ESTABLISHED: MARCH 2, 1917
Greene arranged his troops in three defensive lines: North Carolina militia, Virginia militia, and elite Continental Army soldiers. The plan was for the militia to weaken the advancing British and then retreat.
The British forces pushed through the first two American lines but lost significant cohesion and momentum. When they reached the final line of Continentals, fierce counterattacks by American infantry and cavalry nearly broke the British ranks.
To avoid losing his core forces, General Greene ordered an orderly withdrawal. The British held the courthouse, but at a massive cost: Cornwallis lost more than 25% of his men (killed, wounded, or captured)
A depleted Cornwallis abandoned the Carolinas and marched into Virginia. This decision left the South in American hands and ultimately led to his surrender at Yorktown seven months later.
Charles Cornwallis: “I never saw such fighting since God made me. The Americans fought like demons.”
Charles James Fox, member of Parliament: “Another such victory would ruin the British Army.”
REMEMBER THE PAST, STEVE