very near, an attack may be hourly expected; the General, therefore, desires that the whole may be in instant readiness. By the known steadiness and spirit of the troops, he has the most unlimited dependence, doubting nothing of a glorious victory, should the enemy try their strength. What is it that may not, by the blessing of God, be expected from the united efforts of British sailors and soldiers, and valiant Hessians, against an enemy that they have often beat before ? In case of a night attack, the General earnestly requests the utmost silence to be observed, and attention to the officers, who will be careful that the men do not throw away their fire at random, and warn them earnestly not to fire until ordered."1
This unexpected decision changed the whole face of affairs, giving disappointment to the combined army, and exultation to the British. A siege was determined on, but as yet neither French nor Americans had the cannon or mortars necessary to conduct it, and time was again lost in bringing them from the fleet. On the 23d September, the armies of Lincoln and d'Estaing broke ground together, about a mile from the enemy's works-the French on the right.
" It appeared now," says an eye-witness,-Major Thomas Pinckney, "to be the determination of the General to endeavor to carry the post by regular approaches : for the enemy's lines of defence, which were scarcely begun when d'Estaing's summons was
1 Original Order-Book of General Prevost.
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given, had in that interval of ten days become formi- dable ; it extended along the sandy ridge or bluff from the swamp, below the ground now occupied by the eastern wharves, to Yamacraw, or Musgrove Creek on the west. It consisted of a chain of redoubts with batteries, the whole covered in front by a strong abatis. The principal battery appeared to be in the centre of the line, where stood, when we first approached it, a large public building of brick, but which disappeared in one night, and in a day or two a formidable battery was opened upon us from its site. The next work in importance was the Spring Hill redoubt, which com- manded Yamacraw Creek, at the mouth of which was stationed a British galley. This line was admirably adapted to the enemy's force; if it had been a closed line, their two thousand five hundred troops could not have manned the whole, especially as they were obliged to have some slight works on each flank, and to pay some attention to their front on the river, as the French had sent some vessels of war with a bomb-ketch into Back River."
The besiegers were no less active. Day after day they drew nearer and nearer-mounted more and more cannon; and, from their land and river mortars and cannon, kept up a constant fire upon the town. For two weeks this cannonading and bombarding was con- tinued, relieved only now and then by the sharp dis- charge of musketry, as parties of skirmishers met, fought, and retired. Sorties were occasionally made by the besieged, and bold attacks planned by the be- siegers. Personal prowess was often called into requi- sition, and daring bravery was often manifested as in an arena before the contending armies. One of these
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dashing movements was made on the 24th September by three companies of light infantry, under Major Gra- ham, of the 16th. At 9 o'clock he dashed out with his party, and momentarily had possession of the nearest breastwork of the Americans, but he was soon forced to retire. In the haste of pursuit, two columns of French troops pressed so far that they came within range of the guns from the redoubts, and many were slain. The loss in this sortie being, on the part of the British, twenty- one killed and wounded; while the French had over fifty. On the night of the 27th September, a party from a British picket, under Major McArthur, and the chief engineer, advanced towards the Americans in such a manner as to draw out portions of both Americans and French, and then, retiring unperceived, in consequence of the darkness, the Americans and French, each sup- posing the other the enemy, began a brisk fire upon each other. Several were killed before the mistake was discovered.
On the 4th of October, the batteries of the besieged opened on the land side with nine mortars and thirty- seven cannon, and from the broadside of the frigate La Trinité, of sixteen guns, on the river. The cannona- ding was now severe; and aware of the dreadful situ- ation of the inhabitants, Prevost beat a parley on the morning of the 6th October, and, sending in a letter to Lincoln and d'Estaing, requested permission to send the women and children down the river, and place them under protection of one of the French men-of- war; but this request the allied Generals refused, for reasons of the most urgent and politic nature, comport- ing with both the courtesy and discipline of the soldier. Much blame has been cast upon them, both by English
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and American historians, for this refusal ; but not one of them seemed to be aware that General Prevost had actually refused a similar application made by General McIntosh in behalf of his wife and family, and such other females as might choose to avail themselves of his courtesy. Had Prevost granted the request of McIntosh, on the 29th September, the allied Generals would not have refused the petition of Prevost on the 6th October. The fault then lies with the English General, and d'Estaing and Lincoln spoke truly when they wrote, " It is with regret we yield to the austerity of our functions, and we deplore the fate of those per- sons who will be the victims of your conduct, and the delusion which appears in your mind." Already had d'Estaing remained on shore longer than he had in- tended; he had landed but for a few days-a month had nearly passed, and he was not as near success as when he first paraded his troops on the bluff of Beau- lieu. The tempestuous season for this coast was at hand, and his naval officers, among whom was the celebrated La Perouse, remonstrated with him for keep- ing the ships so long upon a coast so exposed, with- out a single harbor in which they could be sheltered ; and represented the risk he was running, not only of being wrecked by the hurricane, but of capture, during the absence of so large a part of his force by superior fleets. To continue the siege by the usual advances would therefore be impossible, as, according to the opinion of the engineers, it would take ten days to reach the British lines; and, after much deliberation, it was determined to carry the town by assault, and thus, if possible, gain by a stroke what otherwise would require the operation of days. Such was the determi-
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