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{{Short description|Battle of the American Revolutionary War}}
'''Green Spring, Virginia''' (also ''Greenspring'', ''Green Springs'', and ''Green Springs Farm'') is a colonial era [[plantation]] developed by Royal Governor Sir [[William Berkeley]] in [[Virginia]] northwest of [[Williamsburg, Virginia|Williamsburg]]. On [[July 6]], [[1781]] General "Mad" [[Anthony Wayne]] was repulsed at Green Springs Farm by the [[British]] army in the last major battle of the Virginia campaign prior to the siege of [[Yorktown]].
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict = Battle of Green Spring
| image = Left-Bank-James-River-Rochambeau-map.jpg
| image_size = 300
| caption = A French map depicting the battle
| partof = the [[American Revolutionary War]]
| date = July 6, 1781
| place = [[James City County, Virginia]]
| coordinates = {{Coord|37|14|06|N|76|47|06|W|display=inline,title}}
| result = British victory
| combatant1 = {{flagdeco|United States|1777}} [[Confederation period|United States]]
| combatant2 = {{flagcountry|Kingdom of Great Britain}}
| commander1 = {{flagicon|USA|1777}} [[Gilbert du Motier, marquis de Lafayette|Marquis de Lafayette]]<br>{{flagicon|USA|1777}} [[Anthony Wayne]]
| commander2 = {{flagicon|Kingdom of Great Britain}} [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Charles Cornwallis]]<br/>{{flagicon|Kingdom of Great Britain}} [[Banastre Tarleton]]
| strength1 = 800–900<ref name=C311/><ref name=L466/>
| strength2 = About 7,000<ref name=BritStrength>Clary, p. 310 cites this number as Cornwallis' approximate total strength. The forces actually engaged would have been lessened at a minimum by the absence of Simcoe's Rangers, protecting the baggage on the far side of the river (Wickwire, p. 343).</ref>
| casualties1 = 28 killed <br> 122 wounded<ref name=C311/>
| casualties2 = 75 killed and wounded<ref name=C311/>
}}
{{Campaignbox American Revolutionary War: Yorktown}}
[[File:Historic Triangle Virginia.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Green Spring's location relative to 21st-century highways]]
[[File:Virginia1781 SpencersAndGreenSpring.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Detail from a 1781 French map prepared for Lafayette depicting the Williamsburg/Jamestown area and the movements of Lafayette and Cornwallis. The Green Spring conflict is labelled "le 6 Juillet".]]


The '''Battle of Green Spring''' took place near [[Green Spring Plantation]] in [[James City County, Virginia]] during the [[American Revolutionary War]]. On July 6, 1781 [[United States]] Brigadier General "Mad" [[Anthony Wayne]], leading the advance forces of the [[Gilbert du Motier, marquis de Lafayette|Marquis de Lafayette]], was ambushed near the plantation by the [[British Army during the American War of Independence|British army]] of [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Earl Charles Cornwallis]] in the last major land battle of the [[Virginia]] campaign prior to the [[Siege of Yorktown]].
General Wayne with 800 men was unknowingly facing the entire British Army of 5,000 men under General [[Cornwallis]] at Green Spring. Wayne tried to confuse the enemy by sending marksmen forward and by sending runners back five miles to the Continental Army to let them know what he was facing. The British commander, not fooled by Wayne's ruse, began to advance. Wayne recognizing that he would be overwhelmed before the American army could arrive, organized a bayonet charge. The British, believing that no one would order such an attack without superior forces, withdrew to [[Portsmouth]], and then later to [[Battle of Yorktown (1781)|Battle of Yorktown]].


Following a month of marching and countermarching in central Virginia by Cornwallis and Lafayette, Cornwallis in late June moved to [[Williamsburg, Virginia|Williamsburg]], where he received orders to move to [[Portsmouth, Virginia|Portsmouth]] and send some of his army to [[New York City]]. Lafayette followed Cornwallis fairly closely, emboldened by the arrival of reinforcements to consider making attacks on the British force. On July 4, Cornwallis departed Williamsburg for [[Jamestown, Virginia|Jamestown]], planning to cross the [[James River]] en route to Portsmouth. Lafayette believed he could stage an attack on Cornwallis's rear guard during the crossing.
In the battle, the British had about 75 casualties and the Americans twice as many, with 28 killed.

Cornwallis anticipated Lafayette's idea, and laid an elaborate trap. General Wayne's forces were very nearly caught in the trap, and only a bold bayonet charge against the numerically superior British enabled his forces to retreat. Cornwallis did not follow the victory with pursuit, instead following his plan to cross the river. The action reinforced the perception among contemporaries that justified the moniker "Mad" to describe Wayne, although opinion on the merits of his actions was divided. The battlefield has been partially preserved, and reenactments are sometimes staged.

==Background==
{{main|Yorktown campaign|Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War}}
In May 1781, Earl [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Charles Cornwallis]] arrived in [[Petersburg, Virginia]] after a lengthy campaign through [[North Carolina|North]] and [[South Carolina]]. In addition to his 1,400 men, he assumed command of another 3,600 that had been under the command of the turncoat [[Benedict Arnold]], and was soon thereafter further reinforced by about 2,000 more sent from New York.<ref>Wickwire, p. 326. See preceding pages for details of Cornwallis' Carolina campaigning.</ref> These forces were opposed by a much smaller [[Continental Army]] force led by the [[Gilbert du Motier, marquis de Lafayette|Marquis de Lafayette]], then located at [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]].<ref>Clary, pp. 303-304</ref> Following orders originally given to Arnold's predecessor in command, [[William Phillips (British Army officer)|William Phillips]] (who died a week before Cornwallis's arrival), Cornwallis worked to eliminate Virginia's ability to support the revolutionary cause, giving chase to Lafayette's army, which numbered barely 3,000 and included a large number of inexperienced militia.<ref>Wickwire, pp. 328–329</ref><ref>Clary, p. 305</ref>

Lafayette successfully avoided engaging Cornwallis, who used his numerical advantage to detach forces for raids against economic, [[Point of Fork Arsenal#Raid and destruction|military]], and [[Elk Hill (Goochland, Virginia)|political]] targets in central Virginia. After about one month of this activity, Cornwallis turned back to the east, marching for [[Williamsburg, Virginia|Williamsburg]]. Lafayette, whose force grew to number about 4,000 with the arrival of Continental Army reinforcements under General [[Anthony Wayne]] and additional experienced militiamen under [[William Campbell (general)|William Campbell]], followed Cornwallis.<ref>Clary, pp. 303–309</ref> Buoyed by the increase in his troop strength, Lafayette also became more aggressive in his tactics, sending out detachments of his force to counteract those that Cornwallis sent on forage and raiding expeditions. One such foray led to [[Battle of Spencer's Ordinary|a clash at Spencer's Ordinary]], a crossroads not far from Williamsburg, in late June.<ref>Wickwire, p. 335</ref>

When Cornwallis arrived at Williamsburg, he received orders from General [[Henry Clinton (American War of Independence)|Sir Henry Clinton]] to go to [[Portsmouth, Virginia|Portsmouth]] and prepare a detachment of troops to return to [[New York City]]. Pursuant to these orders, Cornwallis began moving south on the [[Virginia Peninsula]] on July 4, planning to cross the wide [[James River]] at the [[Jamestown, Virginia|Jamestown]] ferry.<ref>Wickwire, pp. 340–341</ref> Lafayette followed, with advance units and most of his Continentals reaching Norrell's Mill, about {{convert|8|mi|km}} from the ferry on July 5.<ref>Johnston, p. 60</ref>

Lafayette saw an opportunity to attack the British force as it made the difficult crossing of the James. Cornwallis also recognized the possibility, and decided to lay a trap, hoping to capture a portion of Lafayette's army.<ref>Clary, pp. 310–311</ref> He only sent his baggage train and [[John Graves Simcoe]]'s [[Queen's Rangers]] across the river, and concealed his main force near the crossing. Cornwallis also sent men to "desert" to the Americans with information that most of the British force had crossed, leaving only a rear guard on the north side of the river.<ref name=W343>Wickwire, p. 343</ref>

==Prelude==
[[File:Anthony Wayne.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Brigadier General [[Anthony Wayne]], 18th-century engraving]]
The position where Cornwallis hid his army was well-chosen. To the left, impassable swampy terrain sloped down toward the river. To the right, there was more marshy ground and a few ponds. The access from the rest of the mainland toward the ferry was via a {{convert|400|yd|m|adj=on}} [[causeway]] from the [[Green Spring Plantation]] that was surrounded by marshlands that an advancing army would have to negotiate.<ref name=C311>Clary, p. 311</ref><ref name="W343"/> The earl arranged his army in two lines, with the 76th and 80th regiments along with part of the 43rd and [[Banastre Tarleton]]'s [[British Legion (American Revolution)|British Legion]] on the left, and the [[Brigade of Guards]], and [[Hessian (soldiers)|Hessian]] auxiliaries on the right. Both wings also included light infantry companies.<ref name=W343/> Cornwallis left a small company of German [[jäger (military)|jäger]]s and a few men from the Legion to give the appearance of a rear guard picket, and gave them specific orders to resist the American advance as much as possible.<ref name=W344>Wickwire, p. 344</ref>

Brigadier General "Mad" [[Anthony Wayne]] led Lafayette's advance company, about 500 men, out early on July 6 from Norrell's Tavern.<ref>Johnston, pp. 60,66</ref><ref>Clary, p. 310</ref> When Wayne reached Green Spring, he surveyed the terrain and noted the presence of the British guards. When Lafayette came up with his main force, the two men decided to go ahead with the attack, but Lafayette ordered more troops forward from Norrell's Tavern around 1 pm. Some minor skirmishing took place while they awaited these troops.<ref name=C311/><ref>Johnston, p. 61</ref> Wayne's 500 soldiers included 200 Virginia riflemen under Majors John Willis and Richard Call backed by additional light infantry led by [[John Francis Mercer]], William Galvan, and McPherson. Colonel [[Walter Stewart (general)|Walter Stewart's]] Pennsylvania Continental battalion formed the reserve. Lafayette sent forward two Pennsylvania Continental battalions under Colonels [[Richard Butler (general)|Richard Butler]] and [[Richard Humpton]], and Major John P. Wyllys' light infantry battalion. Beginning to suspect something was amiss, Lafayette held back the light infantry battalions of Colonels [[Francis Barber (Colonel)|Francis Barber]] and Joseph Vose.<ref>Boatner, p. 451</ref> The three-battalion reinforcement increased the size of the force Wayne ordered into the swamps around 3:00 pm to between eight and nine hundred men.<ref name=C311/><ref name=L466>Lossing, p. 466</ref> Wayne's force now consisted of two companies of riflemen, one of [[dragoon]]s, and most of the [[Pennsylvania Line]], and included three pieces of field artillery.<ref name=C311/><ref>Lossing, pp. 466-467</ref> As they moved out, Lafayette rode out toward a spit of land on the riverbank from which he might observe the action.<ref name=C311/>

== Battle ==
Wayne's advance force and the British pickets then began an extended skirmish lasting nearly two hours. The British forces slowly retreated, suffering significant casualties under the persistent American advance.<ref name=W344/> Wayne's riflemen performed particularly well, picking off several of the British commanding officers.<ref name=J62>Johnston, p. 62</ref> However, the tables turned around 5 pm when the Americans reached an "abandoned" gun that Cornwallis had left in the road. Their seizure of the gun was the signal for the British counterattack, which began with a barrage of [[Canister shot|canister]] and [[grape shot]], and was followed by an infantry charge.<ref name=W344/><ref name=J62/>

[[File:Opie La Fayette 1788.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Gilbert du Motier, marquis de Lafayette|Marquis de Lafayette]], portrait by [[John Opie]]]]
Lafayette, from his vantage point on the river, had spotted the main British force and realized that Wayne was entering a trap. However, he was not able to reach Wayne in time to recall him. He immediately began moving additional troops forward in an attempt to prevent the trap from closing on Wayne.<ref>Lossing, p. 468</ref> In the meantime, the British charge had thrown the Americans into some confusion, and Wayne was concerned that a retreat would turn into a disorderly [[rout]]. Wayne reformed his line, ordered his artillery to fire a blast of grape shot, and then had the line charge the overwhelming numerically superior British with bayonets fixed.<ref name=W344/>

Wayne's audacious charge worked; it successfully halted the British advance long enough for Lafayette's covering force to approach. Lafayette rode forward to assist in managing the American retreat, which began to crumble after Cornwallis personally led a countercharge.<ref name=W345/> During the retreat, two of the American guns had to be abandoned because their horses were shot, and Lafayette was also unhorsed.<ref name=C311/> As the sun was beginning to set, Cornwallis chose not to pursue the Americans, who retreated to Green Spring.<ref name=W345>Wickwire, p. 345</ref>

== Aftermath ==
British reports of casualties in the battle listed 5 officers and 70 enlisted men killed or wounded.<ref name=W345/> American casualties were reported to number about 140, including 28 killed.<ref name=C311/><ref name=W345/> Cornwallis, satisfied with the victory, did not pursue the retreating Americans, and instead crossed the James as planned and moved on to Portsmouth.<ref>Wickwire, pp. 347–349</ref> There his arrangements to embark troops were countermanded by new orders from Clinton that instead ordered him to use his force to establish a fortified naval station.<ref>Wickwire, p. 349</ref> This Cornwallis chose to do at [[Yorktown, Virginia|Yorktown]], where he was compelled to surrender after [[Siege of Yorktown|a brief siege]] in October 1781.<ref>Wickwire, pp. 349–385</ref>

[[File:Lord Cornwallis.jpg|thumb|right|upright|''[[Portrait of Lord Cornwallis]]'' by [[Thomas Gainsborough]], 1783]]
Lafayette, in his dispatches and reports throughout the later stages of the Virginia campaign, painted Cornwallis's movements to Williamsburg and Portsmouth as a retreat. These reports bolstered Lafayette's reputation, and the battle, although a tactical setback, did not harm that reputation.<ref>Clary, p. 312</ref> General Wayne wrote of his decision to charge the full British force that it was "one of those prudent, tho' daring manoeuvers which seldom fail of producing the desired effect; the result in this Instance fully Justified it."<ref name=N137>Nelson, p. 137</ref> Lafayette publicly lauded Wayne's performance, but recorded privately that Wayne made tactical mistakes and the battle read well "in a gazette".<ref name=N137/> Militia general [[Peter Muhlenberg]] blamed the loss on "the impetuosity of our brother Brigadier."<ref name=N137/> Wayne biographer Paul Nelson opines that Americans of the day could "hardly decide after the battle whether to admire Wayne for his brave and impetuous character or to condemn him as a foolhardy adventurer."<ref name=N137/>

{{Quote|Madness &mdash; Mad Anthony, by God, I never knew such a piece of work heard of &mdash; about eight hundred troops opposed to five or six thousand veterans on their own ground.|author=unknown writer|source=''New Jersey Gazette''<ref name=N137/>}}

==Legacy==
Portions of the Green Spring Plantation were purchased in 1966 by the [[National Park Service]], and are now part of the [[Colonial National Historical Park]].<ref>[[#FOGSHist|Friends of Green Spring – History]]</ref> These holdings were added to the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1978, and are, as of June 2010, open only by special arrangement.<ref>[[#FOGSLoc|Friends of Green Spring – Location]]</ref><ref>[[#NRIS|National Register Information System]]</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist|colwidth=24em}}

==References==
*{{cite book|last=Boatner |first=Mark M. III |year=1994 |title=Encyclopedia of the American Revolution |location=Mechanicsburg, Pa. |publisher=Stackpole Books |isbn= 0-8117-0578-1}}
*{{cite book|last=Clary|first=David A|title=Adopted Son: Washington, Lafayette, and the Friendship that Saved the Revolution|publisher=Bantam Books|year=2007|location=New York|isbn=978-0-553-80435-5|url=https://archive.org/details/adoptedsonwashin00clar}}
*{{cite book|last=Johnston|first=Henry Phelps|title=The Yorktown Campaign and the Surrender of Cornwallis, 1781|publisher=Harper & Brothers|year=1881|location=New York|oclc=426009|url=https://archive.org/details/yorktowncampaign00johnrich}}
*{{cite book
| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ZmQsAAAAMAAJ&q=battle+green+spring&pg=RA1-PA466
| title = The Pictorial Field-book of the Revolution
| access-date = 2008-10-13
| first = Benson John
| last = Lossing
| location = New York
| publisher = Harper & Bros
| year = 1852
| oclc = 10511753
}}
*{{cite book|last=Nelson|first=Paul David|title=Anthony Wayne, soldier of the early republic|isbn=978-0-253-30751-4|year=1985|publisher=Indiana University Press|oclc=11518827|location=Bloomington, IN|ref=Nelson|url=https://archive.org/details/anthonywaynesold00nels}}
*{{cite book|last=Wickwire|first=Franklin and Mary|title=Cornwallis: The American Adventure|url=https://archive.org/details/cornwallisameric00wick|url-access=registration|location=Boston|publisher=Houghton Mifflin|year=1970|oclc=62690}}
*{{cite web |publisher=Friends of Green Spring |title=Friends of Green Spring - History |url=http://www.historicgreenspring.org/plantation_history.php |access-date=2010-06-17 |ref=FOGSLoc |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100417022117/http://www.historicgreenspring.org/plantation_history.php |archive-date=2010-04-17 }}
*{{cite web|publisher=Friends of Green Spring |title=Friends of Green Spring - Location |url=http://www.historicgreenspring.org/plantation_location.php |access-date=2010-06-17 |ref=FOGSLoc |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716141202/http://www.historicgreenspring.org/plantation_location.php |archive-date=2011-07-16 }}
*{{NRISref|2010a}}


==External links==
==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060519022916/http://www.secondvirginia.org/ The 2d Virginia Regiment, Inc.] (reenactors of the battle)
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20051222172240/http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/online_books/hh/14/hh14a1.htm NPS Yorktown Battlefield: Background on Green Spring]
*[http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/people_wayne.html History of War, General Anthony Wayne]
*[http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/people_wayne.html History of War, General Anthony Wayne]
*[http://www.rootsweb.com/~valancas/docs/WhiteRevPen.html First hand account of the battle by a private]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20050116201155/http://www.rootsweb.com/~valancas/docs/WhiteRevPen.html First hand account of the battle by a private]
*{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20080517021607/http://www.connecticutsar.org/articles/diary.htm Diary transcriptions for 1781-1782 from apparently an unknown member of Anthony Wayne's Pennsylvania Light Infantry]}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110716141131/http://www.historicgreenspring.org/voices/samuel_clark_hero.pdf Samuel Clark oral history]
*[http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=2440 Virginia Historical Marker]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060116061124/http://www.battleofgreenspring.org/ 225th Anniversary commemoration of the Battle of Green Spring re-enactment]

{{Virginia during the American Revolutionary War}}
{{Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette}}
{{Authority control}}

{{Good article}}


[[Category:Battles of the American Revolutionary War|Yorktown (1781)]]
[[Category:1781 in the United States]]
[[Category:Virginia history]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1781|Green Spring]]
[[Category:1781]]
[[Category:Battles of the Yorktown Campaign|Green Spring]]
[[Category:Battles involving Great Britain|Green Spring]]
[[Category:Battles involving the United States|Green Spring]]
[[Category:James City County, Virginia]]
[[Category:1781 in Virginia]]

Latest revision as of 02:57, 15 December 2024

Battle of Green Spring
Part of the American Revolutionary War

A French map depicting the battle
DateJuly 6, 1781
Location
James City County, Virginia
37°14′06″N 76°47′06″W / 37.23500°N 76.78500°W / 37.23500; -76.78500
Result British victory
Belligerents
United States  Great Britain
Commanders and leaders
United States Marquis de Lafayette
United States Anthony Wayne		 Kingdom of Great Britain Charles Cornwallis
Kingdom of Great Britain Banastre Tarleton
Strength
800–900[1][2] About 7,000[3]
Casualties and losses
28 killed
122 wounded[1]		 75 killed and wounded[1]
Green Spring's location relative to 21st-century highways
Detail from a 1781 French map prepared for Lafayette depicting the Williamsburg/Jamestown area and the movements of Lafayette and Cornwallis. The Green Spring conflict is labelled "le 6 Juillet".

The Battle of Green Spring took place near Green Spring Plantation in James City County, Virginia during the American Revolutionary War. On July 6, 1781 United States Brigadier General "Mad" Anthony Wayne, leading the advance forces of the Marquis de Lafayette, was ambushed near the plantation by the British army of Earl Charles Cornwallis in the last major land battle of the Virginia campaign prior to the Siege of Yorktown.

Following a month of marching and countermarching in central Virginia by Cornwallis and Lafayette, Cornwallis in late June moved to Williamsburg, where he received orders to move to Portsmouth and send some of his army to New York City. Lafayette followed Cornwallis fairly closely, emboldened by the arrival of reinforcements to consider making attacks on the British force. On July 4, Cornwallis departed Williamsburg for Jamestown, planning to cross the James River en route to Portsmouth. Lafayette believed he could stage an attack on Cornwallis's rear guard during the crossing.

Cornwallis anticipated Lafayette's idea, and laid an elaborate trap. General Wayne's forces were very nearly caught in the trap, and only a bold bayonet charge against the numerically superior British enabled his forces to retreat. Cornwallis did not follow the victory with pursuit, instead following his plan to cross the river. The action reinforced the perception among contemporaries that justified the moniker "Mad" to describe Wayne, although opinion on the merits of his actions was divided. The battlefield has been partially preserved, and reenactments are sometimes staged.

Background

[edit]
Main articles: Yorktown campaign and Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War

In May 1781, Earl Charles Cornwallis arrived in Petersburg, Virginia after a lengthy campaign through North and South Carolina. In addition to his 1,400 men, he assumed command of another 3,600 that had been under the command of the turncoat Benedict Arnold, and was soon thereafter further reinforced by about 2,000 more sent from New York.[4] These forces were opposed by a much smaller Continental Army force led by the Marquis de Lafayette, then located at Richmond.[5] Following orders originally given to Arnold's predecessor in command, William Phillips (who died a week before Cornwallis's arrival), Cornwallis worked to eliminate Virginia's ability to support the revolutionary cause, giving chase to Lafayette's army, which numbered barely 3,000 and included a large number of inexperienced militia.[6][7]

Lafayette successfully avoided engaging Cornwallis, who used his numerical advantage to detach forces for raids against economic, military, and political targets in central Virginia. After about one month of this activity, Cornwallis turned back to the east, marching for Williamsburg. Lafayette, whose force grew to number about 4,000 with the arrival of Continental Army reinforcements under General Anthony Wayne and additional experienced militiamen under William Campbell, followed Cornwallis.[8] Buoyed by the increase in his troop strength, Lafayette also became more aggressive in his tactics, sending out detachments of his force to counteract those that Cornwallis sent on forage and raiding expeditions. One such foray led to a clash at Spencer's Ordinary, a crossroads not far from Williamsburg, in late June.[9]

When Cornwallis arrived at Williamsburg, he received orders from General Sir Henry Clinton to go to Portsmouth and prepare a detachment of troops to return to New York City. Pursuant to these orders, Cornwallis began moving south on the Virginia Peninsula on July 4, planning to cross the wide James River at the Jamestown ferry.[10] Lafayette followed, with advance units and most of his Continentals reaching Norrell's Mill, about 8 miles (13 km) from the ferry on July 5.[11]

Lafayette saw an opportunity to attack the British force as it made the difficult crossing of the James. Cornwallis also recognized the possibility, and decided to lay a trap, hoping to capture a portion of Lafayette's army.[12] He only sent his baggage train and John Graves Simcoe's Queen's Rangers across the river, and concealed his main force near the crossing. Cornwallis also sent men to "desert" to the Americans with information that most of the British force had crossed, leaving only a rear guard on the north side of the river.[13]

Prelude

[edit]
Brigadier General Anthony Wayne, 18th-century engraving

The position where Cornwallis hid his army was well-chosen. To the left, impassable swampy terrain sloped down toward the river. To the right, there was more marshy ground and a few ponds. The access from the rest of the mainland toward the ferry was via a 400-yard (370 m) causeway from the Green Spring Plantation that was surrounded by marshlands that an advancing army would have to negotiate.[1][13] The earl arranged his army in two lines, with the 76th and 80th regiments along with part of the 43rd and Banastre Tarleton's British Legion on the left, and the Brigade of Guards, and Hessian auxiliaries on the right. Both wings also included light infantry companies.[13] Cornwallis left a small company of German jägers and a few men from the Legion to give the appearance of a rear guard picket, and gave them specific orders to resist the American advance as much as possible.[14]

Brigadier General "Mad" Anthony Wayne led Lafayette's advance company, about 500 men, out early on July 6 from Norrell's Tavern.[15][16] When Wayne reached Green Spring, he surveyed the terrain and noted the presence of the British guards. When Lafayette came up with his main force, the two men decided to go ahead with the attack, but Lafayette ordered more troops forward from Norrell's Tavern around 1 pm. Some minor skirmishing took place while they awaited these troops.[1][17] Wayne's 500 soldiers included 200 Virginia riflemen under Majors John Willis and Richard Call backed by additional light infantry led by John Francis Mercer, William Galvan, and McPherson. Colonel Walter Stewart's Pennsylvania Continental battalion formed the reserve. Lafayette sent forward two Pennsylvania Continental battalions under Colonels Richard Butler and Richard Humpton, and Major John P. Wyllys' light infantry battalion. Beginning to suspect something was amiss, Lafayette held back the light infantry battalions of Colonels Francis Barber and Joseph Vose.[18] The three-battalion reinforcement increased the size of the force Wayne ordered into the swamps around 3:00 pm to between eight and nine hundred men.[1][2] Wayne's force now consisted of two companies of riflemen, one of dragoons, and most of the Pennsylvania Line, and included three pieces of field artillery.[1][19] As they moved out, Lafayette rode out toward a spit of land on the riverbank from which he might observe the action.[1]

Battle

[edit]

Wayne's advance force and the British pickets then began an extended skirmish lasting nearly two hours. The British forces slowly retreated, suffering significant casualties under the persistent American advance.[14] Wayne's riflemen performed particularly well, picking off several of the British commanding officers.[20] However, the tables turned around 5 pm when the Americans reached an "abandoned" gun that Cornwallis had left in the road. Their seizure of the gun was the signal for the British counterattack, which began with a barrage of canister and grape shot, and was followed by an infantry charge.[14][20]

Marquis de Lafayette, portrait by John Opie

Lafayette, from his vantage point on the river, had spotted the main British force and realized that Wayne was entering a trap. However, he was not able to reach Wayne in time to recall him. He immediately began moving additional troops forward in an attempt to prevent the trap from closing on Wayne.[21] In the meantime, the British charge had thrown the Americans into some confusion, and Wayne was concerned that a retreat would turn into a disorderly rout. Wayne reformed his line, ordered his artillery to fire a blast of grape shot, and then had the line charge the overwhelming numerically superior British with bayonets fixed.[14]

Wayne's audacious charge worked; it successfully halted the British advance long enough for Lafayette's covering force to approach. Lafayette rode forward to assist in managing the American retreat, which began to crumble after Cornwallis personally led a countercharge.[22] During the retreat, two of the American guns had to be abandoned because their horses were shot, and Lafayette was also unhorsed.[1] As the sun was beginning to set, Cornwallis chose not to pursue the Americans, who retreated to Green Spring.[22]

Aftermath

[edit]

British reports of casualties in the battle listed 5 officers and 70 enlisted men killed or wounded.[22] American casualties were reported to number about 140, including 28 killed.[1][22] Cornwallis, satisfied with the victory, did not pursue the retreating Americans, and instead crossed the James as planned and moved on to Portsmouth.[23] There his arrangements to embark troops were countermanded by new orders from Clinton that instead ordered him to use his force to establish a fortified naval station.[24] This Cornwallis chose to do at Yorktown, where he was compelled to surrender after a brief siege in October 1781.[25]

Portrait of Lord Cornwallis by Thomas Gainsborough, 1783

Lafayette, in his dispatches and reports throughout the later stages of the Virginia campaign, painted Cornwallis's movements to Williamsburg and Portsmouth as a retreat. These reports bolstered Lafayette's reputation, and the battle, although a tactical setback, did not harm that reputation.[26] General Wayne wrote of his decision to charge the full British force that it was "one of those prudent, tho' daring manoeuvers which seldom fail of producing the desired effect; the result in this Instance fully Justified it."[27] Lafayette publicly lauded Wayne's performance, but recorded privately that Wayne made tactical mistakes and the battle read well "in a gazette".[27] Militia general Peter Muhlenberg blamed the loss on "the impetuosity of our brother Brigadier."[27] Wayne biographer Paul Nelson opines that Americans of the day could "hardly decide after the battle whether to admire Wayne for his brave and impetuous character or to condemn him as a foolhardy adventurer."[27]

Madness — Mad Anthony, by God, I never knew such a piece of work heard of — about eight hundred troops opposed to five or six thousand veterans on their own ground.

— unknown writer, New Jersey Gazette[27]

Legacy

[edit]

Portions of the Green Spring Plantation were purchased in 1966 by the National Park Service, and are now part of the Colonial National Historical Park.[28] These holdings were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978, and are, as of June 2010, open only by special arrangement.[29][30]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Clary, p. 311
  2. ^ a b Lossing, p. 466
  3. ^ Clary, p. 310 cites this number as Cornwallis' approximate total strength. The forces actually engaged would have been lessened at a minimum by the absence of Simcoe's Rangers, protecting the baggage on the far side of the river (Wickwire, p. 343).
  4. ^ Wickwire, p. 326. See preceding pages for details of Cornwallis' Carolina campaigning.
  5. ^ Clary, pp. 303-304
  6. ^ Wickwire, pp. 328–329
  7. ^ Clary, p. 305
  8. ^ Clary, pp. 303–309
  9. ^ Wickwire, p. 335
  10. ^ Wickwire, pp. 340–341
  11. ^ Johnston, p. 60
  12. ^ Clary, pp. 310–311
  13. ^ a b c Wickwire, p. 343
  14. ^ a b c d Wickwire, p. 344
  15. ^ Johnston, pp. 60,66
  16. ^ Clary, p. 310
  17. ^ Johnston, p. 61
  18. ^ Boatner, p. 451
  19. ^ Lossing, pp. 466-467
  20. ^ a b Johnston, p. 62
  21. ^ Lossing, p. 468
  22. ^ a b c d Wickwire, p. 345
  23. ^ Wickwire, pp. 347–349
  24. ^ Wickwire, p. 349
  25. ^ Wickwire, pp. 349–385
  26. ^ Clary, p. 312
  27. ^ a b c d e Nelson, p. 137
  28. ^ Friends of Green Spring – History
  29. ^ Friends of Green Spring – Location
  30. ^ National Register Information System

References

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  • Boatner, Mark M. III (1994). Encyclopedia of the American Revolution. Mechanicsburg, Pa.: Stackpole Books. ISBN 0-8117-0578-1.
  • Clary, David A (2007). Adopted Son: Washington, Lafayette, and the Friendship that Saved the Revolution. New York: Bantam Books. ISBN 978-0-553-80435-5.
  • Johnston, Henry Phelps (1881). The Yorktown Campaign and the Surrender of Cornwallis, 1781. New York: Harper & Brothers. OCLC 426009.
  • Lossing, Benson John (1852). The Pictorial Field-book of the Revolution. New York: Harper & Bros. OCLC 10511753. Retrieved 2008-10-13.
  • Nelson, Paul David (1985). Anthony Wayne, soldier of the early republic. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-30751-4. OCLC 11518827.
  • Wickwire, Franklin and Mary (1970). Cornwallis: The American Adventure. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. OCLC 62690.
  • "Friends of Green Spring - History". Friends of Green Spring. Archived from the original on 2010-04-17. Retrieved 2010-06-17.
  • "Friends of Green Spring - Location". Friends of Green Spring. Archived from the original on 2011-07-16. Retrieved 2010-06-17.
  • "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
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