Born
c. 1732, Winyah, South Carolina. Died Feb. 26, 1795, Berkeley
County, South Carolina, United States. American
military leader, who led daring raids against British troops
during the American Revolution (1775-1783).
He was born in Berkeley County, South Carolina. Marion's
military career began in 1761, when he led a successful attack
against the Cherokee. In 1775 he was
elected to the first provincial congress of South Carolina. That
same year, with America on the brink of revolution, the congress
appointed him captain of a newly organized militia. In September
1775 Marion commanded the capture of British forts in Charleston,
South Carolina. The Continental Congress
took over his regiment in 1776 and he was promoted to lieutenant
colonel. He spent the next several years of his service in South
Carolina.
When British forces captured Charleston in 1780, American troops
pulled out of South Carolina. Marion, however, stayed and organized
a small force of poorly equipped men, training them in guerrilla
tactics. Living off the land, Marion and his men harassed British
troops by staging small surprise attacks in which they captured
small groups of British soldiers, sabotaged communication and
supply lines, and rescued American prisoners. After these attacks
Marion withdrew his men to swamp country unfamiliar to the British.
Colonel Banastre Tarleton, a British
commander, gave Marion his nickname when he complained that it
was impossible to catch the "swamp fox." Near the end
of the war, Marion and American General Nathanael
Greene joined forces. In 1781 they successfully fought at
the Battle of Eutaw Springs and forced the British retreat to
North Carolina.
While still leader of his brigade, Marion was elected to the senate
of South Carolina in 1781. He was reelected in 1782 and again
in 1784, after the war had ended. In appreciation for his military
service, the state legislature appointed Marion commander of Fort
Johnson, in Charleston.
~~~~~~~~~~
"A Sketch of the Life of Brig.
General Francis Marion" By William Dobein James, A.M. (Member of Marion's Militia)
A Sketch of the Life of BRIG. GEN. FRANCIS MARION,
and A History of his Brigade, From its Rise in June, 1780, until
Disbanded in December, 1782; With Descriptions of Characters and
Scenes, not heretofore published.
By William Dobein James, A.M. During that Period one of
Marion's Militia. At Present one of the Associate Judges
in Equity, South Carolina.
~~~~~
FRANCIS MARION was born in 1732 at either at St. John's
Parish, Berkeley, or St. James's Parish, Goose Creek; the respective
homes of his father's and mother's families. 1732 is probably
correct as the year of Francis's birth, but is not absolutely
certain. Marion was of French extraction; his grandfather, Gabriel,
left France soon after the revocation of the edict of Nantz, in
1685, on account of his being a protestant, and retired from persecution
to this new world, then a wilderness; no doubt under many distresses
and dangers, and with few of the facilities with which emigrants
settle new, but rich countries, at the present day. His son, also
called Gabriel, was the father of five sons, Isaac, Gabriel, Benjamin,
Francis, and Job, and of two daughters, grandmothers of the families
of the Mitchells, of Georgetown, and of the Dwights, formerly
of the same place, but now of St. Stephen's parish.
Mr. Henry Ravenel, of Pineville, now more than 70 years of age,
knew him in the year 1758; he had then lost his father; and, removing
with his mother and brother Gabriel from Georgetown, they settled
for one year near Frierson's lock, on the present Santee canal
(South Carolina). The next year Gabriel removed to Belle Isle,
in St. Stephen's parish, late the residence of his son, the Hon.
Robert Marion.
Francis settled himself in St. John's, at a place called Pond
Bluff, from the circumstance of there being a pond at the bottom
of a bluff, fronting the river low grounds. This place is situated
about four miles below Eutaw, on the Santee; and he continued
to hold it during life. Others fix his settling in St. John's,
at a later period: this is of little consequence, but what is
of some, was that in this most useful of all stations, a tiller
of the ground, he was industrious and successful. In the same
year, 1759, the Cherokee war broke out, and he turned out as a
volunteer, in his brother's troop of provincial cavalry.
In 1761, he served in the expedition under Col. Grant,
as a lieutenant in Captain Wm. Moultrie's company, forming part
of a provincial regiment, commanded by Col. Middleton. It is believed
that he distinguished himself in this expedition, in a
severe conflict between Col. Grant and the Indians, near Etchoee,
an Indian town; but, if he did so, the particulars have not been
handed down to us, by any official account. General Moultrie says
of him, "he was an active, brave, and hardy soldier; and
an excellent partisan officer." We come now to that part
of Marion's life, where, acting in a more conspicuous situation,
things are known of him, with more certainty. In the beginning
of the year 1775, he was elected one, of what was then called
the provincial congress of South Carolina, from St. John's. This
was the public body which agreed to the famous continental association,
recommended by congress, to prevent the importation of goods,
wares, and merchandizes, from Great Britain: they likewise put
a stop to all suits at law, except where debtors refused to renew
their obligations, and to give reasonable security, or when justly
suspected of intentions to leave the province, or to defraud their
creditors; and they appointed committees in the several districts
and parishes in the state, which were called committees of public
safety, to carry these acts into effect.
The year 1780, was the most eventful one, in the annals
of South Carolina. The late failure of
the attack on Savannah; the little opposition which Gen. Prevost
met with, in a march of more than one hundred miles through the
state; the conduct of the planters, in submitting, to save their
property; and the well known weakness of the southern army; all
conspired to induce the enemy to believe, that Charleston, and
South Carolina, would become an easy prey.
Sir Henry Clinton, their commander in chief, meditating a formidable
expedition against them; with this view sailed from New York on
the 26th December, 1779, with an army, which, with subsequent
reinforcements amounted to about 12,000 men.
To oppose this great force, Gen. Lincoln had not more than two
thousand, a great part of which was militia. His head quarters
were in Charleston, where the general assembly were setting in
calm deliberation, for they had not yet heard of the rising storm.
Lieut. Col. Marion, had command of the out-post of
this little army, at Sheldon, near Pocotaligo, where he had orders
to watch the motions of Prevost, and prevent him from obtaining
supplies of provisions, from the Carolina side of Savannah river.
It was expected he was to remain here for some time, and great
confidence was reposed in him, by Gen. Lincoln, as appears by
his letters, at this period. The British were to detach small
parties through the country, and to take all the horses which
were fit, either to transport their cannon and baggage, or to
mount their cavalry. In one month after their landing, Col.
Banastre Tarleton had his legion mounted, and began his career
of slaughter.
On the 18th March, he surprised a party of 80 militia, at Saltketcher
bridge, killed and wounded several, and dispersed the rest. On
the 23d, he put to flight another party at Ponpon, killed three,
wounded one, and took four prisoners. On the 27th, near Rantowle's
bridge, he had a rencounter with Col. Washington, at the head
of his legion of 300 men; Tarleton was worsted in this affair,
and lost seven men, prisoners.
"I have given orders,
that the inhabitants of the province, who have taken part in this
revolt, should be punished with the greatest rigour; and also
those who will not turn out, that they may be imprisoned, and
their property taken from them, or destroyed. I have likewise
ordered, that compensation be made out of their estates, to the
persons who have been injured or oppressed by them. I have ordered,
in the most positive manner, that every militia man who has borne
arms with us, and afterwards joined the army, shall be immediately
hanged. I desire you will take the most rigourous measures to
punish the rebels in the district in which you command; and that
you obey in the strictest manner the directions I have given in
this letter, relative to the inhabitants of this country."
--- Lord Cornwallis
In addition to the enormity of the principle, upon
which such menwere to suffer, was the uncertainty of the law;
for Lord Cornwallis' orders are so confusedly
drawn, they will admit, as against the accused, of any latitude
of construction: yet they denounce confiscation, imprisonment
and death. Under the circumstances stated, the confiscations of
Lord Cornwallis were robberies, his imprisonments were unjust
and cruel, and his executions, always upon the gibbet, were military
murders. And if, to gain his point, he did not, like the Duke
of Alva, (employed in a similar vocation) make use of the rack,
the stake, and the faggot, yet Lord Cornwallis resorted to every
other mode of punishment, a more improved civilization had left
him, to suppress civil liberty.
Such was the character of the commander in chief of the Britishforces
in South Carolina. On one expedition (Nelson's Ferry - Nov. 1780),
Tarleton burnt the house, out houses, corn and fodder, and a great
part of the cattle, hogs and poultry, of the estate of Gen. Richardson.
The general had been active with the Americans, but was now dead;
and the British leader, in civilized times, made his widow and
children suffer for the deeds of the husband and parent, after
the manner of the East, and coast of Barbary. What added to the
cruel nature of the act, was that he had first dined in the house,
and helped himself to the abundant good cheer it afforded. But
we have seen before the manner in which he requited hospitality.
It was generally observed of Tarleton and his corps, that they
not only exercised more acts of cruelty than any one in the British
army, but also carried further the spirit of depredation.
To people of good feelings, but particularly the religious, this
period (1780 and 1781) was truly distressing. From the time of
the fall of Charleston, all public education was at an end, and
soon after, all public worship was discontinued. Men from sixty
years of age, down to boys of fourteen, (few of whom dared to
stay at home) were engaged in active and bloody warfare. These
had their minds in constant occupation, which, in whatever moral
situation a man may be placed, brings with it a certain degree
of satisfaction, if not contentment. All were actuated by the
love of country, and but few by the love of fame: and next to
the duties of religion, the exercise of those of patriotism excites
the highest energy and brings the most sublime satisfaction to
the human mind. But to the female sex, and the superannuated of
the male, little consolation of that nature could be afforded.
Even these were exposed to that kind of danger which might be
inflicted by brutality at home, and most of them had relatives
in the field to whom they were bound by the most tender and sacred
ties, who were subjected to constant dangers, and for whose fate
they were unceasingly anxious.
There was no place for the pleasures of society, for in the country
these were too remote from a home that must constantly be watched.
As a comfort in this situation females employed themselves in
domestic occupations, in which that of the distaff had a considerable
share, and all might indeed have exercised their private devotions;
but that faint picture of heaven, that sweet consolation which
is derived from associating with one's friends in public worship,
was wholly denied them. Most of the churches in towns and the
country, were either burnt or made depots for the stores of the
enemy; some in fact were converted into stables; and of the remainder,
all in the country were closed.-In a warfare of such atrocity
there was little safety in any situation where numbers were collected,
and as we have seen that the tories, by their murders, violated
the sanctity of private dwellings, how then could it be expected
they would be awed by the holiness of a church?
~~~~~
COWPENS
Gen. Moultrie received his account of this action of
the Cowpens "from an
officer of great veracity and high rank, who was conspicuous on
that day;" supposed to be Col. Washington. The substance
of his account shall now be given:
Gen. Morgan drew up his men in an open pine barren, the militia
of about four hundred men, under Col. Pickens, formed the first
line. The continentals of about five hundred men, two hundred
of whom were raw troops, formed the second line, under Col. Howard,
two hundred yards in the rear. Col. Washington, with seventy-five
continental cavalry, and forty-five militia under Capt. M'Call,
in the rear. Pickens ordered his men to reserve their fire till
the enemy came within fifty yards, which they did, and fired with
great success; but they were soon obliged to give way and retreat
behind the second line, which received them warmly; at length
the second line began to give way. Col. Washington, perceiving
this, rode up to their rear with his cavalry, and told Howard,
"if he would rally his men and charge the enemy's line, he
would charge the cavalry who were cutting down the militia."
His riding so close to the rear stopped the British, and Howard
rallied his men in the mean time, and charged with fixed bayonets.
Col. Washington charged the cavalry and routed them; the militia
at the same time recovered themselves and began to fire, and the
whole threw the enemy into the utmost confusion. Howard called
out to them, "to lay down their arms and they should have
good quarters." Upwards of five hundred men threw down their
arms and surrendered. Two hundred were left dead on the field,
and a great number wounded.
Besides the two field pieces mentioned by Tarleton, six hundred
men, eight hundred stand of arms, and thirty-five baggage waggons,
fell into the hands of the Americans. Col. Washington pursued
the British cavalry twenty-five miles.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gen. Marion's Epitaph
--------
Sacred to the Memory of BRIG. GEN. FRANCIS MARION,
Who departed this life, on the 27th of February, 1795,~ In the
Sixty-Third Year of his Age; Deeply regretted by all his fellow
citizens.
HISTORY will record his worth, and rising generations embalm his
memory, as one of the most distinguished Patriots and Heroes of
the American Revolution; which elevated his native Country TO
HONOUR AND INDEPENDENCE, and secured to her the
blessings of LIBERTY AND PEACE.
This tribute of veneration and gratitude is erected in
commemoration of the noble and disinterested virtues of the
CITIZEN; and the gallant exploits of the SOLDIER; Who lived
without fear, and died without reproach.
Taken from the marble slab at Belle Isle, this 20th September,
1821, by Theodore Gourdin.
(See Bibliography below)
| Back to Timeline
| or click on your browser's "back to previous page"
button
Brigadier General Francis Marion
