Book Description

"Armies of British Loyalists and Patriot militiamen fought the Battle of Kings Mountain, located about eight miles northeast of modern day Blacksburg, South Carolina, on the afternoon of 7 October 1780. Insignificant in terms of size, the Patriot victory at Kings Mountain upset the British attempts to gain permanent control of the Carolinas-and by extension fundamentally changed the course of the war in the South. The strategic and operational implications tied to the Kings Mountain battle will provide military professionals much to ponder about the nature of irregular conflict and counterinsurgency in the modern era. When viewed within the context of the British strategic goals for the Southern Campaign, the Patriot victory at Kings Mountain destroyed the British center of gravity, a well-organized Loyalist militia capable of securing South Carolina in the absence of British regulars. Not only did the disaster of Kings Mountain demoralize the surviving Loyalists, but it convinced the British ground commander, Lord Charles Cornwallis, to curtail attempts to recruit additional Loyalist militia regiments. Absent an effective Loyalist militia, the British did not have the manpower to both pacify South Carolina and continue the process of conquering the vast territory that lay between Charleston and the Chesapeake. By the time Cornwallis attempted to recruit fresh Loyalist militiamen in the time period before and after the Guilford Courthouse battle, few Tories were willing to risk their lives and property in service to the King"--