When the American Revolution happened, many Americans felt that the revolution was doomed to failure. The low morale led samuel adams, the representative of Continental Congress in Philadelphia, Massachusetts, to worry that those who opposed independence in 1776 would control Congress and make peace with Britain. In the past two years, three American troops lost nearly 8000 people in the fighting in the south; Georgia and South Carolina seem to have been reoccupied by Britain; Rebellion broke out in the mainland army and the national economy fell into chaos. Washington knew that he had written to Lawrence and said, "The people are not satisfied." Convinced that the army was in danger of collapse, Washington secretly predicted that 178 1 would prove the last chance for the United States to win the war. It is nothing more than an unresolved "Great Revolution". It is "in crisis"
However, just a few months later, 10' s decisive victory in Yorktown, Virginia in June will change the fate of the United States and save the American revolution. This victory enabled a former foundry manager who had no military experience at the beginning of the war to carry out a major battle for more than 100 days, reaching * * *. However, as Richard Henry Lee, the founding father of Virginia, later told Green, the 38-year-old General nathanel greene would "liberate a large part of this alliance from tyranny and oppression". When they met at 1783,
At the beginning of the war, Britain has been committed to conquering New England. However, by 1778, this is obviously impossible. 1777 10, Britain was defeated in Saratoga, new york, and British general John Bogokin attempted to invade from Canada, killing 7,600 people, forcing London to adopt a new strategy. Britain now believes that cash crops such as tobacco and rice in the south are closely linked to the British market. In addition, there are many people loyal to Britain in the region, that is, Americans who continue to stand on the side of Britain. According to the so-called southern strategy that appeared in 1778, Britain will try to recapture its four former southern colonies, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia, by expelling the rebels there. Then, loyalists (also known as conservatives) will occupy peaceful and conquered areas. If this plan is successful, Britain will gain several provinces from chesapeake bay to Florida. Its American empire will continue to be huge and profitable, surrounded by a greatly reduced and fragile United States.
At the beginning, the new strategy was a great success. 1778 12. Britain occupied Savannah and stripped off the "first stripe and star on the flag of the Congress rebels" boasted by Archibald Campbell, a British lieutenant colonel who conquered the city. Charleston fell after 17 months. 1780 In August, the Red Army defeated the army led by Major General horatio gates in Camden, South Carolina. For Americans, desperate situations require extreme measures. Congress removed Gates and asked Washington to appoint a successor to command the mainland army in the south. He chose green.
The rapid rise of Nathaniel Green is almost unpredictable. Natanael is a Quaker. His only formal education is a short-term mobile tutor job. When he was a teenager, he was assigned to work in a family-owned sawmill and iron works. 1770, Tarleton, with his reputation of diligence and ruthlessness, under the leadership of Colonel Abraham Bufford, wiped out the only remaining 350 Virginians in the area. Tarleton's 270 troops caught up with Bufford's retreating soldiers on May 29th and quickly defeated them. However, when every continent asked a quarter of the people to beg for mercy, Tarleton's army laid down its arms, hacked three quarters of the people to death and stabbed them with bayonets. "The virtue of human nature has been completely forgotten," recalled Charles steadman, a loyal witness, in his description of the 1794 incident. Since then, "bloody Tarleton" and "a quarter of Tarleton" have become a name for the southern rebels. Shortly after the Bufford Massacre, guerrillas were formed under the orders of Thomas Sumte, Francis Marion and Andrew pickens. They all took part in the brutal Cherokee War in South Carolina 20 years ago, which provided education for irregular wars. Soon, these organizations emerged from swamps and forests, harassed the supply trains of the Red Army, ambushed the hay party and plundered loyalists. Cornwallis ordered that the rebels would be punished "most severely".
However, two months of hard fighting failed to quell the rebellion. At the end of summer, Cornwalli wrote to Sir henry clinton of new york and Mandel, a British soldier in North America, acknowledging that this remote area was now "in an absolute state of rebellion". After admitting the risk of expanding the war before the rebellion was suppressed, Cornwalli remained convinced. He told Clinton that he had to invade North Carolina, which was a "great effort to improve the army."
1September, 780, 2,200 people from Cornwall went north to Charlotte. At the same time, he sent 350 loyal Scottish militiamen, led by 36-year-old Scottish Major Patrick Ferguson, to assemble loyal troops in western North Carolina. Ferguson was drafted into the army and his strength tripled in two weeks. However, there were also rebels from Carolina, Georgia, Virginia and now remote areas in eastern Tennessee. More than/kloc-0.000 people gathered in Wu Tong Shoal, North Carolina, and then set out with the support of the Conservative Party. /kloc-0 At the beginning of 0/0, they met Ferguson on King's Hill near the Carolina border.
There, Colonel william campbell, the leader of Virginians, a giant with red hair and 6 feet 6 inches, married the sister of Patrick Henry, a patriot of the fire brigade, and advised his men to "scream like hell and fight like the devil". In fact, when the rebels rushed up the steep hillside, they screamed the terrible battle slogan they learned from Indian soldiers. At the summit, they overwhelmed the enemy and shouted "Bufford! Bufford! Tarleton's territory! " The winner killed Ferguson and desecrated his body. The loyalists were killed after surrendering. In all, more than 1000 people were killed or captured.
After hearing the news, Kangwa Reese, who was still in Charlotte, immediately retreated 60 miles south to Winsboro, South Carolina. He stayed there until June 65438+February, when he learned that Green had taken over the mission of the Continental Army and redeployed it to Hillsborough, North Carolina, about 165 miles northeast. Cornwallis knew that Green was only a quarter of the British army. The spy also told him that Green had made a potentially fatal mistake: he split his army in front of an enemy who was superior in number.
Green said that in that bold action, "partly out of choice and partly out of necessity", he handed over 600 people to General Daniel Morgan, a strong former jockey who joined the army on 1775. After Morgan was sent to the west of Charlotte, Green led the remaining 800 troops to the east of Pitty River 120 miles. His strategy is simple: if Cornwallis pursues Green, Morgan can liberate the British stronghold in western South Carolina; If Britain pursues Morgan, Green wrote in a letter that nothing can stop Green's army from attacking British strongholds. He also told him that Cornwallis enjoys a quantitative advantage of two to one. Although Morgan had considerable advantages, he stopped to wait for Green's order after crossing the Catoba River on October 23rd, 65438/KLOC-0. Five days later, he was still there when he learned that the enemy was approaching ten miles. ""I'm a little worried, "Morgan admitted in a letter to Green." My numbers are … too weak to beat them … It is wise to join our army. "Later that day, Cornwallis army reached the other side of Katoba. But the god of war is with Morgan. It began to rain. Hour after hour of downpour turned the river into a turbulent and insurmountable barrier. Cornwallis was stopped on the road for nearly 60 hours.
Green didn't know about Coppens until June 24th, 65438. Although the news triggered a grand celebration at his headquarters, it took him two days to discover that Morgan had been waiting for orders in Kataba. Green sent most of his soldiers to Salisbury, 30 miles east of Katoba, where it was relatively safe. Then, under the cover of several guards and his small staff, he set out to join Morgan and rode an 80-mile mud truck through the sphere of influence of the Conservative Party. As he rode, Green considered his options: resisting Cornwallis in Katoba, or ordering Morgan's men to retreat eastward and contacting their partners near Salisbury. Green finally said that his decision would depend on whether the local militia provided sufficient reinforcements to Morgan.
But when he arrived in Morgan on October 30th, 65438/KLOC-0, Green learned that only 200 militiamen appeared. He immediately wrote to Congress angrily, saying that despite his call for reinforcements, "almost nothing was done" ... nothing could save the country except well-equipped troops. "Green ordered a retreat to Courthouse Village in guildford, North Carolina, 75 miles east. He also requisitioned "ships and sailors" to transport his troops across the river ahead, and called on the civil administration to reinforce "Great God, why can't we have more people?" He wrote in dismay to Thomas Jefferson, then governor of Virginia.
If enough soldiers arrive at the courthouse in guildford when his allies arrive, Green can go to war with Cornwallis. If not, he will continue to head north toward the Dan River and cross Virginia, where he will wait for more troops. Green prefers fighting, but he also sees that his retreat is pulling Cornwallis deeper and deeper inland and farther away from reinforcements, forcing the British to look for every bit of food. Moreover, since Ramsurmir's bonfire party, the Red Army has no tents and enough winter clothes. Green hopes that cold weather and hard travel will further weaken them, because rain has become a quagmire.
Green 65438+1October 3 1 set out, but there was no Morgan. This subordinate has had back problems since last autumn; Now, Morgan said, "The pain in my hip ... makes me fully capable of serving in active service." Green sent him to the front to join the English prisoners who were taken from Cowpens to Winchester, Virginia. Green, with Morgan's men, directed his troops to the Yadkin River, seven miles outside Salisbury, hoping that the transport ship would wait for them there.
After Green crossed Kataba 12 hours, Cornwalli began to drive his troops there. Because there were no boats, the British had to wade through the icy four-foot river in the face of the raging river, while the militia in North Carolina, Green's defense force, kept firing at their troops. Cornwally's own horse was shot from under him. "I saw them snoring, yelling and drowning," wrote a conservative. When the last member of Kangwa Reese crossed the 500-yard-wide river, Green had extended his lead to 30 miles.
Kangwa Reese moved on, hoping that the rain of Katoba's enemies would prove his ally in Adikin; If it continues, the rebels may be trapped. He kept it for hundreds of hours. He once pulled a supply truck and ordered two soldiers in red to climb over every mountain. The whole army advanced in the mud and approached their quarry. Green went to Adikin first, where he did find the ship waiting for him. But as Cornwallis hoped, Green faced a river stirred by the flood. Trying to cross is dangerous; It's crazy to stand by the river and resist. Green ordered his army to board the ship. This is a painful crossing; The boat almost capsized, and it was difficult for Green to make it through himself. His defender exchanged shots with Cornwall's striker. But for the British, it is unthinkable to have no boat. Within a week, Cornwallis was blocked by the raging river for the second time.
Marching under the dangerous sky, Americans are now rushing to the court in guildford. There, the armies of Green's two divisions finally reunited, and they separated before Christmas. Green called a war committee to decide whether to fight or retreat to Virginia. His officers knew that their troops were at least over 1000, so they voted unanimously to "avoid taking general action at all costs" and retreat.
Cornwallis also calmed down and waited for five days to pass Adikin. His men were exhausted, but the general was possessed. If he can destroy Green, there won't be a mainland soldier left in southern Virginia. Cornwalli envisioned taking his troops to Virginia, where he would cut off the supply lines of guerrillas in Carolina and Georgia. He was convinced that once the guerrillas were deprived of their lifeline, they could not persist. Cornwallis believes that it is within his power to improve Britain's southern strategy. He persevered again. But Green's determination has not weakened at all. He told the governor of North Carolina that although "evil is approaching rapidly", he "is not without hope of destroying Lord Cornwallis."
The last stop of the pursuit began in February 10, and the red army was exhausted from the cold and stubbornly evacuated. The next day, Green, 25 miles in front of guildford Court, set out for Boyd Ferry on the Dan River. Green knows that he must stay ahead. He wrote: "Our army is extremely unequal to the enemy in number and conditions, and the battle with Kangwa Reese will mean" the inevitable destruction of the army. "
Green split his army again. He replaced the incapacitated Morgan with Colonel Oswald Williams. Colonel Oso Williams is a 32-year-old former civil servant in Frederick, Maryland. He fought in Canada and new york. Williams will take 700 people to the northwest, as if he planned to cross the Ford River in the upper Dane River. Green, demanding a larger division of about 1300 people, will stay in the east and March directly to a crossroads downstream. Williams, every minute counts. He wakes up his soldiers at 3 o'clock every morning and stops for a quick breakfast after they March for four hours. He didn't let them rest until nightfall, because they had six hours to eat dinner and sleep.
But if the rebels act quickly, Kangwa will act even faster. By February 13, he had narrowed the gap with Williams to only 4 miles. Although Cornwally knew he couldn't catch Green's troops before they reached Dan River, he believed he could attack Williams on the river and give him a fatal blow. The spy reported that Williams had no boat.
But Cornwallis was cheated. Williams followed closely and suddenly turned to the ferry between Green and Boyd as planned. Mr. Green has ordered the ship to be ready at that place. The next day, February 65438+4, 2004, he reached the river and crossed it. He immediately wrote to Williams: "All our troops are finished ... I am ready to meet you and give you my heartfelt wishes." Williams just arrived at Dan's house the next night. 10 hours later, in the red light of the sunrise in February 16, Cornwalli arrived in time to witness the last rebel soldier set foot on the other side of the Dan River.
The hunt is over. Green's people have walked 200 miles and passed Green's announcement. It is expected that there will be no "further damage to the country". The rest of the British troops are hiding in Savannah and Charleston.
Just nine months ago, Carolina and Georgia seemed to have disappeared. Even if it survives as a fragile alliance with no more than 10, it will leave this new country behind. Green's campaign saved at least three southern states. Now, the presence of Kangwa Rees in Virginia gives General Washington and American allies the possibility of a decisive victory. In August, Washington and his French opponent, Count Rochampo, learned that a French fleet led by Count Glass set off from the Caribbean with 29 heavy warships and 3 heavy warships, and went to Chesapeake with 200 people. Both of them knew that Cornwallis army had camped in Yorktown, Richmond Peninsula, near its destination, Desgres. When the French-American allied forces went south from new york, Washington asked the Marquis of lafayette and his mainland troops to confine Kangwa Reese to the peninsula. In late September, when the Allies arrived outside Yorktown, they found that lafayette had surrounded Reese and Kangwa, and Glass's fleet prevented the Royal Navy from entering Chesapeake to rescue the besieged troops in red.
Kangwa Reese is trapped. His 9,000 men faced 7,800 French soldiers, 8,000 continents and 365,438,000 American militiamen. An American soldier pointed out that the allies "dug a hole in Cornwall and left nothing but him." The allies launched a siege. Cornwalli persisted for three weeks, but by the middle of 10, with the outbreak of disease in the army, his men could only eat half of the rations, and he began to negotiate surrender. Two days later, in June 10, 19, under a clear autumn sky, Cornwallis soldiers appeared from Yorktown Village. They laid down their weapons and marched between the French on the left and the Americans on the right. This is the decisive route that Washington has been seeking for a long time, which initiated the negotiations that eventually led to Britain's recognition of American independence. After Cornwallis surrendered,
General Washington congratulated the army on its "glorious event", which will bring "universal joy" to "every * * *" in the United States. Cornwallis wrote in new york's letter to General Clinton: "I am ashamed to tell you that I was forced ... to surrender to the army under my orders." He didn't attend the surrender ceremony on the grounds of illness.
Washington understood that Green's campaign saved the American Revolution. Last February, 65438, he told Green, "No one ... forbids you to do great things with few means." Thomas Paine told Green that "saving and serving the country" is the noblest achievement. General Knox declared that there was no "army, no means, nothing, and Green worked miracles". For green, the most important tribute is to be awarded a congressional medal with his portrait and the inscription "outstanding leader"; There is a Latin word engraved on the back, which means: "South Security Division. The enemy conquered. ...
Green said nothing about his achievements, preferring to express his gratitude to his subordinates. When he finally left the army in July 1783, Green praised his "outstanding" soldiers: "No army," he declared, "has never shown such obedience and perseverance, because no army has suffered so much."
At first, when Green retired, he lived in Newport, Rhode Island and Charleston, South Carolina. Georgia thanked him for his role in the process of liberating the South, and gave Green a rice plantation called Sanglin outside Savannah. 1In the autumn of 785, he and Catherine moved to the manor. However, they only lived there for eight months, and Green died of infection or heatstroke in June 1786. He is 43 years old.
Historian John Flynn is the author of "Almost Miracle: Victory of American Revolutionary War", which was published by Oxford University Press last month.