 Revolution in the Southern Colonies: Wearing Down The British
For five frustrating years, the British tried to restore the king’s authority over the rebellious American colonies. During those years the main stage was in the northern and middle colonies, centered around Boston, New York, and Philadelphia.
The most devastating setback was the 1777 defeat at Saratoga, the first great victory of the underdog colonies against the British military behemoth. The British in 1780 decided to shift venues—go south, restore the crown’s power over the four southern colonies, Georgia, North and South Carolina, and Virginia, and quell the rebellion from the geographical bottom up. Unlike in the north, this would be a venue of far lesser known names. They started with the conquest of Charleston, and after that the fighting was across the unfamiliar fields of Camden, Ninety-Six, Cowpens, King’s Mountain, the Dan River, Guilford Court House, Green Spring, Spencer’s Ordinary, and finally, Yorktown.
In this tour, led by the incomparable Ed Bearss, those dimly known names will become locked in your historic vocabulary. You will relive those campaigns, nearly all of which signified British victories at great cost, adding up to a war of steady unacceptable attrition and final loss of the colonies. As Nathaniel Greene, the general who led the American colonists in this inexorable wearing down of British might in the south, said, “We fight, get beat, rise, and fight again.”
TOUR INCLUDES
9 DAYS / 8 NIGHTS
- Historian Guide: Edwin C. Bearss
- Services of a professional tour director
- Deluxe motorcoach transportation
- All admissions to included features
- Eight nights hotel accommodations
- Eight breakfasts, four lunches, and five dinners
- Welcome briefing
- All taxes, baggage handling, & gratuities on included features
- Suggested reading list
COST:
Per person double occupancy - $3,345
Per person single occupancy - $3,895
Click to request a 2009 printed Travel Guide.
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ITINERARY
Monday, November 2
Gather at the Renaissance Hotel in Charleston, South Carolina, for a briefing and welcome dinner hosted by Ed Bearss and HistoryAmerica TOURS.
Tuesday, November 3
The British strategy was to first capture Charleston. You will relive the two expeditions of 1776 and 1780 to seize the city, visit Fort Moultrie, and overnight again in quaint, picturesque Charleston.
Wednesday, November 4
Colonists’ failures at Camden and Ninety-Six were the beginning of the attrition that would ultimately erode British power. You will visit both battles and overnight in Clinton, South Carolina.
Thursday, November 5
Today you will visit two rare but important standout American victories: King’s Mountain in October 1780, and Cowpens in January 1781. Overnight in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Friday, November 6
To elude the British, Greene launched a 200 mile “Race to the Dan” (River) at the Virginia Border. When he reemerged in North Carolina, Cornwallis attacked his troops at the Guilford Court House and carried the day but lost more ground in the war of attrition. You will revisit those events and overnight in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Saturday, November 7
Today you hear about the defeat and hanging in 1771 of a band of backcountry rebels before the war. Replay the 3-minute militia victory at Moore’s Creek, and learn of a loyalist fort that surrendered without a shot in July 1780. You spend tonight in Wilmington.
Sunday, November 8
Visit Tryon Palace, the restored residence of the royal governor of North Carolina. Follow the track of Cornwallis out of the Carolinas into Virginia. Here in 1781 he vainly tried to corner and defeat militia troops before taking a defensive position in Yorktown. Overnight in Williamsburg.
Monday, November 9
At Yorktown Cornwallis is penned in on one side by General George Washington and his American- French army, and on the other side by the French fleet of Admiral Francois de Grasse. You will hear of this great event in Yorktown where Cornwallis surrenders. Enjoy a farewell dinner in Williamsburg.
Tuesday, November 10
Depart from the airport at Norfolk, Virginia, or return to Charleston by bus and plan flights for after 6 p.m. or the following day.
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