troops, commanded by Gen. Huger and Col. Williams. The British, after a brisk cannonade in front, advanced in three columns, the Hessians on the right, the guards in the centre, and Lieut. Col. Webster's brigade on the left; and attacked the front line. The militia composing this line, through the misconduct of an officer, in giving occasion to a false alarm, precipitately quitted the field. The Virginia militia stood their ground, and kept up their fire, until they were ordered to retreat. The continental troops were last engaged, and maintained the conflict with great spirit an hour and a half; but were then forced to give way before their veteran adversaries. The British broke the second Maryland brigade; turned the American left flank; and got in the rear of the Virginia brigade. On their appearing to be gaining Greene's right, and thus threatening to encircle the whole of the continental troops, a retreat was ordered, which was well conducted. The battle was fought with great bravery and effect; for although Lord Cornwallis remained master of the field, his losses in a country where he could not recruit his army, had the effect of a defeat. His loss was more than five hundred men. That of the Americans was about four hundred in killed and wounded, of which more than three fourths were continentals. 85. Battle of Eutaw Springs. On the 9th of September, 1781, Gen. Greene, having assembled about two thousand men, proceeded to attack the British, who, under the command of Col. Stewart, were posted at Eutaw Springs. The American force was drawn up in two lines: the first, composed of Carolina militia, was commanded by Generals Marion and Pickens, and Col. De Malmedy. The second, which consisted of continental troops from North Carolina, Vir Gen. Stephens, their heroic commander, had posted forty riflemen, at equal distances in the rear of this brigade, with orders to shoot every man who should leave his post. + Holmes' American Annals. ginia, and Maryland, was commanded by Gen. Sumpter, Lieut. Col. Campbell, and Col. Williams. Lieut. Col. Lee, with his legion, covered the right flank; and Lieut. Col. Henderson, with the state troops, covered the left. A corps de reserve was formed of the cavalry, under Lieut. Col. Washington, and the Delaware troops, under Capt. Kirkwood. As the Americans came forward to the attack, they fell in with some advanced parties of the enemy at about two or three miles ahead of the main body. These being closely pursued, were driven back; and the action soon became general. The militia were at length forced to give way, but were bravely supported by the second line. In the hottest part of the engagement, Gen. Greene ordered the Maryland and Virginia continentals to charge with trailed arms. This decided the fate of the day. "Nothing," says Dr. Ramsey, "could surpass the intrepidity of both officers and men on this occasion. They rushed on, in good order, through a heavy cannonade, and a shower of musketry, with such unshaken resolution, that they bore down all before them." The British were broken, closely pursued, and upwards of five hundred of them taken prisoners. They, however, made a fresh stand, in a favourable position, in impenetrable shrubs, and a picketted garden Lieut. Col. Washington, after having made every effort to dislodge them, was wounded and taken prisoner. Four six pounders were brought forward to play upon them, but they fell into their hands; and the endeavours to drive them from their station being found impracticable, the Americans retired, leaving a strong picket on the field of battle. Their loss was about five hundred; that of the British upwards of eleven hundred. Gen. Greene was honoured by congress with a British standard, and a gold medal, emblematic of the engagement and its success, "for his wise, decisive, and magnanimous conduct in the action of Eutaw Springs, in which, with a force inferior in number to that of the enemy, he obtained a most signal victory." In the evening of the succeeding day, Col. Stewart abandoned his post, and retreated towards Charleston, leaving behind upwards of seventy of his wounded, and a thousand stand of arms. He was pursued a considerable distance, but in vain. The battle of Eutaw produced the most signal consequences in favour of America. The British, who had for such a length of time, lorded it absolutely in South Carolina, were, shortly after that event, obliged to con fine themselves to Charleston.* 86. Storming of Fort Griswold. While the combined armies were advancing to the siege of Yorktown, General Arnold, the traitor, who had lately returned from Virginia, was appointed to conduct an expedition against New London. The troops employed in this service, were landed on each side of the harbour, in two detachments; the one commanded by Lieut. Col. Eyre, and the other by Gen. Arnold. New London is a seaport town, situated near the mouth of the Thames, on the west side of that river. For the defence of the place, there had been constructed, below the town, on the western side of the harbour, a fort, called Fort Trumbull, with a redoubt; and opposite to it, on Groton Hill, another fort, called Fort Griswold, a strong square fortification, insufficiently garrisoned. Fort Trumbull, the redoubt, and the town of New London, being totally untenable, were evacuated on the approach of Arnold, who took possession of them with inconsiderable loss. Fort Griswold was defended by Col. Ledyard, with a garrison of about one hundred and sixty men, some of whom had just evacuated the works on the opposite side of the river. On the rejection of a summons to surren der, the British marched up to the assault on three sides; and, though the ascent was steep, and a continued fire was directed against them, they at length made a lodg ment on the ditch and fraized work, and entered the embrasures with charged bayonets. An officer of the Morse's Revolution. |