After the British successfully conquered Charleston in May of 1780, all hope seemed lost for South Carolina. Yet, in three distinct sections of the colony—the low-country, the midlands, and the upcountry— three leaders dared face the redcoats: Francis Marion: the “Swamp Fox”; Thomas Sumter: the “Gamecock”; and Andrew Pickens: the “Wizard Owl”. Together, these three men would usher in the Partisan Period (1780 to 1782) and sow the seeds of modern guerrilla warfare.
The British, like all European armies, believed in meeting one’s opponent in the open field, exchanging concentrated volleys, and then charging with fixed bayonets. For the heavily outnumbered “partisans” (South Carolinians loyal to the Revolution), such a confrontation would have been suicide. Instead, Marion, Sumter, and Pickens embarked upon a campaign of constant harassment by raiding British supply lines, disrupting communications, and killing as many officers and soldiers as possible.
Not surprisingly, all three men were extremely familiar with the tactics employed by native tribes. Marion, in particular, remembered how the Cherokee— during the French and Indian War—would use the landscape to their advantage and mount devastating hit and run attacks. These same tactics, once used against the colonists, would now be used against the British to exhaust them physically and mentally.
With the bulk of the British army chasing Gen. Nathaniel Greene throughout the Carolinas, the three partisan commanders quickened the pace and began picking off British garrisons one by one. Even when tactically not successful (e.g., Ninety Six, Eutaw Springs), the strategic result was always the same: less and less British soldiers to continue the fight. Ultimately, the British were forced to evacuate Charleston and therefore the colony itself in the Fall of 1782.
The effect of the partisan efforts in South Carolina cannot be underestimated. While history books and documentaries tend to focus on George Washington’s northern campaigns, it was the brutal and guerrilla warfare waged by Marion, Sumter, and Pickens that sent Cornwallis limping to Yorktown. And it was these same tactics that prevented renewed British efforts from conquering South Carolina yet again.
Indeed, nearly 60 percent of all battles and skirmishes fought during the Revolutionary War took place in South Carolina. As a direct result, the future Palmetto State would become forever known as the “bloodiest battleground” of the entire War.
The British were actually prepared to cede the northern colonies for its cash cows in Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. But thanks to the Swamp Fox, the Gamecock, and the Wizard Owl, the 13 colonies remained intact and instead, formed the United States of America.
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