♪ [mortar fire booming] ♪ ♪ [musket fire popping] ♪ [mortar fire booming] ♪ [mortar fire booming] ♪ [mortar fire booming] Professor Henry Lumpkin> We're discussing the battle of Blackstocks today.

Now oddly, that battle was not fought at Blackstocks, South Carolina.

It took place, instead, on the farm or at the farm of a Mr.

William Blackstock between the present South Carolina towns of Cross Key and Cross Anchor, near to the edge of the Sumter National Forest.

It was cleared land then, or partially cleared land.

It has gone back to the wilderness now.

Remember that on October 7, 1780, Patrick Ferguson... with a column of 1,000-- or close to 1,000-- Loyalists and British Loyalist regulars, had been caught at Kings Mountain.

He had fallen in the action, and his entire command had been either killed, wounded, or captured.

This had forced Lord Cornwallis, the British commander in the South, to fall back on Winnsboro, South Carolina, and it delayed his attack into North Carolina by several months.

It's at this time that Francis Marion in the Lowcountry, the Swamp Fox, and Thomas Sumter in the Upcountry, the Gamecock, as Banastre Tarleton called him, are given orders to harry the British line of communication between Charleston and the Upcountry bases, and in the case of Thomas Sumter, to embody the men of his area to cooperate with the new American army forming at Hillsborough for the replacement of Horatio Gates, the unfortunate loser at Camden, by Nathanael Greene.

So Sumter, Thomas Sumter, becomes the spearhead of the American forces moving in toward the Broad, in between the Broad and Catawba Rivers, onto the Broad River, and it's here, or near here, because of this movement that the battle of Blackstocks is fought.

Let us go now to the farm of Mr.

William Blackstock.

♪ ♪ Today, on the knoll where the Blackstocks' farm undoubtedly was located, the scene of the battle of Blackstocks... probably exactly where Colonel Hampton placed his riflemen for enfilade fire, flanking fire, on Banastre Tarleton's men attacking up the slope right below us here.

Banastre Tarleton, galloping up to Winnsboro, was met by a series of couriers urging him to hasten his march.

"Sumter's at Hawkins Mill on Tyger River with 1,000 men," they said.

This was literally true.

Thomas Sumter had left Fish Dam Ford after the battle and marched to Hawkins Mill on the Tyger River, where he was joined by about 100 Georgians led by that famous partisan, Colonel Elijah Clarke, with Colonel Julian Twiggs, Colonel William Candler and Major James Jackson.

Thomas Sumter promptly, with his reinforced command, began reconnaissance moves against Loyalist and British forces.

Major Samuel Hammond was dispatched to intimidate Loyalist elements on the Lower Dutch Fork, that rich tongue of land between the Broad and Saluda Rivers, settled by industrious, palatine Germans.

Tom Taylor, whose ancestors still honor the state of South Carolina, raided Summer's Mill.

One hundred and fifty mounted infantry rode to Brierley's on the Broad River to watch Major Archibald MacArthur and his Highlanders of the 71st Infantry Regiment.

Tarleton arrived with his Legion on the 18th of November at Archibald MacArthur's bivouac.

While his dragoons were bathing and watering their horses at the river, Thomas Sumter's horsemen rode up and opened fire from the saddle.

A horse went down, and a soldier of the 63rd Regiment was wounded.

A three-pounder grasshopper field gun, tripod-mounted, was brought up and fired grapeshot across the river.

The Americans rode back into the forest.

[sporadic rifle fire] To conceal the fact that the Legion had arrived, Banastre Tarleton now had his men's green coats covered and sent the red-coated Highlanders and 63rd Foot across the river on flatboats.

The dragoons crossed at night by a ford three miles down the stream.

Banastre Tarleton dispatched mounted scouts who returned on the evening of 19 November with the word that Sumter was moving in full force to attack the Loyalist outpost at Williams' Plantation.

Tarleton marched up the Enoree River, camping at Indian Creek.

During the night, a soldier of the 63rd British Regiment deserted, a frequent occurrence on both sides during the American Revolution, I'm sorry to say.

Stealing a horse, he made his way to Sumter's camp, and Sumter, thus, knew by the morning of 20 November that Tarleton with his Legion, Archibald MacArthur's 71st Infantry, the mounted infantry of James Wemyss' old 63rd Foot, and a detachment of royal artillery were moving along the Enoree to cut him off from the fords and drive, hammer on the anvil, against his arrival at Ninety Six.

Since retreat not only was inadvisable but would destroy the entire American plan, Sumter decided to stand and fight, his usual decision when at all possible.

He called on his colonels, and they all advised that a strong position be found and a stand made there.

This was a serious decision, pitting American militia against British regulars.

But Colonel Thomas Brandon, operating in his own country, advised that the little army march to the plantation, the farm, of Captain William Blackstock.

This was situated along the high, wooded hills overlooking the Tyger River.

It had stout log buildings, right here, and rail fences from which infantry could fire in protected positions down the slope.

Thomas Sumter fell back, crossing the Enoree and marching toward Blackstock's farm.

He left a small detachment at the Enoree under Captain Patrick Carr to watch for Tarleton.

Banastre Tarleton, breaking camp before daylight, now pushed rapidly in pursuit.

Late in the morning, his scouts found Sumter's trail, and Banastre Tarleton began a forced march to strike Thomas Sumter before he could pass the Tyger River.

Patrick Carr also had been assigned to guard all the Loyalist prisoners captured by Sumter.

Since their presence impeded Thomas Sumter's retreat, they were with Patrick Carr when Banastre Tarleton drove in among the rear guard in a mounted charge with the saber.

Patrick Carr and his militia retreated precipitously, and Banastre Tarleton successfully cut down most of the unhappy, pro-British Loyalists before they could identify themselves as American prisoners.

Rather interestingly, he covers this in his memoirs by saying that his dragoons charged the American rear guard and defeated them with considerable slaughter.

The entire day of 30 November, Banastre Tarleton followed Thomas Sumter.

About the middle of the afternoon, realizing that his infantry and artillery could not keep up the pace, he ordered them to march at a normal rate and pressed forward with his dragoons and the mounted infantry of the 63rd Regiment... no infantry, no artillery.

Thomas Sumter reached Blackstock's farm late in the afternoon and began to establish his position.

His men, experienced woodsmen, built fires and cooked their meager rations of meat and meal, knowing that men fight best on a full stomach.

While they were cooking and eating, a Mrs.

Mary Dillard, who owned a farm six miles below Blackstock's, came riding into the camp, right here.

She had seen Banastre Tarleton's line of march and brought word that he was advancing without infantry or artillery to fight a superior force in a prepared position.

Sumter now had to decide whether to fight or ford the Tyger and disband his troops to reassemble at a different date and place, a customary tactic of partisan captains facing admittedly superior enemy forces.

In this case, time was too short before the pursuing British arrived.

Sumter had about 1,000 men.

Also, he had no artillery.

But these 1,000 men were veterans of almost 2 years of continuous partisan warfare.

Thomas Sumter actually was in a position of great natural strength.

A long, steep ridge or hill, thickly wooded with pine, oak, and hickory, covered his right flank, right over there.

On his left was a strong fence which stretched for about a fourth of a mile, and this was not the usual split-rail fence, but constructed, instead, of small trees, notched one in the other, an excellent rifle defense.

On a low hill at the end of the land, formed by the fence, were Blackstock's house, barn, and outbuildings, all built solidly from logs, right where we're standing.

Below the house, now grown up in jack oak and pine, was a cleared field and pasture, about 50 acres in extent, sloping down to a shallow stream.

Behind the house, the land dropped steeply to the fast-running Tyger River.

The road crossing the Tyger ford ran beside the house-- over here to the right-- and across the branch to a hill where Tarleton was to marshal his attack.

Thomas Sumter established his command post on a low, wooded eminence, probably about 100 yards to our right over here, west of the road to the river.

Colonel Henry Hampton and his riflemen were stationed on his left in the log barns around the house.

I'm probably standing just about where they were stationed.

Apparently the barns were unchinked, which permitted the riflemen to fire between the logs as if they were natural loopholes.

Down from the house and across the upper edge of the field, which used to be down here, were placed the 100 Georgia riflemen, and below the forested hills on his right were stationed the troops under Colonel James McCall, William Bratton, Thomas Taylor, Edward Lacey, and William Hill, with Colonel Richard Winn commanding, with a reserve force to his left and rear, over by the river.

An interesting and very human note is recorded here.

Captain Blackstock was away from home, serving with Colonel Roebuck's regiment, but Mary Blackstock, living in the house, frightened but resolute, sallied out of her house and went to see Thomas Sumter.

"General," she said, "I just won't have any fightin' around my house."

It was too late for such a remonstrance.

Tarleton already had arrived and was making his counter dispositions at the base of the hill.

He was, as Daniel Morgan said later, a "down right fighter" and personally a very brave man, but he had 270 British dragoons and mounted infantry against 1,000 American militiamen, experienced fighters, many armed with the very accurate rifle.

There was no artillery, as I have said, on either side.

Banastre Tarleton's decision, therefore, should have been to fix the Americans in position and hold them here until his infantry and artillery arrived.

His main task was to prevent them from crossing the river behind us to safety.

Banastre Tarleton ordered Major John Money, commanding the 63rd Regiment, to dismount his men, or the mounted men of the 63rd, and attack Colonel John Twiggs and the Georgians in their advance position down the slope in front of us.

Major Money swung his men into line and moved forward.

Thomas Sumter, as usual, impetuous and confident in his superior numbers, in turn ordered Colonel Benjamin Few and Major Joseph McJunkin, with 400 militia, to move in support of John Twiggs and attack across the branch, uphill against the advancing 63rd Regiment.

The American militia, unaccustomed to set fighting, discharged their volley at too great a distance to effect any damage on the enemy.

While they halted to reload their muzzle-loading muskets... [musket fire popping] John Money, with his 80 men, gallantly charged with the bayonet, driving John Twiggs and Benjamin Few before him... 80 against 500.

The fact remains, however, that American militia seldom, if ever, would or could abide cold steel, and the famous "Over the Mountain" riflemen, as I've said often before, were terrified of cavalry with sabers.

The 80 men of the 63rd swept forward but, unfortunately for them, advanced too far and came under aimed rifle fire from Henry Hampton and his men, delivering precision fire at 200 yards from the log outbuildings here on this hillock.

As usual, they shot at the epaulets and the stripes.

A Lieutenant Cope and a Lieutenant Gibson, junior subalterns of the 63rd, both went down, killed outright.

John Money crumpled, mortally wounded, as his men neared the woods behind Blackstock's house, pursuing John Twiggs and his Georgians.

With the British preoccupied with the infantry battle on the American left, Thomas Sumter galloped over from his command post and ordered Colonel Edward Lacey to swing quietly through the woods and flank Banastre Tarleton's dragoons, sitting in their saddles, watching the infantry fight.

This he did... so successfully that Edward Lacey got within about 50 yards of the British left, unperceived, where he opened with buckshot on the unsuspecting horsemen.

He must have been within about 50 yards, although the source says 75, since buckshot is not effective at 75 yards, or seldom effective.

They fired, and 20 dragoons went down, but a Lieutenant Skinner, a British Lieutenant Skinner, rallied the British horse and drove back the American flankers with the saber.

Tarleton, now realizing that the battle wavered in the balance, ordered a cavalry charge uphill, against a prepared infantry position, riflemen firing from cover.

This hardly reflects upon his tactical intelligence, since all he had to do was order the 63rd to fall back and then keep the Americans engaged until his infantry, just a few hours behind, came up to the battle with the artillery.

That, however, was not Tarleton's way of doing things.

He charged a second time up the hill with his dragoons in support of the 63rd, with complete disregard for his own safety.

Banastre Tarleton actually swung out of his saddle, picked up the unconscious John Money, slung him over the saddlebow, remounted, and carried Money back to the British lines in a hail of rifle bullets.

Whatever you may say of Banastre Tarleton's vanity, braggadocio, and cruelty-- all true-- the man was a damn fine combat officer and a good, if too impulsive, fighting soldier.

So many dragoons fell from the concealed rifle fire that the road was blocked by the bodies of men and kicking chargers.

Banastre Tarleton ordered a general retreat, and his men fell back in good order.

Thomas Sumter, who'd ridden over to watch Edward Lacey's flank attack, was riding back to his command post.

As reckless as Banastre Tarleton, he spurred forward to watch the retreat, and a platoon of the 63rd retreating grimly down the hill with loaded muskets saw the mounted man wearing gold epaulets and fired, on order, an aimed volley fire.

A captain on Sumter's right, Gabriel Brown, was killed outright.

Sumter turned his right side toward the volley to protect his heart-- he saw the muskets swing up-- and five buckshot hit his chest.

One struck under his right shoulder, entered the body, chipped a splinter off his backbone, and lodged under his right shoulder.

When he reached his command post, his aides assisted him to dismount.

Captain Robert McKelvey heard something pattering on the dry November leaves.

To his horror, a stream of blood was running down the general's uniform coat and spattering on the ground.

"General, you're wounded," he said.

"I am wounded," replied the grim Sumter, "but say nothing of it."

Since he could not move his right arm, he asked Henry Hampton to sheathe his sword for him, which that colonel did.

He tried to reassume command, but the bleeding continued, and calling Henry Hampton, he said, "Request Colonel Twiggs to take command,"...the next senior.

The field surgeon for the Americans, Dr.

Robert Brownfield, was summoned.

Thomas Sumter was moved over on his face, and without anesthetics of any sort, the slug was dug out from his right shoulder.

Half-conscious, the general was placed in a crude litter of raw bull's hide over two poles suspended between two horses and taken from the battlefield.

Colonel Edward Lacey and 100 picked men went with him as a bodyguard.

Colonel John Twiggs, now in command, began promptly to exploit his considerable victory.

The British had left 92 dead and wounded on the field, the result of their hopeless and unsuccessful frontal charges... 270 men against 1,000.

John Twiggs picked up all the wounded.

There were only three American dead and four wounded, among them Thomas Sumter.

The Americans treated all the wounded with as much humanity as time or means permitted.

This was stated later by Lieutenant Roderick McKenzie of the 71st Regiment in his "Strictures" on Tarleton's campaigns.

Banastre Tarleton, defeated, or at least checked, for the first time in his career, now led his men two miles from the battlefield and went into bivouac, waiting for his infantry and artillery.

He planned to attack again the next morning... but the Americans disappointed him.

Decoy campfires were left burning out on the battlefield, and during the night, the Americans abandoned their position and forded the river, leaving the field to Banastre Tarleton.

Banastre Tarleton was left with the wounded and dead of both sides, except for Thomas Sumter, and, thus, reported a victory to Earl Cornwallis.

He cited his own losses as 50 killed and wounded.

The American number is probably closer to the fact.

He also excused the action of 270 against 1,000 by saying that the 63rd Regiment were attacked first, and fighting, thus, was forced on him.

Lord Cornwallis wrote him, "I have no doubt but your victory will be attended with as good consequences to our affairs as it is with honor and credit to yourself.

I shall be very glad to hear that Thomas Sumter is in a position to give us no further trouble.

He certainly has been our greatest plague in this country."

"I hope tomorrow to complete the destruction of our enemies in this district," replied Banastre Tarleton.

"Thomas Sumter is now reported dead."

This was in November, and the Battle of Cowpens was fought two months later... vain words by a very vain man.

The dreaded Bloody Tarleton, Banastre Tarleton, could be stopped, could be checked, and the Americans now knew it.

That truly is the importance of the battle of Blackstocks.

♪ Kings Mountain was the first link in the chain of British defeats.

It led inevitably to Guilford Courthouse, that British Pyrrhic victory, and the surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown.

Blackstocks is the interim battle, and Blackstocks is the battle, as I have said, where Bloody Tarleton was met and defeated.

Now I grant you, it was 1,000 against a few hundred, and yet these were American militia who had lived in dread of the dashing British cavalry commander.

They had fought him to a standstill.

They had faced frontal attacks, bayonet charges, and had beaten him back with very little loss to themselves and very heavy loss to the British.

Now we move to Cowpens... to, really, one of the most important battles in the Revolutionary War.

The numbers engaged were not great.

They never were in the American Revolution.

These are small armies fighting over vast areas.

But at Cowpens, an American army of militia, frontier militia of regulars from Maryland, from Virginia, from Georgia, led by the redoubtable Colonel Daniel Morgan, now Brigadier General Morgan, were to meet an equal British army, again under the command of Banastre Tarleton, and at Cowpens... at Cowpens... the American army was the better army.

Now, that is the lesson out of the Battle of Cowpens, which we're about to study.

Two armies met... an army of British regulars, led by Banastre Tarleton, and an army of American regulars and militia, led by Daniel Morgan and Otho Williams and John Eager Howard, Andrew Pickens, some of the great fighting names in the American South during the Revolution.

At Cowpens, the small American army, probably one of the finest armies we ever have fielded in our history, met and fought on an equal basis.

Tarleton had artillery.

Morgan did not have artillery.

Fought and met on an equal basis and defeated summarily Banastre Tarleton and his regular British army.

At Cowpens, the American army was the best army on the field, and they won accordingly.

So it's from these engagements we've discussed... Kings Mountain, Blackstocks, Cowpens, the raids of the ubiquitous Francis Marion across the South Carolina Lowcountry, so destructive, so grimly destructive to British morale and British communications, that the British defeat in the South inevitably is to progress and occur.

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