British Success in the Southern Theater

Despite the success of the combined American and French forces in the Middle Colonies, the southern colonies remained under British control. The British had recently captured the port cities of Savannah, Georgia and Charleston, South Carolina in 1778 and 1779. The siege at Charleston was particularly costly for Patriot forces. 5,000 Patriot soldiers were surrendered, making it the single largest loss of soldiers for the Patriot cause during the Revolutionary War.

Daniel Morgan's Assignment

On October 14, 1780, General George Washington chose Nathanael Greene to lead Patriot forces in the South against the British. Because Greene's small army of 2,300 soldiers would be no match for the British armies in the area, he decided to split it into two parts, giving command of the detachment he sent to the west of the Catawba River to Brigadier General Daniel Morgan. Morgan was to join another militia in the area and was assigned to protect the locals living in between the Broad and Pacolet Rivers.

Morgan Decides the Location of the Coming Battle

British General Charles Cornwallis, in charge of British forces in the South, ordered Banastre (Benny) Tarleton to engage Morgan's forces, and to protect a fort he mistakenly believed Morgan would attack. By disposing of Morgan's army, Cornwallis would have a clear path to invade North Carolina. When Tarelton realized Morgan's army had no intention of taking the fort, he called for reinforcements and began following Morgan, who decided to engage Tarelton at an area in between the Broad and Pacolet Rivers where cows often grazed. Morgan was said to have positioned his army in between the two rivers, so that his soldiers could not desert the army when attacked.

Morgan Defeats Tarleton's Redcoats

At 6:45 in the morning on January 17, 1781, Tarelton's exhausted and possibly malnourished army engaged Morgan's at what came to be known as Cowpens. Before Tarleton's arrival, however, Morgan had positioned his troops in formations that ultimately confused the charging British soldiers and officers. After the initial British charge, the first two lines of Patriot fighters withdrew. Tarelton believed the Patriots to be in full retreat and ordered his soldiers to charge. What Tarelton failed to account for, however, was a third line of Patriot fighters waiting for the British charge. In an attempt to chase the lines of Patriots who seemed to be in retreat, British forces charged directly into the third line of Patriots who immediately halted the British advance with a bayonet charge of their own. Many exhausted British soldiers surrendered on the spot and others turn and ran. Soon, the British army was outflanked and Patriot forces began attacking the British from behind. British forces began a disorderly retreat, despite the desperate urgings of Tarelton to continue fighting.

The Beginning of the End for the British

As the battle ended, Morgan captured 712 British soldiers. 110 British soldiers were killed in the battle. 128 Patriot soldiers were killed or wounded. The surprising Patriot victory at Cowpens served as a turning point in the Southern campaign of the Revolutionary War. Cowpens would ultimately prove to be the first step in the eventual end of the war as it caused Cornwallis to abandon South Carolina, engage General Nathanael Greene at Guilford's Courthouse in North Carolina, and eventually withdraw his battered army to Yorktown, Virginia - where his army would eventually come under siege and surrender.

Discussion Questions

1. Why was the Battle of Cowpens considered a turning point in the Revolutionary War?
2. How did Daniel Morgan’s strategy differ from typical battle tactics of the time?
3. What mistakes did Banastre Tarleton make that contributed to his defeat?
4. How did the victory at Cowpens influence Cornwallis’s later decisions?

---

Glossary

• Southern Theater: The area of military operations in the southern colonies during the Revolutionary War.
• Detachment: A smaller military unit separated from the main force.
• Bayonet: A blade that can be attached to the muzzle of a rifle for close combat.
• Flanked: Attacked from the side.
• Turning Point: An event that leads to a significant change in the outcome of a conflict.

---

Five Interesting Facts

• The British loss at Cowpens was one of their most humiliating defeats of the war.
• The siege of Charleston led to the surrender of 5,000 Patriot soldiers—the largest single loss for the Patriots.
• Morgan deliberately placed his men between rivers to prevent desertion.
• Tarleton’s forces were exhausted and malnourished before the battle.
• The Cowpens victory directly set the stage for the British surrender at Yorktown.

---

Timeline of Key Events

1. 1778 – British capture Savannah, Georgia.
2. 1779 – British seize Charleston, South Carolina.
3. May 1780 – 5,000 Patriots surrender at Charleston.
4. October 14, 1780 – Washington appoints Nathanael Greene to lead southern forces.
5. Late 1780 – Greene divides his army; Daniel Morgan takes western detachment.
6. January 1781 – Cornwallis orders Tarleton to engage Morgan.
7. January 16, 1781 – Morgan positions troops at Cowpens.
8. January 17, 1781 – Battle of Cowpens begins at 6:45 a.m.
9. January 17, 1781 – British defeated; 712 captured, 110 killed.
10. Later 1781 – Cornwallis retreats to Yorktown, leading to British surrender.

---