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Added to "Battle of Camden"
On the advice of Colonel Williams with the Continentals, Gates ordered Stevens' Virginia militia to open the battle with an advance on the British right, hoping they could strike Webster's line before it was fully formed. Owing to their own disorganization, however, the militiamen failed to act in time, and the right flank successfully formed ranks. Cornwallis then ordered Webster to make his own advance, with a bayonet charge by the Welsh Fusiliers and the West Riding Regiment. Untrained in the use of the bayonet, and of shaky morale to begin with, Stevens' militia fled the field after some brief fighting, many even throwing away their muskets. The panic spread to Caswell's North Carolinians in the center, most of whom likewise fell back in retreat.
On the advice of Colonel Williams with the Continentals, Gates ordered Stevens' Virginia militia to open the battle with an advance on the British right, hoping they could strike Webster's line before it was fully formed. Owing to their own disorganization, however, the militiamen failed to act in time, and the right flank successfully formed ranks. Cornwallis then ordered Webster to make his own advance, with a bayonet charge by the Welsh Fusiliers and the West Riding Regiment. Untrained in the use of the bayonet, and of shaky morale to begin with, Stevens' militia fled the field after some brief fighting, many even throwing away their muskets. The panic spread to Caswell's North Carolinians in the center, most of whom likewise fell back in retreat.
The Continentals on the right, meanwhile, held firm under de Kalb, wheeling left to place their backs against Gum Tree Swamp to the west and face Rawdon's soldiers, who were now attacking. The First Maryland Brigade, which initially had been held in reserve, attempted to reinforce de Kalb but was pinned down and eventually driven from the field as well; in the haze and confusion of the close-quarters battle, however, the remaining Continentals were unaware of this fact and fought on. Even after Cornwallis had committed his Highlander reserve, the Americans refused to break, repeatedly rallying and even launching several bayonet charges of their own. Only after de Kalb himself fell, with eleven separate wounds, did the morale of the Continentals break, the survivors fleeing north in the wake of the militia.
The Continentals on the right, meanwhile, held firm under de Kalb, wheeling left to place their backs against Gum Tree Swamp to the west and face Rawdon's soldiers, who were now attacking. The First Maryland Brigade, which initially had been held in reserve, attempted to reinforce de Kalb but was pinned down and eventually driven from the field as well; in the haze and confusion of the close-quarters battle, however, the remaining Continentals were unaware of this fact and fought on. Even after Cornwallis had committed his Highlander reserve, the Americans refused to break, repeatedly rallying and even launching several bayonet charges of their own. Only after de Kalb himself fell, with eleven separate wounds, did the morale of the Continentals break, the survivors fleeing north in the wake of the militia.<ref>https://revolutionarywar.us/year-1780/battle-of-camden/</ref>
==Aftermath==
Camden was among the most lopsided victories achieved by the British during the Revolutionary War, as the casualty figures alone made clear. British losses were tabulated at 68 killed, 245 wounded, and 18 missing; American casualties are hard to determine, with multiple estimates of their total loss. Historian Hugh Rankin gives a total of 240 Continentals and militiamen killed outright, while a subsequent letter from Cornwallis claimed his army had taken about a thousand prisoners, wounded and unwounded. Even allowing for exaggeration in his report, total American casualties at Camden must have been over a thousand; in other words, at least a third of Gates' entire army.
Regardless of exact numbers, survivors of the debacle were scattered and disorganized and temporarily incapable of acting as a coherent military force. The loss of much of the American officer corps contributed to the breakdown; the most grievous loss was de Kalb, who died of his wounds two days after the battle in British custody. Most of what remained of the army eventually fell back on [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]], though some of the militia returned home without ever rejoining the main force.
One result of Camden was the total discrediting of Horatio Gates as a military commander. After the start of the battle, he had taken no active part in directing his units; once the left and center collapsed, he briefly tried to rally the fleeing militia before retreating himself, riding the 60 miles back to Charlotte by nightfall. Fleeing the field in his capacity as commanding general, while de Kalb's Continentals were still fighting desperately, made Gates the object of scorn and ridicule throughout the country. One of the sharpest jeers came from [[Alexander Hamilton]], who wrote of Gates' quick rearward flight, "It does admirable credit to the activity of a man at his time of life." Owing to his political connections in the [[Continental Congress]], Gates was able to avoid court-martial and official censure for his conduct in the campaign, but he was relieved of command and replaced by Major General Nathanael Greene, Washington's personal choice for the position. Given Greene's successes in the campaigning of 1781, this change of command can be considered the one silver lining for the Americans following Camden.
==References==
[[Category:American Revolutionary War Battles]]
[[Category:American Revolutionary War Battles]]