Guilford Courthouse 1781

Lord Cornwallis's Ruinous Victory

Guilford Courthouse 1781 cover

Description

By the Spring of 1781, the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783) had dragged on for almost six years and the outcome still hung in the balance. When the British commander Lord Cornwallis launched his invasion of North Carolina in early 1781, his objective was to destroy General Nathaniel Greene's American army. At Guilford Courthouse on 15 March 1781 the two armies met. In a desperately hard-fought battle the small but professional British army succeeded in fighting its way through three separate lines of American troops – but at a dreadful cost. Cornwallis lost over a quarter of his command. When news of the 'victory' reached Britain, a politician remarked; 'Another such victory would ruin the British army'.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chronology
The Opposing Commanders
The Opposing Forces
Opposing Plans
The Battle of Guilford Courthouse
The Aftermath
The Battlefield Today

Further Reading
Index

Product details

Published Jun 25 2002
Format Paperback
Edition 1st
Extent 96
ISBN 9781841764115
Imprint Osprey Publishing
Illustrations 91 b/w; 14 col
Dimensions 10 x 7 inches
Series Campaign
Short code CAM 109
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Author

Angus Konstam

Angus Konstam is a Fellow of the Royal Historical…

Illustrator

Adam Hook

Adam Hook studied graphic design, and began his wo…

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